Observation (CEACR) - adopted 1990, published 77th ILC session (1990)

The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government in reply to its earlier comments, as well as an observation of the Turkish Confederation of Employers' Associations dated 5 September 1989 on the application of the Convention, transmitted with the Government's report.

Article 3 of the Convention. In earlier comments, the Committee had noted the absence of provisions preventing male adult workers from engaging in the manual transport of loads which by their weight are likely to jeopardise their health or safety. Referring to point 91 of the table in the Appendix to Regulations No. 7/6174 of 29 March 1973 regarding strenuous and dangerous work, which lists "transport, emptying or loading of weights in excess of 50 kg, using a wheelbarrow or the like" among the strenuous or dangerous jobs, the Committee observed that this point in its present wording does not in fact concern manual transport of loads, as defined by the Convention, but transport of loads by means of mechanical devices and that, moreover, the Regulations do not prohibit in any way the assignment of adult male workers to the strenuous and dangerous work defined in the Appendix. Since, however, the Government had stated that this provision implied, although not expressly, that the maximum weight that may be transported by an adult male worker without the aid of mechanical devices was limited to 50 kg, the Committee asked the Government to take the necessary measures to make this explicit in law.

The Committee notes with interest the Government's indication in its latest report that, with a view to fixing the maximum weight that may be transported by an adult male worker without the aid of mechanical devices, the Ministry of Labour and Social Security has started consulting its competent institutions. The Committee hopes that the necessary measures to give effect to the Convention both in law and in practice will thus soon be adopted and that the Government will indicate the action taken.