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Risksissue no 99 - 29 March 2003 |
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Editor: Rory O'Neill of Hazards magazine. Comments to Owen Tudor URGENT: Book now or never for TUC conference on safety and find out what’s happening on Workers’ Memorial Day, 28 April CONTENTS
International Workers Memorial Day, 28 AprilThis year the theme will be corporate accountability for workers’ health and safety. The TUC will be co-ordinating a series of events around the country. A background briefing on the 2003 theme is available on the page of the TUC website devoted to Workers’ Memorial Day. Order a poster from the TUC (single copies free) or bulk copies at a good price from Hazards. TUC general secretary elect Brendan Barber has issued a personal message. There is also a list of events on the day, and a draft article for use by unions, and a factsheet on deaths at work - let Hilda Palmer know what you’re doing. For comprehensive, global information on Workers’ Memorial Day 2003 news and resources, see the Hazards WMD webpages. See also 'Resources for Workers’ Memorial Day'. Risks is the TUC’s weekly online bulletin for safety reps and others, read each week by over 6,500 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 statement. The TUC website lists future health and safety events in What’s On - new events are covered below. ACTIONLobby for better safety laws before Workers’ Memorial Day!1) Back the corporate killing amendment
2) Back higher finesThe corporate killing amendment is part of a sustained attempt by the TUC, safety campaigners and MPs to highlight corporate accountability for health and safety failures in the run up to Workers’ Memorial Day on 28 April. Other Parliamentary measures are Ross Cranston’s bill on safety duties for company directors and Lawrie Quinn’s bill to increase fines (due back in the Commons for its Second Reading on Friday, 4 April). The TUC is also urging a big final push to get Lawrie Quinn’s Bill into committee where the real debate takes place.
Euroweek good practice awardsThe European Agency for Safety and Health at Work is inviting nominations for the fourth European Good Practice Awards in occupational health and safety - and the TUC says unions should make sure they don’t miss out on the glory. The Euro Agency flyer says: 'The 2003 award scheme will recognise companies or organisations that have made outstanding and innovative contributions to the prevention of risks from dangerous substances at work, within enterprises.' So if you’ve replaced something nasty with something nicer, or done some nifty awareness raising on dangerous substances, or identified a hidden chemical or biological hazard with some devilish detective work - body mapping, risk mapping or a survey, for example - and got things sorted as a result, get your application in before 18 July 2003. TUC’s Owen Tudor is encouraging unions to send him applications. He says: 'We know union reps do a massive amount to control dangerous substances in the workplace. They deserve a medal for what they’ve achieved - so why not a Euro award?'
Keep safety at the Centre!The London Hazards Centre (LHC) needs your support to ensure its survival. Thanks to the strong support it has received already, LHC has securing interim funding, but this runs out in September. The decision on its long-term core funding from the Association of London Government (ALG) will be made at an ALG grants committee meeting on 30 April - without this funding, the union-backed centre would not be able to continue in anything like its present form. LHC says it needs help now from unions, community organisations and other supporters based in the capital. It says: ' If you have not already done so, please write to the councillor for your locality and inform him/her of the important work of the Centre, the large number of people who benefit from it and the necessity of having our grant maintained .' A list of local councillors on the grants committee and their full email and contact details are available on the LHC website.
UNION NEWSB uilding union to appoint roving safety reps: they could be you!Following the success of the HSE Worker Safety Adviser pilot scheme, the construction union UCATT has decided to establish a national network of health and safety advisers (HSAs). The union says it 'is looking for health and safety activists interested in taking on this new and challenging role.' The HSAs will be based in one of UCATT's regional offices and will be assigned an area of the country to establish links with regional employers. Job requirements include: health and safety experience of TUC health and safety course Level 2 as a minimum - a Level 3 health and safety or a degree level qualification would be an advantage; experience of representing members and negotiating with employers; a strong commitment to the aims and values of the trade union movement; and IT skills and a clean driving licence. UCATT will provide a vehicle, computer equipment, relevant training and support. Applicants are invited to apply from every region of England, Wales and Scotland. Salary £19,000 - £21,000, depending on experience.
