A Committee on Prevention and Protection in the Workplace at the Service of the Staff
Like other public and private organisations, the Commission was required to set up a Committee on prevention and protection in the workplace, known as the CPPT. The CPPT is a joint advisory committee made up of representatives of the staff and the administration which is tasked with researching and submitting proposals to prevent and correct issues in the areas of safety, hygiene and health of the staff.
The Brussels CPPT monitors the impact of the new working conditions and deals with office space planning and design, harassment, professional health issues, the asbestos dossier, the Commission’s responsibilities under Belgian legislation, hygiene in the restaurants, the global prevention plan following on from the audits, the implication of new building projects and the pluri-annual perspectives as well as developments in the Commission’s environment policy (EMAS). In 2015, the CPPT held 11 meetings on various subjects and analysed nearly 100 intervention reports from the internal health and safety services.
Recently, the CPPT submitted a major report to management on the prevention and treatment of psychosocial risks in the workplace (burn out, stress, bore-out…) and the Commissions responsibilities as an employer. The report identified a number of approaches towards a prevention plan, better defining the role of an internal service for prevention and protection in the workplace (SIPP), strengthening coordination amongst the different stakeholders, revising existing formal and informal procedures, setting up a register for complaints, informing and training both employees and line management and strengthening the role of the CPPT itself. We are happy to note that the administration has taken the report seriously and has undertaken to set up a series of flanking measures from 2016 onwards to better manage all these risks.
As an elected member of the Staff Committee and, together with other active members of staff representation, we represent you in a constructive way in the CPPT and we listen attentively to your concerns and the needs of colleagues who have specific issues to raise. Do not hesitate to contact us at EC-CSHT-BXL@ec.europa.eu.
