Risksissue no 51 - 27 April 2002 |
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Editor: Rory O'Neill of Hazards magazine. Comments to Owen Tudor. CONTENTS
Risks is the TUC’s weekly online bulletin for safety reps and others, read each week by over 3,500 subscribers and 1,000 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 statement. The TUC website lists future health and safety events in What’s On - new events are covered below. ACTIONRemind them why we want actionThe US union federation AFL-CIO is urging union members to send Workers’ Memorial Day e-cards. Union reps everywhere should make full use of the creative and very moving contribution to our Workers’ Memorial Day activities. UK trade union safety reps should consider sending an email to their MPs - tell them it is time the UK government kept its promise and introduced a corporate killing law and a new Safety Bill as well as more resources for the HSE.
FEATURE: WORKERS’ MEMORIAL DAYEvery hour, someone dies in Britain because of their workThe TUC is marking International Workers' Memorial Day with the largest ever number of local events around Great Britain, including dedication events for memorial trees, releasing black balloons, lectures, film shows, demonstrations and church services organised by trade union members of the Amicus MSF clergy and church workers section. TUC general secretary John Monks says Britain’s families have good reason to act: "Every hour of every day, a family in Britain loses someone they love. Those personal tragedies mask a public disgrace - because only a third of British workers have access to the sort of occupational health service that could save their lives. Around the world, work kills more people than war. Workers' Memorial Day is when workers around the world mourn those deaths, and renew our commitment to create decent work at decent wages, not something that kills you." The TUC wants occupational health services for all workers; a duty on employers to have a rehabilitation policy for workers injured or made ill; more resources for the Health and Safety Executive; and more rights for workplace union safety reps to work in partnership with employers to prevent injuries and illness.
Global union body co-ordinates worldwide campaignThe global trade union confederation ICFTU has co-ordinated the largest ever commemoration of Workers’ Memorial Day. ICFTU, its affiliates and other union organisations have organised seminars, vigils, press conferences and marches. It says activities from Ireland to Thailand and from the Philippines to Cyprus are scheduled to take place on and around April 28: In New Zealand, memorials will be observed; in Taiwan, a major exhibition of art work including contributions from victims of occupational injuries has been running since April 21; in the United States, special attention will be given to workers killed in the 11 September terrorist attacks. "Recent figures reflect a harsh reality: thousands of workers go to their workplaces every day and face great danger,' said ICFTU general secretary Guy Ryder. 'The sentiment of solidarity within the trade union movement on this special occasion must be transformed into concrete actions and pressure on employers and government authorities to improve working conditions worldwide."
ILO backs Workers’ Memorial DayThe International Labour Organisation, part of the UN, has joined union organisations in commemorating Workers’ Memorial Day and will host a special ceremony at its Geneva HQ on Monday, 29 April. The ILO estimates that approximately two million workers lose their lives annually due to occupational injuries and illnesses, with accidents causing at least 350,000 deaths a year. It says for every fatal accident, there are an estimated 1,000 non-fatal injuries, many of which result in lost earnings, permanent disability and poverty. The death toll at work, much of which is attributable to unsafe working practices, is the equivalent of 5,000 workers dying each day, three persons every minute. This is more than double the figure for deaths from warfare (650,000 deaths per year). According to the ILO's SafeWork programme, work kills more people than alcohol and drugs together and the resulting loss in Gross Domestic Product is 20 times greater than all official development assistance to the developing countries.
UNION NEWSUNISON wins caretaker syringe trauma appealA caretaker left traumatised after pricking his finger on a discarded hypodermic needle has won the right to substantial damages at the Court of Appeal. UNISON member Dennis Toole, 51, was terrified of infection after the November 1998 incident in the toilet at Bolton Magistrates Court, the court heard. The amount of compensation he will receive is yet to be determined - but the extent of his psychiatric injuries means it is likely to be substantial. The Court of Appeal judge rejected the finding of an earlier hearing that concluded Mr O’Toole was partly to blame. The judge said it was wholly unreasonable to place any criticism on an employee faced with an unpleasant and medically dangerous task and that the member was faced with a situation where he had to decide what to do in order to protect his colleagues and members of the public. UNISON - then NUPE - won a similar compensation case for a cleaner in 1993. In 1998, a doctor was awarded £465,000 for the needlesticks phobia she developed after a sharps injury.
