Goodbye @EU_OSHA´s #EUhealthyworkplaces for all ages… hello #EUhealthyworkplaces Manage Dangerous Substances

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More than 350 delegates, including political decision makers, social partners, campaign partners, representatives from the European Commission, OSH experts and other key stakeholders participated last week (21&22.Nov) in Bilbao in the EU-OSHA´s 2016-17 “Healthy Workplaces for All Ages” campaign Summit.

Main conclusions of the Healthy Workplaces for All Ages campaign point out that the European workforce is ageing and official retirement ages are increasing across Europe. The changing demographic of the workforce presents numerous challenges for organisations, not least because 27 % of workers believe that they will not be able to continue their current job aged 60. In addition to raising awareness of the challenges facing the ageing European workforce, the campaign has also succeeded in giving access to practical, legal and policy solutions for tackling them.

Figures say that the Agency´s campaigns are increasingly gaining momentum: this last 2-year campaign attracted record numbers of official campaign partners and media partners, and celebrated the 20th anniversary of the much-loved cartoon OSH hero, Napo (“HWC Summit: best practice and policy solutions for managing an ageing workforce,” 2017)

From now on, EU-OSHAS´ machinery is working in the next 2018-19 HWC campaign, which will focus on dangerous substances, with the aim of raising awareness and promoting a prevention culture in workplaces across the EU, as well as targeting specific groups of workers. The main objectives of the campaign are (“The Healthy Workplaces Campaign 2018-19,” 2017):

  • To raise awareness of the importance of preventing risks from dangerous substances , helping to dispel common misunderstandings;
  • To promote risk assessment by providing information on practical tools and creating opportunities to share good practices;
  • To heighten awareness of risks linked to exposures to carcinogens at work  by supporting the exchange of good practices; EU-OSHA is a signatory to the covenant committing to the EU Carcinogens Roadmap;
  • To target groups of workers with specific needs and higher levels of risks (women, migrant workers, young people, workers at increased risk because of the sector or job they work in temporary workers and workers in the informal economy)by providing tailored information as well as examples of good practices;
  • To increase knowledge of the legislative framework that is already in place to protect workers, as well as highlighting policy developments.

The coundown to launch the #EUhealthyworkplaces manage dangerous substances campaign is up and running, and hopefully this blog will be enroled in the campaign as a media partner.

Bibliography

HWC Summit: best practice and policy solutions for managing an ageing workforce. (2017, November 21). Retrieved from https://osha.europa.eu/en/about-eu-osha/press-room/healthy-workplaces-summit-highlights-best-practice-and-policy-solutions
The Healthy Workplaces Campaign 2018-19. (2017). Retrieved November 29, 2017, from https://osha.europa.eu/en/healthy-workplaces-campaigns/future-campaigns