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Editor: Rory O'Neill of Hazards magazine. Comments to the TUC at healthandsafety@tuc.org.uk
Risks is the TUC's weekly online bulletin for safety reps and others, read each week by over 15,000 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 statement .
UNION NEWSFour detonators in an open metal box labelled 'explosives' were housed in a Tube station storage room normally used for keeping liquids, rail union TSSA has said. The detonators were discovered during a safety inspection by TSSA safety reps. A complaint from the reps led to the boxes being moved from Golders Green London Underground station to a safer place. The detonators are laid on tracks and explode when trains go over them to warn maintenance teams working nearby. The safety reps said they had no idea the detonators were being stored at the station, how long they had been there and whether any had gone missing. Liquid believed to be petrol was also in the storeroom. TSSA general secretary Gerry Doherty said the incident revealed 'a worrying slip in safety standards' and called for maintenance work to be brought back into the public sector. 'This had the potential to be a very dangerous situation both for our members and the wider public,' he said. A spokesperson for Tube Lines commented: 'When undertaking an inspection, union representatives found some train detonators in a locked room at Golders Green. Tube Lines acted quickly to address an administrative error regarding storage licences and to ensure train detonators are consistently stored in locked boxes as well as in locked rooms.' He added: 'Feedback from the Railway Inspectorate to Tube Lines on our response was positive.' However, TSSA reported the Railway Inspectorate said Tube Lines had been 'sloppy in their housekeeping' and 'whilst there is a casual attitude to these matters, there is always the potential for a dangerous situation to arise.' Inspector Anna O Connor told the union she would start a programme of spot checks of the company's storage facilities because 'I find it hard to believe that this was an isolated instance.' Unions raised the incident and other concerns about Tube safety at the House of Commons Transport Committee this week. Brian Harris, a regional officer for Unite, told the committee that Tube maintenance companies had a 'disjointed management nature' and that the Tube was 'lurching from one crisis to another with safety put on the back burner.'
The father of a teenager who fell to his death within a week of starting work has welcomed a decision by the Crown Prosecution Service to prosecute his employer for manslaughter and has thanked his union GMB for its backing. Gwent CPS has announced it will take the action against Roy Clarke, the owner of North Eastern Roofing, following the death of 17-year-old Daniel Dennis in April 2003 (Risks 272). It took an inquest at Newport less than 10 minutes to reach a verdict of unlawful killing in March 2005. The decision to prosecute follows a successful Judicial Review backed by GMB union against the CPS's original decision not to bring manslaughter charges (Risks 289). Peter Dennis, Daniel's father, said: 'At long last and after a long and difficult fight, justice for Daniel is in sight. All we have ever wanted was for this matter to be brought before a jury. All we want is for employers to be properly held to account when someone is killed in the workplace. It is now up to the courts.' He added: 'If it hadn't been for my trades union the GMB we would never have been able to fight this case.' Allan Garley, regional secretary of the GMB's south western region, said: 'This decision should be a warning to all employers that they will be held to account for deaths and injuries at work and that the GMB will pursue them whenever such tragedies occur.' Mick Antoniw, the family's solicitor at law firm Thompsons, said: 'There are lessons for the CPS to learn. In future, it is essential they become more proactive and take a greater interest in workplace fatalities and develop greater expertise in health and safety law.'
Construction union UCATT has secured six figure payouts on behalf of the families of two workers killed at work, but says cash is no real recompense and can only ease the financial misery. In May 2002 the two steeplejacks, Paul Wakefield and Craig Whelan (Risks 327), were killed in a chimney fireball at the Metal Box plant in Bolton. After initially attempting to avoid responsibility for the tragedy, directors of Metal Box were convicted of health and safety offences. Both families were awarded in excess of £300,000. Alan Ritchie, general secretary of UCATT, said: 'Nothing can ever recompense a family for the loss of a loved one, killed at work. Hopefully the compensation awarded to these two families will ensure that they do not suffer continued financial misery.' Steve Cottingham of law firm OH Parsons, who acted for the victim's families, said: 'Companies must stop paying lip service to health and safety. Far too many building workers are killed at work every year. Companies must be forced to realise that workers are not expendable, in the quest for greater profits.'
