I am looking for web sites from around the world regarding different
country?s health and safety regulations.  Here in the US, OSHA does a
pretty good job of posting all of their regulations in one place
(http://www.osha.gov/index.html) and their web site if pretty
searchable and friendly (once you use it a bit).  I need to find web
sites like that for the EC, individual European countries, Russia,
Middle East, Asia / Pacific area, Central and South America.

An even better web site would be one that compares individual
regulations from country to country (e.g. in the US you must wear
hearing protectors above 90dB but in the UK you must wearing them
above 85dB, etc.).

Thanks in advance for your help.
Dan

---

Request for Question Clarification by pafalafa-ga on 14 Feb 2005 06:58 PST

Hello Daniel,


I'm not aware of any source that presents a side-by-side comparison of
all OSH regs for all countries -- indeed, that would be quite an
unwieldy chart!


However, there is extensive information available on international H&S
topics.  Your best source is probably the International Labor
Organization (ILO).

In particular, have a look at these two online resources provided by the ILO:


http://www.ilo.org/public/english/protection/safework/cis/products/legosh.htm
Legislative Texts on OSH


The Database of Legislative Texts on Occupational Safety and Health
(LEGOSH) that we present here consists of references to more than 3500
(as of 2001) laws, regulations and international legal instruments
dealing with OSH matters in approximately 140 countries and
international organizations.




http://www.ilo.org/public/english/protection/safework/cis/products/encyclo/index.htm
The ILO Encyclopaedia of Occupational Health and Safety




The first has all the laws on a country by country basis, the second
has in-depth discussions of particular topics, such as hearing
protection devices, and differing standards used around the world.



Are these the sorts of resources you're looking for.  Please let me
know if they meet your needs.

Thanks,

pafalafa-ga

---

Clarification of Question by daniel135-ga on 14 Feb 2005 08:15 PST

I've seen the International Occupational Safety and Health Information
Centre web site from Geneva, Switzerland.  It will list regulations
however not actually direct you to the country of origin?s web page. 
If a web site that compares a bunch of different countries health and
safety regulations is not available, then I would require web sites
from major countries (see list in first question) where their
individual regulations are posted (again like OSHA, see original
question).  I?ll pull up the things of interest that I require from
these individual web pages and put together my own comparrision
Thanks again,
Dan

---

Request for Question Clarification by pafalafa-ga on 14 Feb 2005 08:43 PST

Best I can do are these links here, although not every region that you
are interested in is represented:


http://dmoz.org/Health/Occupational_Health_and_Safety/Government_Agencies/Europe/


http://dmoz.org/Health/Occupational_Health_and_Safety/Government_Agencies/Asia/

---

Clarification of Question by daniel135-ga on 14 Feb 2005 10:47 PST

Great list so far.  That was just what I was looking for.  The thing
that would make it complete are just a few more sites.  Is there
anything out there for Mexico, Central American, South America, Soviet
Block Countries or the Middle East?  If I can get something for those
I'll be a happy camper.
Thanks,
Dan

---

Request for Question Clarification by pafalafa-ga on 14 Feb 2005 12:07 PST

Daniel,


Unfortunately, it's tough to find consolidated OSH information for
other parts of the world.  One possible source is the World Health
Organization:


http://www.who.int/occupational_health/network/en/directory.pdf


I extracted several links from this report that may be helpful:

BRAZIL
www.fundacentro.gov.br/

CHILE
http://www.ispch.cl/

POLAND
http://www.immt.gdynia.pl/

EGYPT
www.niosh.gov.eg

Korea
www.kosha.net/english/english.htm



I also came across a link for Bahrain:
http://www.bah-molsa.com/english/index.asp




Hope that helps some.   If there's one or two countries that would
complete the list for you, let me know, and I'll have a look and post
their links as an answer.


pafalafa-ga

---

Clarification of Question by daniel135-ga on 14 Feb 2005 15:20 PST

Thanks for all the hard work.  I would like something for Mexico and I
think that would about do it.  This is the first time that I've ever
asked for anything here.  How do I go about closing out the question
and telling the "powers that be" that you did a great job?!?

Thanks again,
Dan

Hello again, Dan.

Thank you for your kind words, and for giving me the opportunity to
answer your question.  There are a few additional links I would like
you to be aware of.



The first is the Mexico Labor Department, with oversight for OSH issues:


http://www.stps.gob.mx/index2.htm



In particular, you'll find the site for the Dirección General de
Seguridad y Salud en el Trabajo at:


http://www.stps.gob.mx/04_sub_prevision/03_dgsht/san_diego/bienvenida/index2.htm




An interesting adjunct to the Mexican site is the home of the
TriNational Working Group on OSH matters:


http://www.naalcosh.org/index_e.htm
North American Agreement on Labor Cooperation


Note the links to specific OSH topics in the US, Canada, and Mexico on
the lower left hand side of the page.




Another useful resource -- if you haven't seen it already -- might be
the ILO legislative site on OSH texts:



http://www-ilo-mirror.cornell.edu/public/english/protection/safework/cis/legosh/

Legislative texts on OSH
Index of Countries, Provinces, Organizations



Clicking on a country name takes you to a list of OSH legislation and
other resources for that country, and clicking on a resource name
brings up a summary document, like this one for Mexico:


Federal Regulation on Occupational Safety and Health and on the
Working Environment [1997]

http://www-ilo-mirror.cornell.edu/public/english/protection/safework/cis/legosh/mex/lx068782.htm

Abstract These new general regulations on OSH came into effect (except
for parts of Title II) on 21 Apr. 1997. They cover: I - General OSH
measures: definitions; responsibilities of employers and employees;
scope and role of Standards issued by the "Secretaría"; research,
authorization, evaluation and advisory activities of the "Secretaría".
II - Safety requirements in the workplace: buildings and workplaces;
fire prevention and protection; equipment, machinery, pressure
vessels, steam generators; electrical installations; tools; handling,
transportation and storage of materials in general, and of dangerous
chemical substances in particular. III - Occupational hygiene: noise
and vibration; ionizing and non-ionizing radiation; biological
hazards; work in abnormal air pressure; work under abnormal thermal
conditions; lighting; ventilation; personal protective equipment;
ergonomic considerations; welfare facilities; order and cleanliness.
IV - Safety and health organization in the workplace: generalities;
safety and health committees; notification of and statistics on
occupational accidents and diseases; OSH programmes in the workplace;
OSH training; preventive activity in occupational medicine and in OSH.
V - Protection of minors and of pregnant and nursing women. VI -
Enforcement, inspection and administrative sanctions. Several
Regulations, including the "1978 General Regulations on Safety and
Health" are abrogated.




Hope these links, along with those I provided earlier, fully meet your needs.


You needn't do anything to "close" this question.  By posting an
answer in the answer box, I've effectively closed it myself.

However, you can do one or both of the following, if you wish:


--Ask for additional information by posting a Request for
Clarification (and please feel free to do so if there's anything you
need).


--Rate this answer anywhere from one to five stars (five is the best).


You can also leave a comment along with the rating.



I hope you've enjoyed your first Google Answers experience.  Hope
we'll see you back here again one of these days.


pafalafa-ga

This was a very difficult topic that I've been dealing with for years.
 My researcher did a fantastic job of putting together a bunch of web
pages that will aide me in my research.  Fabulous job!!!!

For the UK try the following links:

http://www.legislation.hmso.gov.uk/stat.htm

http://www.hse.gov.uk/

Hope these help

Steve
http://www.SafetyServicesDirect.com