The safety and health of  the working population are the cornerstones of  social development. The social and moral aspects of the issue are signifi cant, but one should also take into account the economic losses caused by the presence of harmful and dangerous working conditions. The volume of underproduction due to absence of workers because of the industrial injury or occupational disease, according to the International Labor Organization annually constitutes almost 4% of world GDP. All this necessitates the transformation of state management of labor protection from regulatory control through risk assessment to a safety culture. The article examines the main stages in the development of approaches to public management of labor protection in the UK, Australia, the USA, Japan and Russia from the point of view of models and characteristics of labor protection management. The purpose of the research is to identify common features and stages, as  well as  assess the effectiveness of  the measures being implemented. It has been concluded that approaches to OSH management are developing in parallel with the development and transformation of the economy; in countries with a federal structure they become aware of the need for uniformity of legislation in the field of labor protection; after the establishment of framework requirements in the field of labor protection, the main task of the state is to provide serious methodological assistance to employers in ensuring safer and healthier workplaces, as well as the general well-being of the working population.