Key Benefits:
DECREE NO. 6,270, OF November 22, 2007.
Promulga the Convention no 176 and the Recommendation no 183 of the International Labour Organization (ILO) on Security and Health in the Mines, adopted in Geneva, on June 22, 1995, by the 85a Session of the International Labour Conference.
THE PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC, in the use of the assignment that confers it on art. 84, inciso IV, of the Constitution,
Considering that the National Congress has approved the texts of the Convention No 176 and Recommendation No. 183 of the International Labour Organization (ILO) on Safety and Health in Mines, by means of Legislative Decree no 62, April 18, 2006;
Considering that the Brazilian Government ratified the cited Convention on May 18, 2006;
Whereas the Convention entered into international force on June 5, 1998, and for Brazil on May 18 of 2007;
DECRETA:
Art. 1st The Convention in 176 and the Recommendation no 183 of the International Labour Organization (ILO) on Safety and Health in the Mines, appended by copy to the present Decree, will be executed and fulfilled as entirely as they contain themselves.
Art. 2nd subject to the approval of the National Congress any acts that may result in revision of the said Convention or that carries charges or commitments engraved to the national heritage, pursuant to art. 49, inciso I, of the Constitution.
Art. 3rd This Decree shall come into force on the date of its publication.
Brasilia, November 22- 2007; 186º of Independence and 119º of the Republic.
LUIZ INÁCIO LULA DA SILVA
Celso Luiz Nunes Amorim
This text does not replace the one published in the DOU of 11/23/2007
CONVENTION 176 ABOUT SAFETY AND HEALTH IN MINES
The General Conference of the International Labour Organization convened in Geneva by the Board of Directors of the International division of Labour and reunited in that city on June 6, 1995, in its Octogésima Second Meeting;
Taking note of the relevant international conventions and recommendations of the relevant work, and in particular the Convention on the abolition of forced labour, 1957; the Convention and Recommendation on radiation protection, 1960; the Convention and Recommendation on the protection of machinery, 1963; the Convention and the Recommendation on benefits in the event of accidents at work and occupational diseases, 1964; the Convention and the Recommendation on the minimum age (underground work), 1965; the Convention on the Medical Examination of minors (underground work), 1965; the Convention and Recommendation on the environment of work (contamination of air, noise and vibrations), 1977; the Convention and the Recommendation on the health and health of workers, 1981; the Convention and Recommendation on health services at work, 1985; the Convention and Recommendation on security and health in construction, 1988; the Convention and Recommendation on chemical products, 1990, and the Convention and Recommendation on the prevention of larger industrial accidents, 1993;
Whereas workers have the need and the right to be informed, to receive training, as well as to be really consulted and to participate in the preparation and implementation of safety and health measures regarding the dangers and risks present in the mining industry;
Recognizing that it is desirable to prevent every deadly accident, injury or menoscation of the health of workers or the population, or injury to the environment that originates from the mining operations;
Taking into account the need for cooperation between the Organization International Labour, the World Health Organization, the International Atomic Energy Agency and other competent institutions and taking note of the instruments, repertoires of practical recommendations, relevant codes and guidelines published by these organizations;
After there has been decided to adopt various proposals regarding the safety and health in the mines, theme which constitutes the fourth item on the agenda of the meeting; and
After there has been decided that these proposals revise the form of an international convention,
Adota, in twenty-two of June one thousand nine hundred and ninety five, the following Convention, which could be cited as the Convention on safety and health in mines, 1995;
I. DEFINITIONS
Article 1º
1. To the effects of this Convention, the term? mine? encompasses:
(a) the installations, underground or surface area, in those that are carried out, in particular, the following activities:
(i) the exploration of ores, excluded the gas and the oil, which implies the alteration of the soil by mechanical means;
(ii) the exploitation of ores, excluded gas and oil;
(iii) the preparation, included the grinding, the milling, the concentration or the washing of the extracted material, and
(b) all machinery, equipment, accessories, installations, buildings and civil engineering structures used in relation to the activities referred to in point (a) above.
