On April 27, on the eve of World Day for Safety and Health at Work, BIST students learned about its history in Russia and on a global scale.

The International Labor Organization (ILO) officially proposed celebrating this day in 2003. Today, this important day is on the list of holidays in over 100 countries. Its primary goal is to draw the attention of employers, workers, and the public to the problems of occupational injuries and unfavorable working conditions, as well as to contribute to solving these problems.

Each year, World Day for Safety and Health at Work is held under a specific theme. In 2024, the theme is «IMPACTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY AND HEALTH». Air pollution, solar radiation, ultraviolet radiation, extreme heat, floods, and other climatic factors are leading to an increase in occupational risks, a rise in respiratory and cardiovascular diseases, and the spread of foodborne and waterborne illnesses.

Students learned about many facts about the history of the holiday for the first time, and they sparked great interest. Here are just a few of them:

The official term «Occupational Safety and Health» appeared with the establishment of Soviet power, this definition created a new historical approach to labor organization. In March 1917, the newspaper «Pravda» published slogans: «Land to the Peasants», «Occupational Safety and Health to the Workers».

The Soviet government in March 1917 opened its Occupational Safety and Health Committee under the relevant commissariat, which compiled a list of hazardous and harmful professions and industries, established rules for working underground and at night, and explored possibilities for the employment of children and women. Mikhail Vasilyevich Lomonosov first reported on occupational safety and health at the state level in the history of Russia. In the third part of his book «The First Principles of Metallurgy, or Mining», he paid attention to the safety of miners, starting with the description of the proper organization of underground work and safety measures, and ending with a description of protective structures and workers’ clothing. He also passionately protested against the use of child labor in mining and metallurgical enterprises, which scarred their psyche and health from a young age. Students were introduced to his poem written in 1763, where he speaks of the death of workers in a mine, accompanied by numerous tips on the most expedient and safe organization of production.

World Day for Safety and Health at Work is an additional opportunity to highlight the importance and relevance of occupational safety issues, the need to address problems in the field of occupational safety and health. As noted in the Resolution of the X Congress of the FNPR, «Preserving the health of workers is an objective and pressing need of today! Creating mechanisms for managing working conditions and occupational safety and health is the foundation of managing professional risks».