Convention concerning Safety and Health in Construction (ILO Safety and Health in Construction Convention, 1988 (No. 167))

Article 13
SAFETY OF WORKPLACES

1. All appropriate precautions shall be taken to ensure that all workplaces are safe and without risk of injury to the safety and health of workers.
2. Safe means of access to and egress from all workplaces shall be provided and maintained, and indicated where appropriate.
3. All appropriate precautions shall be taken to protect persons present at or in the vicinity of a construction site from all risks which may arise from such site.

Article 14
SCAFFOLDS AND LADDERS

1. Where work cannot safely be done on or from the ground or from part of a building or other permanent structure, a safe and suitable scaffold shall be provided and maintained, or other equally safe and suitable provision shall be made.
2. In the absence of alternative safe means of access to elevated working places, suitable and sound ladders shall be provided. They shall be property secured against inadvertent movement.
3. All scaffolds and ladders shall be constructed and used in accordance with national laws and regulations.
4. Scaffolds shall be inspected by a competent person in such cases and at such times as shall be prescribed by national laws or regulations.

Article 15
LIFTING APPLIANCES AND GEAR

1. Every lifting appliance and item of lifting gear, including their constituent elements, attachments, anchorages and supports, shall-
(a) be of good design and construction, sound material and adequate strength for the purpose for which they are used;
(b) be properly installed and used;
(c) be maintained in good working order;
(d) be examined and tested by a competent person at such times and in such cases as shall be prescribed by national laws or regulations; the results of these examinations and tests shall be recorded;
(e) be operated by workers who have received appropriate training in accordance with national laws and regulations.
2. No person shall be raised, lowered or carried by a lifting appliance unless it is constructed, installed and used for that purpose in accordance with national laws and regulations, except in an emergency situation in which serious personal injury or fatality may occur, and for which the lifting appliance can be safely used.

Article 16
TRANSPORT, EARTH-MOVING AND MATERIALS-HANDLING EQUIPMENT

1. All vehicles and earth-moving or materials-handling equipment shall-
(a) be of good design and construction taking into account as far as possible ergonomic principles;
(b) be maintained in good working order;
(c) be properly used;
(d) be operated by workers who have received appropriate training in accordance with national laws and regulations.
2. On all construction sites on which vehicles, earth-moving or materials-handling equipment are used-
(a) safe and suitable access ways shall be provided for them; and
(b) traffic shall be so organised and controlled as to secure their safe operation.

Article 17
PLANT, MACHINERY, EQUIPMENT AND HAND TOOLS

1. Plant, machinery and equipment, including hand tools, both manual and power driven, shall-
(a) be of good design and construction, taking into account as far as possible ergonomic principles;
(b) be maintained in good working order;
(c) be used only for work for which they have been designed unless a use outside the initial design purposes has been assessed by a competent person who has concluded that such use is safe;
(d) be operated by workers who have received appropriate training.
2. Adequate instructions for safe use shall be provided where appropriate by the manufacturer or the employer, in a form understood by the users.
3. Pressure plant and equipment shall be examined and tested by a competent person in cases and at times prescribed by national laws or regulations.

Article 18
WORK AT HEIGHTS INCLUDING ROOFWORK

1. Where necessary to guard against danger, or where the height of a structure or its slope exceeds that prescribed by national laws or regulations, preventive measures shall be taken against the fall of workers and tools or other objects or materials.
2. Where workers are required to work on or near roofs or other places covered with fragile material, through which they are liable to fall, preventive measures shall be taken against their inadvertently stepping on or falling through the fragile material.

Article 19
EXCAVATIONS, SHAFTS, EARTHWORKS, UNDERGROUND WORKS AND TUNNELS

Adequate precautions shall be taken in any excavation, shaft, earthworks, underground works or tunnel-

(a) by suitable shoring or otherwise to guard against danger to workers from a fall or dislodgement of earth, rock or other material;
(b) to guard against dangers arising from the fall of persons, materials or objects or the inrush of water into the excavation, shaft, earthworks, underground works or tunnel;
(c) to secure adequate ventilation at every workplace so as to maintain an atmosphere fit for respiration and to limit any fumes, gases, vapours, dust or other impurities to levels which are not dangerous or injurious to health and are within limits laid down by national laws or regulations;
(d) to enable the workers to reach safety in the event of fire, or an inrush of water or material;
(e) to avoid risk to workers arising from possible underground dangers such as the circulation of fluids or the presence of pockets of gas, by undertaking appropriate investigations to locate them.