Abstract
Article commenting on provisions of the 1977 work environment labour legislation in Norway in contrast to the conventional ' rule-based' approach to improving working conditions - compares traditional strategy based on standards of occupational health and occupational safety to the new act combining workers participation, job design, improvement of the entire work environment and burden of proof on the employer as well as the traditional standard setting, and finds that it provides an holistic approach to quality of working life. Diagrams and references.