Ilo's successful participatory training methods to improve occupational safety and health (OSH)

Upon request from WHO, this presentation highlights ILO successful experience in  the implementation of participatory training methods on occupational safety and health (OSH) for the improvement of working conditions and working environments in ILO’s member States.

 Participatory Action Oriented Training (PAOT) builds-up on local wisdom and good practices for the improvement of working conditions. The PAOT manuals are designed for employers, workers and representatives to OSH committees in small-scale enterprises, operators in the informal economy, home workers, farmers’ cooperatives and community structures both in the urban and rural sectors. These methodologies are designed for those in need of practical and easy to apply measures to identify hazards and risks and develop the necessary low-cost solutions to deal with traditional and emerging risks. The training methods also show the contribution of safety and health to productivity and well-being at work.

 ILO’s Participatory Action Oriented Training started in the 1980’s in Southeast Asia and expanded successfully to developing countries in Latin America, Africa, Central Asia and Easter Europe through ILO technical cooperation, and more recently through Decent Work Country Programmes (DWCPs). An assessment of these training tools showed their usefulness in providing relevant stakeholders, with practical, easy to apply and low-cost means to deal with occupational hazards and risks. In some countries, the ILO has combined these methodologies with a Train of Trainers approach (TOT) consolidating the competences of those with OSH responsibilities and contributing in overcoming the lack of expertise and resources to intervene at workplace level in this field.

 The following training programmes with a participatory approach will be presented: WISE (work improvement in small enterprises); WIND (work improvement in neighbourhood development), WARM (Work adjustment for recycling and managing waste); WISH (Work improvement for a safe home); WICOM (work improvement in small construction sites) and SOLVE (integrating health promotion into workplace safety and health).