Unions welcome government focus on unruly pupilsTeaching unions have given a qualified welcome to government moves to clamp down on unruly pupils. Reacting to the announcement by education secretary Estelle Morris on pupil behaviour, Eamonn O'Kane, general secretary of NASUWT, said: "The creation and extension of more Learning Support Units will be helpful but the NASUWT remains convinced that sending pupils who constantly misbehave to a unit outside the school is a more effective way of dealing with the problem.' Julie Grant, President of ATL said: 'We welcome this action by Estelle Morris, which follows calls at our conference last month for better protection from assaults on teachers in the classroom… Hopefully, this positive action will make life easier for teachers, and ultimately easier for parents and pupils too.' Last Tube train to dangerMoves by London Underground to change late-night procedures have been condemned by rail union RMT as 'a hypocritical cash saving ploy' dressed up as a safety measure as the company prepares for part privatisation. Planned penalty clauses costing the company £15,000 for every 10 minutes that trains delay private maintenance crews getting access to the tracks have prompted changes in the system for dispatching last trains. The company wants station staff to lock themselves away a few minutes before the last train is due to depart, said RMT London regional organiser Bobby Law. He said: 'This proposal will put our members in danger from angry travellers late at night - possibly drunk - who have missed their last train or connection. The present arrangements work, not least because staff at present ensure that everyone gets their last connection once they are on the system.' In February, the HSE admitted to safety concerns regarding the plans for tube privatisation (Risks 41). The sweet smell of Revitalising No.5The latest TUC quarterly report on the union contribution to the government’s Revitalising health and safety at work strategy highlights: an Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry-Unions partnership statement; electricity industry agreed targets for reducing injuries, illness and resulting sickness absence, proposed jointly by the Electricity Association and unions; and a series of Amicus MSF regional conferences on Revitalising health and safety, to take place in the autumn. Union activities include promotion of the strategy, meetings with government ministers and safety agencies, seminars, briefings, training sessions and bipartite agreements. OTHER NEWSLaw lords criticise insurers in asbestos hearingsBehind-the-scenes moves by insurance companies to curtail a hearing into three asbestos-related damages cases have been strongly criticised by the law lords. Lawyers for the victims and their families in the one-fibre-can-kill cases (Risks 39 and Risks 41) - where the Court of Appeal accepted in December an insurers’ argument that made it nigh on impossible to identify any single employer as liable for asbestos cancers - accused the companies of "a sordid attempt to manipulate the judicial process." A settlement would have prevented the House of Lords from ruling on the Court of Appeal decision, which would then have stood as a precedent. Lord Bingham, heading a panel of five law lords, agreed that the episode had been "entirely regrettable". He and his colleagues had no doubt that they should hear the appeals "at the earliest possible moment". The hearing is likely to start on 7 May and last three days.
Demonstrations target employment agenciesEmployment agencies across the country faced demonstrations on 24 April in memory of Simon Jones, who died while working at Shoreham docks. The day of action was part of a campaign to improve working conditions for casual staff and marked the fourth anniversary of Simon’s death on his first day as a casual worker at the docks. Campaigners said about 100 peaceful demonstrators succeeded in shutting down the offices of Personnel Selection in Brighton, 'the employment agency that sent Simon to his death four years ago to the day.' Protests were also held in London, Birmingham, Leicester, Sheffield, Oxford, Leeds, Liverpool and Bristol. A campaign spokesperson said: "Throughout the country employment agencies make huge profits by providing cheap labour for companies who prefer employing casual labour to employing a well trained, decently paid workforce.'
