Safety and health at work in Asia and the Pacific

The ILO works to foster a preventative safety and health culture by strengthening national occupational safety and health (OSH) systems. This includes legal and policy framework, compliance mechanism, occupational accident and disease reporting, awareness campaigns and capacity building.

Workers should follow the health protocols for safer workplaces.
Despite the global efforts to improve safe and healthy working environments, around 2.9 million workers die every year due to occupational accidents and diseases and at least 402 million people suffer from non-fatal occupational injuries. Examining 41 pairs of specific risk factors and health outcomes, the WHO/ILO Joint Estimates of the Work-related Burden of Disease and Injury, 2000–2016 indicate that in Asia and the Pacific, work-related diseases were responsible for 1.2 million of work-related deaths and the loss of 55 million disability adjusted life years (DALYs) in 2016.

Occupational accidents and diseases have an impact not only on the lives of individual workers, but also on the productivity and profitability of their enterprises and ultimately on the welfare of the whole society.

The global affirmation of the importance of safety and health at work was expressed in June 2022, when the International Labour Conference (ILC) decided to include a safe and healthy working environment in the ILO’s framework of fundamental principles and rights at work (FPRW).

Governments, workers and employers in Asia and the Pacific are increasing their efforts to ensure and promote these principles and rights of all workers in all workplaces by preventing accidents and diseases at work. The ILO works with them to strengthen national occupational safety and health (OSH) system, including legal and policy framework, compliance mechanism, occupational accident and disease reporting, awareness campaigns and capacity building, through the management systems approach set out by two fundamental Conventions, the Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981 (No. 155) and the Promotional Framework for Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 2006 (No. 187).

National programmes, profiles and policy documents

Training programmes and materials

Prevention and control of pandemic influenza

ILO key instruments and materials

Other materials and documents

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