A negotiable ‘workers'-rights’ model of occupational health and safety policy

After establishing criteria for evaluating occupational safety policy and reviewing the neoclassical argument, this paper sets forth an alternative approach based on (1) an allocation of full safety rights to labour enforced by a right to refuse hazardous work, (2) a provision for compensation bargaining between workers and firms, and (3) a supporting apparatus for research and training. Institutional elements of this approach which exist in the United States and other countries are identified, and the model is considered in light of cognitive dissonance, capital flight and other issues.