Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2014, published 104th ILC session (2015)

Maximum Weight Convention, 1967 (No. 127) - Peru (Ratification: 2008)

The Committee notes the observations made by the Single Confederation of Workers of Peru (CUT), received on 1 September 2014, and the Autonomous Workers’ Confederation of Peru (CATP), received on 2 September 2014. These observations refer essentially to the non-application of the Convention to workers who are not covered by Act No. 29088 on occupational safety and health of land-based porters and manual transport workers, but who are covered by the Convention, in the absence of a unified system of monitoring and inspection of manual workers in markets, and in the absence of data on the application of the Convention in practice. The Committee requests the Government to provide its comments on these observations.

Article 2(2) of the Convention. Scope of application. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that, according to the Government, the Convention is applied to production, transport and commercial activities in the agri-production chain at the national level, in accordance with the scope of application of Act No. 29088 on the occupational safety and health of land-based porters and manual transport workers. The Committee requested the Government to ensure the application of the Convention to all activities involving the regular manual transport of loads which are not covered by Act No. 29088, but which are encompassed within Article 2(2) of the Convention, and to provide information on this point. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Occupational Safety and Health Act No. 29873 of 2011 and its regulations, approved by Supreme Decree No. 005-2012-TR, are applicable to all economic sectors and services, cover all employers and workers engaged in private sector activities, including own account workers, and the public sector. Under the terms of this Act, employers shall establish minimum requirements, including weight. The Government adds that activities that are not covered by Act No. 29088 are governed by Ministerial Decision No. 375-2008-TR approving the “basic standard on ergonomics and procedures for the assessment of non-ergonomic risks”, which in paragraphs 4 and 13 of Title III, Manual handling of loads, establishes ergonomic protection measures for all workers. The Government concludes that the Convention is applied in Peru to all sectors of economic activity through Act No. 29088 and its regulations, approved by Supreme Decree No. 005-2009-TR and Ministerial Decision No. 375-2008-TR. The Committee also notes the indication by the CATP that the Government has not undertaken any legislative action, or made any proposals to include all branches of economic activity in respect of which the Member concerned maintains a system of labour inspection, with a view to harmonizing its legislation with the Convention. The Committee therefore requests the Government to provide its comments on this matter and to indicate whether Ministerial Decision No. 375-2008-TR is binding for all workers covered by the Convention.

Application of the Convention in practice. The Committee notes the ministerial decisions attached to the Government’s report, and particularly Ministerial Decision No. 313-2011, which establishes the requirement for occupational medical examinations to monitor the health of workers engaged in handling loads. The report adds that the porters and barrow and tricycle operators who work in the supply chain of agricultural products, from regional collection centres to wholesale and retail markets, belong to a major sector of the informal economy, and that the manual handling of loads gives rise to frequent and varied work-related diseases and accidents. In this respect, the Committee notes that, according to the CUT, the great majority of land porters and manual transporters are engaged on their own account, have no formal relationship with their employer, or work directly in the informal economy, and that compliance with the maximum weight and other occupational safety and health rules is not monitored correctly. There is also no harmonized system in markets to supervise and enforce rules on maximum weight. The CATP adds that, as there is no inspection or monitoring, porters are compelled to carry over 100 kilos each, and may have to carry 40 or 50 loads a day. The Committee therefore requests the Government to indicate the manner in which the application of the Convention is ensured to all workers covered by the Convention, including workers in markets, and workers engaged on their own account in the formal and informal economies. The Committee also requests the Government to provide extracts from the reports of the inspection services and, in so far as possible with the statistical services, information on the number and nature of the contraventions reported and the action taken on them.