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

The Committee notes that the Government’s report has not been received. 

Article 17 of the Convention. Applicability of the Convention to all branches of economic activity. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s statement that the scope of the acts and regulations that came into force in recent years is broader than that of the regulation on the guarding of machinery and that the criteria set forth in Law No. 4703 on reliable products are applicable not only to machinery used in the industrial and commercial sectors but also to machinery used in all sectors of the economy. The Committee also notes the observation by the Turkish Confederation of Employers’ Associations (TISK) submitted in 2004 alleging that, in their view, national legislation complies with the requirements of the Convention. The Committee requests the Government to indicate, with reference to relevant legislative provisions, how effect is given to this Article.

Part V of the report form and Article 15. Application in practice and appropriate inspection services for the purpose of supervising the application of the provisions of the Convention. The Committee notes the information in the Government’s latest report that the Board of Labour Inspection of the Ministry of Labour and Social Security carried out, in 2003 and 2004, a number of projects for the effective inspection of hazardous economic sectors in terms of occupational safety and health. It notes that inspections to ensure effective control of all the sectors of the economy, including the informal economy, will continue to be carried out in the coming years. Against this background, the Committee notes the observations by the Confederation of Progressive Trade Unions of Turkey (DISK) alleging that Articles 2, 6 and 10 of the Convention are not applied in practice and that the inspection services required in Article 15 are “extremely sporadic and ineffective,” and that 8,771 of the 72,367 industrial accidents registered in 2001 (i.e. 12 per cent) were caused directly by machinery. The Turkish Confederation of Public Workers Associations (TÜRKIYE KAMU‑SEN) also observed that workplace fatalities and accidents that occur are frequently related to machinery, but that TÜRKIYE KAMU-SEN did not dispose of any specific statistics. The Committee requests the Government to respond to the observations by the DISK and the TÜRKIYE KAMU-SEN regarding the application of the Convention, the availability of appropriate inspection services and to provide detailed information regarding the application of the Convention in practice including, for instance, extracts from official reports.

[The Government is asked to reply in detail to the present comments in 2010.]