NUJ condemns killing of ITN reporterThe killing of veteran ITN reporter Terry Lloyd is 'a terrible tragedy that must be investigated,' journalists’ union NUJ has said. The union sent its condolences to Terry Lloyd's family and his ITN colleagues. 'He was a fine reporter who paid the price for his bravery,' said NUJ national broadcasting organiser Paul McLaughlin. 'The NUJ will give all the support it can to Terry Lloyd's family and colleagues.' The jeep carrying Terry Lloyd, an NUJ member, and his crew was attacked near Basra. Accounts tell of a confusing incident in which coalition forces apparently fired on Iraqi vehicles when the ITN vehicle was among them. The jeep was prominently labelled 'TV'. Cameraman Fred Nerac and translator Hussein Othman are still missing. The union is calling on the Ministry of Defence for an investigation into the incident. Paul McLaughlin said: 'There are serious questions about his tragic affair. Given that the jeep in which they were travelling was clearly marked, why were they attacked? Reporters and camera crews know that covering wars is dangerous but they must not become targets.' NUJ said the American reaction to the attack on Terry Lloyd and his crew showed that the military was quite prepared to see journalists killed.
Report reveals extent of classroom abuseA survey of 300 schools by teaching union NASUWT recorded nearly a thousand incidents of abuse against teachers over a two-week period. The survey of 304 primary, secondary and special schools in the north west of England found 964 incidents, including 126 physical assaults, 62 sexual insults or threats and nine cases of racist verbal abuse. In one incident a teacher was stabbed in the neck with a compass three times. Fifteen cases of verbal abuse were recorded in reception classes and seven in nursery schools. Eamonn O'Kane, general secretary of NASUWT, said: 'This extensive survey demonstrates a very worrying picture and highlights the necessity for teachers and schools to record these incidents of abuse. The reporting system should be as simple as possible and should, of course, be acted upon as part of a vigorous campaign to combat such abuse, including the use of temporary and permanent exclusions.' The survey found that incident reporting forms were often too long, complicated and time consuming to complete. Many teachers said reporting incidents often made no difference and they were 'made to feel it was their fault.'
Baker awarded asthma doughEx-bakery worker Adam Purvis has been awarded more than £57,000 in damages after he contracted occupational asthma when he worked for Berwick based dough makers Jus-Rol. Mr Purvis, a member of the union Usdaw, had been exposed to flour dust when he worked on the production line at the factory during the 1990s. He began working there in 1992, and soon after his health deteriorated. His employment with Jus-Rol was terminated on ill-health grounds in September last year and he now receives industrial injuries benefit. Mr Purvis, 30, commented: 'My earning capacity has been severely restricted by my time at Jus-Rol, but this settlement offers me and my family some financial security.' The company admitted liability after an independent engineer’s report commissioned by Usdaw showed Jus-Rol had failed to comply with safety regulations. GMB campaign at the sharp endLocal authority union GMB is campaigning for better protection for workers from injuries caused by discarded needles. It says that last year over 20,000 discarded and potentially infected needles were found in the UK’s parks, public toilets and other public areas. The union adds that in the last three years 214 people were either stabbed by or injured picking up these needles, nearly 90 per cent of these injuries to local authority workers and contractors. GMB’s Kim Sunley said under-reporting was widespread, so the real incidence of sharps injuries was probably much higher. She added: 'Our members have their lives put on the line as they go about their duties. They should be receiving more protection from authorities and contractors.' GMB is calling for a legal requirement for all accidents and injuries to be reported to the health and safety authorities; employers to implement safe working practices; free vaccination for hepatitis B and tetanus for all at risk workers; and prompt support following an injury including 24 hour support and counselling.
Keeping asbestos to a minimumThe TUC is warning that action by an un-named European Union member state could undermine the UK ban on the importation of asbestos containing materials. The TUC alert comes in a submission to an HSC consultation. The anonymous challenge comes because the UK’s blanket ban affects imports of some of the country’s domestic products that contain naturally-occurring asbestos contamination. The TUC, however, believes the UK prohibition should not be relaxed. 'Our experience suggests that even with low levels of naturally occurring asbestos contamination of other materials, workers could be exposed to levels of asbestos high enough to cause the fatal illnesses which asbestos causes,' it says. It adds that any measure to modify the UK prohibition should only be go ahead if there are far more stringent controls on levels of naturally-occurring asbestos allowed in products on the market, accompanied by stringent labeling, datasheets and warnings. The town of Libby, Montana in the US has experienced an epidemic of asbestos cancers called by the natural asbestos contamination in locally mined vermiculite.
