SEE and NIS Trade Union Experts’ Meeting on OHS “Safety and health at work as a fundamental right at work – Decent and climate friendly jobs”

Within the framework of the Support Project of the Swedish Trade Unions "Union to Union", in Igalo - Montenegro, on 16 – 17 November 2023, a meeting of the Network of trade union experts from the countries of Southeast Europe, Georgia, Moldova and Armenia was held on Safety and health protection at work - "Safety and health at work as a fundamental right at work – Decent and climate friendly jobs".

The expert support was provided by: Karoly Gyorgy - EU expert, via video link - Mark Hangen from ITUC- Just Transition Center, Anton Leppik - PERC Executive Secretary, as well as colleague Cvetan Kovač from the NHS Trade Union from Croatia, as the only EU member from the Region.
The policies and strategies of the ITUC on OHS, the new EU strategic framework on OHS, OSH as a fundamental workers’ right - Global, European, and national levels were presented (Biological hazards in the working environment - Consideration of ILO Biological Hazards Convention, ILO Convention C 155, C 187), Decent and climate friendly work – Work at high temperatures and in cold weather; Migrant workers and OHS - Foreign workers in other countries - the example of Croatia; Mapping stronger engagement of trade unions on Just Transition.
Given that climate friendly jobs are the focus of the union, it is necessary to regulate work at extremely high temperatures and in the cold through social dialogue and collective agreements. A colleague from the ITUC Just Transition Center emphasized in his online presentation that his goal is empowering workers and through sharing examples of Just Transition processes and plans, facilitating peer-to-peer skill and experience sharing, and capacity building on Just Transition. The participants also briefly presented the situation related to the legal regulation of OSH issues in their countries, the situation in practice, trade union actions to treat the OHS issue as a fundamental concern of workers.
The members of the PERC Network on OHS pointed out that OHS is at the top of their organizations’ priorities and that the support program of the Swedish Trade Unions U2U greatly helps them to improve their knowledge on the issue of OHS and implement the actions and activities of the unions at the national level, with the aim of improving OHS, as a fundamental right at work, for all workers. The participants are particularly interested in the process of implementing activities at the national level in the matter of Just Transition, climate change and the introduction of renewable energy sources, the green economy, the rights of platform workers, social dialogue on just transition, cooperation with other actors, as well as the stronger presence and role of the Trade Union in those processes. Based on national presentations, discussions of participants, topics presented by experts, certain proposals were expressed for the next steps and activities of the OSH Network, which will be included in future activities.

ITUC/ PERC SEE Office Sarajevo