2. To the effects of this Convention, the term? employer? assigns to every physical or legal person who employs one or more workers in a mine, and as the case may be, to the charge of the farm, the principal contractor, the contractor or the subcontractor.
II. RANGE AND MEANS OF APPLICATION
Article 2º
1. This Convention applies to all mines.
2. Prior consultation with the most representative organisations of employers and employees concerned, the competent authority of a Member who ratifies the Convention:
(a) could exclude from the application of the Convention, or from some of its provisions, certain categories of mines if the protection conferred on its ensemble in these mines, of compliance with national legislation and practice, is not inferior to that would result from the full application of the provisions of the Convention;
(b) should establish, in the event of the exclusion of certain categories of mines by virtue of the previous (a) point (s), plans to progressively extend the coverage to all mines.
3. Every Member who ratifies this Convention and accrunes to the possibility provided for in paragraph 2 (a) of the preceding paragraph shall state, in the reports on the application of the Convention to be submitted by virtue of Article 22 of the Constitution of the International Labor Organization, every specific category of mines that has been excluded and the motives of this exclusion
Article 3º
Considering national conditions and practices and prior consultation with the most representative organisations of employers and interested employees, the Member should formulate, to apply and periodically review a consistent national policy on safety and health in mines, in particular in the concernng to the measures adopted to make the provisions of this Convention.
Article 4º
1. Measures to ensure the implementation of the Convention are to establish itself by means of national legislation.
2. When proceeded, this national legislation should be supplemented with:
a) technical standards, guidelines or repertoires of practical recommendations; or
(b) other means of application of agreement with national practice, second establish the competent authority.
Article 5º
1. The national legislation mentioned in paragraph 1 of Article 4º should designate the competent authority tasked with surveying and regulating the various aspects of safety and health in the mines.
2. This national legislation should contain provisions relating to:
(a) surveillance of the safety and health in the mines;
(b) the inspection of the mines by inspectors assigned to that effect by the competent authority;
(c) the procedures for notification and research of fatal or serious accidents, the dangerous incidents and disasters happened in the mines, second are defined in the national legislation;
(d) the compilation and publication of statistics on the accidents, occupational diseases and the hazardous incidents, second they are defined in national legislation;
(e) the possibility of the competent authority to suspend or constrain, on security grounds and health, the mining activities, while not housed being corrected the causative circumstances of the suspension or constraint, and
(f) the establishment of effective procedures that guarantee the exercise of the rights of workers and their representatives, to be consulted about the issues and the participate in the measures regarding safety and health in the workplace.
3. This national legislation should have that the manufacture, storage, transportation and use of explosives and mine detonators are carried out by competent and authorized persons, or under their direct supervision.
4. This national legislation should specify:
(a) the requirements in the matter of rescue in the mines, first aid, and appropriate medical services;
(b) the obligation to provide and maintain in appropriate conditions rescue respirators to those who work in underground coal mines and, in case necessary, in other underground mines;
(c) the protective measures that guarantee the safety of abandoned mining, in order to eliminate or reduce to the minimum the risks that they present for safety and health;
(d) the requirements for the storage, transport and disposal, under safe conditions, of the hazardous substances used in the production process and the waste produced in the mines, and
(e) when proceeding, the obligation to facilitate and maintain in hygienic conditions a sufficient number of equipment toilets and facilities for washing, changing clothes and eating.
III. MEASURES FOR PREVENTION AND PROTECTION IN THE MINE
A. RESPONSIBILITIES OF EMPLOYERS
Article 6º
By adopting the prevention and protection measures provided for in that part of the Convention, the employer should assess the risks and treat them in the following order of priority:
(a) eliminate the risks;
(b) control the risks at its source;
(c) reduce risks to a minimum by means of measures that include the elaboration of safe working methods;
(d) while enduring the risk situation, predicting the use of personal protective equipment, taking into consideration what is reasonable, practicable and doable and what is in line with the practice and exercise of due diligence.