Seafarers' union Nautilus UK has launched a fund to provide support to the families of three seafarers who died onboard a standby vessel in the North Sea. The union says the initiative is in response to inquiries from members who said they would like to make donations to the families of Robert Ebertowski, Findlay Macfayden and Robert O'Brien, who were killed whilst trying to secure the anchor in a storage area onboard the emergency response and rescue vessel Viking Islay (Risks 325). Nautilus UK industrial officer Steve Doran has agreed to administer the collection of any monies and to arrange for payment to the next of kin. An investigation into the deaths is being carried out by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch, not the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). This means the deaths, which occurred 25 miles off the Yorkshire coast, will not be recorded in the official HSE work fatality figures. In August, offshore union Unite called for 'more open' and 'honest' offshore accident figures. It said the majority of offshore deaths were not included in HSE's deaths figures as they were investigated by other agencies (Risks 318) so were treated as maritime or aviation and not workplace tragedies (Risks 289).
Firefighters' union FBU has warned it could take action as a result of pension scheme changes that have seen injured and sick firefighters pushed out of a job then denied an ill-health pension. It says recent changes to the Firefighters Pension Scheme (FPS) have already seen three firefighters in London lose out, one after developing work-related hearing loss. FBU accuses the government of misleading parliament - and stakeholders, including the union - on changes to the FPS regarding ill-health retirements and redeployment. It says if the situation is not resolved the union will be looking to ballot on industrial action. Raising the union concerns in a letter to ministers, FBU general secretary Matt Wrack wrote: 'The effect of these changes will be to place firefighters in limbo. They will not be able to continue in their profession due to ill health. They will not be entitled to a pension. They will also not be guaranteed any employment since there are few, if any, such (non-operational) jobs in existence within the Fire and Rescue Service.' He added that firefighters has paid high contributions 'to allow for the possibility of early retirement due to ill-health' but now faced poverty as a result of the changes. In July, three London FBU members were told their pensions were being cut off. One, Martin Marrion, had been retired in January 2006 on medical grounds - due to noise-induced hearing loss, which was caused while attending incidents. The decision to retire Martin was one he had opposed and when he was told his pension was being stopped, Martin repeatedly contacted the brigade to get his job back - but to no avail. He said: 'I didn't want to go. I was forced to go. And now they are not even paying my pension. It's terrible. I'm 50 now. I took out a new mortgage two years ago. My plan was to retire at 55 and pay my mortgage off with my pension. I am in serious trouble now. I've already missed two payments on my mortgage.' A threat of industrial action by rail union RMT this year resulted in similar damaging changes in the Transport for London pension scheme being scrapped (Risks 320).
The two daughters of a York man who died of the asbestos cancer mesothelioma are to receive compensation. CWU member Leslie Kenneth Bailey died on 23 March 2003, aged 48, having been diagnosed with malignant mesothelioma in November 2002. Asbestos had remained at British Rail's Holgate carriage works, where Mr Bailey worked as a vehicle builder between 1976 and 1980, years after the company stopped using it because the site was not properly cleaned. Mr Bailey's daughters, now aged 16 and 18, will receive an undisclosed amount of compensation as a result of the CWU-backed compensation case. Mr Bailey's solicitor, Ron Thompson of Pattinson & Brewer, said: 'British Rail clearly failed in its duty of care towards Mr Bailey and his family,' adding the payout to his daughters 'will meet the costs of their care in his absence. At no time was he provided with any safety equipment and he was never warned about the dangers of asbestos.'
