Promoting quality of work in the European Union
News release - 14.07.2004
The addition of new Web features and online publications has established the Agency as Europe’s premier online portal of occupational safety and health (OSH) information, according to the Agency’s 2003 annual report.
The addition of new Web features and online publications has established the Agency as Europe’s premier online portal of occupational safety and health (OSH) information, according to the Agency’s 2003 annual report.
Other 2003 achievements highlighted in the report include:
- The Agency’s European week on dangerous substances at work – the largest campaign of its kind, spanning over 30 European countries, including all EU Member States and candidate and acceding countries.
- New reports on gender inequalities in OSH and assistance schemes for small and medium-sized enterprises, as well as factsheets to help various industries, such as the fisheries sector, address their safety and health problems.
- The first steps towards establishing a ‘risk observatory’ to identify and monitor emerging risks at work, such as psychosocial stress.
- Initiatives to strengthen the prevention culture by mainstreaming OSH into education and training and to establish it as a key pillar of corporate social responsibility.
- The creation and expansion of special web features on subjects such as OSH and disability. Over 1.7 million people visited the Agency’s website ( http://agency.osha.europa.eu/) in 2003, a two-fold increase on the previous year.
- The funding of 40 new projects to promote higher standards of OSH among Europe’s 19 million SMEs through training, information activities and the provision of effective good practice. An independent assessment of the first year of the SME funding scheme, 2001-02, found that more than 500,000 SMEs had benefited from the 51 Agency-supported projects.
- The distribution of more than 4 million copies of Agency publications, the majority in all official EU languages.
During the year, the EU-funded Agency also prepared itself to accommodate enlargement as cost-effectively as possible. ‘With the arrival of 10 new Member States in May 2004, the Agency will be able to offer an unrivalled pool of OSH expertise and knowledge,’ say Christa Schweng, the Chairperson, and Hans-Horst Konkolewsky, the Director, in the report’s opening statement.
The report’s publication coincides with the launch of a special CD-ROM edition of all the Agency’s 2002-3 publications.
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Further information
Press contacts: Andrew Smith, email: smith@osha.europa.eu European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, Tel: +34 94 479 57 33
Other enquiries: European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, Gran Via 33, E-48009 Bilbao, Spain, e-mail: information@osha.europa.eu , fax: (34) 94 479 43 83.
Notes to editors
- The European Agency for Safety and Health at Work was set up by the European Union to help meet the information needs in the field of occupational safety and health. Based in Bilbao, Spain, the Agency aims to improve the lives of people at work by stimulating the flow of technical, scientific and economic information between all those involved in occupational safety and health issues.
- The Annual report in EN and summaries in the 20 EU languages can be downloaded from: http://agency.osha.europa.eu/publications/annual_report/index_en.htm.
- In addition to the Annual Report and the summaries, the Agency has produced a CD-ROM of Agency information and publications. Copies of the Annual Report, catalogue number TE-AB-04-001-EN-C, and of the Agency Information CD-ROM, TE-49-02-854-EN-Z can be ordered from the European Publications Office www.publications.eu.int and its sales offices.
