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Number 368 - 9 August 2008
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Risks is the TUC's weekly online bulletin for safety reps and others, read each week by over 16,000 subscribers and 1,500 on the TUC website. To receive this bulletin every week, click here. Past issues are available. This edition contains Useful links TUC courses for safety reps Disclaimer and Privacy
Editor: Rory O'Neill of Hazards magazine. Comments to the TUC at healthandsafety@tuc.org.uk
Union News
Protests at Royal Mail bullying abuse
Around 300 postal workers marched through Bristol on 4 August demanding 'justice for the innocent three' Royal Mail employees fired on spurious 'bullying' charges. CWU members Colin Tucker, Kay Gibbs and Paula Franklin were sacked following complaints made against them during last autumn's national postal dispute. The union said the firm misused its 'notorious' bullying and harassment procedures to justify the action. CCTV footage has proven that Colin and Kay are 'utterly innocent,' the union said. It added that the accusation against Paula arose from an alleged posting on a website set up by Royal Mail to provide a forum for discussion among staff. The union's high profile campaign has already 'forced the company to compromise, offering to reinstate the three, but at the Weston-super-Mare delivery office some 30 miles away from the city.' But CWU's Bristol branch said the three are innocent, so 'nothing other than full reinstatement back in their own city is acceptable.' In this week's protest, marchers - many wearing brightly coloured 'Reinstate the Bristol 3' t-shirts and caps - set off through the city streets, blowing whistles and chanting 'Victory to the CWU' and 'Justice now for the Bristol three.' CWU deputy general secretary Dave Ward told protesters that Colin, Kay and Paula had been sacked for 'no more than standing up for trade unionism' and it was the company that was guilty of 'bullying our members every day in the workplace.' He said 'the fight must continue.' CWU branch secretary Dave Wilshire said: 'Royal Mail have the cheek to talk about bullying and harassment when the reality is that, at Bristol, Burslem and elsewhere, the only bullies are Royal Mail managers,' adding that, unless an acceptable solution was found, 'there won't be a letter posted in Bristol.'
Union seeks to vanquish Spirit attack
Pub chain Spirit Group's bid to increase staff hours and reduce sickness absence has been labelled 'totally unacceptable' by the union Unite. A move by the firm to create a single employment contract for pub managers would erode existing terms and conditions, the union said. Part of the overhaul 'includes slashing benefits for those on long-term sick from 12 months to just 13 weeks on full pay', it said. The union added that although the firm had backed off from the original plans to increase the working week for pub managers from five days to six, 'it is clear that they are still being expected to work unacceptably long hours.' It added that the firm also plans to terminate maternity and paternity entitlements and instead will offer only the statutory minimum - even though the number of managers likely to qualify for these benefits is 'minimal.' Unite national secretary Jennie Formby said the union had made it clear to the Spirit Group, owner of Punch Taverns, 'that we will do everything in our power to ensure we protect our members' hard-won conditions. Unite has seen its membership at Spirit Group significantly increase over recent weeks and will be making further representation over full recognition and collective bargaining rights.'
Public say 'no' to rail cuts
Ticket office cuts planned by South West Trains will lower the quality of services to rail passengers, according to a majority of people polled on the issue, Britain's two biggest rail unions have said. An ICM Omnibus poll commissioned by the unions RMT and TSSA found that 57 per cent of people polled in the SWT franchise area believe that quality of service would decrease as a result of cuts to the opening hours of 114 ticket offices. The unions said the changes could jeopardise passenger and worker safety. The planned cuts would see dozens of stations without a ticket office at all at weekends, and dozens more open only for a few hours. 'The response to our postcard campaign has been tremendous and it is quite clear that most SWT passengers agree that there should be more staff on stations, not fewer,' said RMT general secretary Bob Crow. 'This is an attack on safety and service that is about maximising already huge profits and cutting costs,' he said. TSSA general secretary Gerry Doherty said: 'The ICM poll confirms that the majority of people have seen through SWT's ridiculous claims that cutting station staff will somehow improve their service. They should listen to their passengers and withdraw these cuts immediately.'
