Health, Safety and Environment - International Labour Organization

Manual 6:HOW TO RATIFY & USE ILO CONVENTION NO. 184ON SAFETY & HEALTH IN AGRICULTURE After ratification – implementationIt is a great victory for agricultural workers when a country ratifies theConvention. But the task will not be over. The government now has to makesure that legislation or practice conforms to the Convention and isimplemented. Thus discussions must be held on amendments to anynational health and safety laws or legal codes.Ratification means building on your country’s safety and health laws, usingthe Articles of the Convention to introduce, expand and/or strengthen themwhere necessary. If a particular element of your country’s law alreadyprovides an equivalent, or higher standard, than the Convention, then yourcountry simply maintains its existing standards with regard to that specificelement.At this point, the following exercise should be useful. It will show whatimprovements can be made. It looks long and complicated. In fact, it issimple, though it may take some time. Divide up the work amongst severalgroups. This exercise should also be done in the tripartite workshop, if youare successful in getting one organised (see the section Tripartite meetingon C 184). Comparing the Convention and the law in your countryActivity – Comparing the convention and the lawAIMSTo help us to compare the standards in Convention 184 and the present lawTASK1. Each small group will be asked to scrutinise one part of the Convention. Themain provisions are restated in the first column of the boxes below, but youcan refer to the actual text in the Convention if you wish.2. Compare what the Convention demands with the current law in your country inthe second column of the box.3. Quote the exact section or part of the law which corresponds, if any. Itispossible that there will be no corresponding part of the your national law.4. In the third column of the box, identify amendments that need to be made inyour national law.Elect a spokesperson to report back281 Health, Safety and EnvironmentA Series of Trade Union EducationManuals for Agricultural Workers