The finnish approach to environment protection and safety at work

It is necessary for good practice to be widely adopted prior to the principles of sustainable development becoming part of an everyday routine. The Finnish situation, with its special characteristics, is briefly described below.

SAK - the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions

It is stated in the SAK manifesto that "the natural resources of the globe, and an environment which supports human survival, must be regarded as being the property of the whole of mankind and thus must neither be wasted nor destroyed". The working environment is, of course, an area which directly concerns the trade unions. It is the opinion of the unions that it is important that the working environment is seen as a whole, to be developed with foresight and emphasising not only productivity but also the well-being of the workforce. This concept of the working environment covers the physical, mental and social welfare of the workforce, with the issues of both productivity and the environment being considered, side by side. This principle is universal and must embrace everyone, not only the core employees within a company. Thus the entire production chain, including any sub-contractors, along with the life cycle of the product, will be examined. The goals could be described as tripartite: a sound standard of work, a sound level of productivity, and a sound environment.

The SAK-affiliated unions have further developed these theories and have brought them closer to reality by applying them in practice. Here we have two examples from industry:

Two Finnish Unions: The Chemical Workers' Union and the Paperworkers' Union

The Chemical Workers Union¹ has set itself the goal of becoming a pioneer in the issues related to safety at work and the protection of the environment by the year 2000. Productivity, safety at work and the protection of the environment are linked in the Union's Work Environment Document. Initially the Union will concentrate its efforts on measures which will speed up the adoption of relevant guiding principles within the chemical industry. EMAS and ISO 14000, amongst the various control and audit systems, will be brought to the forefront along with product life cycle analyses, ecolabelling and suitable economic measures such as pledges, emission charges and environmental taxes. Improving the workers' rights to participate in the company's environmental protection schemes and increasing the workers' environmental awareness are the key areas of development. The basic aim is to link, in a sensible way, safety at work with the protection of the environment.

In its publication "Outline for 1997 2001"² the Finnish Paperworkers' Union offers a wide analysis of issues connected with safety at work and environmental protection, and sets a variety of goals: jointly applied systems, to be recorded in both national and international company agreements, for the promotion of safety at work and the protection of the environment, systems of practical measures to be created within individual companies, self-control systems to be developed at the workplace, the entire workforce to be trained in these issues, environmental protection guidelines, which were jointly set with the employers ten years ago, to be updated, and the system for health and safety at work to be kept concurrent with the environmental circumstances of the company in question. The aim of dealing with these issues is to set examples and considerable steps have already been taken in many of these areas. The plants within the paper industry are mostly large and have strong local union branches in which the members appreciate the development of systems which promote safety at work and the protection of the environment. For example, the work environment as well as the natural environment are currently invariably subjected to special scrutiny during the preliminary planning stages of any investment programmes, and the same concerns are present during the development of daily routines. The impact of paper manufacturing plants on the environment is of major concern, paper products forming a key element of the Finnish export trade.

Combined Efforts of Employers and Employees: the Printing Industry

The joint Health and Safety Committee of the printing industry employers' and employees' organisations published, in 1997, a clear and easy to use environmental handbook³, in which the connections between the various aspects of safety at work and the protection of the environment are made clear. In this publication the respective goals of safety at work and the protection of the environment are condensed into a joint issue, covering health, safety and high quality production methods which minimise any pollution of the environment. Modern companies see environmental protection as being an opportunity rather than a threat. Company operations may be made more efficient, and quality improved, through taking steps which will protect the environment. At the same time the environment at the workplace is improved. At its best, environmental protection is seen in the industry as a part of a business idea. (Figures 1 and 2.) The printing industry regards EMAS and the ISO 14001 standard as being the environmental control systems which are best suited to its particular field.

An Industrial Workplace: an Example

In Vaasa, a town on the West coast of Finland, at the ABB plant which represents the metal industry, an environmental strategy has been adopted. The company no longer refers to safety at work as a separate issue from environmental concerns. These concepts have been combined so they now simply refer to protection, both of the workforce and the environment. The production quality system (ISO 9001), the environmental system (ISO 14001), and the system for safety at work (BS 8800) are applied in parallel, and the company desires to amalgamate these into a single control system at a future date. The environmental quality programme was seen by the workforce as being the essential element of this management system of work, health and safety. The management of the company is strongly committed to this system which the employees regarded as necessary for improved efficiency. Thus the system has become a part of the company strategy, with increased responsibility at each level, with training being provided for the employees and with the concept of "continual improvement" becoming a regular tool (Figure 3).

The following were seen as benefits derived from focussing on environmental issues:

• often provided a competitive edge
• natural resources used wisely
• raises company image
• savings created from sorting waste
• legal requirements and regulations routinely fulfilled
• appreciation by the customer, not only of quality but also of environmental care

As already mentioned, the employees of the company regarded this development as a positive step and they continue to be fully prepared to support further development.

The Other Side of the Coin

According to the research we have carried out on workplaces within companies and organisations, only about one quarter of companies in Finland actively promote development in the area under discussion here. The rate falls still further, to 10 percent, should the criteria be made more strict. Let us take team work as an example: the formation of a team does not, in itself, suffice. The team must be actively operational and democratic dialogue within the team is vital, otherwise the requirements for successful teamwork have not been fulfilled. Approximately one fifth of workplaces are unsatisfactory and are riddled with multiple problems. The largest group, about half of all workplaces in Finland, falls somewhere in between the above two examples when they are evaluated by using the development criteria.

What is the whole truth? According to a recent study carried out on working conditions by the Finnish Statistical Centre, physical hazards, for example, have in some areas increased since the 1970's, and positive development in general has come to a halt during the 1990's (Figure 4). I therefore believe that workplaces in which the attitude to safety at work is one of indifference, harbour similarly indifferent attitudes towards the environment. Although here we have examined some examples of good practice which no doubt will continue to improve the conclusion, at least in the short term, is gloomy: Finnish workplaces have become polarised on the issues connected with safety at work and with the protection of the environment, and this trend may be gathering momentum.

The Conclusion

In addition to good examples, we need comprehensive regulations which will bring at least the minimum requirements to the worst workplaces, and which will raise the standard of attitudes towards work and the environment in general. Monitoring - carried out both by the authorities and by health and safety representatives within the workplace - will be needed for several more generations in Finland.

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