Other news
Less than three minutes a day for safety
The government says small firms spend under three and a half minutes a day on safety admin - but thinks this should be slashed further to reduce costs. A 6 August report from the Better Regulation Executive (BRE), backed by secretary of state for business John Hutton, 'sets out recommendations to save these firms time and money, while improving working environments and general understanding of health and safety.' The BRE report, 'Improving outcomes from health and safety', found small businesses spend on average 20 hours a year on safety administration, or three minutes and 17 seconds per day. It says paring this back to a daily average of under two and a half minutes - a 25 per cent reduction - 'would save low risk businesses £150 million a year.' Business secretary John Hutton, whose department published the report, said: 'Cutting the amount of paperwork for low risk businesses, and making complex regulations easier to understand, will also help create safer environments for workers and the public.' The strategy will mean fewer inspections for workplaces deemed 'low risk', although this is already the practice employed by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). The report does not spell out if firms currently considered sufficiently risky by HSE to warrant inspection will now be shunted into the 'low risk' category. Nor does it establish how in the absence of inspections it will know if individual employers are operating unsafely within the 'low risk' sectors, which the report identifies as finance and business, hotels and restaurants, wholesale, retail and repair and education. The report, which has been criticised by unions, also ducks issues like the high rates of certain occupational diseases in some of these sectors - for example, international research has shown hotel workers can have the highest rate of musculoskeletal disorders of any industry, a major occupational health problem also afflicting warehouse, checkout and other retail sector staff.
- BERR news release. Improving outcomes from health and safety, BRE, August 2008.
Union dismay at 'dangerous' report
Unions have reacted with dismay to a government report that says small firms who spend just minutes a day on health and safety admin should do even less. TUC said the Better Regulation Executive (BRE) report, 'Improving outcomes from health and safety', which considers the effects of the health and safety regulatory regime on smaller businesses, is a 'disappointment'. TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said: 'This report does nothing to address the appalling health and safety record of Britain's small businesses. Instead it looks to what it terms the 'burden' of health and safety regulation for businesses.' He added: 'Small businesses have a worse record on most health issues than larger ones. Rather than address this problem, many have simply ignored it. More than half of small businesses have not even done a basic risk assessment, despite this being a legal requirement. Given the rising number of small businesses and the growing incidence of workplace ill-health, this report would have been an ideal opportunity to argue for greater resources for enforcement agencies such as the Health and Safety Executive, to allow them to increase their inspections of small businesses. At present small or medium sized businesses only get a visit from an inspector once every 20 years.' Mr Barber concluded: 'The aim of health and safety regulation is to protect workers from injury and ill-health. Obeying the law is not a 'burden' but a legal duty and if an employer - whatever their size - is putting the lives or health of their workers at risk, they should be prosecuted like any other criminal.' Alan Ritchie, general secretary of the construction union UCATT, said: 'This report and the message it sends out is dangerous and could have potentially fatal consequences. Companies whatever their size need to understand that health and safety is of paramount importance and not an area where corners can be cut.'
Vulnerable work action falls short
Unions have welcomed a new government crackdown on rogue employers, but say the measures do not go far enough. Under the government plan, an information campaign will be launched to raise awareness of employment rights, and workers will be able to call a special helpline to report mistreatment or illegal pay rates. A new Fair Employment Enforcement Board will coordinate the work of agencies that check that firms are not breaching minimum wage rules as well as those with responsibility for health and safety, employment and gangmasters. Pat McFadden, the employment relations minister, who chaired the forum on vulnerable workers charged with developing the report, said the forum found 'there are still dark corners of the labour market where rogue employers seek to mistreat their workers and more needs to be done to safeguard people's rights. We want to prevent unscrupulous employers who undercut honest competition and prey on people who are fearful or so desperate to earn a living that they are open to exploitation.' He added: 'It is vital we boost awareness of employment rights and ensure those rights are properly enforced. There should be no hiding place for employers who exploit vulnerable workers and who are not prepared to obey the law. This is in the interests of workers themselves and, as was made clear by business representatives on the forum, it is in the interests of the reputable businesses who treat their workers fairly and obey the law.' TUC general secretary Brendan Barber welcomed the new measures, including allowing enforcement agencies such as the Health and Safety Executive and the minimum wage enforcement unit of HMRC to share data. But he added 'an opportunity has been missed to address the legal and regulatory flaws which keep two million workers in conditions which shame a modern economy.' He said: 'It is disappointing that ministers are not prepared to extend the coverage of the Gangmasters' Licensing Authority (GLA) to cover other vulnerable sectors such as construction, care and hospitality.' Jim Kennedy, UCATT's national political officer and a member of the Vulnerable Workers Enforcement Forum, said: 'I am at a loss to understand the opposition to the licensing of gangmasters in the construction industry; we have produced a wealth of data that highlighted the endemic abuse of vulnerable workers by gangmasters in our industrial sector.'
