The history of DRIPA and Health and Safety - it's not what you think!

Origins: The Social Justice Imperative -

The establishment of the International Labour Organization (ILO) under Part XIII of the Treaty of Versailles (1919) was a deliberate, strategic act of statecraft based on the profound realization that "universal and lasting peace can only be based on social justice." This mandate was not created in a vacuum but emerged from a long, international lineage of political documents that progressively secured rights and limited arbitrary power.

The journey began with the English Magna Carta (1215), which established the foundational principle of the Rule of Law, binding the sovereign to legal limits. Similar impulses to codify legal authority were seen across the globe, such as in Japan’s Jōei Code (1232), which secured judicial rights for centuries, and in France’s Charte aux Normands (1315), which confirmed regional liberties against central power. This tradition expanded with the American Declaration of Independence (1776), which articulated the universal concept of "unalienable rights"—life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

The ILO’s founding was the synthesis of this legal tradition with the urgent, modern demands of industrial labour movements. It acknowledged that political rights were meaningless without economic security, thereby shifting the global focus from securing freedom from oppression to guaranteeing economic and social rights.

The ILO’s Prime Directive and the Framework of Decent Work

The prime directive of the ILO is to advance social justice by promoting Decent Work for all. Decent Work is the practical application of this ideal, encompassing productive work in conditions of freedom, equity, security, and human dignity.

The ILO realizes this mandate through its Conventions—international treaties that become legally binding upon ratification. These Conventions form the Source Authority for labour rights globally, codifying the right to organize (Convention No. 87), the abolition of forced labour (Conventions No. 29/105), and non-discrimination (Convention No. 100/111).

This commitment to human dignity extends to specific mandates, such as the Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989 (C169). This principle of respecting self-determination and free, informed consent is reflected in Canadian contexts like the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA), affirming that all fundamental rights—whether cultural or safety-related—are inseparable expressions of social justice.

From Conventions to Management Systems: The Three Tiers

Achieving the ILO’s ideals requires a tiered framework, as an international treaty must be translated into domestic law and then into organizational practice.

ILO Conventions (The Right): Set the global baseline, such as the fundamental right to a safe workplace (Convention No. 155).

National Acts (The Law): Provincial WorkSafe Acts (and their regulations) are the legal tools that translate C155 into mandatory, enforceable duties for Canadian employers. WorkSafe authorities enforce the law, not the ISO standard.

ISO Standards (The Management System): Standards like ISO 45001 (Occupational Health and Safety) and ISO 26000 (Social Responsibility) are voluntary frameworks that help organizations systematically meet the law and go beyond it.

Steelmanning the Argument: Efficiency and Congruence

The core strategic argument for adopting ISO 45001 is that it is the most efficient and congruent method for organizations to realize the ILO's ethical and legal imperatives.

While a company can technically comply with the WorkSafe Act reactively, ISO 45001 requires a proactive management system based on the PDCA cycle. This is congruent with the ILO’s vision because:

It Operationalizes Security: ISO 45001 mandates continuous risk identification and mitigation, translating the abstract right to security (C155) into measurable, preventative processes, moving beyond mere legal compliance.

It Enforces Social Dialogue: The standard requires mandatory participation and consultation of workers in setting OHS policies. This directly realizes the ILO’s ideal of worker agency, demonstrating respect for human dignity across all decision-making, analogous to the consultation requirements of C169 and DRIPA.

In essence, an organization that effectively implements ISO 45001 adopts a world-class system that saves time, reduces risk, and provides auditable proof that it is contributing to the global project of social justice—the very foundation established at Versailles.

Source: Treaty of Versailles (Part XIII: Labour), ILO Constitution, Magna Carta, American Declaration of Independence, Charte aux Normands, Jōei Code, ILO Conventions No. 87, 155, 169, ISO 45001, and ISO 26000.