Thousands of workers with an asbestos-related condition will not be able to claim compensation following a ruling by Law Lords. Union leaders and lawyers attacked the decision to end claims for pleural plaques, usually caused by exposure to asbestos. The decision removes an established right to compensation, which had existed for 20 years and will lead to 'massive savings' for insurance firms, said unions. The Law Lords ruled that pleural plaques was not a disease. TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said: 'This is yet another attack, spearheaded by the insurance industry, on workers' ability to claim compensation for exposure to dangerous hazards at work. The Lords accepted that employers had been negligent but denied the workers the right to any form of redress. Now these defendants face the future knowing that they have been exposed to asbestos which could lead to a fatal disease.' Derek Simpson, joint general secretary of Unite, said: 'The judgment will disadvantage many of our members who have been exposed to asbestos in their work by denying them the right to sue their former employers for developing pleural plaques. Unite will continue to fight to recoup damages for those people who have developed mesothelioma and other asbestos-related conditions.' Adrian Budgen, head of the industrial diseases team with law firm Irwin Mitchell, commented: 'This decision will impact upon thousands of people who have faced emotional anguish since their diagnosis. Pleural plaques is a consequence of negligent exposure to asbestos. This exposure physically scars victims and is often a precursor to very serious, and sometimes fatal, disease.' Prospect assistant general secretary Mike Clancy said the Lords' ruling 'totally ignores the suffering endured by these victims and their families who, following the diagnosis of pleural plaques, live with the continual fear of developing a life-threatening respiratory disease.' And Tony Whitson, chair of the forum of asbestos support groups said: 'This judgment gives solace to rich insurance companies and leaves asbestos victims uncompensated. It is a disgrace.' The Association of British Insurers said the ruling 'brings clarity for claimants and insurers'.
Assaults on Scotland's health and local government staff over the last year have increased and require a better co-ordinated response, public sector union UNISON has said. The union used freedom of information requests to obtain figures from Scotland's local authorities and health boards that show that the level of violent attacks increased in the last year by over 2,000, bringing the figure to 25,157 compared with last year's total of 23,272. Dave Watson, UNISON's Scottish organiser, said: 'These figures show that - particularly in local government - employers are still not taking the threat of violence to their staff seriously. All the positive advertising campaigns in the world cannot have the impact they should unless employers encourage reporting, collect and monitor information on violent incidents.' He added: 'The government must extend the scope of the Emergency Workers Act and maintain its effectiveness.' Mr Watson said UNISON 'is saying this level of violence is unacceptable. Employers must: introduce preventive measures; carry out risk assessments for all tasks; encourage reporting; and collate the relevant statistics.' Last week UNISON had to intervene to protect staff at a Scottish hospital after a private firm left them vulnerable to attack. Haden, which is contracted to PFI operator Consort, did not tell Edinburgh Royal Infirmary staff that panic alarms were not working.
A union has launched an 'anti-bullying hot mail' for staff working in the not-for-profit sector. Unite has set up a dedicated e-mail address BanBullying@Unitetheunion.com where victims or witnesses of bullying can contact the union to report bullying in the workplace. The union says it will investigate the claims and act where necessary. Bullying has been identified as the major issue facing staff in the voluntary sector, where union representatives report having to deal with bullying related cases more than any other issue. Unite believes the reasons bullying is a particular problem in the not-for-profit sector is due to lack of training for managers, coupled with the increasing pressures that workers are put under in the sector, as more is expected from staff for less. Rachael Maskell, Unite national secretary for not-for-profit, said: 'Our representatives in the not-for-profit sector are having to deal with cases of bullying more than any other issue. We have set up a 'hot mail' to let staff know that they are not alone and that the union will act where necessary. Unite takes a zero tolerance approach to bullying in the workplace.' She added: 'We want to provide advice and support for both management and union representatives on how they can work together to create a climate of respect in the workplace and effectively deal with issues when they arise. Prevention is better than cure." The union says it will be surveying its members in November to assess the real scale of bullying. Union reps are being encouraged to organise events around Ban Bullying at Work day on 7 November.