Article 7º
The employer should adopt the necessary provisions to eliminate or reduce to the minimum the risks to safety and health present in the mines that are under their control and, in particular:
(a) ensure that the mine is drawn, built and endowed with electrical equipment, mechanics and other intidole, including a communication system, in such a way that a safe exploration and a healthy working environment are guaranteed;
(b) ensure that the mine is put into service, is exploited, is maintained and is clausurated so that the workers can carry out commissioned tasks without putting in danger your safety and health and nor those of third persons;
(c) adopt measures to maintain the stability of the field in the areas that people have access to for work reasons;
(d) establish, where possible, two lanes of exit from any underground place of the work, each of them communicated with an independent route of exit to the surface;
(e) ensure the periodic surveillance, evaluation, and inspection of the working environment to identify the different risks to which they may be exposed to workers, and assess the degree of exposure to such risks;
(f) ensuring a proper ventilation system in all the underground holdings to which is allowed access;
(g) in the zones exposed to special risks, prepare and apply an action plan and procedures that guarantee the safety of the working system and protection of workers;
(h) adopt measures and precautions suitable to the indole of the mining operation to prevent, detect and combat the onset and spread of fires and explosions; and
(i) ensure the disruption of the activities and evacuation of workers to a safe place in the event of serious danger to the safety and health of them.
Article 8º
The employer should prepare a specific urgency action plan, for each mine, intended to face the reasonably foreseeable natural and industrial disasters.
Article 9º
When workers are exposed to physical, chemical or biological risks, the employer should:
(a) informing workers in an understandable manner of the risks related to their work, of the dangers these imply for their health and the applicable means of prevention and protection;
(b) take the measures necessary to eliminate or reduce to a minimum the hazards derived from exposure to these risks;
(c) provide and maintain, at no cost to the workers, the equipment, clothing, in case it is necessary, and other suitable protection devices that define themselves in the national legislation, when protection from the risks of accident or damage to health, included exposure to adverse conditions, cannot be guaranteed by other means; and
(d) provide workers who have suffered an injury or disease in the workplace first aid in Situ, an appropriate means of transportation from the workplace and access to proper medical services.
Article 10
The employer must ensure that:
(a) workers have, at no cost to them, from appropriate programmes of training and readaptation and understandable instructions on safety and health, as well as in relation to the tasks assigned to it;
(b) are carried out, in accordance with national legislation, proper surveillance and control in each shift that allow to ensure that the exploitation of the mine is effected under safe conditions;
(c) be established a system that allows to know precisely and at any time, the names of all the people who are under land, as well as the likely location of them;
(d) are investigated all dangerous accidents and incidents, of compliance with national legislation, and are adopted the appropriate corrective measures; and
(e) be submitted to the competent authority report on dangerous accidents and incidents, in accordance with the provisions of national legislation.
Article 11
From agreement with general occupational health principles and in accordance with national legislation, the employer should ensure that it is carried out in a systematic manner the health surveillance of workers exposed to the risks of the activities themselves miners.
Article 12
When two or more employers carry out activities in a same mine, the employer responsible for the mine should coordinating the implementation of all measures concerning the safety and health of workers and will also have the primary responsibility for the safety of operations. The previous one will not exempt each of the employers from the responsibility to apply all measures regarding the safety and health of workers.
B. RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS
OF EMPLOYEES AND THEIR REPRESENTATIVES
Article 13
1. The national legislation referred to in Article 4º should grant workers the right to:
(a) notify the accidents, dangerous incidents and risks to the employer and the competent authority;
(b) ask for and obtain, where there is a cause for concern regarding safety and health, that the employer and the competent authority to carry out inspections and investigations;
(c) know the existing risks in the workplace that may affect your health or safety, and be informed about it;
(d) obtain information concerning your safety or health which is under the responsibility of the employer or the competent authority.
