INNOVA Research Journal, ISSN 2477-9024  
Diciembre, 2017) Vol. 2, No.12 pp. 139-152  
(
DOI: https://doi.org/10.33890/innova.v2.n12.2017.322  
URL: http://revistas.uide.edu.ec/index.php/innova/index  
Correo: innova@uide.edu.ec  
Seguridad y salud laboral en Ecuador  
Occupational safety and health in Ecuador  
Cajías-Vasco Pe  
Universidad de Especialidades Espíritu Santo, Ecuador  
Álvarez-Calderón Dh  
Instituto Ecuatoriano de Seguridad Social, Ecuador  
Universidad Internacional SEK Ecuador,Ecuador  
Msc, Merino-Salazar P, Ph.D  
Md, Gómez-García Ar, Ph.D  
Universidad Internacional SEK Ecuador, Ecuador  
Autor para correspondencia: pcajias@espol.edu.ec, antonio.gomez@uisek.edu.ec  
Fecha de recepción: 12 de julio 2017 - Fecha de aceptación: 30 de noviembre de 2017  
Resumen: El diagnóstico de seguridad y salud ocupacional (SST) constituye un primer paso para el  
diseño de programas nacionales y revisiones continuas de las reglamentaciones existentes. El  
diagnóstico de SST realizado en Ecuador en 2011 es devastador debido al alto número de accidentes  
laborales, la escasa información oficial, la falta de educación académica de alto nivel y la investigación  
insuficiente. Diagnosticar el estado actual de la seguridad y salud laboral en Ecuador a partir de fuentes  
oficiales de información. Examinamos la situación geográfica, datos sociodemográficos y de salud  
pública, regulaciones legales, estadísticas de accidentes y enfermedades ocupacionales, capacitación e  
investigación en SST en Ecuador entre 2010 y 2015. Las principales fuentes de datos e información  
fueron: leyes y reglamentos nacionales sobre SST, convenios de la Organización Internacional del  
Trabajo, resoluciones de la Comunidad Andina de Naciones y páginas web oficiales de organismos  
públicos nacionales. Además, se analizó la producción científica sobre SST de autores con afiliación  
ecuatoriana, realizada en Ecuador, y publicada en revistas indexadas en las principales bases de datos  
científicos. En Ecuador, la tasa de empleo es del 94,3%, y el 40% se reconoce como empleo adecuado.  
El porcentaje de la población activa cubierta por la seguridad social ha aumentado durante el período  
de estudio, pero se mantiene alrededor del 42% de esta población. El país ha ratificado los 32 convenios  
de SST de la OIT y ha adoptado instrumentos reguladores regionales. El cuerpo legal nacional de SST  
comienza con la Constitución. Se notificó un total de 99.156 lesiones laborales y 2.733 ocupacionales,  
que mostraron un aumento significativo entre 2010 y 2015. En cuanto a los accidentes laborales  
mortales, se notificaron 1.524 casos. La formación en SST se centra en la prevención de riesgos  
laborales. Se identificaron 12 artículos científicos sobre SST de autores de afiliación ecuatoriana y  
desarrollados en un contexto nacional. La situación de la SST en Ecuador enfrenta un alto costo  
persistente de trabajadores informales, una población trabajadora que envejece, un aumento de  
accidentes laborales, una evidencia científica escasa y una legislación obsoleta. El diseño de un Plan  
Nacional de SST debe convertirse en una prioridad para mejorar las condiciones de trabajo y la salud  
en Ecuador.  
Revista de la Universidad Internacional del Ecuador. URL: https://www.uide.edu.ec/  
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Palabras clave: Ecuador; seguridad y salud ocupacional; características sociodemográficas;  
legislación; lugar de trabajo de accidentes; investigación  
Abstract: The occupational safety and health diagnostic (OSH) constitutes a first step for the design  
of national programs and ongoing reviews of existing regulations. The OSH diagnostic performed in  
Ecuador in 2011 is devastating due to the high labor accidents’ toll, the scarce official information,  
lack of high-level academic education, and insufficient research. To diagnose the current state of  
occupational safety and health in Ecuador from official sources of information. We examined the  
geographical situation, sociodemographic and public health data, legal regulations, statistics on  
occupational accidents and diseases, training and research on OSH in Ecuador between 2010 to 2015.  