Manslaughter verdict in kiln deathsThe owner of an engineering company has been convicted of manslaughter after a father and son died when a brick kiln collapsed. Brian Dean of B Dean Demolition and Civil Engineers had hired the men who died, Michael Redgate and his 18-year-old son Carl, to demolish the kiln in Stoke-on-Trent and replace it with a more modern structure. Dean, who had denied the charges, was found guilty after a trial at Stafford Crown Court and will be sentenced at a later date. The court heard that Dean told the family of the dead men he had instructed them to cut out vital steel supports. Consulting engineer Richard Vann told the court the kiln had collapsed after the majority of the steel supports had been removed.
Police in the dock over work deathsThe HSE is to prosecute the present Commissioner of Police for the Metropolis, Sir John Stevens and the previous Commissioner, Lord Condon, for safety breaches it says contributed to workplace deaths. The prosecution follows a lengthy investigation into whether the Metropolitan Police has sufficiently protected police officers from the dangers of falling from or through roofs whilst assisting in the apprehension of suspects. On 24 October 1999 PC Kulwant Sidhu was fatally injured when he fell through a glass panel in the roof of industrial premises whilst assisting in the apprehension of two suspects. On 30 May 2000 PC Mark Berwick was injured falling through a roof whilst assisting in the apprehension of suspects. Legal changes in 1997 and 1999 meant for the first time that workplace health and safety laws covered police officers. Time 'running out' for companies accused of killingTime is "running out" for companies that blatantly breach safety rules and cause fatal accidents, David Ballard, head of the British Safety Council, has warned. "Every senior executive and health and safety director should be extremely concerned about the (proposed) new offences," he said. However, evidence suggests this will not occur without the promised legal reform (Risks 50). Only three companies, all very small, have ever been successfully prosecuted for corporate manslaughter. Attempts to nail big companies have fallen at a legal hurdle - a company can be prosecuted successfully only if someone identified as its "controlling mind" can first be shown to be guilty of manslaughter. The TUC and the Centre for Corporate Accountability are spearheading a campaign for the necessary legal reforms to make accountability for work deaths a realistic prospect.
HSE blitz on capital's construction sitesThe HSE is to carry out a five-day London-wide construction blitz, the first of a 12 month national rolling programme of blitzes planned by HSE’s new Construction Division. HSE inspectors will hold monthly construction site blitzes in different parts of the country during the rolling programme. Out of the 291 work-related deaths last year, 106 were on construction sites. HSE’s inspector organising the blitz, Barry Mullen, said: "The number of workers killed in the construction industry is unacceptably high. Although we will concentrate on two key areas, falls from height and site welfare, we will also address other health, safety and welfare issues." He added: "The new division has enabled us to be more flexible with our resources so we can carry out blitzes like this. As well as using all the HSE construction inspectors in London, we are also bringing in inspectors from other regions." Record low for sickness absence: but costs still riseWorkers are taking fewer days off sick than ever before, according to the Confederation of British Industry (CBI). The employers’ body adds sickness absence cost UK firms £11.8bn last year, up by £1.1bn on the preceding year, even though the number of sick days was the lowest since the employer's organisation began keeping records in 1987. Workers took a total of 176 million days off for illness, 16 million fewer days than in 2000. The average British worker had seven days off work last year, according to a CBI survey of 668 firms. Average absenteeism rates have fallen steadily since the early 1990s, shrinking by two days a year over the last decade. The CBI welcomed the drop in sickness absence, concluding 'at last companies seem to be waking up to the benefits of early assessment and rehabilitation.' TUC's Owen Tudor said: "The fact that costs have risen while sickness has reduced shows that each individual absence is getting more and more expensive, so it's no surprise that the incentive to provide rehabilitation is starting to hit home. But it is worrying that only half of the managers responsible for absence management have been trained to do it!" Calculating the business cost of health and safety failuresThe HSC has launched a "ready reckoner" for Britain's businesses to help them work out how much work-related accidents and ill-health is costing them. Bill Callaghan, chair of the Commission, said: "Not all of these costs are immediately apparent, which encourages ignorance and helps to create a culture of complacency. Also, many employers mistakenly believe that their insurance will cover the tab, but many policies will not cover losses such as reduced production, replacement labour and legal fees. The ready reckoner highlights the many factors that can send the bill rocketing - and gives sound advice to those who want to prevent it doing so." Sixty thousand copies of the ready reckoner are being distributed to safety reps through the TUC.
