The Government of Belgium deposited with the International Labour Office the instruments of ratification of :
1. The Invalidity, Old-Age and Survivors’ Benefits Convention, 1967 (No. 128) ,
2. The Chemicals Convention, 1990 (No. 170) ,
3. The Working Conditions (Hotels and Restaurants) Convention, 1991 (No. 172) .
With their ratification by Belgium, Convention No. 128 has now received 17 ratifications, Convention No. 170 has 20 ratifications and Convention No. 172 has 16 ratifications.
Convention No. 128 has the objective of improving the protection provided by the Social Security (Minimum Standards) Convention, 1952 (No. 102), in relation to invalidity, old-age and survivors’ benefits through the requirement to cover either all employees, including apprentices, a minimum of 75 per cent of the economically active population or all residents whose means do not exceed the prescribed limits, and to raise the required minimum replacement rates for the contingencies covered.
Convention No. 170 provides for a complete national framework for the safe use of chemicals at work, including the formulation, implementation and periodic review of a coherent national policy. The Convention also sets out the responsibility of employers, the duties and rights of workers at the enterprise level, the specific responsibilities of suppliers and exporting countries, and the need for consultation with the social partners on the measures to be taken to give effect to the Convention.
Convention No. 172 is intended to ensure that workers engaged in hotels, restaurants and similar establishments enjoy a status that corresponds to their role in such establishments and to attract new workers by improving working conditions, training and career prospects, taking into account the particular conditions that are characteristic of the sector. In this regard, any Member that ratifies the Convention undertakes to adopt and apply a policy designed to improve working conditions so as to ensure that the workers concerned are not excluded from the scope of any minimum standards adopted at the national level for workers in general, including those relating to social security.