The main sources of data and information were: national laws and regulations on OSH, conventions of  
the International Labor Organization, resolutions of the Andean Community of Nations, and official  
web pages of national public bodies. In addition, we analyzed the scientific production on OSH of  
authors with Ecuadorian affiliation, carried out in Ecuador, and published in journals indexed in the  
main scientific databases. In Ecuador, the rate of employment is 94,3%, and 40% is recognized as  
adequate employment. The percentage of the working population covered by the social security has  
raised during the period of study, but it remains around 42% of this population. The country has ratified  
the 32 ILO OSH conventions and has adopted regional regulatory instruments. The national OSH legal  
body starts with the Constitution. A total of 99.156 occupational injuries and 2.733 occupational were  
notified, showing a significant increase from 2010 to 2015. Regarding fatal occupational accidents,  
1
.524 cases were notified. Training in OSH is focused on occupational risk prevention. Twelve  
scientific articles on OSH from authors of Ecuadorian affiliation and developed in a national context  
were identified. OSH status in Ecuador faces a persistent high toll of informal workers, an aging  
working population, an increase of work accidents, a scarce scientific evidence and an outdated  
legislation. The design of a OSH National Plan should become a priority in order to improve working  
conditions and health in Ecuador.  
Key words: Ecuador; occupational safety and health; sociodemographic characteristics; legislation;  
accidents workplace; research  
Background  
The Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) diagnostic constitutes a first step for the  
design of national programs and the ongoing reviews of existing regulations in this field.  
Furthermore, it is a tool to measure achievements through time.1,2  
In the last decades, standing out international experiences have led to the reformulation  
and reorientation of new strategies in the national agendas of OSH based on the need to adjust to  
the ongoing worldwide demographic and economic changes.3,4 Furthermore, there are existing  
experiences that were developed through the Andean Initiative in Safety and Occupational  
Health (IAN-SST) in 2010, led by the Safety and Occupational Health Institute of Peru (ISAT)  
and the collaboration of the Government of Canada, to perform the SST diagnostics for Bolivia,  
Colombia, Ecuador and Peru.5;8  
With respect to the results of the Safety and Occupational Health Situational Diagnosis  
for Ecuador developed in 2011, the existence of unfavorable work and employment conditions  
was evidenced. These conditions could be linked to the increase of work related accidents and  
the raise of the death toll with respect to prior years. In terms of occupational diseases,  
Revista de la Universidad Internacional del Ecuador. URL: https://www.uide.edu.ec/  
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INNOVA Research Journal 2017, Vol 2, No. 12, pp. 139-152  
establishing a real framework was considered difficult, due to the lack of information from  
official entities, the inexistence of a 4th Level Educational Program in Work Medicine or  
Occupational Health, the scarce research and scientific output related to labor risk factors, and  
their impact on the health of the Ecuadorian working population.7 In conclusion, the study  
demonstrated that multiple barriers exist in order to obtain a proper view of the OSH reality in  
the country since it has not been considered a priority in the public agenda for neither the  
Government nor the entities that deal with this area.  
Furthermore, assuming the objectives of the I & II Iberoamerican Strategy of Safety and  
Occupational Health9,10 of the Iberoamerican Organization of Social Security (OISS),  
performing preliminary diagnostics related to social-working matters, social protection and  
specially in SST to aid with the formulation, promotion of regulations and national programs in  
Latin-American countries is needed. These will contribute to the reduction of labor incidents  
caused by working accidents or occupational diseases; it will foster economic growth and  
promote decent working conditions.11,12  
The objective of the current study is to diagnose the status of the safety and occupational  
health in Ecuador based on official information sources that will allow us to evaluate the  
efficiency of the current policies, and to formulate strategies to improve working conditions and  
health of the working population of the country. Moreover, the results will then permit  
comparisons with other Latin American countries.13,14  
Methods  
The study is observational, documentary type, based on primary and secondary sources of  
information for the period of 2010-2016.  
A model was designed to gather information for further analysis based on international  
safety and occupational health diagnostics3,4 and latin-american ones.13,14 The main  
dimensions of the object of the study are geographic situation, sociodemographic data, public  
health data, legal regulations, statistics of occupational diseases and working accidents, and  
education and research on OSH in Ecuador.  
The primary information was obtained by consulting the current legal framework in terms  
of OSH in addition to international agreements of the International Labour Organization (ILO)  
and the resolutions of the Andean Nations Community (CAN) adopted by the country.  
