25 FEBRUARY 2003. - Act on measures to strengthen the prevention of workers' well-being when performing their work (1)

ALBERT II, King of the Belgians,
To all, present and to come, Hi.
The Chambers adopted and We sanction the following:
Article 1^er. This Act regulates a matter referred to in Article 78 of the Constitution.
CHAPTER I^er. - Protection of the interim
Art. 2. In chapter IV of the Act of 4 August 1996 on the welfare of workers, during the execution of their work, whose current articles 9, 10, 11 and 12 will form "Section 1^re - External works", a section 2 is added:
"Section 2 - Progress work in users.
Art. 12bis . The provisions of this section apply to the user and the interim work undertaking as referred to in the Act of 24 July 1987 on temporary work, interim work and the provision of workers at the disposal of users.
Art. 12ter. Any user of an interim work undertaking is required to refuse the services of the interim work undertaking to which he or she may know that he or she does not comply with the obligations imposed by this Act and by the Act of 24 July 1987 on temporary work, interim work and the provision of workers at the disposal of users and their respective enforcement orders.
The provision referred to in paragraph 1^er, does not prejudice the user's obligations vis-à-vis interim workers under this Act and the Act of 24 July 1987 on temporary work, interim work and the provision of workers at the disposal of users and their enforcement orders.
Art. 12quater. Any interim work undertaking is required to refuse to make its interim work available to the user of whom it may know that it does not comply with its interim workers, the obligations imposed on it by this Act and by the Act of 24 July 1987 on temporary work, interim work and the provision of workers to users and by their enforcement orders.
The provision referred to in paragraph 1^er, does not prejudice the obligations of the interim work company vis-à-vis interim workers under this Act and the Act of 24 July 1987 on temporary work, interim work and the provision of workers at the disposal of users and their enforcement orders. »
Art. 3. Section 13 of the Act is replaced by the following provision:
“The provisions of Chapter IV, Section 1^re are not applicable to temporary or mobile construction sites referred to in Chapter V."
Art. 4. Section 85 of the Act is supplemented as follows:
", as well as the user, his or her agents or agents who have committed an infractioin to the provisions of Article 12ter and the acting work company, its agents or agents who have committed an offence to the provisions of Article 12quater . »
CHAPTER II. - Prevention of repetition of serious work accidents
Art. 5. In the same Act, a chapter XIbis is inserted:
CHAPTER XIbis. - Measures to prevent the recurrence of serious work accidents
Section 1^re. - Definition
Art. 94bis. For the purposes of this chapter, the following means:
1° serious work accident: a work accident that, due to its seriousness, must be declared by the employer to the supervisory officers referred to in section 80, having the safety of the work in their competence.
The King sets out by order deliberately in the Council of Ministers the criteria to which the work accident must meet in order to be considered a serious work accident;
2° Expert: an expert in the examination of serious work accidents, who is taken over by an inspectorate established by the administration of which the supervisory officers, referred to in section 80, are responsible for the safety of work in their competence.
Section 2. - Expert designation
Art. 94ter. Without prejudice to the provisions of section 80 and after the employer notified them of a serious work accident, the grievors referred to in the preceding section designate an expert.
However, these employees may waive this designation on the basis of a detailed report that the employer provided to them within eight days of the accident.
Section 3. - The expert.
Art. 94quater. The expert has the following tasks:
1° examine the causes and circumstances of the serious work accident and make appropriate recommendations to prevent the repetition of the accident;
2° Resume the elements of the investigation, the causes identified and the recommendations made in a written report;
3° communicate the report referred to in point 2° to each of the following persons:
(a) officials referred to in section 94 bis;
(b) the employer of the victim;
(c) in accordance with the case, the insurance company or the establishment referred to in Article 94quinquies, § 2.
Section 4. - The expert's honorary
Art. 94quinquies. § 1^er. The expert receives fees for the benefits provided in the execution of his duties.
6 2. The fees referred to in § 1^er are due by the insurance company in which the employer, referred to in section 94quater, 3°, b, has contracted insurance against occupational accidents.
Failure of the insurance corporation referred to in paragraph 1^er, the fee is payable by the establishment which, in the event of a work accident, provides compensation to the workers of the employer referred to in section 94quater, 3°, b.
