Friday 28th April was Workers’ Memorial Day, which is an annual international event that provides an opportunity to reflect on the many people who are killed, seriously injured or made ill while simply doing their jobs.
The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) has once again called on the House of Lords to scrap Clause 1 of the Government’s Deregulation Bill.
Tougher penalties for employers who fail to fulfil their duties in protecting employees from injury and illness should be welcomed, the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) has said.
March 2013 saw the introduction of a volume safety limit for new portable music players such as iPods. New mobile phones and portable music players sold within the EU must now have a sound limit of 85 Decibels (dB). This is above the 80 dB which is regarded as the safe limit. This is similar to the volume of noise created by the noise of traffic or someone shouting. The 80dB limit was determined by the European Commission Assessment which concluded that 80dB was a safe level regardless of the length of time people were exposed to sound at this level.
A defence company has been ordered to pay £376,000 in fines and costs for safety failings that caused a fatal explosion at its Hampshire factory in 2006.
People involved in health and safety at work are being invited to take part in a UK-wide study into the sources of information they use, either in their workplaces or when giving guidance to others.
An Edgware contractor has been fined after the routine inspection of a construction site discovered dangerous working conditions.
Health and Safety Executive (HSE) Inspectors saw contractors working some three metres above ground without measures in place to prevent them from falling. A Prohibition Notice was immediately served on the Principal Contractor, preventing further work at height until adequate safeguards were in place.
In a prosecution brought by HSE, Chelmsford Magistrates' Court heard that a follow-up inspection of the site later the same day, found working at height was still continuing, but no measures had been taken to comply with the Prohibition Notice.
The contractor pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 6(3) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 and Section 33(1)(g) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and was fined £2,000, and ordered to pay costs of £1,500.
Speaking after the hearing HSE inspector, David King, said:
"Last year 50 construction workers died following incidents on sites, with work at height being the largest factor in this. Therefore it is essential that everybody involved in the construction industry takes appropriate action to manage work at height safely, and other major hazards on their site, to prevent needless injury and loss of life."
http://www.hse.gov.uk/press/2012/rnn-e-86.htm
A laboratory testing firm has been prosecuted after putting workers at its Tyneside premises at risk of exposure to asbestos.
Donald Brydon, Chairman of Royal Mail Group, has announced the launch of an independent inquiry to be led by Sir Gordon Langley into the prevalence and consequences of attacks by dogs on postal workers in the UK, with the objective of making recommendations to address them.
There are between three and a half thousand and four thousand dog attacks on Royal Mail employees each year, resulting in injuries - many severe, - and considerable trauma.
Despite significant organisational effort to control employee exposure, and an outstanding and ongoing campaign - Bite Back, led by the CWU - the number of attacks remains unacceptably high. The inquiry will look more widely than just at primary legislation and therefore will look beyond current proposed amendments to the Dangerous Dogs Act.
The inquiry will:
Two former businessmen have been sentenced by an Italian court to 16 years in jail for negligence that contributed to the asbestos related deaths of over 2,000 people, reports the Scotsman.
Stephan Schmidheiny, from Switzerland, was the former owner of Swiss construction firm Eternit, and Jean Louis Marie Ghislain De Cartier De Marchienne, from Belgium, was a former executive and shareholder. They were charged with deliberately failing to implement measures to prevent damage from asbestos exposure at the firm's fibre cement making plants in Italy.
The trial began in December 2009, and since then has heard evidence linking 2,100 deaths to exposure to asbestos fibres at the plants.
The court also awarded financial compensation to over 6,300 victims or family members of people who died or became ill as a result of asbestos exposure while working at the factories.
A company and its manager have been fined after two workers were engulfed in a fireball when they cut through a live 1,000 volt electrical cable at an industrial unit in Telford.
The TUC has welcomed the Löfstedt report's conclusion that the UK's health and safety laws 'are broadly right', but it has major concerns that the proposals to exempt some self-employed workers could have a devastating impact on their safety.
