The ILO’s Safety and Health in Mines Convention: Reframing the Scope of Obligations for a Sustainable World

Year 2015, Volume: 14 Issue: 4, 59 - 69, 26.04.2016

Jeffrey Hilgert

Abstract

On
March 23, 2015 the Turkish government ratified ILO Convention No. 176, the
international labour convention concerning occupational safety and health in
mines. This multilateral treaty will enter into force for Turkey in 2016. After
a lengthy advocacy campaign that received renewed attention after major
disasters in the mining industry, more attention is being paid to the
implementation of this important ILO convention. Post-ratification application
of the convention in the unique Turkish context requires revisiting the
obligations of the convention itself. Whether the convention becomes an empty
promise to Turkish mine workers or a living document for the protection of
worker safety and health remains an open question. Recent recommendations by an
ILO technical assistance project raise important questions about the scope of
Convention No. 176 and the need for stronger efforts by the Turkish state to
achieve reform in the coal mining industry. This article discusses the ILO’s
Safety and Health in Mines Convention in light of recent ILO technical
assistance work in Turkey. It outlines arguments in favor of a more expanded
legal interpretation of the obligations of Convention No. 176 in light of
dangerous business practices in the coal mining industry and in light of the
global community’s new international consensus on sustainable development

Keywords

Safety and health, human rights, mine workers, international labour standards, sustainability

References

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