- BERR news release. TUC news release. UCATT news release. CBI news release. The Guardian.
- Vulnerable Workers Enforcement Forum. Vulnerable worker enforcement forum: final report and government conclusions [pdf].
Seafarer deaths hit new high
The number of merchant seafarer deaths recorded by the government's Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) has hit an all-time high. Seafarers' union Nautilus UK has said the figures are 'disturbing' and have exposed 'unacceptable' complacency on the part of some maritime authorities. According to the MAIB annual report, there were 12 fatalities on merchant vessels of 100gt and above reported last year - the highest figure since the MAIB was established in 1995, and more than twice the number of deaths in any of the previous 15 years. 'Unfortunately, despite the evidence to the contrary, some authorities seem to believe that they have no need to act on this problem,' MAIB chief inspector Stephen Meyer commented in the introduction to the report. 'The MAIB considers such complacency to be unacceptable.' Nautilus UK's senior national secretary Allan Graveson said that the MAIB statistics are disturbing, and demonstrated the need for effective action to deal with the critical issues undermining the safety of ships and their crews. New figures have revealed the second consecutive annual increase in the number of substandard ships being detained in European ports. Last year saw a total of 1,250 detentions, compared with 944 in 2005 and 1,174 in 2006 - reversing a long-term period of improvement in which numbers dropped from a peak of 1,837 in 1996.
- MAIB annual report 2007. Nautilus UK fatality figures news release and news release on substandard shipping.
Three die during blaze on boat
Three trawler workers, believed to be two Filipinos and a Latvian, have died in a fire on a fishing boat moored in an Aberdeenshire harbour. Vision II, a prawn trawler registered in Banff, was docked at Fraserburgh when the fire service received a report of a blaze just after 1.30am on Friday 1 August. It is believed that the crew lived on the vessel while it was not at sea, to save money. One of the men was unofficially named as Ramael Calepayan, 31, a father of five, who had been due to return to the Philippines in a matter of weeks. Grampian Police has launched a joint investigation with Grampian Fire and Rescue Service. Dozens of firefighters, coastguard teams, and paramedics were called to the 'severe' fire on the 90ft vessel, but were unable to save any of those on board. The twin-rig boat came to the harbour for a refit and for a crew change. The International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF), the global union federation for the sector, said it had recently been contacted by Filipino fishermen about substandard working conditions in the town. ITF co-ordinator Norrie McVicar said that 'fear of reprisals' had prevented them making a formal complaint. 'After what happened, part of me wishes that they had and that we had intervened earlier,' he said in a letter to Scotland's first minister, Alex Salmond. 'We ask for your support in calling upon the Health and Safety Executive and maritime authorities to carry out a full and wide-ranging inquiry not only into the deaths of the fishermen but into the living and safety conditions on all commercial fishing vessels in Scotland.' McVicar called on the first minister to back its campaign with the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union to stop 'slavery' in the fishing industry.
Scottish teachers stressed out
Scottish teachers are increasingly taking time off work to deal with stress and depression. The number of stressed-out teachers is six times higher north of the border, a survey of state school staff has found. It shows that all but one of the 23 local authorities who supplied sickness statistics reported rates of stress, anxiety and depression higher than the UK average. Official government statistics state the average number of working days lost due to depression and stress-related illness as 0.6 per worker per year. But newly released figures obtained through Freedom of Information legislation reveal a mental health crisis among teachers in Scotland with an average of over three times this rate, while some councils reported levels of over six times higher. A total of 76,653 days were lost due to stress and depression last year. A spokesperson from the Scottish teaching union EIS called for class sizes and teacher workloads to be reduced. He said: 'It is of little surprise that the number of reported cases of stress is so large in light of the workload of teachers and the conditions in which many teachers have to work.'
Nanotech needs to learn lessons
Industry, government and scientists must learn the lessons of past health and safety tragedies to ensure the safe and responsible development of emerging nanotechnologies, a report has warned. The expert analysis in the journal Nature Nanotechnology applies the 12 'late lessons from early warnings' identified by the European Environment Agency (EEA) to nanotechnology. EEA's lessons, published in a 2001 report, are drawn from case studies that include asbestos, PCBs and halocarbons. The new study concludes that while the nanotechnology community is doing some things right, 'we are still in danger of repeating old, and potentially costly, mistakes.' It adds: 'Despite a good start, nanotechnology commercialisation appears hampered and diverted because many of the same government organisations responsible for promoting nanotechnology also are responsible for regulating it. Risk research strategies are weak and not leading to clear answers to critical safety questions and to filling clear knowledge gaps.' Lead author Steffen Foss Hansen of the Technical University of Denmark said: 'Most importantly, stakeholders and the public are not being fully engaged.' Co-author Andrew Maynard, chief science adviser to the Washington DC-based Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies, said if the benefits of nanotechnology are to be realised, 'we also need to look back and heed the lessons of the past. And those lessons are clear - work with foresight, honesty and humility; be grounded in reality; and listen to people. We still have a chance to get it right with nanotechnology. But we are not there yet.'
- Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies news report. Steffen Foss Hansen, Andrew Maynard, Anders Baun and Joel A Tickner. Late lessons from early warnings for nanotechnology, Nature Nanotechnology, Advance online publication.
Office work linked to asbestos deaths
Inquests last month linked the deaths of two female office workers to asbestos exposures. Angela Coldicott died in January this year, aged 57, of the asbestos cancer mesothelioma. She had worked for Worcestershire County Council for more than 30 years. An inquest in Hereford heard from Mrs Coldicott's GP, Dr Ian Tait, who remembered her concerns over asbestos exposure during her time as a junior clerk and later a senior administrative officer with the county council. Her husband Robert said his wife had been with the authority all her working life but in different offices, including education. Herefordshire coroner David Halpern said Mrs Coldicott died from a metastatic malignant mesothelioma, related to employment exposure to asbestos. Retired secretary Lilian Aldred, 79, of Addingham, also died in January of mesothelioma. She used to work near an exhibition hall which had a roof containing asbestos. A post-mortem discovered a single asbestos fibre in her lungs. The cause of death was broncopneumonia due to malignant mesothelioma. Recording an open verdict, Bradford coroner Roger Whittaker, said: 'There is insufficient evidence on her work history to link a causal connection of exposure to asbestos.'
Wembley horror witness denied payout
A worker who suffered a serious psychiatric injury after he saw a workmate die during the construction of the new Wembley Stadium has lost his claim for damages. Stephen Monk, 43, of Braintree, was not physically hurt when a temporary working platform fell 60ft and hit two men working below, killing Patrick O'Sullivan and breaking the leg of his colleague. It was not in dispute that the January 2004 incident caused serious harm to Mr Monk, said Deputy Judge George Leggatt QC, at London's High Court. Although he went back to work after a week, thinking he could cope, what he had seen kept preying on his mind. He said: 'One of the manifestations of Mr Monk's condition was that he became increasingly obsessed about safety on the site in case another accident should happen.' He felt scared all the time, the court heard, and had nightmares and suicidal thoughts. In March 2005, Mr Monk left work early and has not worked since, despite various treatments for his post traumatic stress disorder, including therapy and anti-depressants. The judge said that if Mr Monk's injury had been a direct physical injury, there would be no doubt about the liability of the defendant - construction company PC Harrington Ltd (PCH). He concluded, however, that Mr Monk was not a 'primary victim' of the negligent conduct of the crane operator for which PCH had admitted liability, because he did not satisfy the conditions necessary to be regarded either as a rescuer or as an 'unwilling participant' in the accident.
Director admits manslaughter charge
A company director admitted manslaughter after a court heard how a Chinese worker plunged to his death at a Norfolk building site. Sharaz Butt was charged with the killing following a two month investigation by police and the Health and Safety Executive. Wu Zhu Weng fell from scaffolding in January while working as a labourer on a bakery and café refurbishment by Butt's company Alcon Construction. He died after being left at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital by two colleagues. Butt pleaded guilty to manslaughter at Norwich Crown Court in July. Butt also admitted that he failed to ensure suitable and sufficient method statements and risk assessments were devised and monitored for the construction of a single storey ground floor extension. He also failed to ensure provision for an appropriate means of access to and exit from the extension and also failed to ensure the provision of the necessary instruction, information, training and supervision for the construction of the single storey extension. The 44-year-old was released on bail and is due to be sentenced on 21 August. He could face a jail term or an unlimited fine. Mr Weng was a Chinese national who had arrived in the UK to earn money to send home to his family.