OTHER NEWSTUC backs new duty on companies to have safety directorsThe TUC is backing a new Bill that would make company directors more accountable in law for the safety of their workplaces, which went before MPs this week. The Company Directors (Health and Safety) Bill, presented to the Commons on 25 March by Ross Cranston, Labour MP for Dudley North, is also backed by the Centre for Corporate Accountability. It would amend the Companies Act to place a general duty on company directors to take health and safety issues into account and would also place a duty on companies to nominate a 'health and safety director' who would have specific legal duties. Brendan Barber, general secretary elect of the TUC, said: 'Ross Cranston MP deserves praise for introducing this Bill that deserves support across the House of Commons. It is surely not too much to ask that every company makes a director responsible for the safety its staff and customers. And it’s good for business, if injuries are avoided then it will save companies money.' The debate coincides with the Department of Work and Pension recommitting itself to evaluating at the end of the year 'the need for legislation to strengthen board accountability for health and safety.' The Bill gained an unopposed first reading but its main purpose is to influence the current DTI review of company law.
Centre welcomes improved death investigationsThe Centre for Corporate Accountability has welcomed the revamped 'Protocol for liaison on work-related deaths' published last week by the HSE, the Association of Chief Police Officers and other investigation and prosecution bodies. The new protocol requires the police to be involved in a manslaughter investigation from the time they arrive at the scene of death and only stop when 'it becomes apparent during the investigation that there is insufficient evidence' that manslaughter has been committed. David Bergman, director of CCA, said: 'The new protocol - if implemented - should result in more thorough investigations into work-related deaths and assist the authorities in finding evidence of manslaughter on part of directors and other individuals where that exists.' He warned however there were still flaws in the protocol. A CCA listing of the protocol’s shortcomings include a criticism that HSE is still not required to give a written explanation of their reasons for not pursuing a prosecution. And police require better training in how to investigate work-related manslaughter, says CCA. Some unions have taken a tougher line on the revised protocol (Risks 98).
HSE welcomes safety fines after work deathFines on two companies following the death of a labourer at a fish-processing plant have been welcomed by the HSE. David Cobban fell from the raised forks of a forklift truck at Aberdeen firm United Fish on 13 December 2001. The company was fined £16,000 after it admitted failing to ensure the health, safety and well-being of employees. Rothes firm Forfab was fined £4,000 at Aberdeen Sheriff Court last week for failing to provide adequate training to Christopher Wiseman who was operating the forklift. HSE inspector John Radcliffe said the fines showed that the courts had taken the matter seriously. 'The biggest cause of serious and fatal accidents in industry is from working from height and transport in the workplace,' he said. 'The two most common factors of serious and fatal incidents are present in this case.' Mr Radcliffe said a safety basket should have been provided on the forklift. Violence against health workers on the increaseThe government has vowed to intensify its campaign to crack down on violence and aggression against NHS staff after a report revealed the problem had reached record levels. The National Audit Office report reveals that there were 95,501 reported incidents of violence or aggression against health workers in 2001/2, an increase of 13 per cent on the previous year - itself a record. However, NAO estimates that the true figure may be 40 per cent higher, as two in five incidents are never reported to bosses. Commenting on the findings, health minister John Hutton urged trusts to take tougher action against the people who threaten or assault their staff. He announced new measures including a poster campaign in GP surgeries, warning that violent and abusive patients face prosecution. The minister said more than 50 people had been prosecuted by NHS Trusts for violent or abusive behaviour towards staff in the last eight months following the introduction of tough new guidance to the NHS last year. From 2004, security specialists in health bodies will receive training in law enforcement techniques. June Chandler, national officer in the UNISON health group, commented: 'Violence towards NHS staff is a crime. Every incident should be reported and, where necessary, lead to prosecution. NHS staff are dedicated to caring for the public. All they are asking is that the public cares for them.'
