Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2024, published 113rd ILC session (2025)

South Africa

Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981 (No. 155) (Ratification: 2003)
Safety and Health in Mines Convention, 1995 (No. 176) (Ratification: 2000)

In order to provide a comprehensive view of the issues relating to the application of ratified Conventions on Occupational Safety and Health (OSH), the Committee considers it appropriate to examine Conventions Nos 155 (OSH) and 176 (occupational safety and health in mining) together.

General provisions

Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981 (No. 155)

The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in response to its previous comments concerning Article 11(a) (the determination of conditions governing the design and construction of undertakings), Article 19(b)-(e) (rights and duties of workers and their representatives) and Article 20 (cooperation at the level of the undertaking) of the Convention.

Articles 4 and 7 of the Convention. National policy on occupational safety and health. Review of the national policy at appropriate intervals. The Committee notes the reference made by the Government to the Profile of Occupational Health and Safety South Africa, 2020 regarding OHS challenges identified and recommendations formulated for dealing with them. The Committee notes that these challenges include a lack of up-to-date OSH statistics and incident reporting; a shortage of human resources for inspections; and complex OSH legislation with various gaps. It further notes the activities of the tripartite Advisory Council for Occupational Health and Safety (ACOHS), through the Directorate of Occupational Health and Hygiene during the COVID-19 pandemic, which has led to the promulgation of new Hazardous Biological Agents Regulations in 2022, and that new draft regulations on lead and hazardous chemical agents have been prepared. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken to address the OSH challenges identified, in consultation with the social partners. It also requests the Government to continue to provide information on the activities of the tripartite ACOHS and any new occupational safety and health legislation adopted.

Article 5(b). Relationships between the material elements of work and the persons who carry out or supervise the work. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Ergonomics Regulations (2019) were promulgated to satisfy the requirements of Article 5(b) of the Convention. In this respect, the Committee notes the provisions of the Ergonomics Regulations which provide, among others, for the risk assessment, risk control and medical surveillance of ergonomic hazards. The Committee also notes that section 11 of Ergonomics Regulations (2019) requires the establishment of a tripartite Ergonomics health and safety technical Committee which includes specialists in the field of ergonomics. The Committee notes this information, which responds to its previous request.

Article 5(e). Protection of workers and their representatives from disciplinary measures. The Committee notes that under sections 6 and 7 of the OHS Regulations No. 85 of 1993 (General Administrative Regulations 6 and 7), employers are required to meet with the registered trade unions of the workplace (or where there is no trade union, all employee representatives) to conclude an agreement on the nomination of health and safety representatives. The agreement must include the manner in which health and safety representatives must perform their functions in terms of the Act, their terms of office, circumstances and manner in which they can be removed. The Committee requests the Government to provide further information (including on the content of these agreements) on the protection of worker representatives from disciplinary measures as a result of actions properly taken by them in conformity with the national policy on occupational safety and health, in accordance with Article 5(e).

Article 11(c) and (e). Functions to be progressively carried out to give effect to the national policy. The Committee notes that section 11 of Ergonomics Regulations (2019) requires the establishment of a tripartite Ergonomics health and safety technical Committee which includes specialists in the field of ergonomics. Regarding Article 11(c) and (e), the Committee notes the information provided in the Profile of Occupational Health and Safety South Africa, 2020, which indicates that work-related injuries and diseases data collection and reporting is fragmented and not harmonised among and within the different departments. There is no uniform way of recording and reporting injuries and disease statistics and that therefore, there is no clear picture of the burden of occupational injuries and diseases. The Committee reiterates its request that the Government provides information on measures taken or envisaged to strengthen the application of procedures for the production of annual statistics on occupational accidents and diseases (Article 11(c)), and the annual publication of information on occupational accidents, occupational diseases and other injuries to health which arise in the course of, or in connection with, work (Article 11(e)).

Article 12(b). Obligations of persons who design, manufacture, import, provide or transfer machinery, equipment or substances for occupational use. The Committee notes with interest that section 5 of the Ergonomics Regulations (2019) sets out the obligation of designers, manufacturers, importers and suppliers of machinery, plant or work systems at work to provide information, instruction and training to users. The Government further refers to the Regulations for Hazardous Chemical Agents (2021), which stipulate an obligation for manufacturers or importers to develop and provide suppliers with Safety Data Sheets on hazardous chemical agents (section 14A). In this regard, the Committee also notes the reference made under section 5 (c) and (e) of the draft Physical Agents Regulations, 2023, to the duties of designers, manufacturers, importers and suppliers which, among others, are required to provide information, instruction and training as deemed necessary to minimise the exposure to a physical agent during the use of machinery or plant (§ 5(c)). They are further required to provide information to potential users on the appropriate maintenance of machinery or plant to ensure their safe operation and use (§ 5(e)). The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on legislative developments related to the implementation of Article 12, including the adoption of the Physical Agents Regulations.

