Decision No. 831/2001/QĐ-BYT on the issuance of regulations on labor hygiene inspection

DECISION

Regarding the issuance of regulations on labor hygiene inspection

_____________________

THE MINISTER OF HEALTH

Pursuant to the Law on Health Care for the People, the Labor Code, and the Ordinance on Inspection;

Based on Decree No. 68/CP dated October 11, 1993 of the Government stipulating the functions, tasks, authorities, and organizational structure of the Ministry of Health;

Pursuant to Decree No. 61/1998/NĐ-CP dated August 15, 1998 of the Government on inspection work for enterprises;

Pursuant to Decision No. 332/BYT-QĐ dated March 3, 1997 of the Minister of Health on the organizational rules and activities of Labor Hygiene Inspection;

At the proposal of the Chief Inspector, the Director of the Preventive Medicine Department, Ministry of Health,

DECISION:

Article 1. This Decision promulgates the "Regulations on Labor Hygiene Inspection" attached hereto.

Article 2. The Inspectorate of the Ministry of Health shall be responsible for directing, guiding, and supervising the implementation of these Regulations.

Article 3. This Decision takes effect fifteen days from the date of issuance.

Article 4. The Heads of the Office, the Chief Inspector, the Directors of the Preventive Medicine Department, the Heads of Departments, the Directors of the Vietnam Drug Administration, the Directors of the Food Safety and Quality Control Department of the Ministry of Health, the Heads of units under the Ministry of Health, and the Directors of Provincial Health Services shall be responsible for implementing this Decision.

REGULATIONS ON LABOR HYGIENE INSPECTION

(Issued together with Decision No. 831/2001/QĐ-BYT
dated March 19, 2001 of the Minister of Health)

PART I
GENERAL PROVISIONS

1. Scope of regulation and applicable subjects:

These Regulations stipulate the inspection of compliance with laws on labor hygiene by organizations and individuals (collectively referred to as entities) employing labor as provided for in the Labor Code, including:

- State-owned enterprises.

- Enterprises and production, business, and service establishments belonging to other economic sectors.

- Foreign-invested enterprises, enterprises within export processing zones, industrial parks, and high-tech zones.

- Administrative agencies, business and service establishments under administrative agencies, social organizations, political organizations (excluding entities specified in Clause 3 of Article 191 of the Labor Code, which include radiation areas, oil exploration and extraction, railway, waterway, road, and air transport facilities, and military forces).

2. Responsibilities for organizing labor hygiene inspections:

The Inspectorate of the Ministry of Health (Labor Hygiene Inspectorate) shall be responsible for advising the Minister of Health to organize labor hygiene inspections nationwide.

The Inspectorate of the Provincial Health Service (Labor Hygiene Inspectorate) of provinces directly under the Central Government (referred to collectively as provinces) shall be responsible for advising the Provincial Health Service Director to organize labor hygiene inspections within their territorial jurisdiction.

3. Conditions for conducting labor hygiene inspections:

Labor hygiene inspections may only be conducted if one of the following conditions is met:

- A work plan for labor hygiene inspections has been approved by the competent authority.

- A re-inspection plan has been established in the conclusion or record of a previous nearby inspection.

- Complaints, reports, or reflections of violations of labor hygiene laws.

Matters assigned by the Head of a superior agency.

- Proposals made by the Inspection Organization or Inspectors when they discover violations of labor hygiene laws within the management scope of the Head of the state management agency at the same level.

4. Forms of inspection:

Regular inspections according to plans.

Unscheduled inspections to address complaints, reports, or reflections of violations of labor hygiene laws or to fulfill tasks assigned by superiors.

- Re-inspections.

PART II
PROCEDURE FOR CONDUCTING LABOR HYGIENE INSPECTIONS

STEP 1
PREPARATION FOR INSPECTION

1. Responsibilities of the Head of the Inspection Agency:

1.1. Developing programs and plans for inspections.

The Chief Inspector of the Ministry of Health, based on guidelines from the National Inspector General and the requirements of the Ministry of Health, shall be responsible for developing programs and plans for labor hygiene inspections, to be submitted to the Minister of Health for approval.