(e) withdraw from any sector of the mine when there are reasonably funnable grounds to think that the situation presents a danger to your safety or health, and
(f) eleger, collectively, the representatives of safety and health.
2. The safety and health representatives alluded to in paragraph 1 (f) above should have, in accordance with the national legislation, entitled to:
(a) represent the workers in all aspects concerning safety and health in the workplace, including, in that case, the exercise of the rights that appear in the paragraph 1 above cited:
(i) participate in inspections and investigations carried out by employers and by the competent authority in the workplace, and
(ii) overseeing and investigating matters relating to safety and health.
(b) to draw on independent advisers and experts;
(c) to make timely consultations with the employer about issues concerning safety and the health, included the policies and procedures in this matter;
(d) consult the authority competent, and
(e) receive notification of the accidents and hazardous incidents pertinent to the sectors for which they have been elected.
3. The procedures for the exercise of the rights provided for in paragraphs 1 and 2 above should determine:
(a) in the national legislation; and
(b) upon consultation between the employers and workers and their representatives.
4. The national legislation should ensure that the rights provided for in paragraphs 1 and 2 above can exercise without giving way to discrimination or reprisals.
Article 14
A national legislation should provide for employees to have, depending on their training, the obligation to:
(a) abide by the prescribed safety and health measures;
(b) velar, in a reasonable manner, by the safety and health itself and those of the people who may come to be affected by their actions or omissions at work, included the use and the proper care of the protective clothing, the facilities and the equipment laid out at your disposal with that end;
(c) inform in the act to your head direct of any situation that you consider may pose a risk to your health and safety or those of other people and that they cannot properly resolve themselves; and
(d) cooperate with the employer to allow them to be fulfilled the duties and responsibilities signed to this by virtue of the provisions of this Convention.
C. COOPERATION
Article 15
Desummer adopt measures, in accordance with national legislation, to foster cooperation between employers and the workers and their representatives, aimed at promoting safety and health in the mines.
IV. APPLICATION
Article 16
The Member should:
(a) adopt all necessary measures, included appropriate sanctions and corrective measures to ensure the effective implementation of the provisions of the Convention, and
(b) facilitate proper inspection services with an aim to supervise the application of the measures that if they will adopt themselves by virtue of the Convention, and provide necessary resources for the fulfillment of their tasks.
V. FINAL PROVISIONS
Article 17
The formal ratifications of this Convention will be communicated, for its record, to the Director General of the Repartition International Labour.
Article 18
1. This Convention shall oblide solely those Members of the International Labour Organization whose ratifications have registered the Director General of the International Labour Repartition.
2. It shall enter into force twelve months after the date on which the ratifications of two Members housees have been registered by the Director General.
3. Since this time, this Convention will enter into force, for each Member, twelve months after the date on which there has been registered its ratification.
Article 19
1. Every Member who has ratified this Convention will be able to report it to the expiration of the ten-year period, from the date on which it was initially put in force, upon a communicated minutes, for its registration, to the Director General of the Repartition International Labour. The complaint will not take effect until one year after the date on which it was registered.
2. Every Member who has ratified this Convention and who, within one year after the expiration of the ten-year period mentioned in the paragraph proceeded, does not make use of the right of denunciation provided for in that article will be obliged during new period of Ten years, and the successive one will be able to denounce this Convention the expiration of each ten-year period, under the conditions laid down in that article.
Article 20
1. The Director General of the International Labour Repartition shall notify all Members of the International Labour Organization the record of how many ratifications, statements and complaints communicate to you the Members of the Organization.
2. By notifying the Members of the Organization the record of the second ratification that has been communicated to it, the Director General shall draw the attention of the Members of the Organization as to the date on which this Convention shall enter into force.
Article 21
The Director General of the International Labour Repartition shall communicate to the Secretary-General of the United Nations for the purpose of registration and compliance with Article 12 of the Charter of the United Nations, a complete information on all ratifications, declarations and acts of denunciation that housings have been registered in accordance with the preceding articles.
