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The Committee notes the information contained in the Government’s report for the period ending May 2006 on the strengthening of the inspection system, the results of its activities and the use made of the data acquired with a view to achieving greater effectiveness in terms of prevention.

1. Inspection of occupational safety and health conditions and collaboration with the social partners. The Committee notes with interest that the occupational safety and health inspection framework has been reformed with a view to responding in an appropriate manner to the problems demonstrated by the high numbers of industrial accidents. It further notes that it is planned to strengthen the numbers of inspectors, who currently number 173 officials, consisting of general inspectors (89), specialists in construction and safety engineering (16), occupational medicine (10), occupational hygiene (11) and risk management (5), with a view to expanding the staff strength to around 280 in the near future. The Government indicates that it launched a programme in March 2006 targeting four priority high-risk areas; scaffolding, confined spaces, metalworking and falls from heights, with a view to reducing the risk of fatal accidents. Furthermore, high-risk factories are monitored through various surveillance programmes.

The Committee also notes that the Workplace Safety and Health (Incident Reporting) Regulations prescribe new requirements for the notification of accidents, cases of occupational disease and dangerous occurrences at all workplaces. It notes with satisfaction that these requirements are intended to improve the relevance of the information gathered from notifications so that lessons can be learned for the future and hotspots can be rapidly identified and remedied.

The Committee notes with interest that the inspection services responsible for occupational safety and health hold a regular dialogue and work in close partnership with employers and workers in the Workplace Safety and Health Advisory Committee (WSHAC), which is composed of representatives from industry, employees, employers, members of academia and advisers from the legal, insurance and training fields, as well as in the various advisory subcommittees which offer advice and make recommendations to develop a safer and healthier workplace.

2. Inspection of general conditions of work. The Committee notes the detailed information on the composition of the inspection staff responsible for terms and conditions of employment and the activities undertaken during the period covered by the report. In particular, it notes with interest that the inspection services handle a large number of requests for information and advice from employers and workers by telephone and in writing.

The Committee is addressing a request directly to the Government on one point.