• 5th International Congress of Women Work and Health - Zacatecas (Mexico) - October 27-31, 2008
• Fourth International Congress of Women Work and Health - New Delhi - November 2005
  HESA Newsletter (March 2006)
• Third International Congress of Women Work and Health - Stockholm - 2002
• Second International Congress of Women Work and Health - Rio de Janeiro - 1999
  TUTB Newsletter Special issue (March 2000)
  
  
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Generally speaking, women's issues are absent from health and safety policies: the hazards involved are either unknown or underestimated; and priorities are defined in male-dominated sectors and occupations, and so on. This failure to take account of women's health issues in the workplace constitutes a barrier to effective policies on occupational health and equal opportunities. For several years now, the TUTB and the ETUC have been trying to incorporate gender into their workplace health and safety policy. In 2001, the TUTB and ETUC decided to carry out a survey in the 15 EU countries aiming at assessing the situation.

• To order the publication

Book Reviews:

• Gender, Work and Organization 12(4): 383-385 (2005)
• Relations industrielles 59(3):622-625 (2004)
• www.cfdt.fr (23 février 2004)

Integrating Gender in Ergonomic Analysis
Ed. by Karen Messing, 1999.

For a number of years past, the Montreal-based CINBIOSE centre (the Centre for the study of biological interactions in environmental health - University of Quebec) has been conducting research to make visible and gain recognition for aspects of women's work which are bad for their physical or mental health. This research stems from the concerns and needs voiced by women workers themselves. Most of it is conducted in partnership with the three main Quebec trade unions. Through their scientific research and commitment to making workplaces healthy and safe, the team aims to shed light on what has so far remained invisible.

• To order the publication

See also:

• the articles published in our Newsletter

• Europe: Trade Union initiatives across Europe
  TUTB Newsletter, n° 13, March 2000
• Women in trade unions: making the difference
  European Trade Union Confederation - ETUC
• Belgium: Het gendersapekt van arbeidsgezondheid [NL]
• Italy: Donne e mal di turni
  Document published by the "Group Women-health-work" Cgil-Cisl-Uil Milano concerning health problems of shift workers
• Italy: Lavoro a turni e notturno : strategie e consigli per la salute e la sicurezza (2006)
• Italy: Trade union action-oriented research into occupational diseases
• Spain: A Trade Union Guide on Women, Health and Work in Spain [ES]
  Written by Susana Brunel and Neus Moreno, this book gives valuable guidelines for a Trade Union policy combining equality and workers' health
• Spain: Equality as an Issue for Safety Reps: a training guide from the Trade Union Confederation [ES]
  Comisiones Obreras
• Spain: La atención al público y la salud de las trabajadoras (English version)
  Comisiones Obreras
• Spain: Occupational health and gender [ES]
  Unión General de Trabajadores - UGT
• UK: Working through the change: health and safety and the menopause
  Trade Union Congress - TUC
• UK: TUC Gender and Occupational Safety and Health ‘Gender-sensitivity’ Checklist
• Quebec: Guide tackles sexism's impact on workplace health and safety [FR]
• Central America: Centroamericanas nadando a contracorriente. Esperiencias de trabajo en la maquila [ES]
  A trade union analysis of working conditions in the "maquila" sector in Honduras and El Salvador (2005)

• This European Directive concerns the introduction of measures to encourage improvements in the safety and health at work of pregnant workers and workers who have recently given birth or are breastfeeding. To comply with this directive, the employer must assess risks and inform the worker of the results (a list of agents, processes and working conditions likely to constitute a specific risk of exposure is set in an annex of the directive) as well as to take measures to avoid exposure to such agents, processes or activities by temporarily adjusting the worker's working conditions and/or working time; by moving the worker to another job; by granting the worker leave of absence.
• Consult the text of the directive

In July 2000, the European Parliament have expressed high critism on the Commission's report on the implementation of this directive and have formulated a series of proposals for its revision. Until now no proposal of revision has been presented by the Commission.

• Commission's report (COM(1999) 100 final)
• Parliament's report (A5-0155/2000)

See also:

• Communication de la Commission on the Guidelines on the assessment of the chemical, physical and biological agents and industrial processes considered hazardous for the safety or health of pregnant workers and workers who have recently given birth or are breastfeeding (COM(2000) 466 final)

Other useful documents:

• Interim report of the EOC’s investigation into discrimination against new and expectant mothers in the workplace
  Manchester: Equal Opportunities Commission, 2004.
• Pregnancy discrimination at work: a review
  Grace James. Manchester: Equal Opportunities Commission, 2004.

• Gender and working conditions in the European Union
  Eurofound, 2007
• Gender equality, work and health: A review of the evidence
  WHO, 2006
• How is the time of women and men distributed in Europe?
  Eurostat, April 2006
• A statistical view of the life of women and men in the EU25
  Eurostat, March 2006
• Combining family and full time work
  Eurofound, 2006
• The world's women 2005: Progress in statistics
  United Nations, Statistics Division, 2006
• Working conditions and gender in an enlarged Europe
  Eurofound, 2005
• Gender, Health and Worker
  WHO, 2004
• Unemployment and mental health: Understanding the interactions among gender, family roles, and social class
  L. Artazcoz, J. Benach, C. Borrell and I. Cortès (AJPH, January 2004)
• Including gender issues in risk assessment
  European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, 2004
• Gender equality plans at workplace
  This comparative study analyses the issue of workplace plans aimed at achieving greater equality between women and men. Looking at the current European Union, Norway, and a number of new Member States joining the EU in 2004.
• Tip of the iceberg
  Interim report of the EOC’s investigation into discrimination against new and expectant mothers in the workplace.
• Gender issues in safety and health at work
  European Agency for Safety and Health at Work
• The social context of women's health
  BMC Women's Health, 2004
• WHO multi-country study on women's health and domestic violence against women
• Gender, workplace and return to work: A south australian perspective
• Occupational reproductive hazards
  The Lancet, 1997

• ASTRA
  Central and Eastern European Womens Network for Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights
• Donna Salute e lavoro
  ISPEL (Italy)
• European Women's Lobby
• Fédération des Femmes du Québec
  (Canada)
• Gender statistics web site for Europe and North America
  (UNECE)
• Grupo de género y salud pública
  Sociedad Española de Salud Pública y Administración Sanitaria (Espagne) 
• Observatorio de salud y mujer
  (Spain)
  Reports on Equality between Women and Men in the European Union
  European Commission (Yearly reports published since 1997)
• Voices Unabridged
  Online magazine on women and human rights
• Women in Development Europe
  (WIDE)
• Women and work hazards
  Hazards Magazine (UK)
• Women's Environmental Network
  (UK)
• Women's Health and Safety
  Amicus (UK)
• Women for REACH and a toxic free future
• Women's safety and health issues at work
  NIOSH (USA)
• Womenwatch
  United Nations Inter-Agency Network on Women and Gender Equality

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