Article 15. Arrangements for coordination between authorities and bodies and consultation with workers’ and employers’ representatives. The Committee notes the information provided in the Profile of Occupational Health And Safety South Africa, 2020 regarding various tripartite mechanisms, in both industrial and mining work environments, that are in place to ensure that OSH is implemented in a consultative, coordinated, and collaborative manner. These include the National Economic Development and Labour Council (NEDLAC), which operates at the national level, the Mine Health and Safety Council (MHSC), and ACOHS which covers sectors other than mining at the national level. These structures collaborate in the implementation of OHS policies and legislation in a tripartite manner. The stakeholders include representatives from the Government, workers, employers, and communities. The Committee notes this information, which responds to its previous request.

Article 17. Collaboration when two or more undertakings engage in activities simultaneously at one workplace. The Committee notes the reference made by the Government to section 37(2) of the OHSA, and observes that this provision does not meet the requirement of Article17 of the Convention. The Committee requests, once again, the Government to provide information on measures taken to ensure, in law and in practice, that whenever two or more undertakings engage in activities simultaneously at one workplace, they collaborate in applying the provisions regarding occupational health and safety and the working environment.

Article 18. Measures to deal with emergencies and accidents. The Committee notes that under the OHSA, First Aid, Emergency Equipment and Procedures (General Safety Regulations 3), the employer is required to take all reasonable steps that are necessary under the circumstances, to ensure that persons at work receive prompt first aid treatment in case of injury or emergency (section 3(1)). The Committee notes however that emergency planning is only required in workplaces exposed to hazardous substances. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken to ensure that in all workplaces employers are required to provide, where necessary, measures to deal with emergencies and accidents.

Application in practice. The Committee notes the information provided in the Occupational Hygiene Approved Inspection Authorities (OH AIA) reports, including the disaggregated data on the number of occupational hygiene surveys conducted and their results. The Committee further notes the statistics provided in the Profile of Occupational Health And Safety South Africa, 2020, including with regard to reports of work incidents and diseases in all sectors of the economy except for mining, which indicated a decrease in the number of claims from 2016–17 (155,427 claims) to 2019–20 (82,526 claims). The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the application in practice of the Convention, including information on the number, nature and causes of occupational accidents and cases of diseases reported.

Specific sectors

Safety and Health in Mines Convention, 1995 (No. 176)

The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in response to its previous comments concerning Article 5(3) (explosives and initiating devices) related to the 2018 amendments to Chapter 4 of the Mine Health and Safety Regulation (MHSR) regarding explosives, Article 13(1)(c) and (d) (right of workers to be informed of workplace hazards and to obtain information relevant to their safety or health), and Article 13(2) concerning procedures established for the exercise of the rights of workers and their safety and health representatives.

Article 8 of the Convention. Emergency response plans. The Committee notes the amendments made under section 98(1) of the Mine Health and Safety Act to the Rescue, First Aid, Emergency Preparedness and Response Regulations (Chapter 16.5 of the MHSR), in 2014, and the Guideline for a Mandatory Code of Practice for Risk-Based Emergency Care on a Mine, 2016, which provide for the establishment of emergency plans in mines. The Committee notes this information, which responds to its previous request.

Article 13(1)(a)–(b). Procedures established for the exercise of the rights of workers and their safety and health representatives. The Committee notes that under section 23(1) and (2) of the Mine Health and Safety Act (MHSA), every manager is required to determine, after consulting the health and safety committee at the mine, effective procedures for the exercise of the rights granted to employees, including with regard to notification of supervisors and health and safety representatives of serious danger to their health or safety which have been perceived and responded to. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the procedures established for the exercise, by workers in the mining sector, of the following rights: to report accidents, dangerous occurrences and hazards to the competent authority (Article 13(1)(a)); and to request and obtain, where there is cause for concern on safety and health grounds, inspections and investigations to be conducted by the employer and the competent authority (Article 13(1)(b)).