ABSTRACT
The protection of workers' health and well-being seems far too distant. Effective methods for worker health surveillance should contribute to the more macro-level monitoring system to ensure the collection and provision of information on the level of performance achieved in the protection of workers' health by a national or state level government. Workers have been shown to be healthier when they are able to participate in decision-making. Many working people lack protection against workplace risks, which are entirely preventable. "Flexible" work structures are characterized by an absence of guaranteed employment, protection of workers' health, benefits, union representation, or a decent living wage. A rights-based approach for redefining concepts underlying the field of occupational health is proposed herein as a departure from medical, engineering, and technocratic approaches to occupational health. A key element in a rights-based approach to work security is universal access to health care.