Secondary data came from official webpages of the following public entities: National  
Institute of Statistics and Censuses (INEC), National Institute of Standardization (INEN),  
National Institute of Social Security (IESS), Labor Ministry (MT), Public Health Ministry  
(MSP), and belonging to the Ministry of Education the Counsel of Accreditation and Quality  
Assurance of Superior Education (CEAACES), and the Secretary of Superior Education, Science  
and Technology of Ecuador (SENESCYT).  
Finally, an analysis of several scientific articles on OSH. The articles came from authors  
with Ecuadorian affiliation, developed in the Ecuadorian context and published in journals  
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indexed to main databases: Scopus, MEDLINE (PubMed) from the US Library of Medicine, and  
the Regional Portal of the Health Virtual Library (LILACS). Such databases count with the  
broader number of high impact scientific journals; making the research of data easier.  
Results  
Geographic area and population  
Ecuador is located in the North-Occidental Coast of South America. Borders with  
Colombia at North, and Peru to the South. Its territory extension comprises 270.670 km2  
including the Galapagos Islands (7.844 Km2). The country is divided into 24 provinces; Quito is  
the capital of the nation.  
In 2010, the total Ecuadorian population was 14.483.499 inhabitants, slightly  
predominated by women (50.4%) with respect to men (49.6%). The age average was 28.4 years.  
The provinces with higher inhabitants concentration were Guayas (3.645.483; 25.2%), Pichincha  
(2.576.287; 17.8%) y Manabí (1.369.780; 9.5%).15,16 In 2015, the total population was  
1
1
6.144.363 inhabitants and according to INEC for 2020 there will be an estimated population of  
7.512.663 habitants (Fig. 1).  
Socioeconomic data  
According to the National Survey of Employment, Unemployment and  
Underemployment (ENEMDU)17, performed on March 2016 by INEC, 69.6% of the Ecuadorian  
population is the working – age population (PET; age ≥ 15 years old). At the same time, 68.6%  
of PET is economic active (PEA) – people that worked at least 1 hour per week as a reference, or  
that were employed even if they didn’t work, or that didn’t have a job but were available to work  
and are seeking employment (unemployed). From the PEA, 94.3% corresponds to people with  
employment (wage/salary earners and independent workers). There is a 40% rate of adequate  
work in the country. On the other hand, the main economic activities are agriculture, cattle,  
hunting, forestry and fishing (28.1%), commerce (17.8%) and manufacture (10.3%).  
IESS is the autonomous entity in charge and responsible for the mandatory insurance  
within the national system of Social Security.18 With respect to OSH, all employers are required  
by law to insure all workers to cover all the corresponding social benefits in case of  
contingencies due to work accidents and/or occupational diseases.19  
The working population affiliated to IESS from 2010 to 2015 has raised by 1.072.298  
insured workers, registering a maximum of 3.386.721 in 2016 (Fig. 1). Nevertheless, currently  
only 41.9% of the urban employed population is enrolled in Social Security and only 59.6% has  
employment in the formal sector.  
The provinces with higher rates of Social Security affiliation in 2015 are Pichincha with  
1
.069.032 people (34.0%), Guayas with 843.824 (26.8%), Manabí with 223.309 (7.1%), Azuay  
with 184.401 (5.9%), El Oro with 110.039 (3.5%) and 93.240 (3.0%) for Tungurahua.  
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Working population affiliated to IESS  
General population (INEC)  
16.027.466  
16.144.363  
15.774.749  
15.520.973  
15.266.431  
15.012.228  
3
.386.721  
3.145.604  
2015  
2.639.767  
2013  
2
.073.306  
2.224.630  
2011  
2
.480.721  
2
010  
2012  
2014  
Fig. 1. Evolution of the population and workers affiliated to IESS, 2010-2015  
The number of social security affiliates decreased by 241.117 in 2015 compared to 2014,  
mainly due to the decreases in the following provinces: Santa Elena (-56.242), Los Ríos (-  
3
4.680) and Pichincha (-30.698). This incident is tightly related to the economic deceleration that  
the country has been experiencing since the end of 2014 due to the fallen price of oil and the  
dollar appreciation.  
