CWU General Conference 2012 Abhors Attacks On Disabled, Health & Safety, Women's Health
Derek Maylor, Health & Safety Officer in Merseyside & South West Lancashire Branch and Chair of the NWBTU H&S Co-ord reports from the CWU Conference being held at Bournemouth's International Conference Centre 22nd to 27th April. Here he gives a resume of some of the key Health & Safety debates and policy decisions that have taken place so far:
Conference opened discussing the devastating Conservative/Liberal attacks on disabled people, 30% of whom live below the poverty line and are set to lose £140 in cuts to disability benefits alone. The government are also cutting funding which helps employers make reasonable adjustments to enable disabled workers to stay in employment. Therefore along with Disability Alliance we will support campaigns against the cuts and work with others in the trade union movement to oppose all such attacks.
The government’s continual tirade against Health and Safety legislation show no sign of abating and the nonsensical myths are repeated to justify cuts to workers safety and welfare. Such reckless action will result in deaths and injures as years and years of gains to protection of workers are thrown away in the name of squeezing more profit. We will continue to raise awareness of the real figures of death, injuries and ill health caused by work in the UK.
Conference noted the excellent work conducted by the CWU in its dangerous dogs ‘Bite Back’ campaign and agreed that, due to the relaxation of quarantine laws in the United Kingdom (UK), the CWU monitors the situation and seeks advice from all interested parties.
If, after taking an objective view of all the available information, we feel that our members, other public sector workers or the general public are at risk, then the CWU will launch a campaign to repeal the changes to the law.
Whilst we welcome the Defra consultation statement (23 April 2012) we will continue to campaign for;
* A 100,000 signature petition to 10 Downing Street.
* New Laws in England and Wales similar to those achieved in Scotland and NI.
* Harsher court penalties for offending dog owners of animals that attack CWU Members, children, other workers and members of the public.
* Adequate compensation arrangements for injured members.
* Dog ownership bans for convicted.
The standards of accident reporting in many companies where the CWU have members has become unfit for purpose and are contrary to their wellbeing. The CWU will look for improvements as a matter of urgency which will better look after our members interests and provide effective Health and Safety structures which will improve the accident reporting systems applied to our members currently.
The Governments desire to water down UK H&S legislation is causing great concern, not just amongst trade unions but also amongst health and safety professionals. The government is deliberately misleading and misinforming the workers of this country and putting their health, safety and wellbeing at risk.
The attacks on spending in the HSE along with possible legislation changes, is detrimental to workers terms and conditions and will leave them vulnerable in the workplace to employers’ continuous breaches of current protective legislation. Therefore we will do all we can in promoting, supporting and participating in all campaigns to fight these attacks and in doing so, raise awareness not only in our membership, but across all workforces.
People need to be aware that the Government isn’t trying to simply ‘cut red tape’ to promote a healthy economy, but is promoting profit over the health and safety of the workers in this country.
Conference noted the change in health of women as they go through the menopause can have a profound effect on women’s working lives. Menopausal women can experience hot flushes, headaches, tiredness, sweating, anxiety attacks and an increase in levels of stress. The CWU will campaign to get recognition for this and to introduce a robust procedure for dealing with the needs of menopausal women.
This campaign will include working towards risk assessments that ensures women’s working environments do not aggravate their symptoms and ensuring a fuller understanding and acceptance of menopausal symptoms and their possible effects of women in the workplace.
We are moving into times of reduced incomes, unemployment and greater workplace demands from employers. In light of this situation the CWU must safeguard our member’s health, safety and wellbeing in these workplaces given the changes in job demands, workloads and job requirements.
Stress is now the second biggest reason for sickness in the workplace and costs company’s millions per year in lost revenue. Many of our members are also affected by these increased pressures long term which sometimes lead to more complex mental health problems. We have to embark on a plan of educating employers in the area of member’s mental health as soon as possible.
Hugh Robertson addressed the lunchtime safety fringe meeting which was very well attended and continues to be the largest such event at CWU conference. Hugh spoke of the government attacks on health and safety and what the future may hold.
Source: Derek Maylor