The government has launched what it claims is the first ever review of the health of the working-age population. Dame Carol Black, the government's national director for health and work, launched the 'call for evidence' last week. The intention is to identify the action 'government, business and the medical profession should take to improve the health of working age people and help more people who develop health problems to remain in or quickly return to work.' At the launch, work secretary Peter Hain said: 'Last year 175m working days were lost to sickness absence, costing organisations about £650 per employee. But the human cost is worse. Without the right support people can be relegated to a life on benefits as they fall out of the workplace and lose the confidence and skills to re-enter work. This, as well as increasing mental illness and the need for more and more people to work in to their older age, means that we urgently need to address how we improve people's health and support them to stay in or return to work. That is why we have asked Dame Carol to scrutinise this area and provide us with some answers.' Workplace health czar Dame Carol said: 'People that work are healthy, wealthier, and live longer than the unemployed. The benefits to the individual are clear; but employers also have much to gain.' She asked 'why don't more employers invest in this area? Do GPs provide the right advice to patients? What support should the government provide? And what are the true costs of ill health - to society, business, and individuals? I will be seeking answers to tough questions like these over the coming months.' Safety minister Lord McKenzie and Dame Carol, who together have fronted the government's 'work is good for you' drive, have been criticised for under-estimating the harm caused by bad jobs and the efforts necessary to make employers address them (Risks 323). The TUC said it supports efforts to help people back to work, but added the real gains are to be made through prevention. It called for increased resources for HSE and local authorities for inspection and enforcement.
A top business organisation has urged companies to put the health of the nation's workforce on to the boardroom agenda, after its research revealed 'apathy' on the issue was damaging both workers' health and productivity. Business in the Community (BITC) said its research has revealed that a third of workers (31 per cent) feel their health is neglected at work, while six in 10 (62 per cent) 'don't believe bosses consider staff as assets worth investing in.' Almost half (46 per cent) claim apathy towards employee wellbeing has taken its toll on workplace productivity. Nearly half (44 per cent) said they were discouraged from taking sick days when unwell, with the same proportion reporting they were under pressure to do unpaid overtime. Over half (55 per cent) said they were suffering stress and over a third depression (38 per cent). BITC says there is a proven return on employee health and wellbeing investment of 3:1, and has launched a national campaign calling for at least 75 per cent of all FTSE 100 companies to publicly report on employee wellbeing by 2011. BITC says its Business Action on Health campaign, which is backed by a string of major companies, 'provides a suite of tools for UK boards to effectively measure bottom line impact of employee health and wellbeing investment for the first time.' Stephen Howard, managing director of BITC said: 'We know substantial investment is already being made in employee wellbeing, however, public reporting in this area is almost non existent. Our aim is to increase business accountability and competitiveness by helping companies introduce simple health and wellbeing programmes that can be effectively measured against the bottom line.'
Pressure to stagger into work when sick is hurting workers and damaging productivity, commitment levels and motivation, according to research from the Chartered Management Institute (CMI). Its 'Quality of Working Life' report reveals that 17 per cent of managers believe their health is deteriorating and more than four in 10 (42 per cent) claim illness rates in their organisation have gone up over the last 12 months. But the study of 1,511 managers found 1 in 3 believe a culture of not taking time off work for sickness exists in their organisation. Only 53 per cent of employees feel they would be treated sympathetically if they were ill. The report reveals half (48 per cent) of those reporting symptoms relating to stomach bugs in the past year did not take sick leave and only 9 per cent suffering from stress took time off from work, despite 1 in 3 citing stress symptoms. Two-thirds of respondents (67 per cent) said their productivity was reduced by ill health. CMI corporate affairs director Jo Causon said: 'While many employers bemoan the cost of absence to their organisations, they fail to see the damage done by creating a culture where illness is seen as a weakness. The risk of mistakes or spreading sickness surely outweighs the short-term benefits of someone turning up for work when not fully fit.'
The British Medical Association (BMA) says an NHS work-related injury and ill-health compensation scheme has been under-paying some claimants. It is advising any member who has received compensation for an injury at work since 1972 to check they are receiving their full entitlement. BMA says under-payments in some cases could run to tens of thousands of pounds. The advice comes after the Department of Health announced the results of an inquiry which revealed 'anomalies with the administration' of the NHS Injury Benefits Scheme in England and Wales, with 40 per cent of the nearly 24,000 cases reviewed affected by errors. The review identified that: Since 1972, injury benefits due to some NHS pension scheme members have been incorrectly adjusted; between 1985 and 1998, incorrect eligibility criteria were used; and since 2002 some decisions have been made without appropriate legal authority. The scheme, which is far superior to the equivalent DWP industrial injuries benefit system and which is linked to the NHS pensions scheme, covers staff for accidents wholly attributable to their NHS work, such as needlestick and other injuries, occupational dermatitis and other occupational diseases and attacks by patients. The review covered all 23,735 cases on the scheme administrators' books, and identified 9,273 cases affected by errors. In some cases, staff will be entitled to a new settlement, and the government has acknowledged that some may have been underpaid by as much as £90,000. Dr Andrew Dearden, chair of the BMA pensions committee, said: 'The fact that people who were already struggling with potentially life-changing injuries have not had the level of financial support to which they were entitled is unacceptable. NHS staff deserve to have their injury benefits scheme handled with the highest level of expertise and we are extremely disappointed to learn of this potentially serious underpayment. We're urging anyone who may have been underpaid to contact the NHS Pensions agency.' In 1991, Hazards magazine described the NHS injuries benefit scheme as the 'NHS's best kept secret', revealing many eligible health service workers were not been told of their entitlement or were wrongly being denied payouts when they claimed. The magazine urged health service workers injured or made ill by their work to make claims.