However, between 2006 (46.802 million USD) and 2014 (100.917 million USD) the PIB  
growth averaged 4.3% allowing a greater social expense and investments, reducing poverty from  
3
7.6% to 22.5% and rising the life quality of Ecuadorians.20  
Finally, as far as the health state of Ecuadorian population, the results of the Sixth Round  
Life Conditions Survey (2013-2014) show that the 40.9% of the survey respondents expressed to  
have had some kind of illness in the last month.21 Moreover, according to the data on hospital  
discharges from the MSP, the most frequent diseases include intestinal infections, urinary tract  
infections and respiratory infections.22  
Legislation on safety and health at work  
Ecuador has ratified 32 agreements of the ILO related to OSH and has adopted the  
regulatory instruments issued by the CAN: Decision N° 584 Andean Safety and Occupational  
Health Instrument, later regulated by the Resolution N° 957 regarding the implementation of a  
OSH management system within the Ecuadorian legal framework.23,24  
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The OSH legal body starts with the Constitution.25 This Constitution establishes the right  
of all people to develop their labor activities in an appropriate and sound environment, that  
guarantees their health, integrity, safety, hygiene and wellbeing. Thus, it represents the starting  
point for all employment risk prevention activities for public and private entities.  
In a hierarchical order, the following Executive organic laws back up this right: Work  
Code; amended with the Organic Law for Labor Justice and Domestic Work Recognition26;  
establishing the relationship between employee and employer in terms of OSH; and the Social  
Security Law regulating the IESS services and benefits available to affiliated workers in the case  
occupational injuries and diseases.18  
Additionally, the current Regulation of Workers Safety and Health, and Improvement of  
Working Environment27 in place since 1986, which object is the prevention, reduction or  
elimination of labor risks, and the Regulation for the Operations of Medical Service Departments  
in Companies28 to promote and care for workers´ health; are both regulated by the Ministry of  
Labor. This entity of control performs regular reviews and inspections to Companies to ensure  
compliance with the Regulations of Hygiene and Safety.  
Pertaining to the OSH protection for workers affiliated to IESS, the recent 2016  
Regulation on the Occupational Risks General Insurance29 repeals the resolutions of 2010 and  
2
011.30,31 It mainly institutes an obligation to employers to implant occupational risk  
prevention programs by evaluating and controlling work related risks; and assigns the degree of  
responsibility employers have when occupational accidents or diseases occur based on their  
handling of risk prevention management.32  
To conclude, it seems pertinent to mention INEN (http://apps.inen.gob.ec) as an issuing  
authority of technical regulations related with the safety and health of human, animal and  
vegetable life, the preservation of the environment and the protection of consumers in the  
country.  
Statistics of occupational injuries and diseases  
IESS, through the Committee of Disability Valuation and Employer Liability (CVIRP) –  
Occupational Risk General Insurance (http://sart.iess.gob.ec/DSGRT), is in charge of qualifying  
and registering occupational injuries (O.I.) and occupational diseases (O.D.) notified by  
employers.29 In this sense, the entity is responsible for the technical assessment functions  
covering OSH and the compensations to workers in case of temporal, partial, permanent,  
absolute disability or death caused by their work.27,32  
For the 2010-2015 period, a total of 99.156 O.I. and 2.733 O.D. were notified. The  
higher number of notifications were reported in 2015 for both cases (24.379 and 892,  
respectively). The provinces with the higher casualty rates were Guayas, Pichincha, Los Ríos and  
Azuay. The major occurrence of O.I. was in-itinere accidents (road traffic accidents) and  
accidents at primary work locations.  
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With respect to the calculations of incidence rates related to work accident’s notification  
(
I.R.O.I.) and occupational diseases (I.R.O.D.), considering as numerator the number of cases  
notified by O.I. and O.D. x 100.000 and, as denominator the number of workers affiliated to  
IESS for each year analyzed. I.R.O.I. (381.2 in 2010; 775 in 2015) and I.R.O.D. (8 in 2011; 28.4  
in 2015), present a significant increase (Fig. 2). Regarding fatal occupational injuries (F.O.I.)  
1
.524 cases were registered from 2010 to 2015 (Fig. 3).  