Article 22
Each time that the entime required, the Board of Directors of the International Labour Repartition will submit to the Conference a report on the application of the Convention, and will consider the desirability of including on the agenda of the Conference the question of its full or partial revision.
Article 23
1. In the event of the Conference adopting a new Convention involving a total or partial revision of the present, and unless the new Convention contains provisions to the contrary:
(a) the ratification, by a Member, of the new revised convention will imply, ipso jure, the immediate denunciation of this Convention, notwithstanding the provisions contained in Article 19, where the new revised Convention has been entered into force;
(b) as of the date on which the new revised convention enters into force, this Convention will cease to be open for ratification by its Members.
2. This Convention will continue in force in any case, in its current form and content, for Members who have not housesratified and those who have ratified the revised convention.
RECOMMENDATION 183 ABOUT SAFETY AND HEALTH IN THE MINES
The General Conference of the International Labor Organization:
Convocated by the Board of Directors of the International Labour Repartition and reunited in Geneva on June 6 of 1995, at its octogensima second meeting;
Taking note of the conventions and recommendations international of the relevant work, and in particular the Convention on the abolition of forced labour, 1957; the Convention and Recommendation on radiation protection, 1960; the Convention and Recommendation on the protection of machinery, 1963; Convention and the Recommendation on benefits in the event of accidents at work and occupational diseases, 1964; the Convention and Recommendation on the minimum age (underground work), 1965; the Convention on the Medical Examination of minors (work underground), 1965; the Convention and Recommendation on the environment of work (contamination of air, noise and vibrations), 1977; the Convention and the Recommendation on the safety and health of workers, 1981; the Convention and Recommendation on the health services at work, 1985; the Convention and Recommendation on security and health in construction, 1988; the Convention and Recommendation on chemicals, 1990, and the Convention and Recommendation on the prevention of larger industrial accidents, 1993;
Whereas workers have the need and the right to be informed, of receive training, as well as to be consulted and to participate in the preparation and implementation of safety and health measures related to the hazards and risks present in the mining industry;
Recognizing the relevance of which is the prevention of any deadly accident, injury or menoscience to the health of the workers or the population, as well as any damage to the environment resulting from the mining activities;
Taking into account the need for cooperation between the International Labor Organization, the World Health Organization, the International Atomic Energy Agency and others correlates institutions, and considering, still, the instruments, the lists of practical recommendations, the relevant codes and guidelines released by the aforementioned organisms;
After there has been decided by the approval of various proposals regarding safety and health in the mining areas, theme that falls as a fourth item on the agenda of the session; and
After there has been decided that such proposals constitute a recommendation that complements the Convention on safety and health in mines,
Aproves, with date of twenty-two of June one thousand nine hundred and ninety five, the following Recommendation, which could be named Recommendation on safety and health in the mines, 1995:
I. General Provisions
1. The devices in this Recommendation complement those of the Convention on safety and health in mining areas, from 1995 (henceforth named?), and shall be applied in conjunction with those of the latter;
2. This Recommendation applies to all areas of mining.
3. (1) In view of national conditions and practice, and consulted with the most representative bodies of employers and employees, it will be up to any Member to formulate, apply and revise, periodically, a policy compatible with the issue of safety and health in the mining areas.
2) The consultations provided for in Article 3º of the Convention should include consultations to the most representative bodies of employers and employees as to the consequences, for the safety and health of employees, of the duration of the work journey, of night work and work by turns. After the said consultations, it will be up to the Member to adopt the necessary measures concernin the working hours and in particular with the maximum work journey and with the minimum duration of the daily rest periods.
4. The competent authority shall have suitably qualified, specialized and competent personnel, who count on the technical and professional support required for the performance of the inspection, research, evaluation and advising functions regarding the issues addressed by the Convention and to ensure compliance with the national legislation.
