IV. Cooperative Activities
During the past four
years the Commission has launched an extensive program of tri-national cooperative
activities. These activities, established under Article 11 of the NAALC, are intended to
promote greater understanding of each country’s laws, policies and practices, and
facilitate the sharing of information related to labor issues.
Each year since 1994, a Cooperative Work Program
has been agreed upon by the three NAOs and the Secretariat, and approved by the Council.
The annual programs have included extensive meetings between labor officials of the three
countries, joint sponsorship of public conferences and seminars, and specific agreements
for sharing technical assistance and training.
The
activities undertaken in 1997 were
A.
Occupational Safety and Health
1997 North American
Occupational Safety and Health Week
June 2-6, 1997 - Held simultaneously in Canada, Mexico and the United States
The North American Occupational Safety and Health
(OSH) Week was established to encourage employers and employees to be more proactive in
ensuring the development and maintenance of an effective safety and health program at the
work site. The theme of the first annual event was: "OSH: A Factor of
Productivity." Some of the issues highlighted during the week were: top management
leadership, management and employee commitment, effective employer/employee commissions
and committees, enforcement and training, education and information.
Each country developed several activities designed
to fulfill the common goal. In the case of Mexico, a qualified group of experts dealt with
this topic during a conference staged at the Congress Unit of the Siglo XXI National
Medical Center. The role played by each of the participants in the labor market was
acknowledged, and their respective responsibilities were underlined so as to strengthen
the culture of foreseeing labor risks and promoting measures to ensure the development and
maintenance of effective workplace safety and health programs. The recently issued Federal
Regulations on Safety and the Environment in the Workplace and the new Social Security Law
were also mentioned. Likewise, reference was made to the effectiveness of the health and
safety commissions.
The Canadian OSH week campaign focused on raising
awareness of occupational safety and health issues through a series of public events
across the country organized by various volunteers and other groups, as well as employers,
unions and government organizations. The Canadian OSH awareness campaign was led by the
Canadian Centre for Occupational Safety and Health. As a contribution to the North
American campaign, the Labour Program coordinated the development of a logo and a poster
for use by the three countries.
The United States promoted the week by producing
brochures and other materials on safety hazard awareness, which were distributed
nationwide through various government, private and public organizations. Their purpose was
to promote the ongoing cooperation among the three countries on safety and health matters
and to encourage employers and workers to take proactive action in developing and
maintaining effective safety and health programs at their work sites. The U.S. NAO and
Occupational Safety and Health Administration further promoted the week by way of media
releases and a public display in the lobby of the Department of Labor, which included a
video and photographic presentation on safe workplace practices.
Planning Meeting for the 1998 North American
Occupational Safety and Health Week
September 25-26, 1997 - Dallas, Texas
The purpose of this meeting, organized by the
Canadian NAO, was to plan the 1998 North American OSH Week. The planners discussed the
following logistical matters relating to the upcoming event: goal, common theme, common
slogan, date, brochure, press release, poster, and communication products. There was
agreement that the North American OSH Week would be an annual event for at least the next
three years.
Planning Meeting on OSH Programs Comparison
Report
September 26, 1997 - Dallas, Texas
This meeting, hosted by the U.S. NAO,
was convened to further understanding
of U.S., Mexican and Canadian laws
and policies on occupational safety
and health, facilitate exchange of
occupational safety and health information,
and to promote safety and health programs
in all three countries, with a view
to producing a comparative report.
B.
Employment and Job Training
International
Conference on Improving Children’s Lives: Child and Youth Labor in North America
February 24-25, 1997 - San Diego, California
The purpose of this conference, hosted by the U.S.
NAO, was to exchange information and experience to curb inappropriate participation of
children in the workforce. Among the many topics discussed were: legal protections for
children and their enforcement; new methods in each country to reduce the inappropriate
employment of children; programs designed by governmental and non-governmental agencies in
the three NAALC countries to improve child labor conditions; and practices to reduce
health and safety risks for children. The participants also agreed that greater promotion
of safety and health regulations in agriculture is needed because children working in this
sector are exposed to greater labor risks than in other sectors in the three countries. A
follow-up conference to be held in Canada was subsequently planned.
Follow-Up Child Labor Conference on Protecting
Working Children in North America: A Shared Responsibility
October 15-16, 1997 - Ottawa, Canada
The Canadian NAO designed this conference to build
on the successes of the previous conference held in San Diego, California. It focused on
the role of key players (governments, employers, employees,organized labor,
nongovernmental organizations, school officials, health care workers, and the community)
in identifying responses and solutions to child labor issues. Participants discussed the
importance of education and raising awareness about child labor issues in North America.
They also agreed that more research is needed to understand the range of the issue and to
identify why children work. Lastly, the participants sought ways to reduce inappropriate
child labor and to ensure that rights of young people who work are recognized and
respected.
Tri-national Conference on Women and Work in
the 21st Century
April 23-25, 1997 - Querétaro, Mexico
This conference, organized by the Mexican NAO, was
a forum for the exchange of information and ideas among the NAALC countries on issues
related to women and work. It addressed the current situation of women in the labor market
and the legal framework, programs and policies of each country in this area by means of an
innovative perspective focused on the XXI century. The delegations of all three countries
included representatives from government, business, unions, academics and NGOs. The
following topics were covered: the differences and complementary trends of economic and
labor structures, the levels of female participation in the labor force, part-time labor,
flexible working hours, the transformation of female education levels in North America,
among others.
The
Secretariat presented a statistical
analysis with information on schooling,
the size and growth rate of the female
labor force, its effect on the overall
employment levels in the last decade,
the greater number of part-time jobs
held by women, the degree of work
stability they have and the persistent
wage gap between men and women in
the three countries.
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