Day for Safety and Health at Work in Poland Date in the current year: April 28, 2024

World Day for Safety and Health at Work was inspired by Canada’s Workers’ Memorial Day. Its history dates back to 1970, when the AFL-CIO declared April 28 “Workers’ Memorial Day” to honor those who had been killed or injured on the job. The Canadian Union of Public Employees followed suit in 1984. In 1991, the Canadian parliament made April 28 an official Workers’ Mourning Day.

The Sejm of the Republic of Poland officially declared April 28 as Day for Safety and Health at Work (Dzień Bezpieczeństwa i Ochrony Zdrowia w Pracy) in 2003, the same year that the International Labor Organization established World Day for Safety and Health at Work. Like all holidays declared by parliamentary resolution in Poland, it does not form a part of law and is normally a working day unless it falls on a weekend.

The main goal of Poland’s Day for Safety and Health at Work is to raise public awareness of the importance of permanent and comprehensive activities in order to improve working conditions and health protection in the workplace, as well as to commemorate the victims of accidents at work.