5. Measures to foster and promote:
a) research and exchange, should be adopted national and international scope, of the information regarding safety and health in the mining areas;
b) provision of specific assistance, on the part of the competent authority, to small mining companies, with views to contribute to:
i) transfer of technology;
ii) adoption of preventative safety and health programs;
iii) fomenting cooperation and consultations between employers and workers and their respective representatives, and
c) implementation of programs or systems for rehabilitation and reintegration of the workers who have been victims of injuries or occupational diseases.
6. Devices that relate to surveillance of safety and health in mining areas, provided for in item 2 of Article 5 of the Convention, should cover, where appropriate, those relating to:
a) capacity-building and training;
b) inspection of the mine, as well as of its equipment and facilities;
c) supervision of the handling, transport, storage and use of explosives and hazardous substances used or generated in the process of production;
d) realization of tasks in electrical installations and equipment, and
e) supervision of workers.
7. The devices set out in item 4 of Article 5 of the Convention may include the obligation that suppliers of hazardous equipment, accessories, products and substances to be used in the mine ensure that they comply with national standards on safety and health, clearly identify, with labels, the respective products and provide intelligible data and instructions.
8. The provisions on rescue in the mining areas, as well as appropriate first aid and emergency medical services, referred to in the letter to) of item 4 of Article 5 of the Convention, may cover:
a) measures concerning the organization;
b) equipment to be adopted;
c) capacitive standards;
d) training of the workers and their participation in exercises or tests;
e) sufficient quantity of capable persons, which should be available;
f) efficient system of communication;
g) effective alarm system for warning in the event of danger;
h) establishment and conservation of means of evacuation and rescue;
i) formation of one or several rescuing groups in the mine;
j) periodic medical controls of the fitness and, including, periodic training of the members of the citation groups;
k) assistance provided by medical staff, including transportation, to workers victimized by injury or disease in the place of work-without any burden for these;
l) coordination with the authorities locals;
m) measures aimed at promoting international cooperation in that sector of activity.
9. The envisaged in the letter b) of item 4 of Article 5 of the Convention may cover specifications and standards relating to the type of self-rescue equipment to be supplied and, in particular, when it comes to mines exposed to escapements sudden gas, as well as from other types of mines, when necessary, the supply of individual respiratory devices.
10. In the national legislation should be included regarding the use and maintenance of the distance control apparatus, under safe conditions.
11. National legislation should specify that the employer will fit to adopt the appropriate measures for the protection of workers who carry out their tasks alone or in isolation.
II. Measures for prevention and protection in the mine
12. It will be up to the employer to assess the hazards and to analyze the risks, for elaboration and application, whatever, of the respective monitoring systems.
13. In accordance with the letter c) of Article 7 of the Convention, the employer should adopt all appropriate measures for the maintenance of the stability of the land by:
a) surveillance and control of the movement of the sediments;
b) arrangements for effective sustaining of the cover (vaulted), walls and soil of the works, save in the areas where selected extraction methods allow the controlled collapsing of the terrain;
c) surveillance and control of the walls of the mines to heaven open, in order to avoid falling or sliding gravel during the excavation, as well as to expose workers to danger situations; and
d) safety that dams, waste decantation depots or any other type of deposit are well planned, built and observed, to prevent mudslides or collapses.
14. In line with the provisions of the letter d) of Article 7 of the Convention, the exit routes should be as free as possible, and measures should be adopted, including with the provision of the necessary equipment, to ensure ready and safe evacuation of the workers in the event of danger.
15. Under the terms of the letter f) of Article 7 of the Convention, all the underground mining holdings to which the miners have access, as well as other areas, as the case may be, should be ventilated in a manner appropriate to the maintenance of an atmosphere:
a) in which it has been eliminated or reduced to the minimum the risk of explosion;
b) in which working conditions are appropriate, considered the working methods used and the physical effort to which the workers are supposed to be subjected, and
c) whose quality fits the standards national on waste in suspension, gases, radiation and climatic conditions; when there are no national standards on the subject, the employer should take into account international standards.
