Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2004-01-14-Speech-3-311"
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"en.20040114.9.3-311"2
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"Mr President, the question has been circulated and I would put it to you and to the Commissioner that action in this area is long overdue.
We talk of psycho-social occupational health and safety risks, which would include violence at work, harassment, bullying, stress and anxiety, as new emerging risks. I am beginning to wonder how long we can carry on describing them as 'new emerging risks'. I was looking back through some of my old papers recently and I saw that the group of trade union health and safety officers I was working with at that time, in the late 1980s, was already using that description then. Here we are, 15 years later, still using the same phrase and little, if anything, has been done at EU level to tackle these risks directly.
I also realise on rereading our question that at least one element of it looks a little silly, namely the part that asks: 'Does the Commission intend to act rapidly in this field?' The answer is clearly 'no'. The excellent report produced by Mr Andersson and adopted in 2001 made two calls for action. It called on the Commission to publish a Green Paper and action plan no later than the end of 2002. We are still awaiting a response.
Secondly, the report called on the Commission either to extend the scope of the Framework Directive on Health and Safety, or to draft a new directive to combat harassment at the workplace. Again, we are still waiting for a response. We would like to know what action, if any, the Commission intends to take in this field.
The truth is that many Members of this House are becoming increasingly angry and frustrated at the disgraceful way in which work by the Commission on health and safety matters has ground to a complete halt in recent years. The Commission's Health and Safety Strategy for the 2002-2006 period is proving to be the sham I suspected it would be. When I produced Parliament's report on that strategy, I was seriously considering recommending its rejection unless it was accompanied by a detailed action plan. We received certain assurances from Commissioner Diamantopoulou and, as a result, we adopted a report which was critical but fell short of rejection. I now recognise that it was a bad mistake. Exactly the sort of drift, devoid of action, which I feared has ensued. I do not blame Commissioner Diamantopoulou herself, but it is clear there are high-level officials in DG-Employment that take a different view. This policy area is completely sidelined.
The strategy itself touched on risks in this area. Under the heading 'Taking account of new risks', it says, 'The increase in psycho-social problems and illnesses is posing a new challenge to health and safety at work and is compromising moves to improve well-being at work. The various forms of psychological harassment and violence at work likewise pose a special problem nowadays, requiring legislative action'. On the next page under the heading 'The Commission will', it says, 'examine the appropriateness and the scope of a Community instrument on psychological harassment and violence at work'. Well, we are still waiting. The work programme for this year mentions an instrument on violence but not on psychological harassment.
My final point is this: I have heard it said that it is difficult to legislate in this field for the problem is too complex, diffuse or subjective. Two Member States already have legislation in this field: Sweden and Belgium. What that means is that it is clearly possible to legislate and that some EU workers have legal protection, while the vast majority do not. That is the clearest justification for EU-level legislative action. These risks are causing tremendous suffering and anguish among workers within the European Union. It is high time that the Commission acted."@en1
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