Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2000, published 89th ILC session (2001)

1.  The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government in its report. It also notes the comments formulated by the Confederation of Finnish Industry and Employers (TT), the Employers’ Confederation of Service Industries (LTK), as well as the observations made by the Central Organization of Finnish Trade Unions (SAK).

2.  Article 7, paragraphs 1(b) and 2, of the Convention.  The Committee notes with satisfaction section 37 of the Radiation Act, as amended, prohibiting the employment of persons under the age of 18 years in radiation work. The only exclusion from this prohibition is for young persons engaged in radiation work in the course of their vocational training. In this case, the minimum age for admission to radiation work is 16 years. With regard to the maximum dose limits fixed for this category of workers, the Committee notes that section 4 of the Radiation Decree (1512/1991), as amended, fixes the maximum permitted effective dose limit at 6 mSv per year. The annual equivalent dose limits are 50 mSv for the lens of the eye and 150 mSv for any area of the skin. In this respect, the Committee would like to draw the Government’s attention to sections 4.1.5 and 4.3.1(b) of the 1986 ILO Code of Practice on Radiation Protection of Workers (Ionizing Radiation) which recommends that workers, apprentices and students under the age of 18 should only be engaged in radiation work which would not expose them to more than three-tenths of the annual dose limits established. The Committee finds that the Finnish legislation is in conformity with these recommendations, except for the dose limit established with regard to the exposure of the lens of the eye. The Committee therefore invites the Government to re-examine this dose limit in order to ensure the full application of this provision of the Convention.

3.  Article 14.  Alternative employment.  The Committee notes with interest section 33(c) of the Radiation Act, as amended, establishing the principle that the dismissal of a worker is not justified on the grounds of an accumulation of radiation exposure exceeding the maximum permissible limit. In this context, the Government indicates that this legal principle does not safeguard the worker from dismissal on grounds of business requirements, e.g. cuts in the production or even total closure. However, these conditions are highly likely to arise after an accident. The Government announces that this gap in the law will be addressed in the framework of the next revision of the pertinent legislation. The Committee therefore hopes that the Government will take the necessary measures to this end in the near future to ensure job security for those workers who have accumulated an effective dose beyond the occupational exposure limits established in the national legislation. It requests the Government to provide information on any progress achieved in this regard.

4.  Part V of the report form.  The Committee notes the Government’s indication to the effect that workers involved in an intervention due to an accident should automatically receive substantial economic or other compensation for any partial or complete disability or death occurring at a later stage and which is caused by excessive exposure to radiation. The Government considers that financial compensation could, in principle, be paid either in the form of an extra salary or by maintaining a sufficiently large fund which is used to pay compensation to those workers or their families who have sacrificed their health, working capacity or life in an emergency situation. The Government concludes that the payment in the form of an extra salary runs contrary to the spirit of the Occupational Safety Act, since in Finland all compensation to be paid for industrial accidents is covered by insurance companies. In this respect, the Committee notes that the amount of compensation in the case of an industrial accident or occupational disease is the same for all workers concerned irrespective of their level of risk. The only extra benefit for radiation workers is the right to radiation leave which, however, was withdrawn in 1998 from employees subject to low levels of exposure, such as X-ray nurses. The level of risk nevertheless affects employers in large companies in the sense that it is more expensive for these employers to take out insurance cover if many cases of accidents or industrial diseases have occurred in their companies. The Committee notes the Government’s reflections on this issue and requests it to provide information on any action taken to improve the protection of workers exposed to radiation, and in general on the practical application of the Convention.