Manufacturing employers call for full-scale insurance reviewManufacturers believe the market for employers’ liability insurance in the UK is failing, and are urging the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) to undertake a full-scale investigation. An Engineering Employers Federation (EEF) submission to OFT says the majority of its 6,000 member companies are facing difficulties in sourcing employers’ liability insurance. Gary Booton, head of health and safety at EEF, said: 'The purpose of liability insurance is to help businesses better manage future risk. Lack of availability of cover, and massive rises in premiums have themselves become a major risk to the future of many firms.' The EEF submission says employers’ liability premiums rose in 2002 by an average of around 40 per cent, and in some cases by between 300 per cent and 400 per cent. TUC, however, said in its submission on employers’ liability insurance that UK employers pay less than their industrial competitors, and 'are injuring their workers on the cheap' ( Risks 98 ). More backing for toilet breaks - this time it’s personnelPersonnel professionals are backing the union campaign for sensible toilet breaks at work. Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development adviser Diane Sinclair commented: 'It is inappropriate for people to have to request to go to the bathroom, unless the nature of the work is that a production line stops or there has to be cover for that person.' She added that employers could be opening themselves up to legal action if they prevent someone from using the toilet when they need to. 'Allowing someone to go to the bathroom is a reasonable adjustment under the Disability Discrimination Act,' she said, adding if a pregnant woman is only given restricted access, she could also take her employer to court on a discrimination claim. TUC’s Owen Tudor commented that some employers go to greater lengths to monitor toilet trips than it can possibly be worth. 'One person told me that in his workplace they had a man who sat by the toilet door with a stopwatch and timed people,' he said. 'He also used to hand out regulation amounts of toilet paper. That cannot conceivably have been economically worthwhile.'
New guidance to help pregnant women at workNew guidance, to help protect the health and safety of new or expectant mothers at work, has been published by the HSE. A guide for new and expectant mothers who work, aims to answer some of the questions employees may have about continuing to work while pregnant and returning to work after the birth. And New and expectant mothers at work - A guide for health professionals, highlights the importance of health professionals’ role in helping to protect these women. HSE points out that employers have a legal responsibility to protect their female employees from hazards and risks in the workplace and to assess possible risks to new and expectant mothers. If risks are identified then the new or expectant mother is entitled to a change in working conditions, be offered suitable alternative work, or if that’s not possible suspended from work on full paid leave for as long as necessary. Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) statistics show that in 2001, out of 1,434 potential tribunal cases involving maternity related discrimination, 1,387 involved some breach of health and safety legislation. Both guides are supported by EOC and the Maternity Alliance.
Safety alert after four confined space deaths in four weeksA spate of workplace deaths - including four deaths in the last four weeks - has prompted the HSE to warn employers of the asphyxiation and other risks associated with work in confined spaces. Three of the most recent deaths involved an oxygen deficient atmosphere. The other death involved the use of a highly flammable liquid. HSE says other problems in confined spaces can include: flammable substances and oxygen enrichment; toxic gases, fumes or vapour; the danger that people could be harmed by liquids getting into the space; and the flow of solid materials such as grain.
INTERNATIONALAustralia: Royal Commission condemned as a union witch huntUnions in Australia have condemned a costly building industry Royal Commission as a costly anti-union witch hunt. John Sutton, national secretary of the construction wing of the union CFMEU, said the Cole Commission had spent almost 90 per cent of its year long deliberations investigating unions but its report, published this week, had found little to criticise - meanwhile the notoriously corrupt and hazardous building employers had been largely ignored. Sutton said: 'Where are the findings of tax evasion, phoenix companies, the failure of companies to pay workers entitlements? Where are the findings about the levels of safety in the industry that sees one worker die every week?' Greg Combet, national secretary of union federation ACTU, was also highly critical of the Royal Commission: 'To spend $60 million [£23m] on this is a pathetic embarrassment,' he said, adding that trade unions would continue to protect workers' rights and monitor the health and safety of worksites. 'If you take the union out of the equation there'll be more than one worker killed a week on those jobs.' Unions say the Royal Commission forms part of a general assault on union rights and safety standards by the federal government (Risks 98). Research published last year concluded that the presence of construction union safety reps was the only factor that led to appreciable improvements in safety standards (Risks 66).
