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The current situation regarding those whose mental health is damaged so badly that they feel suicide is the only way out, is that their deaths do not appear in workplace deaths figures collated by the HSE. Union Safety Reps too often have to deal with the aftermath of a Union member's suicide and with the terrible affect it has on their family and loved ones; and often with the total lack of support from the individual's employer. This and the fact that work-related suicides are not even counted and recognised as being a death caused by work, prompted CWU Area Rep Jamie McGovern to write and submit to his Branch a motion which was submitted in it's name: 1 CATEGORY A: The NEC is instructed to work with the H & S Department, the TUC and any other interested party/group to formulate a strategy and campaign that seeks to ensure that workplace suicide is recognised in legislation. If any employee takes his or her own life in the workplace, or indicators exist to suggest it may be work related, it should be immediately investigated as a potential work-related suicide with the burden of proof being imposed on the employer to demonstrate that the suicide was not work-related. In the event Jamie was unable to attend Conference due to his involvement in organising Liverpool's International Workers Memorial Day event. CWU delegates voted unanimously to carry Motion 1 moved by Greater Mersey Amal (Greater Mersey and South West Lancs) Branch Secretary Mark Walsh, in Jamie's absence; which instructs the Union's national executive to campaign to ensure that those workers who commit suicide due to work problems, are no longer ignored and are counted by the HSE in their annual work-related deaths statistics. Already the Trade Union movement recognises suicide due to work when making commemoration to those who have died at work on 28th April every year, which makes this motion carried on the 28th April; extremely poignant. The debate can be watched in this video:
Source: CWU / Unionsafety
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