Workplace Safety and Collective Redundancies: Legal Framework
Workplace Safety and Health: Employer and Employee Obligations
The policy framework is shaped by employers, employees, and their representatives, subject to the legal provisions implementing the Directive. States have an obligation to ensure adequate control and monitoring. Within this policy are:
1. Employer Obligations
General rules are:
- a) To ensure the safety and health of workers in all aspects of the job.
- b) The obligations of the workers do not affect the principle of employer liability.
- c) Possible exclusion or reduction of corporate responsibility for events arising from circumstances that are extraneous, abnormal, unforeseeable, or exceptional events, whose consequences could not have been avoided despite the diligence displayed.
- d) The employer is liable to take the necessary measures for protection. This includes the prevention of occupational hazards, information and training, and the establishment of an organization and means to guarantee it.
- e) Obligation to take measures that prioritize collective protection over individual protection, as well as to give instructions to the workers.
- f) The employer has an obligation of cooperation and coordination when employees of various companies are present in the same workplace.
- g) Protection measures must not involve any financial burden to workers.
- h) The employer has an obligation to inform workers and their representatives, as appropriate, of the risks to safety and health, as well as the protection measures and activities affecting or preventing both the company and/or the establishment in general, and each type of job and/or function.
2. Employee Obligations
As a general rule, employees must ensure their safety and the safety of others potentially affected by their acts or omissions at work, according to their means, in accordance with their training, and in accordance with the instructions of the employer.
Specific rules include:
- a) Proper use of machines, tools, dangerous substances, transport equipment, and other means.
- b) Use of proper personal protective equipment available.
- c) Correct use of all safety devices on machines and tools.
Specific Protection for Groups at Particular Risk
Examples: Directive 92/85/EEC of 19 October 2002. Protection of workers who have recently given birth or are breastfeeding.
Collective Redundancies
Study Directive for the implementation of the Directive:
a) The term “collective redundancies” means dismissals effected by an employer for one or more reasons not related to the individual workers when the number of redundancies is, according to the choice made by Member States:
- i) For a period of 30 days:
- – At least 10 in establishments normally employing more than 20 and less than 100 employees.
- – At least 10% of the number of workers in establishments normally employing at least 100 but less than 300 workers.
- – At least 30 in establishments normally employing 300 workers or more.
- ii) Or, for a period of 90 days, at least 20, whatever the number of workers normally employed in the establishments in question.
b) The expression “workers’ representatives” means representatives of the employees provided by law or the practice of Member States.
For the purposes of calculating the number of redundancies provided for in paragraph a), terminations of employment contracts that occur at the initiative of the employer based on one or more reasons not related to the individual workers shall be assimilated to redundancies, provided that the layoffs are at least 5.
The Directive does not apply to:
- a) Collective redundancies effected under contracts of employment concluded for a period or for specific tasks, except where such redundancies take place prior to the expiry or the completion of such contracts.
- b) Workers in government or public law institutions (or equivalent bodies in Member States where this concept is unknown).
- c) The crews of seagoing vessels.