Construction Sites Failures Prove Case For Enforcement

The recent HSE construction site visits, which found most sites visited had potentially life-threatening work methods proves the case for enforcement and greater safety reps' rights.

This is the argument from trade union Amicus in response to the fact that the one day exercise by HSE inspectors of building sites resulted in them issueing 17 work stoppages out of 19 sites visited.

Amicus construction safety officer Rob Miguel commenting on theri website, " How many of these situations would have resulted in serious injury or death if the HSE had not carried out these all-too-infrequent inspections? We'll never know, but we do know that inspections are the only way to ensure safety, particularly on small construction sites like those targeted in June."

The HSE has been drastically reducing its enforcement action recently, prompting hims to add, " The HSE produces plenty of useful guidance on how employers can ensure their workers are in safe conditions, but guidance is no substitute for an expectation that if you work unsafely, you risk being caught."

Amicus says a government freeze on HSE's budget has amounted in real terms to a 10 per cent cut, resulting in the HSE not having the resources to police safety effectively.

Source: Amacus

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