The Chief Inspector of the Provincial Health Service, based on guidelines from the Ministry of Health's Inspectorate, the Provincial National Inspectorate, and the requirements of the Provincial Health Service, shall be responsible for developing programs and plans for labor hygiene inspections, to be submitted to the competent authority for approval according to local classification regulations. The content of the inspection plan must clearly specify the purpose, requirements, content, subjects, methods, time frame, material resources, and funding for implementation.

1.2. Issuing the Inspection Decision:

Based on the approved work plan for labor hygiene inspections, the Chief Inspector of the Ministry of Health and the Chief Inspector of the Provincial Health Service shall submit to the Minister of Health and the Provincial Health Service Director for issuance of the Inspection Decision, or issue the Inspection Decision themselves according to classification regulations. The content of the Inspection Decision must clearly state:

+ The basis for issuing the Inspection Decision.

+ The title of the person issuing the Inspection Decision.

+ The content and subject of the inspection.

+ The list and positions of members of the Inspection Team.

+ The duties and powers of the Inspection Team, and the responsibilities of specialized technical units in measuring and inspecting environmental factors in the workplace.

+ The rights and obligations of the inspected entity.

+ The time frame for the inspection and the organization of its implementation.

2. Responsibilities of the Head of the Inspection Team:

After receiving the inspection decision, the Head of the Inspection Team must prepare for the inspection, including:

2.1. Convening a meeting of the Inspection Team to brief all team members on the objectives, requirements, tasks, content, subjects, and time frame of the inspection.

2.2. Allocating personnel and assigning specific tasks to each member of the team.

In cases where it is necessary to measure and inspect environmental factors in the workplace:

- The Head of the Ministry of Health's Inspection Team shall request the Chief Inspector of the Ministry of Health to report to the Minister of Health for the mobilization of specialized and technical departments on labor hygiene from the Ministry of Health and Provincial Health Services to carry out the task.

- The Head of the Provincial Health Service's Inspection Team shall request the Chief Inspector of the Provincial Health Service to report to the Provincial Health Service Director for the mobilization of specialized and technical departments on labor hygiene from the Provincial Health Service to carry out the task. If the Provincial Center for Preventive Medicine/Labor Health Center does not have the capacity to measure and inspect environmental factors in the workplace, the Provincial Health Service may invite Institutes in the Preventive Medicine System of the Ministry of Health with the function of measuring environmental factors in the workplace or Labor Health Centers in industries that have been authorized by the Ministry of Health to measure workplace environments to conduct measurements.

- Review and collect materials on the operational situation of the inspected entity and relevant laws, labor hygiene standards for the inspection.

- Develop a detailed outline and plan for the inspection.

- Based on the Inspection Decision and the specific plan of the Inspection Team, the Team Leader is responsible for sending notification and the inspection outline to the inspected entity at least seven days before the Inspection Team arrives to work (except in cases of surprise inspections). The inspection notification must clearly state that the entity head has the responsibility to report in writing on the implementation of labor hygiene laws, the program and time of the Inspection Team's work, and the participation components of the entity (the entity head and related functional departments).

STEP 2
CONDUCTING INSPECTIONS

1. Announce the Inspection Decision:

At the start of the inspection, the Team Leader must meet with the entity head being inspected and individuals related to the inspection content to announce the Inspection Decision.

2. Report from the entity head on the implementation of labor hygiene laws.

After announcing the Inspection Decision, the Team Leader requests the entity head to report on the implementation of labor hygiene laws according to the inspection outline previously sent (in cases of surprise inspections, it is not necessarily required to have an inspection outline, but the Team Leader requests the entity head to report on issues within the inspection content recorded in the Inspection Decision) and requires the entity to present labor hygiene documents for the team to check.

3. Check labor hygiene files and documents.

Based on the characteristics of the entity's operations, compliance with labor hygiene regulations, results of implementation, and existing issues of the entity regarding previous inspection recommendations, the team focuses on checking some or all labor hygiene files and documents according to the requirements of the inspection (Annex 1).

4. On-site inspection:

4.1. Requirements:

- Verify the substance of the entity's reports.

- Examine and assess the actual implementation of labor hygiene laws by the entity at the site.

