Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2009, published 99th ILC session (2010)

Occupational Cancer Convention, 1974 (No. 139) - Serbia (Ratification: 2000)

Article 1. Prohibition of occupational exposure to carcinogenic substances and agents. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government indicating that the list of prohibited carcinogenic substances and agents, and the list of exemptions from the rule on prohibiting manufacturing and utilization of carcinogenic substances and agents, have not been established. The Committee asks the Government to provide further information on how the abovementioned lists are to be developed and periodically determined, and to supply copies of them once they have been adopted.

Article 2, paragraphs 1 and 2. Replacing of carcinogenic substances and agents by less harmful substances or agents, and reducing the number of workers exposed to such substances. The Committee notes the reference by the Government to section 7 of the Occupational Safety and Health Law, which provides for the adoption of a by-law requiring employers to replace carcinogenic substances and agents that employees may be exposed to during their work with non-carcinogenic substances and agents, and establishing the duration and degree of worker exposure to such substances. The Committee asks the Government to indicate whether the abovementioned by-law has been adopted and, if so, to specify whether it ensures that the number of workers exposed to carcinogenic substances or agents and the duration and degree of such exposure shall be reduced to the minimum compatible with safety.

Article 4. Providing workers with all available information on the dangers involved. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government indicating regulations that require employers to introduce employees to the risks associated with exposure to carcinogenic substances and agents, and that further measures are currently being developed with regard to the requirements of this Article. The Committee asks the Government to provide information in its next report on measures taken to give effect to Article 4 of the Convention.

Article 5. Medical examinations during the period of employment and thereafter. The Committee notes the comprehensive information contained in the Rulebook on Pre-emptive and Periodical Medical Examinations at High Risk Workplaces, which establishes the requirements for pre-employment and periodical medical examinations of workers exposed to carcinogenic substances. With respect to the importance of medical examinations to be carried out after the termination of employment, the Committee points out that the need to examine workers after they have ceased their employment is due to the fact that the occupational origin of cancer is often difficult to demonstrate, as there is no difference between occupational cancer and other non-occupational forms from the clinical and pathological points of view. Moreover, the development of cancer is generally very slow, with latency periods stretching over anything from ten to 30 years or more. The Committee urges the Government to take measures to ensure that workers are provided with such medical examinations or biological or other tests or investigations as are necessary to evaluate their state of health in relation to occupational hazards not only during the period of employment but also thereafter.

Part IV of the report form. Application in practice. The Committee asks the Government to give a general appreciation of the manner in which the Convention is applied in the country and attach extracts from inspection reports and, where such statistics exist, information on the number of workers covered by the legislation, the number and nature of the contraventions reported, and the number, nature and cause of diseases reported, etc.