A major transport firm has received a six-figure fine after the death of a Wirral lorry driver. TNT Logistics UK Ltd was fined £120,000 and ordered to pay costs of £28,184.75 after pleading guilty at Manchester Crown Court to workplace safety offences. Lorry driver Derek Howe, 56, suffered fatal injuries on 15 May 2004 when he fell off a lorry parked at TNT's premises. He was trying to help free a worktop on the back of the lorry when he fell approximately two metres onto the concrete yard. HSE inspector Richard Clarke said: 'Mr Howe's death could have been prevented if TNT had taken appropriate precautions in line with health and safety legislation. Every year 2,000 people are injured at work falling from vehicles. Falls are currently the second highest cause of fatalities and injuries in the transport industry. Even falling a short distance can be very serious, or even fatal.' The inspector added: 'Employers and self-employed people operating lorries need to avoid the need for work at height on the lorry wherever possible. Where that is not possible, they must take measures to prevent falls. Companies should ensure staff are adequately trained in how to reduce the risks. Climbing on top of loads should be avoided wherever possible and permanent platforms or gantries may assist with this.'
The construction group given responsibility by ministers to lead a site safety drive after fatalities took a dramatic upturn has admitted it cannot tackle the problem until it gets its own house in order. Work and pensions secretary Peter Hain has charged the health and safety task group of the construction industry's Strategic Forum, composed of the major players in the industry, to come up with ideas to improve safety practices in the sector by the end of 2007 (Risks 324). But the safety task group's 22 October meeting to be held the Construction Confederation's London HQ will not discuss any of the proposals agreed at the health and safety summit convened by the minister last month. Instead, it will be devoted to sorting out the group's own internal politics after its previous meeting in May was cancelled due to a lack of interest. In an interview with trade magazine Construction News, Construction Confederation director of health and safety Shelley Atkinson-Frost said: 'At the next meeting we will be reviewing the membership's objectives. There was a lack of numbers back in May so we will need to look at changes to our approach.' She added: 'We won't be looking in detail at any of the measures discussed at the forum. We will only be able to move forward once we have sorted out our own short- and long-term objectives.' The Strategic Forum safety task group was originally set up to ensure promises made at a February 2004 construction health and safety summit, convened by then deputy prime minister John Prescott, were followed through.
The government and the Health and Safety Executive have each published guidance on the new Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007, which will come into force on 6 April 2008. Announcing new Ministry of Justice guidance, justice minister Maria Eagle said: 'This law will ensure that there is proper accountability - when very serious management failings lead to people being killed.' She added: 'This is not about over-regulation. Businesses should see this as an opportunity to make sure they have proper arrangements in place for managing health and safety. It is crucial for the people they employ and their customers that they are responsible and successful corporate citizens.' The HSE guide says the 'landmark' law means companies and organisations can be found guilty of corporate manslaughter as a result of serious management failures resulting in a gross breach of a duty of care. It adds the Act clarifies the criminal liabilities where serious failures in the management of health and safety result in a fatality. It says although the new offence is not part of health and safety law, it will introduce an important new element in the corporate management of health and safety. HSE says prosecutions will be of the corporate body and not individuals, but the liability of directors, board members or other individuals under health and safety law or general criminal law, will be unaffected. And the corporate body itself and individuals can still be prosecuted for separate health and safety offences.