Depending on the production floor, scale, and activities of the entity, the Team Leader may organize a single team or divide into smaller groups for inspection, but each group must have at least two people and must include a representative from the entity.

4.2. Content of on-site inspection (Annex 2).

The organization of on-site inspection must be conducted in all production and working areas of the entity, but should focus on areas with many dangerous and harmful factors.

STEP 3

CONCLUSION OF THE INSPECTION

1. Summarize the situation.

The Team Leader requests the teams and members of the Team to report their inspection results according to assigned contents for the secretary to compile and the Team Leader to write the conclusion or inspection record.

2. Drafting the conclusion or inspection record:

2.1. Administrative procedures must be clearly stated:

- Legal bases for conducting the inspection.

- Time of inspection.

- List of positions of Inspection Team members.

- Observers (if any).

- Name and address of the inspected entity.

- Name of the entity head or the legal representative of the entity head being inspected.

2.2. Content and results of the inspection:

Record fully and in detail the entity's implementation of each clause of the law and regulatory documents on labor hygiene.

2.3. Inspection conclusion:

Based on the inspection results, according to labor hygiene law provisions, the Inspection Team draws conclusions on the entity's compliance with labor hygiene. The inspection conclusion must clearly state:

Clauses of the law that the entity has implemented.

Clauses of the law that the entity has not implemented or implemented incompletely. For clauses of the law reported by the entity as implemented, but through document review or on-site verification there is no evidence to prove the entity's report is correct, they are considered unimplemented.

The draft conclusion or inspection record must be discussed and agreed upon by the Team members. In case there are differing opinions within the team, the Team Leader will conclude and bear responsibility under the law and the person who decided on the inspection.

2.4. Recommendations of the Inspection Team:

Based on the inspection results at the entity, the Inspection Team proposes specific recommendations for the entity to rectify existing issues.

2.5. Handling by the Inspection Team:

Based on the nature and degree of violation by the entity, the Inspection Team proceeds to handle or recommend competent authorities to handle according to the law. For violations requiring administrative warnings or fines, the Inspection Team must prepare an administrative violation record according to the model issued by the Minister of Health Decision No. 1416/BYT-QĐ dated August 22, 1996, but in the conclusion or inspection record, a summary of the violation and handling recommendation of the Inspection Team must be recorded.

3. Announcing the draft conclusion or inspection record:

The draft conclusion or inspection record and administrative violation record (if any) must be announced at a meeting between the Inspection Team and the entity head and related functional departments in the following steps:

- The Team Leader reads the conclusion or inspection record, administrative violation record (if any).

- The entity head expresses opinions on the conclusion, recommendations of the Inspection Team recorded in the conclusion or inspection record, administrative violation record (if any).

If the entity head disagrees with the content of the draft conclusion or inspection record and administrative violation record (if any), the entity head has the right to note their own opinion at the end of the conclusion or inspection record or administrative violation record but still must sign the conclusion or inspection record and administrative violation record (if any).

The conclusion or inspection record, administrative violation record (if any) must be prepared in two copies of equal value, each party keeps one copy.

4. Inspection Team meeting to review and draw lessons.

After completing the inspection round, the Head of the Inspection Team must convene a meeting with the team to draw lessons from the inspection process and evaluate the level of completion of tasks by each member of the team.

5. Report the results of the inspection to the superior authority.

The report must clearly state:

- The situation regarding the implementation and conduct of the inspection.

- The results of the inspection.

- Recommendations proposed by the Inspection Team and suggestions from the inspected entity.

6. Management and storage of inspection files.

All files and documents formed during the inspection process must be preserved and utilized in accordance with the legal regulations on information confidentiality and file storage.

7. Responsibility for supervising and urging the implementation of recommendations and decisions to handle violations related to occupational health and safety at the inspected entity.

After concluding the inspection at the entity, the Ministry of Health's Inspectorate and the Department of Health's Inspectorate must organize supervision and inspection of the implementation of recommendations or decisions to address violations concerning occupational health and safety at the entity. In cases where the entity does not comply or strictly implement the recommendations or decisions of the inspection team or competent state agencies, other administrative measures may be taken in accordance with the provisions of the law./.