The fee is due to the expert or his employer on the production of a debt detailing the expert's benefits.
Section 5. Claim
Honorary Officer
Art. 94sexies. The insurance company or the institution, which paid the fees for the expert's benefits, may claim the amount to the employer referred to in section 94quater, 3°, b, without the amount claimed to exceed 300 euros per event on which one or more workers became victims of a serious work accident.
This amount is related to fluctuations in the Consumer Price Index, in accordance with the Act of 2 August 1971, which organized a linkage to the Consumer Price Index of Salaries, Salaries, Pensions, Allowances and Allowances of the Public Treasury, certain social benefits, the limits of pay to be taken into account in the calculation of certain social security contributions of workers, as well as the obligations imposed on self-employed workers in social matters; for this purpose, the amounts are related to the enforcement index at the date of the coming into force of the Act of 25 February 2003 on measures to strengthen the prevention of the welfare of workers during the execution of their work.
Art. 94s. In order to allow the expert to carry out his duties under section 94quater, the persons involved in the serious work accident are required to work with him.
Art. 94octies. The King determines:
1° the conditions to which the experts must answer in order to be able to exercise their functions and to be reproduced on the list referred to in Article 94bis, 2°;
2. the terms and conditions for the designation of experts referred to in Article 94ter;
3° the modalities for the missions of the experts referred to in Article 94quater;
4° the amount of the fee referred to in Article 94quinquies, § 1^er;
5° the effective date of the provisions of this chapter. »
CHAPTER III. - Labour Inspection Measures
Art. 6. Article 3, § 1^er, paragraph 2, of the Labour Inspection Act of 16 November 1972 is supplemented as follows:
"6° undertake the actions listed under 1° to 5° with regard to the independents who work at the same place of work with workers and therefore have obligations under the regulations concerning the welfare of workers during the execution of their work;
7° order the cessation of any work for which, in accordance with the regulations applicable under their supervision, organizational measures must be taken, where such measures have not been taken and therefore the safety or health of workers may be put in danger immediately or in the end.
Such cessation shall be ordered pending the taking of such measures;
8° order to take additional organizational measures concerning internal occupational prevention and protection services, which must be instituted in accordance with the regulations concerning the welfare of workers during the performance of their work, when they find that the organizational measures that must be taken in the context of this regulation are not taken or are only partially taken and that, consequently, the safety or health of workers may be put to an immediate or long-term risk.
They may set the time limit for further organizational measures to be taken;
9° order to take measures, including organizational measures, which are recommended to employers by advisers in the prevention of internal or external services of prevention and protection at work in order to guarantee the safety and health of workers, when they find that these employers do not take these measures or that they only take them in part, when due to this abstention, they contravene the regulations on the welfare of workers during the execution of their work.
They may also order alternative measures, leading to at least equivalent results in the safety and health of workers.
They may set the deadline for further organizational measures to be taken. »
Art. 7. Article 3, § 2, of the Act is replaced by the following provision:
Ҥ2. Persons, in respect of which the measures referred to in this section have been prescribed or taken, may appeal against these measures to the Minister under whose jurisdiction the social inspector has prescribed these measures. The appeal is not suspensive.
The King sets out the terms and conditions for the exercise of the appeal referred to in paragraph 1^er. »
Art. 8. Our Minister of Employment is responsible for the execution of royal orders under this Act.
Promulgate this law, order that it be clothed with the seal of the State and published by the Belgian Monitor.
Given in Brussels on 25 February 2003.
ALBERT
By the King:
The Minister of Employment,
Ms. L. ONKELINX
Seal of the state seal:
Minister of Justice,
Mr. VERWILGHEN
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Note
(1) Regular session 2002-2003.
House of Representatives.
Parliamentary documents. - Bill: 50-2167/001. - Annex 50-2167/002. - Amendments: 50-2167/003 and 50-2167/004. - Report: 50-2167/005. - Text adopted by the Commission: 50-2167/006. - Text adopted in plenary and Senate trnasmis: 50-2167/007.
Full report. - 6 February 2003.
Senate.
Parliamentary documents. - Project not referred to by the Senate: 2-1459/1.