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ENFORCEMENT OF THE EU DIRECTIVES ON

INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTS IN THE FIELD OF MARKET

SURVEILLANCE

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THE ADOPTION OF THE AQUIS COMMUNAUTAIRE

The European directives regulating the above mentioned domains were transposed in to the national legislation through Government Decisions

Among the 27 above mentioned fields, the Labour Inspection is a market surveillance body for the following kind of products:

1. Low voltage equipments-Directive 73/23/CEE2. Personal protective equipment -Directive 89/686/CEE3. Machinery- Directive 89/37/CE4. Equipments and protective systems used in potentially

explosive atmospheres - Directive 94/9/CE5. Noise emissions produced by equipments used outside

buildings-Directive 2000/14/CE6. Explosives for civil uses -Directive 93/15/CE

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The Labour Inspection

The Labour Inspection has been set up under the Law no.108/1999 on Labour Inspection and the Government Decision no.767/1999The Labour Inspection is a special body of the central public administration, subordinated to the Ministry of Labour , Social Solidarity and Family The Labour Inspection has as subordinated bodies 42 Territorial Labour Inspectorates established in every county and in BucharestThe Labour Inspection enforces the legal provisions in two main domains: health and safety at work and labour relationsThe Labour Inspection is led by a General Inspector of State and two deputy general inspectors of state

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Functions of the Labour Inspection in the field of occupational safety and health

Controls the application of the legal provisions on the certification of the products, machines, tools and protective equipments in terms of safety at work, Performs or requires tests or measuring, investigates samples of materials or products from enterprises in order to prevent hazardous situationsTakes measures requiring immediate stop or cessation of any working activity in case labour inspectors identify an imminent danger to the health or safety of the workers or of any other persons

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The Labour Inspectors are empowered

To enter freely and without previous notice at any hour of the day or night any workplace liable to inspectionTo require the employer the production of any books, or documents needed in order to achieve the control or the investigation regarding the accidents at workTo obtain proofs, carry out investigations or examinations, to require necessary documentation, to take for the purpose of analysis samples or substances used in the working processTo require that the identified violations to infringements of the legal provisions in the field shall be solved immediately or within a specified time limit and to require the modification of the installation or the technological process used if do not ensure safety at work

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The Labour Inspection structure in the field of market surveillance

At Central level: 2 labour inspectors coordinated by the Directorate control Health and Safety at Work and by the Deputy General Inspector of State

At territorial level: 2 labour inspectors for each of the 42 territorial labour inspectorates.

All labour inspectors in the country identify the non-compliant products during regular inspections at the workplaces and bring results to the market surveillance labour inspectors.

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Strengthening the administrative capacity of the Labour Inspection for the enforcement of

the EU directives

Starting with the second quarter of the year 2003, when the first Directive(Low voltage) was transposed into the Romanian legislation, the main concern of the Labour Inspection was to train the labour inspectors on the enforcement of the legal provisions regarding free movement of goods and market surveillance.

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Strengthening the administrative capacity of the Labour Inspection for the enforcement of

the EU directives

3 regional seminars with the participation of 90 labour inspectors from all the Romanian counties were organized in 2003. Debates were on the following topics:

The European Guideliness for a New and Global Approach

The 6 EU directives in the field of competence of the Labour Inspection

General and specific procedures laid out by the Labour Inspection for the market surveillance.

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Strengthening the administrative capacity of the Labour Inspection for the enforcement of

the EU directives

Other regional seminars were organized with the participation of the labour inspectors having attributions in the field of market surveillance were organized in 2004. The following materials were presented:

EU Guideliness on the application of each Directive

The Romanian legal provisions(Government Decisions) transposing chapter 8 of the New Approach Guideliness regarding the market surveillance

The European Standards applicable for the European directives

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Strengthening the administrative capacity of the Labour Inspection for the enforcement of

the EU directives

The main issues and the inspection methods in the field of the market surveillance are shared and disseminated to all labour inspectors within the professional training programmes carried on at national level , as a follow up to the twinning project “ Strengthening the institutional capacity of the Labour Inspection” developed in the period of time 2000 –2002 between the Romanian Labour Inspection and the Authority for the Working Environment from Sweden

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Strengthening the administrative capacity of the Labour Inspection for the enforcement of

the EU directives

The professional training of the labour inspectors continued in 2005, with 3 regional seminars, where the information acknowledged by a group of 10 labour inspectors within the exchange of experience in the field of the market surveillance with German experts was disseminated

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Strengthening the administrative capacity of the Labour Inspection for the enforcement of

the EU directivesThe professional training of the labour inspectors in the field of market surveillance was carried out within other EU technical assistance programmes such as:

The bilateral cooperation programme Romania-Belgium, developped by the Ministry of Labour , Social Solidarity and Family from Romania and the Ministry of Labour from the Kingdom of Belgium, resulted in training at European standards for a group of labour inspectors

The GTZ programme, financed by the German Government on economic promotion and employment in Romania, concluded to the qualification , at high standards of 10 trainers in the field of Low voltage equipments , who will share the experience with other labour inspectors

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Strengthening the administrative capacity of the Labour Inspection for the enforcement of

the EU directives

At the same time, Romanian labour inspectors participated within the TAIEX programme(Technical Assistance and Exchange Information Office), periodically organized in Romania in the field of free movement of goods.

