Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2001, published 90th ILC session (2002)

Occupational Safety and Health (Dock Work) Convention, 1979 (No. 152) - Ecuador (Ratification: 1988)

The Committee recalls that it noted with interest the information that the Government communicated in its first and second reports. The Committee then requested the Government to communicate additional information on a number of points connected with different articles of the Convention. The Committee, recalls its observation and requests the Government to communicate information on the following points with its next report.

Article 1 of the Convention. Please indicate the manner in which the employers’ and workers’ organizations concerned were consulted in establishing the definition of "dock work", contained in the Occupational Safety and Health Regulations and the Manual on Safety Standards and the Prevention of Risks for Dockworkers.

Article 4, paragraph 1(f). Please indicate the provisions establishing the proper procedures to deal with any emergency situation which may arise.

Article 4, paragraph 2(d) (in conjunction with Article 16, paragraph 2). Please indicate the provisions in force and the measures taken to ensure the safety of workers during transport on land.

Article 4, paragraph 2(g). Please indicate the measures taken or envisaged to ensure safety in the construction, maintenance and use of staging.

Article 5, paragraph 1. The Committee notes that national law contains provisions, to which the Government refers in its report, laying down the responsibility of employers and labour inspectors with respect to safety and health; it requests the Government to state the provisions governing the responsibility of ships’ masters, with respect to work undertaken on board, and of the department of safety of the port authorities in dock work.

Article 7, paragraph 1. Please describe the provisions under which the competent authority consults the organizations of employers and workers concerned in giving effect to the provisions of the Convention.

Article 8. Please indicate the provisions that provide for effective measures to be taken (by fencing, warning signs, cessation of work) to protect the workers any time that there is a risk of injury to health or safety in a workplace.

Article 9, paragraph 2. Please indicate the necessary measures for marking conspicuously and, if necessary, lighting adequately any obstacle liable to be dangerous to the movement of a lifting appliance, vehicle or person.

Article 10. Please indicate the national or local regulations that govern, pursuant to sections 189 and 196 of the Occupational Safety and Health Regulations and sections 302 and 309 of the Manual on Safety Standards and Prevention of Risks for Dockworkers, the construction and maintenance of surfaces used for the stacking of goods or materials.

Article 11. Given that section 44 of the Occupational Safety and Health Regulations, mentioned by the Government in its report, provides solely for a specific measure (prohibition on placing goods in such a way as to obstruct access to gangways and other access routes toships, cranes and similar appliances), please indicate the general measures relating to passageways for the use of vehicles, cargo-handling appliances and pedestrians.

Article 13, paragraph 2. Please indicate the measures taken to ensure that the power supply to any machinery can be cut off promptly in an emergency.

Article 13, paragraph 4. Please indicate the provisions governing the designation of an authorized person for removing a guard or safety device or making it inoperative for the purpose of cleaning, adjustment or repair, or whenever necessary for the work which has to be undertaken.

Article 17, paragraph 2. Please indicate in which cases the means of access to holds are separate from hatchway openings.

Article 18, paragraph 1. Please indicate the provisions concerning conditions in which hatch covers or beams shall be used.

Article 18, paragraphs 4 and 5. Please indicate the provisions covering the designation of an authorized person for opening or closing power-operated hatch covers or other power-operated equipment, mentioned in paragraph 5.

Article 19, paragraph 2. Please indicate the provisions governing the appointment of a responsible person for the purposes mentioned in this paragraph.

Article 20, paragraph 1. The Committee notes that certain sections of the Occupational Safety and Health Regulations (for example, 155, 156 and 170) and of the Manual on Safety Standards and Prevention of Risks for Dockworkers (268, 269 and 283) contain provisions devoted to safety measures which must be taken in particular cases. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the provisions that require the necessary measures to be taken to ensure the safety of workers required to be in the holds or on the cargo decks of a ship while power vehicles are operating in or on them.

Article 20, paragraph 2. Please indicate the provisions which state that hatch covers or beams must be removed before loading or unloading operations take place.

Article 20, paragraph 4. Please indicate the provisions which lay down the means of evacuation of workers who are required to work in a bin or hopper on board ship.

Article 22, paragraphs 2 and 3. Please indicate the intervals at which shore based lifting appliances, and lifting appliances forming part of a ship’s equipment, have to be retested.

Article 25, paragraph 1. Please indicate the provisions which provide that duly authenticated records as will provide prima facie evidence of the safe condition of the lifting appliances and items of loose gear concerned must be kept on shore or on the ship and must contain the information mentioned in this provision of the Convention.

Article 25, paragraphs 2 and 3. Please indicate the form in which the registers shall be kept in the ports and whether the latter contain certificates granted or recognized as valid by the competent authority, or certified true copies of the said certificates. Please supply samples of the registers and certificates.

Article 26. Please indicate the steps taken or planned to implement the provisions of this Article.

Article 27, paragraphs 2 and 3(b) and (c). Please indicate the measures which ensure the application of these provisions of the Convention.

Articles 28, 29 and 31. Please indicate the provisions which give effect to these provisions of the Convention.

Article 32, paragraph 2. The Committee has noted the reference to the Manual of Dangerous Cargo of the International Maritime Organization, made by the Government in its report. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the provisions which prescribe that dangerous substances shall be packed, marked and labelled before being handled, stored or stowed.

Article 32, paragraph 4. Please indicate the measures taken or planned to prevent the exposure of workers to oxygen-deficient atmospheres.

Article 34, paragraph 3. The Committee takes note of the provisions of sections 225-227 of the Occupational Safety and Health Regulations stating that personal protective equipment and protective clothing shall be properly maintained. It requests the Government to state the provision which requires that such maintenance shall be undertaken by the employer.

Article 36, paragraph 1. Please indicate the manner in which employers’ and workers’ organizations were consulted before adoption of the provisions which give effect to this paragraph.

Article 36, paragraph 1(b). Under section 256(b) of the Occupational Safety and Health Regulations, workers shall undergo a periodic medical examination at intervals deemed to be appropriate by the competent authority. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the interval which has been laid down by the competent authority.

Article 36, paragraph 3. Please indicate the measures which ensure the confidentiality of the records of medical examinations and special investigations.

Article 38, paragraph 1. The Committee notes the provisions of section 274 of the Occupational Safety and Health Regulations and section 417 of the Manual on Safety Standards and Prevention of Risks for Dockworkers, to which the Government refers in its report. It requests the Government to indicate the provisions which prohibit workers who have not received adequate instruction or training from being employed in dock work.

Article 38, paragraph 2. The Committee notes that, under section 139(e) of the Labour Code, loading and unloading of ships are included among the types of work which are prohibited for persons under 18 years of age. The Committee requests the Government to indicate the provisions which require necessary aptitudes and experience for the operation of lifting appliances and other cargo-handling appliances.

[The Government is asked to report in detail in 2003.]