Construction giant fined for fatal fall
One of Britain's best known construction companies has been fined £70,000 after a worker died in a 'wholly avoidable' workplace fall. Carillion JM Ltd, formerly known as Mowlem plc, was also ordered to pay £24,000 in costs at Maidstone Crown Court for a criminal breach of safety law. This followed a Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation into the death of an employee, Alexander McCully, at a construction site on the Isle of Grain on 11 December 2003. The company had entered a guilty plea at a hearing in May 2007. On the day of his death, Mr McCully was altering work platforms to allow a roof structure to be lifted into place by four cranes. As he climbed onto the incomplete platform on the inside of a storage tank, one of the three platform boards snapped and he fell 17 metres to the floor below. HSE inspector John Underwood commented: 'This was a wholly avoidable incident which led to unnecessary loss of life. I hope this case and the fine imposed will serve as a lesson to scaffold builders and the tank building industry, and will make sure others avoid a similar fate. Mr McCully was wearing a safety harness, in line with company policy, but there was no suitable anchor point for him to attach the lanyard to.' For the harnesses to be used effectively there needed to be about 50 anchor points around the rim of the storage tank. HSE said the company's procedures did not require these to be fitted prior to the crane lift starting, and this was a major weakness in the system of work.
International News
Europe: Union blast on reprotoxins
The European Trade Union Confederation has criticised a European Commission u-turn on substances that are toxic for reproduction. The union body says these reprotoxins should have been brought into the directive that protects workers from carcinogens and mutagens, which is currently up for revision. It says the Commission has instead changed tack and dropped any mention of reprotoxins from its proposals. What particularly baffles the trade union body 'is that the Commission has previously come out expressly in favour of extending the Carcinogens Directive to reprotoxins,' notes an ETUC news briefing. In a note sent to European social affairs commissioner Vladimir Spidla on 31 July, the ETUC describes the Commission's retreat on reprotoxins as 'a purely political decision that sacrifices the health of workers and future generations to the interests of some sections of industry'. It says it wants the forthcoming economic impact assessment of the Carcinogens Directive revision to include a scenario extending it to reprotoxins. A briefing note concludes: 'For this scenario not to be included would play into the Commission's final decision, which will no doubt be taken by a new body of Commissioners after the June 2009 European elections.'
- ETUI-REHS news briefing and ETUC note [pdf].
Finland: Union call for ban on creosote poles
A Finnish union is calling for the use of creosote-impregnated wooden electricity poles to be stopped on health grounds. The Electrical Workers' Union says safer alternatives should be used instead. The union maintains there is considerable scientific evidence that 'leaves no doubt that direct contact with creosote may cause rashes and irritation of the skin and, more damagingly, harm respiratory organs. In more serious cases creosote may damage the eyes, kidney and liver. One possible consequence is cancer.' One of the targeted companies is Vattenfall, one of the largest electricity generators in Europe. Recently the Swedish government-owned company has expanded the use of creosote-impregnated electricity poles in Finland. The union says that although a 2001 European Directive limits the usage of creosote, it does not forbid impregnation of electricity poles. According to a report in Trade Union News from Finland: 'During the course of daily work it is practically impossible to protect oneself from direct contact with creosote, if poles are impregnated with it, experienced electrical workers say. There is no lack of relevant protective clothing, masks, shoes etc. but they do not solve the problem, as the risk not only looms when using them but also when cleaning, storing and maintaining them.' Sauli Väntti, the bargaining secretary of the Electrical Workers' Union, said an immediate ban is the only option.
Global: Asbestos lobby resorts to intimidation
The asbestos industry may be ailing, but it's not dead yet. Latest figures show in 2006, worldwide production of asbestos was 2,147,860 metric tonnes. The big five producers - Russia, China, Kazahkstan, Brazil and Canada - accounted for 94 per cent of production and 91 per cent of exports. Asbestos is still a money-spinner, and the industry is investing in a major promotional drive to protect its trade in chrysotile (white asbestos). But it is not limiting this global campaign to product marketing. It is resorting to threats and the courts to harass campaigners for an asbestos ban. A meeting of anti-asbestos campaigners in Thetford, Quebec, had to be cancelled this year after industry thugs 'threatened our worker contacts with violence and firings,' a Canadian union safety officer said. Union campaigners at the World Health and Safety Congress in Korea in July 2008 were provided minders as the atmosphere soured, with some anti-asbestos campaigners describing being 'mobbed' by industry heavies. And asbestos industry association speakers at the congress made slanderous attacks on union and asbestos disease campaigners. Still, it is the industry that claims it is being defamed. Last month, François Desriaux, a driving force behind the French asbestos victim support group Andeva, appeared in a Paris court to answer libel charges brought against him by the Chrysotile Institute, the most influential of the asbestos industry's lobby groups.
- Asbestos threats: Global asbestos industry resorts to thugs and courts, Hazards magazine.