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Dissemination of information for producers, importers and dealers/distributors

• The flow of information provided periodically by the Labour Inspection to producers, authorized representatives, importers, dealers distributors and consumers, on legislative issues has an important role within the market surveillance activity , in order to achieve a trade with safe products, avoiding accidents at work and occupational diseases

• The meetings are organized by the territorial labour inspectorates.

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Other domestic and international cooperation actions

• In order to avoid the competence overlaps and to increase the efficiency of the controls, the Labour Inspection signed 2 cooperation agreements: one with the National Authority for Consumers Protection in the field of low voltage electrical equipments the other and with the State Inspection for the control of Boilers, Vessels under Pressure and Lifting Outfits , now on going, in order to perform common inspections for the products which are regulated by the directives Machinery and Vessels under pressure.

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Other domestic and international cooperation actions

• In 2003, the European Union Peer Review mission in the field of market surveillance took place in Romania. The Labour Inspection capacity both at central and local level, through EU experts inspections was assessed .

• The conclusions were positive for the Labour Inspection

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The Labour Inspection informational system in the field of market surveillance

• In order to achieve an effective quick control of the products at national level, the Labour Inspection designed and is using a database.

• The database is available on the Internet for all labour inspectors in order to display the products recorded.

• For the registration of the products, the database is accessible only for the labour inspectors with clearly defined attributions in the field of market surveillance.

• An on-line forum on case studies and specific situations is accessible too.

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The Labour Inspection informational system in the field of market surveillance

• The application allows fast drafting of the reports required by Romanian institutions(the Government, the Ministry of Economy and trade, Ministry of Labour, Social Solidarity and Family), as well as European institution

• this way, we have any time a clear picture of: compliant and non-compliant products, in general or for each

directive or producer; Number of the products controlled in a defined period of time; Number of restricted products for the whole country or for each

county. The value of the fines, globally or separately for each directive.

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Control activity results

• The controls within the New Approach of the market surveillance activity started in June 2003 and were carried out within a national campaign for products regulated by the Low Voltage Directive.

• The Campaign has continued in 2004 and 2005 and has been extended also for the products regulated by the Directives Machinery, Personal Protective Equipment, equipments and protection systems used in potentially explosive atmospheres, and noise emissions.

• After the enforcement of the legal act regulating the placing on market of the civil use explosives( October 2005) , controls have been extended for this kind of products, too.

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Control activity results

• About 280 producers, importers and distributors were controlled in 2003. 35% of the 950 products were identified as non-conform.

• During 2004, 430 producers, importers and distributors, meaning 3900 products were inspected. The percentage for non-conform products was 20%

• During the first 4 months of the year 2005, 125 producers, importers and distributors have been inspected, cumulating 1050 products. The percentage for non conform products was 17%.

• The tendency of decreasing the percentage for non conform products is due to the fact that the awareness in respect to the New Approach legislation, has increased, and this is the outcome of a better dissemination and inspection activity

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Control activity results

• The main non conformities identified during the controls are absence or incorrect issuing of the conformity declaration Incorrect assessment procedure absence of a technical file essential health and safety requirements not fulfilled

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Number of inspections between 2003 and 2006

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Inspections

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Products inspected between 2003 and 2006

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250030003500

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Products

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Number of conform products between 2003 and 2006

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conformproducts

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Number of nonconform products between 2003 and 2006

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nonconformproducts

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Amount conform (63%)/nonconform(37%)

products in 2003

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200

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conform nonconform

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Amount of conform(82%)/nonconform(18%)

products in 2004

0200

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600800

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14001600

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conform nonconform

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Amount of conform(77%)/nonconform

(23%)products in 2005

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conform nonconform

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Products inspected depending on directives in 2005

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Products

Low voltageMachineryPPEATEXNoiseExplosives3-D Column 7

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Amount of conform(92%)/nonconform(8%)

products in 2006

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200

400

600

800

1000

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conform nonconform

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Control activity results

• The main measures imposed by the labour inspectors during the controls , are:

Measures for enforcement the conformity Warnings Temporary interdiction for placing the products on the market Contravention fines

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Perspectives and objectives

Until 01.01.2007(estimated time for Romania accession to the European Union) the producers, importers and distributors must be prepared for the exclusive application of the CE marking and the withdrawal of the national marking CS.

The implementation of the European network informational system ICSMS in Labour Inspection activity.

The extension of the cooperation protocols with other institutions(for example the Customs) , for avoiding and restricting of the non-conform products at the border.

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Perspectives and objectives

The creation on of a network of accredited testing laboratories for the non conform products.

The endowment of the labour inspectors with testing and control devices .

The Continuation of the national programme for the training of the labour inspectors in the field of market surveillance.

Continuing the national campaign for the implementation of EU Directives in the field of market surveillance by focussing on target groups of products.