2025 年 4 巻 2 号 論文ID: cor.25-008
The International Online Conference on Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Policy in the Artificial Intelligence Era, held on July 10, 2025, brought together policymakers, researchers, and practitioners from Japan, the European Union, Great Britain (GB), and Germany to examine the opportunities, risks, and regulatory challenges posed by artificial intelligence (AI) in workplace safety and health. Organized by the Japan Association of Occupational Health Law and co-organized by the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, Japan (JNIOSH), with support from the Health and Labour Sciences Research Grant (25JA1004), the event featured keynote presentations, national policy overviews, case studies, and a multidisciplinary discussion.
The European Agency for Safety and Health at Work presented survey data and case studies on digitalization and AI use in Europe, identifying both safety improvements and psychosocial risks such as work intensification and loss of autonomy, alongside relevant EU legal frameworks. The GB Health and Safety Executive outlined a “pro-innovation” regulatory approach integrating AI oversight into existing sectoral regimes, supported by horizon scanning and standards development. BG BAU (Germany) shared practical AI deployment for accident prevention in the construction industry, including an inspector worklist app and AI-enabled inspection documentation, emphasizing scalability and human-centered design.
From Japan, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare reviewed current machinery safety regulations, the integration of AI and autonomous systems, and future regulatory perspectives, while also detailing AI-based digital transformation in labor standards inspection. JNIOSH reported on AI applications in fracture analysis, slope failure prediction, ergonomic risk assessment, and natural language processing of accident reports. Finally, survey results from Japan revealed distinctive cultural patterns in AI risk perception, with respondents highlighting transparency, accountability, and structured protocols as priorities, leading to legal policy proposals emphasizing co-regulation, international standard harmonization, risk communication, and the redistribution of responsibility to risk creators.
The concluding discussion addressed transparency, practical enforcement, and emerging concerns such as the potential for emotionally responsive AI to influence worker psychology. Across jurisdictions, participants stressed that proportionate, evidence-based governance, combined with international cooperation, is essential to ensure that AI enhances OHS outcomes while safeguarding worker well-being.