16. The special risks mentioned in the letter g) of Article 7 of the Convention and which require specific action plan and procedures, may consist of:
a) fires and explosions in the mines;
b) instant gas escapement;
c) irruption of water and of semi-solid materials;
e) depressing rocks;
f) seismic movements in the working area;
g) risks related to the work carried out in the vicinity of dangerous excavations or in particularly difficult geological conditions;
h) fails in ventilation.
17. The actionable arrangements to be adopted by employers, depending on the provisions of the letter h) of Article 7 of the Convention should include, as the case may be, the prohibition on which people take with them, for the area of underground exploitation, any object or substance capable of causing fires, explosions or other dangerous accidents.
18. In accordance with the defined in the letter i) of Article 7 of the Convention, mining facilities shall count, where necessary, with sufficient quantity of incombustible, independent sites to serve as a refuge to the workers in emergency situations. Such refuges should be easily identifiable and accessible, in particular under low visibility conditions.
19. The action plan in emergency situations, provided for in Article 8 of the Convention, could understand:
a) specific schemes in the areas of demarcation;
b) devices for disruption of the activities and evacuation of workers;
c) proper training on the emergency procedures and the use of the equipment;
d) proper protection of the population and the environment;
e) provision of information-with holding of queries, if it is the case-to pertinent organisms and organizations.
20. The risk factors referred to in Article 9 of the Convention will be able to consist of:
a) dust environmental;
b) flammable, toxic, harmful and other type of gases present in the mines;
c) vapors and hazardous substances;
d) exhaust gas from diesel engines;
e) lack of oxygen;
f) radiations proceeded from the rocky strata, equipment and other sources;
g) noise and vibrations;
h) extremal temperatures;
i) excess moisture;
j) insufficiency of illumination or ventilation;
k) those resulting from work at great height, at great depth or in confined spaces;
l) those associated with the manipulation of tools or equipment;
m) those related to the use of machines and with electrical installations;
n) those arising from the combination of any of the mentioned risks.
21. The measures provided for in Article 9 of the Convention will be able to understand:
a) devices of technical and organizational character applicable to the mining activities or the installations, machinery, equipment, accessories or structures;
b) when it is not possible to turn to the devices cited in the letter a), above, other effective measures, inclusive use of individual protective equipment and clothing protection specials, no burden for the worker;
c) when identified risks and hazards for the reproductive function, training and adoption of specific technical and organizational character provisions, including, as the case, right to transfer to other tasks, without reduction of salary, especially during periods such as pregnancy and breastfeeding, when the organism becomes more vulnerable to risks;
d) surveillance and periodic inspections of the areas that offer risks or liable to present risks.
22. The equipment and other protective devices referred to in the letter c) of Article 9 of the Convention will be able to cover:
a) protective structures against tombament or falling objects;
b) belts and special clothing;
c) pressurized watertight compartments;
d) independent refuges, for salvage;
e) shafts of distress and other sources, for eye washing.
23. In the application of the defined in the letter b) of Article 10 of the Convention, employers will fit:
a) make sure that they are inspected in a proper way all workplaces in the mine, particularly the weather conditions, soil conditions, machinery, equipment and their accessories, included, when necessary, inspections before each shift, and
b) proceed to the registration of the inspections carried out, of the deficiencies eventually detected and of the respective corrective measures, having it always at the disposal in the mine;
24. As the case may be, the health surveillance referred to in Article 11 of the Convention should cover, without burden for the worker and without this being the object of any kind of discrimination or reprisal:
a) the possibility that a medical examination will be carried out in the admission and periodic medical examinations, in relation to the tasks that you have to perform, and
b) when possible, the reintegration or rehabilitation of the workers who are not in a position to carry out their normal tasks due to some injury or occupational disease.
25. According to the one defined in the letter e) of item 4 of Article 5 of the Convention, employers should, as the case may be, facilitate and maintain, with no burden on workers:
a) bathrooms, showers, washrooms and dressing rooms suitable and in sufficient number, separate, if it is the case, for men and women;
b) facilities suitable for guard, washing and drying of clothing;
c) sufficient volume of drinking water, in convenient locations; and
d) appropriate and hygienic locations for feeding.
