Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1992, published 79th ILC session (1992)

The Committee has noted with interest the Government's first report. It also has noted the Government's report for the period ending 30 June 1990. It requests the Government to provide further information on the following points:

1. Article 1 of the Convention. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the manner in which employers' and workers' representatives are consulted in applying the provisions of the Convention.

2. Article 2, paragraph 1. Section 2 of the Atomic Energy Regulations for the use of Radioactive Material, Irradiating Apparatus and Transport of Radioactive Material (182/12 of 25 September 1975) (the "Regulations") provides that no person shall manufacture, produce, treat, store or use any radioactive material except under the authority of a licence issued by the Atomic Energy Authority. The Government, however, has indicated in its report that the categories of workers covered by the Convention are those employed in factories involving exposure to ionising radiation, as defined by section 53A of the Factories Ordinance. This would appear to exclude establishments such as hospitals, clinics and research institutions. In its declaration of ratification in accordance with Article 3, paragraph 3(c), of the Convention, the Government has indicated that the Convention applied to "radiation workers" as defined by Regulation No. 15 of the Atomic Energy Regulations which covers "any person who in the cause of his employment uses or handles or assists in using or handling any radioactive material" or any irradiating apparatus. It added that the Convention would, therefore, apply to workers employed at X-ray departments in the General Hospital and at the Cancer Institute in the Mineral Sands Corporation as well as workers engaged in checking on welding using radioactive materials. The Government is requested, therefore, to indicate whether the Convention is applied to all activities involving exposure of workers to ionising radiations in the course of their work as appears to be evident from its declaration under Article 3, paragraph 3(c), and Regulations 2 and 15 of the Atomic Energy Regulations or whether the Factories Law restricts the application of the Regulations to workers in factories.

3. Article 3, paragraph 1, provides that all appropriate steps shall be taken to ensure the effective protection of workers' health and safety against ionising radiation, in the light of knowledge available at the time. The Government is referred to the Committee's General Observation under this Convention which sets forth, inter alia, revised dose limits established on the basis of new physiological findings by the International Commission of Radiological Protection (ICRP) in its 1990 Recommendations (publication No. 60). The Government is requested to indicate the measures taken or envisaged in the light of this information as concerns the following Articles of the Convention:

(a) Article 6. The Committee notes that the maximum permissible dose limits of ionising radiations set by the Atomic Energy Authority in Regulation 6(2) and (3) of the Atomic Energy Regulations are higher than those now recommended by the ICRP. Furthermore, the Committee notes that the Regulations do not set any limit for exposure of pregnant women or direct exposure to the lens of the eye of workers. The Committee would recall that Article 6, paragraph 2, of the Convention calls for these maximum doses to be kept under constant review in the light of current knowledge and requests the Government to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to revise the exposure limits in light of the new recommendations.

(b) Article 7, paragraph 1, provides that appropriate levels shall be fixed for workers directly engaged in radiation work who are under the age of 18 and over the age of 16. The Committee notes that Regulation 10(3) of the Atomic Energy Regulations prohibits the employment of persons under 18 as radiation workers. Regulation 6(2)(i)(a) however, which applies to radiation workers, provides that a person under the age of 18 shall not be exposed to radiation exceeding 5 rem (50 mSv) per year. Fifty mSv per year is a multiple of the present average annual dose limit tolerated by the ICRP for adult radiation workers, which is 20 mSv (2 rems). Sections 4.1.5 and 4.3.1 of the ILO Code of Practice on the Radiation Protection of Workers (Ionising Radiations) recommends that where persons under 18 are admitted to radiation work, the limit set should be three-tenths of the limit set for adults. The Government is requested to indicate the measures taken to review the maximum permissible dose established for workers under 18 years of age with a view to ensuring effective protection of their health and safety.

(c) Finally, Regulation 6(3)(i) of the Atomic Energy Regulations sets a limit for workers not directly engaged in radiation work at 1.5 rems (15 mSv). The ILO Code of Practice recommends that the level of exposure to ionising radiations for workers not directly engaged in radiation work but who may in any event be exposed to radiation be the same exposure limits as those set for members of the general public. The ICRP recommends an annual dose limit for members of the public of 1 mSv, averaged over any five consecutive years. The Government is requested to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to revise the exposure limits for workers not directly engaged in radiation work in this regard.

4. Article 12. The Committee notes that Regulation 10(1) of the Atomic Energy Regulations provides for pre-employment medical examinations for workers to be employed in work involving exposure to ionising radiations and empowers the Atomic Energy Authority to require any person who is or has been a radiation worker to undergo a medical examination. The Government is requested to indicate the measures taken or envisaged by the authority to ensure that workers directly engaged in radiation work are provided with further medical examinations at appropriate intervals and to specify the frequency of these examinations.

5. Article 13. (a) The Committee notes that section 10(1)(b) of the Regulations enables the Atomic Energy Authority to request that a worker undergo a medical examination at any time. The Government is requested to specify the circumstances determined by the Authority in which, because of the nature or degree of the exposure, a worker shall undergo a medical examination.

(b) The Committee notes that Regulation 12 of the Regulations enables the Atomic Energy Authority to ensure that certain work involving the use of radioactive substances be carried out under the supervision of a radiation safety officer. As the Regulation indicates that the radiation safety officer may be the licensee of the premises or a person employed by him, the Government is requested to indicate the functions and responsibilities of the radiation safety officer and the manner in which it is ensured that such an officer is competent in radiation protection.

(d) The Committee notes that Regulation 7(3) and (5) provide for measures to be taken to prevent the spread of contamination and to decontaminate clothing, parts of the building and persons. The Government is requested to provide further information concerning remedial action which must be taken by the employer on the basis of technical findings and medical advice and to indicate, in particular, whether measures are taken to provide workers who have been exposed to levels of radiation exceeding the maximum permissible doses with alternative employment if continued exposure is medically inadvisable (see General Observation, paragraphs 28 to 34).

6. Article 14. The Committee notes that Regulation 10(2) of the Regulations provides that a person cannot be employed as a radiation worker if the Atomic Energy Authority disapproves of that person's employment or continued employment. The Government is requested to indicate the manner in which the Atomic Energy Authority ensures that a worker whose exposure to ionising radiations is contrary to qualified medical advice will not be employed on radiation work and to indicate whether alternative employment is provided in such instances.

7. Part II of the Regulations concerning Safe Transport of Radioactive Materials appears to be partly based on standards no longer recognised by the international community. The Government is referred to the International Atomic Energy Association Regulations of 1985 and the 1988 supplement for more current information on the safe transport of radioactive materials, in conformity with Article 3, paragraph 1, which calls for the effective protection of workers against ionising radiations in the light of current knowledge.