Global: IOC attacked for 'shameful' inaction
Campaigners in Hong Kong, backed by the Play Fair 2008 global coalition, confronted the International Olympic Committee (IOC) on 3 August for what they say is its failure to act on widespread exploitation of workers manufacturing Olympics-branded products. 'Five years have passed since we first called on the IOC to stand up for the workers who make Olympics products, but it is still business as usual for them. Once again, money is pouring in to the coffers of the Olympics movement, but the workers who create the wealth are still being ripped off,' said Guy Ryder, general secretary of the 168-million member International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), a Play Fair partner organisation. The Hong Kong event was in protest at what Play Fair says is IOC's continued stonewalling on the issue of workers' rights. The campaigners say IOC has refused to commit staff or resources to address problems including poverty wages, child labour and excessive overtime - shown to exist in Olympic supply chains. Neil Kearney, general secretary of the International Textile, Leather and Garment Workers' Federation (ITGLWF), said: 'The IOC needs to set the pace, not be a perpetual laggard, leaving workers open to exploitation and abuse when they are making Olympics products.' He added: 'The opportunity to make real change around the Beijing Games has gone; we will continue our campaign until the day that the IOC faces up to its responsibilities.'
- ITUC news release. Play Fair 2008 news release. Play Fair's road map for the IOC. Play Fair 2008 research report on working conditions in factories producing Olympic logo goods [pdf]. TUC Play Fair briefing and factfile [pdf]. The Sun.
Resources
A real union leader on safety
If you want to learn about union leadership on health and safety, you should learn about Tony Mazzocchi. And if you want a pacy, intriguing and immensely readable biography of the US trade unionist's extraordinary life, you should read 'The man who hated work and loved labor'. Author Les Leopold first met Mazzocchi in the early 1970s, 'hoping to enlist in his radical health and safety movement.' This tells its own story. At the time, Mazzocchi wasn't a backroom safety researcher, he was the legislative director of the Oil, Chemical and Atomic Workers' union (OCAW). He had, however, come up through the union ranks was still a magnet for grassroots health and safety activists. These included Karen Silkwood, the young nuclear plant union activist whose story was recounted in a major Hollywood movie starring Meryl Streep. Mazzocchi is credited with both leading the charge for the US Occupational Health and Safety Act and kickstarting the US grassroots union safety movement. He knew health and safety was a key organising issue - possibly the key organising issue for trade unions - and he spearheaded this campaign from the workplace to the top of the union movement and the US political system. Tony Mazzocchi died in 2002, but he left an important legacy. The US, unlike the UK, has a strong network of union-sympathetic and prominent scientists, doctors and academics, nurtured and schooled by Mazzocchi, many encouraged at the start of their careers to take placements with the union. More important, he encouraged a new approach to worker health and safety education and activism, with the ripples felt worldwide.
- The man who hated work and loved labor: The life and times of Tony Mazzocchi, Les Leopold, Chelsea Green Publishing, ISBN 978-1-933392-64-6. Watch a video tribute to Tony Mazzocchi.
Perils of the new pesticides
The US-based Center for Public Integrity has used official government data to expose the 'Perils of the new pesticides.' The free online resource is based on a review of 10 years' worth of adverse-reaction reports filed with the Environmental Protection Agency by pesticide manufacturers. The initiative has already made a difference. It revealed that pyrethrins and pyrethroids - used in thousands of supposedly 'safer' pesticides - accounted for more than 26 per cent of all fatal, 'major,' and 'moderate' human incidents in the United States in 2007, a 300 per cent increase over the last decade. The CPI investigation spurred the director of the EPA's Office of Pesticide Programs to announce the agency would begin a broad study of the human health effects of pyrethrins and pyrethroids. The new website includes related articles and a pesticides database.
Events and Courses
Workplace bullying conference, Midlands, 15 November 2008
The UK National Work Stress Network is holding a conference on eradicating workplace bullying, including cyberbullying, on Saturday 15 November and Sunday 16 November 2008. The event will take place at the Hillscourt Conference Centre, near Birmingham.
- Further details from the UK National Work Stress Network. Conference booking form [word].
TUC courses for safety reps
COURSES FOR SEPTEMBER TO DECEMBER 2008
Useful Links
- Visit the TUC www.tuc.org.uk/h_and_s website pages on health and safety. See what's on offer from TUC Publications and What's On in health and safety.
- Subscribe to Hazards magazine, supported by the TUC as a key source of information for union safety reps.
- What's new in the HSC/E and the European Agency.
Newsletter (5,500 words) issued 8 Aug 2008
