Systematic review of qualitative literature on occupational health and safety legislation and regulatory enforcement planning and implementation

OBJECTIVE: The ability of occupational health and safety (OHS) legislation and regulatory enforcement to prevent workplace injuries and illnesses is contingent on political, economic, and organizational conditions. This systematic review of qualitative research articles considers how OHS legislation and regulatory enforcement are planned and implemented. METHODS: A comprehensive search of peer-reviewed, English language articles published between 1990 and 2013 yielded 11 947 articles. We identified 34 qualitative articles as relevant, and 18 passed our quality assessment and proceeded to meta-ethnographic synthesis. RESULTS: The synthesis yielded four main themes: OHS regulation formation, regulation challenges, inspector organization, and worker representation in OHS. It illuminates how OHS legislation can be based on normative suppositions about worker and employer behavior and shaped by economic and political resources of parties. It also shows how implementation of OHS legislation is affected by 'general duty' law, agency coordination, resourcing of inspectorates, and ability of workers to participate in the system. CONCLUSIONS: The review identifies methodological gaps and identifies promising areas for further research in 'grey' zones of legislation implementation