HSC responds to industry report on train protection systemsThe HSC is to ask independent experts to review the report into train protection systems published by the Strategic Rail Authority and Railway Safety. The HSC says it will also seek the views of passengers, railway staff and the wider public before putting advice to ministers early next year. Bill Callaghan, chair of the HSC said: "The Health and Safety Commission welcomes this useful contribution from the industry team but stresses the need to introduce a workable and efficient system as soon as possible." The report suggested the improvements could not be made within the timescale proposed by the joint enquiry chaired by Lord Cullen and Professor Uff after the Southall and Ladbroke Grove disasters. INTERNATIONALAustralia: Liberal Party’s 'slap in the face' for the bereavedUnions have warned that a right-wing backlash could undermine planned laws to make killer employers accountable. Victorian Trades Hall Council secretary Leigh Hubbard said the parliamentary Liberal Party decision to vote against the state’s Crimes (Workplace Deaths and Serious Injuries) Bill when it goes before the Victorian parliament in May "is not based on the merits of this legislation but on crude political positioning with their employer constituency.' The union body says it will continue to campaign for this legislation and called the decision of the Liberal Party 'a slap in the face to the bereaved wives, husbands and families of workers killed in the workplace.' The Liberal Party's rejection of the Bill came on the same day as thousands of union members rallied outside the Trades Hall in support of industrial manslaughter laws, before marching to state parliament.
Bangladesh: Pesticides factory blast kills one, injures sevenA man was killed and seven others injured when an explosion nearly destroyed an insecticide factory near the Bangladeshi capital Dhaka. "We recovered a body from the debris and removed seven severely injured workers to hospital," said a firefighter at the Globe Insecticides Limited factory in Gazipur. Police officer Jahangir Hossain Matbar said the cause of the blast was being investigated but he suspected "criminal hands behind it". The factory employed at least 300 hundred, producing mainly anti-mosquito insecticides. China: Mine blast kills 23An explosion has ripped through a state-run mine in south-western China, killing 23 people and injuring four others, according to official media. Eight miners were rescued from Huashan coal mine, near Panzhihua in the province of Sichuan, after the blast on Wednesday. The accident happened only two days after up to 15 workers were killed in a gas explosion in a mine near Chongqing, also in Sichuan. Two weeks ago, China announced plans to close 8,000 small coal mines as part of efforts to streamline and regulate the industry. It has pledged to cut mining deaths by 10 per cent.
Ecuador: "Tainted harvest" in the banana sectorA new report has exposed dangerous and exploitative conditions imposed by multinational companies operating in Ecuador’s banana sector. "Tainted Harvest", produced by Human Rights Watch (HRW), shows workers in the banana fields of Ecuador face consistent and blatant denials of workers' rights, significant exploitation of the worse forms of child labour, appalling occupational health and safety conditions and destructive environmental practices, including the irresponsible use of chemicals and reckless aerial spraying, in some cases directly onto the heads of children working in the fields. HRW wants public pressure to convince companies Del Monte, Dole and Chiquita to ensure and monitor labour rights practices throughout their supply chains. "We don't want a boycott, but rather that supermarkets and food service providers use their financial power to get these suppliers to do something," said Carol Pier, HRW's labour and trade researcher. It also wants to pressure Ecuador's labour minister to enforce and improve existing legislation. In a labour standards agreement struck last year with global union IUF and Latin American banana union body COLSIBA, one of the companies, Chiquita, accepted 'its responsibility to provide safe and healthy workplaces' including a commitment to 'collaborate in efforts to further improve the health and safety of the Company's banana operations' ( Risks 7 ).
