Stručni rad
Croatian and International Regulations on the Protection and Rights of Workers Exposed to Asbestos at Work
Marija Zavalić
; Hrvatski zavod za zaštitu zdravlja i sigurnost na radu, Zagreb
Jelena Macan
orcid.org/0000-0001-6269-5475
; Institut za medicinska istraživanja i medicinu rada, Zagreb
Sažetak
New regulations on the protection and rights of workers occupationally exposed to asbestos were introduced
in Croatia in 2007 and 2008. They have been harmonised with the European Union (EU) and International Labour Organization (ILO) regulations, and make a step forward in safety at work, health protection, social rights, and pension schemes for Croatian workers occupationally exposed to asbestos.
The 2007 Croatian regulation on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to asbestos at work defi nes and describes activities in which workers can be occupationally exposed to asbestos, defines the threshold value of asbestos in the air at work, defi nes valid methods for measurement of asbestos concentrations in the air, and establishes measures to reduce asbestos exposure at work or protect the exposed workers. Croatian law regulating obligatory health surveillance of workers occupationally exposed
to asbestos from year 2007 defi nes activities and competent authorities to implement health surveillance of workers occupationally exposed to asbestos and to diagnose occupational diseases related to asbestos.
This law also defi nes “occupational exposure to asbestos”, and “occupational asbestos-related diseases”, including asbestosis (pulmonary asbestos-related fi brosis), pleural asbestos-related disorders (plaques, pleural thickening, and benign effusion), lung and bronchial cancer, and malignant mesothelioma of serous membranes. These regulations have been harmonised with ILO, Directive 2003/18/EC amending Council Directive 83/477/EEC on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to asbestos
at work, and with the Commission Recommendation 2003/670/EC concerning the European schedule of occupational diseases.
The 2008 Croatian regulation on conditions of health surveillance, diagnostic procedures and criteria for confi rmation of occupational asbestos-related diseases “ defi nes the terms and the content of medical examination of workers exposed to asbestos, and criteria for the confi rmation of occupational asbestosrelated diseases which are harmonised with the Helsinki criteria acknowledged by ILO and EU, particularly concerning the level and length of exposure.
Croatian law on compensation of workers occupationally exposed to asbestos from 2007 regulates compensation claims for workers with occupational asbestos-related disease, authorities competent to
process these claims, and funds and coeffi cients for compensation payments. Accordingly, Croatia is responsible for compensation claims payment for workers with occupational asbestos-related disease. The 2007 law on conditions for entitlement to full pension for workers exposed to asbestos at work defi nes the conditions for fulfi lling criteria for retirement pension for workers exposed to asbestos at work.
Ključne riječi
asbestos; compensation claim; European Union; health surveillance; International Labour Organization; occupational diseases; occupational exposure
Hrčak ID:
42188
URI
Datum izdavanja:
2.11.2009.
Posjeta: 2.702 *