Strengthen dialogue and sign collective labor agreements to protect workers

Occupational safety and health (OSH) is always a key factor, determining the sustainable development of enterprises and directly ensuring the health and life of workers. In recent times, the Labor Federation of Quang Tri province has increased dialogue, negotiation and supervision of the implementation of collective labor agreements to contribute to building a safe and professional working environment, both protecting workers and enhancing the responsibility of enterprises.

VTJ TOMS Textile Company Limited in Hai Lang always focuses on ensuring occupational safety and health - Photo: TT

To make the Collective Labor Agreement truly effective, the Provincial Federation of Labor has implemented many creative approaches. Activities such as organizing the "Collective Labor Agreement Signing Day" or the forum "Improving the quality of negotiation and signing of collective labor agreements" have created favorable conditions for the parties to exchange and learn from each other's experiences.

Along with that, training on negotiation skills, signing collective labor agreements for union officials at all levels, building a "Collective Labor Agreement Library" on the website of the Provincial Federation of Labor and issuing a Program to implement a breakthrough in "Dialogue, collective bargaining, working conditions and hours" have fully equipped the grassroots unions with knowledge and skills. Thanks to that, grassroots unions can proactively include provisions on ensuring working conditions in the content of negotiations and signing.

The Provincial Federation of Labor and the Provincial Business Association have coordinated to negotiate and sign two collective labor agreements for the group of wood processing, trading, and import-export enterprises and the group of construction material manufacturing and trading enterprises.

The content of these agreements focuses on provisions ensuring occupational safety and health, creating a solid foundation for implementation. To date, more than 85% of qualified enterprises have signed collective labor agreements, demonstrating the consensus and high sense of responsibility of the business community.

Many units have proactively included in collective labor agreements more favorable contents than those prescribed by law, such as: in-kind compensation for employees working in dangerous and toxic conditions; ensuring food safety and hygiene to prevent diseases; improving the quantity and quality of personal protective equipment; organizing periodic health check-ups and arranging suitable jobs for employees.

The promulgation of the Law on Occupational Safety and Health has created a synchronous and unified legal framework, ensuring higher enforcement of occupational safety and health work nationwide in general and in Quang Tri in particular. The implementing guidelines have clearly defined the rights and responsibilities of all relevant parties, including employers, employees, state management agencies and trade unions. This helps to effectively control dangerous and harmful factors affecting the health of workers in all enterprises and production and business establishments.

The Law on Occupational Safety and Health has significantly changed the awareness and responsibility of employers in investing in improving working conditions and environment to ensure occupational safety and health. At the same time, employees are increasingly complying with and implementing better labor regulations and measures to ensure occupational safety and health at the workplace. Thanks to that, in recent years, the province has significantly reduced occupational accidents and occupational diseases.

The work of inspecting and supervising the implementation of collective labor agreements is always of interest to trade unions at all levels and is carried out regularly. Every year, the Provincial Federation of Labor and the District Federation of Labor closely coordinate with the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs and the Social Insurance to organize inspections, checks and supervision of over 80 units and enterprises regarding the implementation of labor laws and the Law on Occupational Safety and Health.

At the grassroots level, grassroots unions have actively organized propaganda and dissemination to union members and employees about the content of collective labor agreements, while promoting the rights of employees in monitoring and requesting employers to implement the provisions. Thereby, contributing to raising awareness and promoting proactive awareness of employees in protecting their legitimate rights.

Through inspection and supervision, it is shown that compliance with the provisions of the law on occupational safety and health has received special attention and focus from enterprises. The role of grassroots trade unions in representing the labor collective in participating in occupational safety and health work at the grassroots level is increasingly respected.

Many enterprises have strictly complied with regulations, specifically: ensuring that there is a specialized, professional department in managing and implementing safety regulations; promoting the role of employees in self-monitoring and reminding each other about safety; equipping employees with necessary knowledge and skills on measures to prevent accidents and occupational diseases; fully developing regulations and rules on occupational safety and health, creating a clear internal legal corridor for all production and business activities; implementing a good self-inspection regime, proactively reviewing and evaluating to promptly detect and overcome potential risks.

Thanks to these efforts, the legitimate rights of workers regarding occupational safety and health such as working time, rest, periodic health check-ups, in-kind compensation, provision of personal protective equipment, participation in social insurance... are basically guaranteed.

In addition to the achievements, occupational safety and health work in the province still has some shortcomings and limitations that need to be overcome. Some provisions of the Law on Occupational Safety and Health are still weak or difficult to implement in practice, such as the occupational accident and disease insurance regime or accident investigation in the informal sector. Trade union officials have not received specialized training in occupational safety and health, and a part of rural workers still have limited sense of discipline. In addition, management, inspection, examination and handling of violations are not really regular and strict.

To further improve the effectiveness of occupational safety and health work, it is necessary to enhance the quality of dialogue, negotiation and supervision of the implementation of collective labor agreements. The authorities need to continue to study and evaluate the difficulties and shortcomings of the Law on Occupational Safety and Health and current guiding documents, especially the regulations on occupational accident and disease insurance, in order to promptly propose amendments and supplements to suit the reality, ensuring the best interests of workers.

Promote the dissemination of laws on occupational safety and health and the contents of collective labor agreements to all workers, especially rural workers, to raise awareness of labor discipline and compliance with safety regulations; build more flexible dialogue and negotiation models, suitable for the characteristics of each industry and each type of enterprise; encourage businesses and workers to proactively propose initiatives to improve working conditions in order to build an increasingly safe and civilized working environment.

Thanh Truc

Source: https://baoquangtri.vn/tang-cuong-doi-thoai-va-ky-ket-thoa-uoc-lao-dong-tap-the-de-bao-ve-nguoi-lao-dong-194599.htm