9
8
8
7
7
6
6
5
5
4
4
3
3
2
2
1
1
00,0  
50,0  
00,0  
50,0  
00,0  
50,0  
00,0  
50,0  
00,0  
50,0  
00,0  
50,0  
00,0  
50,0  
00,0  
50,0  
00,0  
7
87,4  
775,0  
681,9  
550,5  
419,8  
3
81,2  
2
3,9  
20,8  
28,4  
50,0  
*
8,0  
8,3  
0
,0  
2010  
2011  
2012  
2013  
2014  
2015  
Incidence Rate O.I. x 100.000  
Incidence Rate O.D. x 100.000  
Fig. 2. Evolution and Tendency of I.R.O.I. & I.R.O.D. x 100.000 workers affiliated to IESS: 2010-2015.  
There is no O.D. data for 2010.  
*
350  
300  
250  
200  
150  
100  
2
98  
274  
2
73  
2
49  
215  
215  
2010  
2011  
2012  
2013  
2014  
2015  
F.O.I.  
Fig. 3 Evolution and Tendency of A.T.M.: 2010-2015  
Training in occupational safety and health  
Currently, six higher education institutions officially accredited offer undergraduate and  
graduate programs in OSH nationwide, Table 1.33  
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These Engineering or Master programs seek to develop professionals in occupational risk  
prevention focusing on occupational safety, industrial hygiene, ergonomics, psychology,  
following a semi-presence based modality.  
Table 1. OSH Undergraduate and Graduate Program Offer, Ecuador 2016  
Degree Program  
Undergraduate Program  
Duration* Modality  
University  
Engineering in Industrial Safety and Occupational Health  
Engineering in Occupational Safety and Health  
5
5
P
UTEQ - Univ ersidad Técnica Estatal de Quev edo  
UISEK - Univ ersidad Internacional SEK  
P-S  
Graduate Program  
Master in Occupational Safety and Health  
Master in Occupational Safety and Health  
Master in Industrial Safety  
2
2
2
2
2
P
S
S
S
S
UESS - Univ ersidad de Especialidades Espíritu Santo  
UISEK - Univ ersidad Internacional SEK  
UNACH - Univ ersidad Nacional de Chimborazo  
UCE - Univ ersidad Central del Ecuador  
Master in Occupational Safety and Health  
Master in Safety and Occupational Hazard Prev ention  
UTC - Univ ersidad Técnica de Cotopaxi  
*Duration in Academic Years. P=Full Time Modality. S=Semi-presence based modality  
Finally, the Technical Secretary of the National System of Professional Qualifications  
and Training, which belongs to the Coordination Ministry of Knowledge and Human Resources,  
allows the professional qualification of workers through a formal certification called Assistance  
in the Safety and Occupational Health Management obtained through standardized private  
training operators.34 The Interinstitutional Committee of Safety and Hygiene at Work accredits  
the training operators and allows them to offer courses that last between 8 to 30 hours to prepare  
participants in OSH related subjects such as chemical risk prevention, first aid, safe driving of  
lifting trucks, electric risks, joint safety committee and workers´ health, ergonomics  
fundamentals, etc.27  
Occupational safety and health research  
In this last section, scientific production on OSH is presented from authors of Ecuadorian  
affiliation and developed in a national context, compiled by studying articles published in  
journals indexed in main international databases (Scopus – PubMed) and regional databases  
(
LILACS – SciELO) from 2010 until 2015.  
Twelve scientific articles were compiled, 5 studies talk about the ergonomic risks present  
in work related activities of administrative and sanitary sectors, flower production companies  
and universities; 4 deal with psycho-social risks; 2 refer to the study of the diagnosis of  
occupational diseases; and 1 with the statistics of occupational accidents or illnesses, Table 2.  
The last article permits to establish an approximation of the occupational incidents in  
Ecuador, evidencing the sub-registry of O.I. and O.D. The manufacturing industry of the  
provinces of Pichincha and Guayas register the highest indices of occupational casualties.35  
Table 2. Scientific articles in OSH: 2010-2015  
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Discussion  
Currently, the Ecuadorian population is characterized by being young and economically  
active. For 2050, life expectancy will be 80.5 years from birth. There are low rates of  
appropriate work and social security affiliation.36 As the population ages, the occupational risk  
factors present at work-sites will be detrimental to workers´ health, causing a socioeconomic  
problem and a public health hazard for the country.37  
The high and persistent proportion of the working population with informal employment,  
which has been linked to poor working conditions (for example; temporary employment and  
long working hours), and hazardous exposures, constitutes an obstacle to improve the health of  
the working population.38  
Even if the legal normative on OSH is based on the prevention and promotion of  
health27,28, it is evident that Ecuadorian companies do not apply prevention and control  
measures on occupational risk factors existing in the workplace. Tendency graphs show that for  
every 100.000 affiliated workers the O.I. casualty rate raised from 381.2 in 2010 to 775 in 2015.  