III. Rights and obligations of workers and their representatives
26. In view of the provisions of Article 13 of the Convention, employees and their representatives in matters of safety and health should, where appropriate, have at their disposal information that should include:
a) when it is the case, communicated about any visit to the representative mine of the competent and related authority with safety and health;
b) reports on the inspections carried out by the authority competent or by the employer, including with regard to the inspections of the machinery and equipment;
c) copies of the orders or instructions that concern the safety and health issued by the competent authority;
d) informs drawn up by the competent authority, or by the employer, about accidents, injuries, cases of menoscizo to health and incidents involving safety and health;
e) data and communiqués about all the risks eventually existing in the area of work, including those related to hazardous, toxic or harmful material, substances or agents used in the mine;
f) any other documentation pertaining to safety and health and that the employer should conserve;
g) immediate communication of accidents and other incidents that involve danger; and
h) medical examinations performed in function of the risks present in the workplace.
27. The devices approved in line with the one defined in the letter e) of item 1 of Article 13 of the Convention will be able to predict:
a) communication to supervisors and representatives of the area of safety and health about the hazard to which the above device is concerned;
b) participation of accredited representatives of the employers and workers' representatives when the search of solutions;
c) intervention, where necessary, of a representative of the authority competent, to assist in the solution of problems;
d) preservation of the worker's salary and, if it is the case, transfer from this to another function;
e) communication to any worker asked to work in the area in question about the refusal of another worker to do so, as also about the reasons for such refusal.
28. In the application of the provisions of item 2 of Article 13 of the Convention, the rights of representatives on safety and health issues shall include, as the case may be, the right to:
a) receive proper training during the work journey, without reduction in salary, in order to take notice of your rights and of your assignments in the quality of safety and health representatives, as well as of the issues relating to safety and health;
b) have adequate facilities for the exercise of their functions;
c) receive your normal salary during the time dedicated to the exercise of your rights and functions, and
d) provide assistance and advice to any worker who has withdrawn from their workplace by consider it a risk to your safety and your health.
29. Representatives on safety and health issues should, when it is the case, announce with due advance, the employer, their intention to supervise or investigate matters concerning safety and health, of compliance with the letter b) of item 2 of Article 13 of the Convention.
30. 1) Every person will have a duty to:
a) refrain from disconnecting, exchanging or withdrawing in a manner arbitrary the safety devices installed on machines, equipment, accessories, tools, installations and buildings, and
b) correctly use such security devices.
2) Employers will have an obligation to facilitate appropriate training and instructions to workers, in order that these can comply with the duties described in subitem 1), above.
IV. Cooperation
31. The measures to foster the cooperation provided for in Article 15 of the Convention should include:
a) creation of mechanisms for cooperation, such as safety and health committees, with parity representation of employers and workers and with the powers and functions that are inherent in them, including carrying out joint inspections;
b) indication, by the employer, of people who possess adequate qualifications and experience to the promotion of safety and health;
c) training of the workers and their representatives on safety and health issues;
d) implantation, in a permanent manner, of safety and health awareness programs for the workers;
e) permanent exchange of information and experience on safety and health in the mines;
f) employer's query to workers and their representatives, when from implementation of policies and procedures in safety and health;
g) inclusion, by the employer, of representatives of workers in the investigations of accidents and dangerous incidents, provided for in the letter d) of Article 10 of the Convention.
V. Other provisions
32. No discrimination or reprisal should occur against the employee who exercises the rights conferred upon him by national legislation or those which have been fixed by agreement between employers and workers and their representatives.
33. The necessary attention should be paid to the consequences that from the mining activity can result to the surrounding environment and the safety of the population. In particular, they should be well controlled the collapses, vibrations and rock disagreements, as well as polluting agents of water, air or soil, and an insurance and effective management of the disposal of debris and of the restoration of the sites of mining.
