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The deaths last year of 180 workers in Britain shows that health and safety is not the bureaucratic madness it’s so often presented in sections of the media, the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) has said.
The world’s biggest health and safety professional body said that while the new HSE fatal injury statistics themselves were good news, showing a fall of 53 from 2007-08’s figures to 180 in 2008-09, they highlight the real dangers lurking in British workplaces.
 Nattasha Freeman, the president of IOSH, said:
“These figures show the true need for health and safety in this country. It shows that health and safety is not just mindless bureaucracy, brought in to make life difficult or prevent us enjoying our lives. It’s about preventing true tragedy that destroys lives. Each worker killed in an accident leaves hundreds, even thousands, of people mourning the needless loss of a loved one, friend or colleague.
Health and safety is not about five-page guides on using Pritt Stick’s, or requiring goggles when putting up Blu-Tack or playing conkers. Health and safety professionals’ efforts are focused on preventing the toll of death and serious injury at work – at stopping the things that cause the loss of life reported in these statistics.”
Nattasha added that new legislation, like the Corporate Manslaughter and Homicide Act, should help bring those companies that disregard health and safety to justice. But she emphasised that good health and safety is still good for business, and that employees had a key role in ensuring their firms stayed within the law.
“The fact the figure has fallen is good news, but it still means there’s lots of people who’ve been mourning a loved one this year. The statistics don’t even tell the full story – work-related road deaths claim up to 1,000 lives each year, but are not currently included in Britain’s fatal injury statistics. There are also estimated to be over 7,000 deaths each year from cancers which are, at least in part, attributable to the work people have done in their lives.
We must not fall into the trap of assuming that the 180 deaths that occurred in accidents this year are the only fatalities that occur at work. Health and safety professionals, must continue to work with colleagues in the workplace to prevent all types of death, injury and illnesses. We’ve got a huge task to do to ensure work deaths continue to fall, particularly at a time of recession when firms want to cut costs. We need workers to continue being vigilant, and to tell their employers of health and safety concerns they have.”
Source: IOSH
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