For O.D., the increase went from 8.0 to 28.4 in the same period. We can conclude that in  
Ecuador there are around 67 work accidents daily in average.  
Until now, the Regulation of Workers Safety and Health, and Improvement of Working  
Environment of 1986 is still the law in force that determines the guidelines for OSH in the  
country.27 However, a review and update of this regulation should become a priority in order to  
put more emphasis on the prevention of O.I. and O.D. Even more, the OSH norms should not be  
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considered as a combination of laws and regulations that must be complied. In this sense, it is  
crucial to start processes to develop a safety culture in Ecuador as a whole.  
The academic offer for undergraduate and graduate programs in OSH is still scarce  
compared to the working population growth enrolled in IESS, originating the demand of  
professionals to cover companies’ needs nationwide.2 In addition, the OSH offer has been  
reduced in the last few years; in 2010, there were 11 masters´ programs available in the country,  
2
certification programs, 4 Technical Specialties and 1 Engineering program.7  
It is evident that there is a diverse offer based on the denomination of the academic title  
and curriculum; but even if safety and occupational health lead as a general criterion, there is no  
consensus on the requirements for the programs, as there are in other countries such as  
Colombia. It is imperative that official authorities regulating university programs accreditation  
set common requirements that all study plans must follow to grant OSH titles and adjust the  
academic offer accordingly.33  
Another aspect to point out is the inexistence of specialties in ergonomics, industrial  
hygiene, psych-sociology, and occupational medicine. We associate this phenomenon to the low  
number of O.D. notifications and the lack of qualification of OSH professionals who do not have  
the skills needed to link occupational risk factors present in working conditions with the effects  
they have in the health of working population (cause – effect).  
As far as scientific output, OSH research in the Ecuadorian context is still one of our  
greatest weaknesses compared to other Latin American countries.7 The lacking of a research  
culture limits the country to an approximation of working conditions and occupational health  
instead of providing a real framework.9,10 Regarding this concern, there is a major need to  
develop OSH research lines for Ecuador, with a rational, practical and participative focus to  
generate knowledge and offer solutions for the negative effects of globalization that detriment  
the health of the working population. Universities nationwide must assume this challenge and  
this competency.39  
In addition, it is also important to generate and strengthen international and  
multidisciplinary collaboration networks. These networks will facilitate the development of new  
projects that broaden the perspective centered in the workplace and shift it into an integral view  
where the relationship between work and health is eminent. Finally, yet importantly, the  
development of an official Ph.D. program on OSH is key to foster the research and increase of  
professionalism of the field.  
The current study permits to determine a diagnostic in the current state of OSH in  
Ecuador. Nevertheless, it has its limitations. First, we need to consider that there is an under-  
registry of O.I. and O.D. incident reports at the IESS.12 ILO estimates that only 20-25%  
occupational accidents are reported in Latin American countries. Considering this data, the O.I.  
reports for 2015 should have been 97.516 instead of 24.379 for Ecuador. Second, the articles that  
were compiled could include an underestimation of the investigation of OSH in a national  
context, since journals published in other databases such as Latindex were not taken into  
consideration.  
Revista de la Universidad Internacional del Ecuador. URL: https://www.uide.edu.ec/  
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Finally, as of today, Ecuador has not received the results of the First Survey on Safety  
and Occupational Health Conditions40, limiting the knowledge of the labor risk factors and their  
relationship with the health state of workers. This information could be used as a complement for  
the statistics of occupational casualties.10  
However, we can conclude from the analyzed results, that the current OSH status in  
Ecuador is worrying and faces a dangerous problem that will continue for the decades to follow.  
The persistence of a high toll of informal workers, the aging of the working population, the  
increase of work accidents and the lack of knowledge on occupational diseases needs to be  
addressed. In addition, control authorities need to review the existing outdated legislation due to  
social, demographic and economic ongoing changes. They need to lead, promote and foster an  
occupational health safety culture nationwide and prevent the reduction of accredited academic  
programs on this field, which results on insufficient scientific research in OSH. All of these  
findings oppose to the ILO Program of Decent Work expected for 2030, which evidences the  
need to design a, OSH National Plan.  
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