European Union: New law against sexual harassment at workEurope’s unions have welcomed a planned new equal treatment law that recognises sexual harassment as discrimination and introduces clear definitions of sexual discrimination and harassment. "Bearing in mind that more than 40 per cent of women and 10 per cent of men have suffered from harassment, the adoption of this directive is a big step in the right direction and a proof of the ETUC's commitment over the years," said Beatrice Hertogs, European Trade Union Confederation confederal secretary. The new directive - which must be incorporated into national law of all EU member states - says employers must take preventive measures against all forms of discrimination and specifically against sexual harassment. The ETUC had in the past proposed negotiations on a sexual harassment framework agreement to the European employers, but UNICE, the employers’ umbrella group, had always declined the offer. South Africa: More delays for asbestos disease justiceLegal experts have not yet secured the release of agreed compensation awards to South African asbestos disease victims. Richard Meeran of Leigh Day & Co, the London lawyer for the 7,500 asbestos victims, say he is seeking to create a trust for the victims while awaiting compensation from London-listed company Cape plc. Cape plc agreed in December last year to pay £21 million into a trust fund to be established in South Africa (Risks 32). The fund would make payments to claimants who could prove that they had suffered asbestos-related disease as a result of working at, or living in, the vicinity of one of Cape's former mining, milling or manufacturing operations in South Africa. Under the agreement, the maximum price per life was capped at £5,250.
USA: Microwave popcorn blow for factory workers' lungsWorkers who mix and package flavoured microwave popcorn or are involved in other flavouring manufacturing seem to be at high risk for a serious lung disease. Kathleen Kreiss of the US National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) said: "We're dealing with something that has not been described before. It's a new hazard." The comment comes after eight popcorn factor workers without other risk factors for lung disease became severely ill. Four were put on a transplant list, and the others were sick enough to require transplants, said Kreiss. They had a respiratory illness called bronchiolitis obliterans, a severe, obstructive (asthma/bronchitis-like) lung disease. The condition is one of a series of "new" and serious occupational lung conditions to emerge in the last few years, including Ardystil disease that affected garment workers exposed to textiles chemicals in Spain, flock workers' lung that was spotted in the US and now popcorn lung. Others have identified Organic Dust Toxic Syndrome as a "new occupational epidemic".
EVENTSOnly newly announced events, events next week and very important events will be listed here in future. But there is a comprehensive listing of health and safety events on the TUC website - bookmark it for easy reference! TUC/CCA Conference on safety law enforcement, 8 JulyIn January 2002, a coalition of trade unions, safety groups and families, bereaved from work-related deaths and disasters, came together around a series of demands for reform on safety, law enforcement and corporate accountability. This conference will explore this and the Government's agenda for reform. Speakers include Mark Thomas from Channel 4’s Mark Thomas Project. Registration costs £25. Hazards 2002, National Hazards Conference, 6-8 SeptemberThe National Hazards Conference will be held in Manchester for the second year running. Further details from Greater Manchester Hazards Centre. There is a financial appeal to keep registration costs down, backed by the TUC. European Week of Health and Safety 2002, 14-21 OctoberNext year’s week will take place in Britain from 14 October, on the theme of stress. USEFUL LINKSVisit the TUC http://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.TUC courses for safety repsCOURSES FOR APRIL TO JULY:Wales, Scotland, North West, Midlands, South East and East Anglia, South WestFor details of courses in the Northern, Yorkshire and Humberside regions, contact the TUC Regional Education OfficerSubscribe 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.HSE Books, PO Box 1999, Sudbury, Suffolk CO10 2WA. Tel: 01787 881165; fax: 01787 313995. |
Newsletter (4,600 words) issued 27 Apr 2002