China: Blast kills 60 as fleeing miners are forced back into shaftMiners who tried to flee a gas-filled mine shaft were forced back into the shaft by managers immediately before a massive explosion killed at least 60 workers, Chinese Labour Bulletin (CLB) has claimed. It says 60 coal miners are known to have died in the 22 March underground gas explosion in northern China, and a further 12 are still missing. The massive explosion ripped through the Mengnanzhuang coal mine in the Yima township of Xiaoyi City, bringing down the mineshaft roof. CLB says it 'has received independent accounts from several miners and their families that many of those who died had attempted to leave the coal mine less than an hour before the explosion, after smelling a build-up of toxic gases in the mine shaft, but that a mine manager had forced them to return to the coalface despite the imminent danger.' It adds the mine should not even have been operating. A temporary closure order introduced in January because of safety concerns was still in force when the explosion occurred. Han Dongfang, CLB’s director, said: 'It seems clear that the authorities should additionally be investigating the need to bring criminal charges against responsible officials of the Mengnanzhuang coal mine’s management for causing multiple deaths through negligence or worse.' Egypt: Nerve poison pesticide risks worse than thoughtWorkers with 'moderate' long-term exposures to organophosphorous (OP) pesticides are suffering a wider range of nerve symptoms that previously thought, including eyesight, speech and attention and memory problems, a study has found. Researchers reporting in the April issue of the journal Occupational and Environmental Medicine looked at nervous system effects on 52 workers exposed to OP pesticides used on Egypt’s cotton crop compared to 50 unexposed controls. They concluded 'occupational exposure to OP pesticides is associated with deficits in a wider array of neurobehavioural functions than previously reported, perhaps because of higher exposure in the studied population.' They add that even 'moderate' chronic exposure could affect 'visuomotor speed as reported previously, but also verbal abstraction, attention, and memory.'
USA: Smoking bans good for smokers too, says expertFor lung cancer specialist Dr Diane Stover, the New York’s no-nonsense no-smoking law is a no-brainer. She says the city’s comprehensive smoking ban, which took effect on 23 March, brings benefits to non-smokers and smokers alike. 'You obviously want to protect people who don't smoke. They shouldn't have to suffer for other people's actions,' said Dr Stover. 'But I would hope that it would help smokers, too.' As the social stigma surrounding smoking grows, Stover said it could help current smokers to quit. In addition, medical studies have shown that when a smoker is unable to smoke in social settings, it reduces the frequency of smoking. 'It could help them cut down, and think about stopping,' she said.
USA: NY factory fire site named an historic monumentThe site of New York’s worst industrial disaster, the 1911 Triangle Shirtwaist factory fire, has been designated an official historic monument. On 25 March, the 92nd anniversary of the fire, hundreds of school children and union members placed carnations on the site of a tragedy that killed 146 young women trapped in a sweatshop and which outraged the nation. The 'Triangle fire' spurred a union movement among garment workers and led to the development of local and national laws prohibiting sweatshops and ensuring workers’ health and safety. Bruce Raynor, president of US textiles union UNITE, said: 'Unfortunately, sweatshops still exist today. In 1911, it was Italian and Jewish immigrants. Now it's Latino and Asian immigrants who are exploited and work in dangerous conditions.' He added: 'Organising a union is still the best way to make sure employers provide a safe workplace and a living wage.' RESOURCES for Workers’ Memorial DayWhat to sayWant some words on Workers’ Memorial Day? Hilda Palmer, the TUC’s WMD 2003 co-ordinator has done the job for you. A great article that you in download and use on your union website or in your union newsletter or journal is available on the TUC website. There’s also a detailed backgrounder giving you all the evidence you need to argue for the Workers’ Memorial Day 2003 goal - greater employer accountability for health and safety at work.