A leading Brazilian construction union leader was followed and murdered after investigating poor safety standards on a site. Aparecido Galvão, known as 'China', was president of construction union CONTICOM and had previously received threats from contractors. He was shot in the head in Salto, 80km from São Paulo. A report by Gilmar Santinon on the website of global construction unions' federation BWI, said Galvão was pursued at speed by two cars. The cars pulled up alongside Galvão's vehicle and the attackers opened fire. That same day, Galvaõ had taken photographs of violations of minimum health and safety standards on a construction site. Gilmar said: 'China was an honest and sincere worker who had received several threats from contractors. Threats are frequent here.' BWI said it is 'very concerned about the persecution of trade unionists in the country. The International extends its solidarity to Galvão's family and trade union friends.' Galvão was 56 years old. He had a wife and two children. A September report said the number of trade unionists worldwide murdered for defending workers' rights increased by 25 per cent last year (Risks 324). In 2006, 144 trade unionists were murdered, while more than 800 suffered beatings or torture, according to a worldwide survey by the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC).
Unsafe employers in Ontario are making money by exploiting weaknesses in a system supposed to penalise those with bad health and safety records, union research has revealed. An Ontario Federation of Labour (OFL) report criticises the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) 'experience rating' system that adjusts insurance premium rates based on an employer's claims history. In theory the system is supposed to provide an incentive for injury prevention. Also in theory, employers receive rebates on their premiums for good claims records and are penalised for poor claims records. But rebates have exceeded penalties by more than half a billion dollars in the last four years and bad employers have learned to play the system, said the union body. Its report, 'The perils of experience rating: Exposed!', says the approach 'encourages employers to mis-report and under-report accidents, to force injured workers back to work before they are medically ready, and to pay workers sick pay rather than have them receive compensation benefits. For some employers, when it comes to keeping their claims history in good standing, anything goes.' OFL president Wayne Samuelson said: 'Tens of millions of dollars are drained out of the WSIB's accident fund each year by employers who have learned how to play the game of experience rating. In fact, according to the WSIB's own figures, rebates have exceeded penalties by more than half a billion dollars in the last four years alone.' Mining firm INCO's Copper Cliff site, a workplace with a 'terrible record of past convictions for workplace safety offences,' received a rebate more than six times the size of the workplace death-related fine it received in the same period.
Unions in Europe are being urged to join 'a massive offensive' against workplace strain injuries. 'More than one in three European workers across all sectors suffers from musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs),' said John Monks, ETUC general secretary, at a conference last week hosted by the ETUC and its research and training institute, ETUI-REHS. 'We want to launch a mass trade union offensive focused on work organisation to stem these rapidly-spreading work-related illnesses.' ETUC said MSDs are European workers' main health complaint. Marc Sapir, director of the ETUI-REHS said: 'Current European legislation is not enough to tackle this problem. We need to get a draft MSD Directive back on the European agenda.' The conference heard Antonio Cammarotta, the European Commission official in charge of MSDs, say a possible directive 'is very much in the in-tray.' Unions want a general directive on MSDs that would give weight to the impact of work organisation and psychosocial factors. The European employers' organisation, Businesseurope, is dead set against this, as its representative, Bob Koning, made clear at the conference. Arguing that 'there is no scientific evidence that the rise in MSD is work-related,' he called for a sectoral approach and the development of non-binding schemes like awareness building and exchanges of 'good practice'. The European Commission, though, seems to support the union line. 'The Commission favours an overall approach that combines regulatory and non-regulatory measures. There is a case for a new initiative that could take the form of a directive based on the 1989 framework directive on the health and safety of European workers', said Antonio Cammarotta.
The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has revised its online health and safety resources to make them easier to access. The SafeWork Bookshelf is a collection of key occupational health and safety documents. It was compiled by CIS, the information arm of the SafeWork Programme, and includes the ILO Encyclopaedia of Occupational Health and Safety, International Chemical Safety Cards, ILO Conventions and Recommendations on occupational health and safety and ILO Codes of Practice.
COURSES FOR SEPTEMBER TO DECEMBER 2007
Newsletter (5,800 words) issued 19 Oct 2007
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