GMB is calling time on corporate crimeGeneral union GMB says it is 'calling time on corporate crime' this Workers’ Memorial Day. An online briefing says the theme for this year’s Workers Memorial Day, 28 April 2003, is corporate responsibility and adds 'the GMB will be using the day and the lead up to the day to campaign for a law on corporate killing. The GMB will be taking part in a campaign co-ordinated by the Hazards movement which involves activists sending postcards to their MP, Ministers, and Tony Blair' (Risks 95). GMB is calling on safety reps to get as many members as possible to send at least one postcard to their MP and to pin the postcards up at work. Unions talking health and safety
EVENTS AND COURSESTUC COURSES FOR SAFETY REPS - APRIL TO JULY 2003:Midlands, North, Scotland, South East and East Anglia, South West, Wales, Yorkshire and Humberside Only 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 courses for safety reps on passive smokingAs part of a Europe-wide TUC project on passive smoking at work, the TUC is piloting some new courses for safety reps. Course details and an application form are available on the TUC website. The courses are designed to help safety reps to: share experiences about smoking at work and passive smoking; identify the health effects from passive smoking; find out about legal standards and collective bargaining agreements on the protection of workers from passive smoking; identify steps that employers should take to meet the needs of non-smokers and smokers; and negotiate policies that protect workers from passive smoking. The two-day pilot courses, designed by Peter Kirby, are being held in: Dundee (2 and 9 June), Exeter and Solihull (both 30 June and 7 July), Liverpool (4 and 11 July), Putney (7 and 14 July), Sheffield (11 and 18 July) and Newcastle-on-Tyne (18 and 25 July). Risks 100th edition special conference, 4 AprilRegistration is now open for a special TUC health and safety conference to mark the 100th edition of Risks on Friday 4 April at Congress House. Headline speakers include editor Rory O’Neill, the TUC’s new deputy general secretary Frances O’Grady, and Labour MP Lawrie Quinn who is piloting the Health and Safety (Offences) Bill through the Commons that day. After the conference, which takes place from 1pm to 5.30pm, delegates are invited to a reception to mark the 100th edition. ‘Don’t choke on the smoke’ conference, 9 AprilThe TUC, anti-smoking campaigners Action on Smoking and Health and the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health are holding a national conference at Congress House to call for the implementation of the long overdue Approved Code of Practice on passive smoking. Registration costs £30 for trade unionists. TUC deputy general secretary Frances O’Grady, National Asthma Campaign chief Donna Covey, former BMA chair Sir Alexander Macara will join MP Barry Sheerman, Baroness Gibson of Market Rasen and Lord Faulkner of Worcester. There will be examples of good practice and a review of the civil, criminal and disability law. More news on union approaches to workplace smoking. Tobacco smoke pollution conference, 10 AprilA national tobacco smoke pollution conference will feature Professor Stanton Glanz who was instrumental in banning smoking in public places in California (Risks 52) and is the leading authority on this topic. The event at Haydock Park racecourse on Merseyside, will include a panel (involving trade unions) on introducing legislation for smoke free workplaces, followed by questions from the audience and debate. Further information: Brenda Fullard, regional tobacco policy manager, Directorate of Health and Social Care (North), Government Office for the North West, Sunley Tower, Piccadilly Plaza, Manchester, M1 4BE. Tel: 0161 952 4104. Hazards Conference, 5-7 SeptemberThe Hazards Conference will be in London. Margaret Sharkey at the London Hazards Centre is the co-ordinator of the London end of the organisation. You can contact her via e-mail at margaret@lhc.org.uk or on 020 7794 5999. European Week for Health and Safety at Work, 13-19 OctoberThe theme for the Week in 2003 will be ‘dangerous substances’ (EU Agency press release). The TUC will be stressing the hierarchy of control, and especially the need for substitutes and general toxic use reduction strategies. Key hazards dealt with will include asbestos, asthmagens and solvents. Future years’ themes have also now been decided. 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.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.HSE Books, PO Box 1999, Sudbury, Suffolk CO10 2WA. Tel: 01787 881165; fax: 01787 313995. |
New Zealand’s unions will launch a 'Unions talking health and safety' campaign on International Workers' Memorial Day, 28 April 2003. The New Zealand Council of Trade Unions says it will be 'campaigning to make sure our new law leads to healthier and safer workplaces. Elected health and safety reps are key to the law working well.' It adds that it is co-ordinating a major campaign to elect 10,000 health and safety reps.Newsletter (6,200 words) issued 29 Mar 2003
