Recession Pressures Firms to Cut Safety Spend

According to a new HSE survey published last week (June 3rd 2009), more than a quarter of business leaders say that their organisation will face demands to reduce expenditure on health and safety this year.

Eighty per cent of leaders acknowledge that good health and safety standards are beneficial. This is due to the fact that the cost of preventing accidents, is almost always lower than the costs of an accident once it happens.

Almost 90% of business leaders felt that the most important asset of the organisation are the people, whilst in addition to preventing accidents, 65% of employees stated that good health and safety practices make them feel valued.

Almost half of Britain's workers know of somebody who has been injured at work; however the actual rate of serious injury and death is greatly misjudged. On average, employees think that 3,000 people were killed or seriously injured while at work last year, but in actual fact the number is 136,000.

Judith Hackitt, Chair of HSE said: "HSE is not, and never will be, 'the fun police.' Our new strategy shows the way towards a common sense attitude to health and safety. As regulators, our approach to businesses will be proportionate to the risk they present and their approach to managing it.

"We are calling on employers and business owners to take the lead themselves in preventing the thousands of deaths every year which are caused by work - it is their moral and legal duty and it is good for the business."

James Purnell, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions said: "There are too many clichés about the role of 'health and safety' in our society. But amidst ridiculous myths about banning donkeys and flip flops, the fact is that too many people are still needlessly killed or injured. The fact that some people go out to work and never return home to their families is a human tragedy. The new HSE strategy recognises that a significant challenge now faces everyone with a stake in health and safety. We need to do everything we can to drive down the toll of death and injury."

UK Bosses Prepared To Cut Their Own Bonuses Before Health And Safety

UK bosses are prepared to cut their own bonuses before health and safety, however lives are at risk as 1 in 12 workers admit to feeling under pressure to take risks.

A new survey from the British Safety Council (BSC) has found that over half of all businesses making cutbacks this year, will cut the bosses' bonuses before health and safety management.

Even though this demonstrates a positive attitude towards health and safety, the survey also raised significant issues in regards to health and safety and the recession. The survey found that one in ten workers is fearful of raising concerns about health and safety issues in the current economic climate. Furthermore, it was found that one in twelve workers feel that they are under pressure from their bosses to save money, by taking risks with people's safety.

The BSC's survey into the attitudes of bosses and workers to safety in the workplace revealed that although 95% of bosses were confident about what they are required to do legally in order to make their workplace safe, 26% of them were not aware of the 3 main pieces of safety advice and legislation:

• Health and Safety (Offences) Act;
• Corporate Manslaughter Act;
• Institute of Directors' Guidance for Directors.
  

Brian Nimick, Chief Executive of the British Safety Council, said:

"No one should have to work in a situation where they fear for their safety because of unsafe practices. There needs to be a clearly defined "safe to work" covenant between workers and bosses if we are to make the workplace in the UK and elsewhere as safe as possible.

"Even in the current challenging financial climate facing industry, now is not the time to make health and safety costs a casualty of cut backs."

While the majority of workers (70%) feel more inclined to be productive in an environment where their employer is attentive to their health, safety and wellbeing, only just over half of bosses (59%) now think that a proactive approach to health and safety enhances the bottom line compared to 72% in 2007.

In 2007/08 non-existent or inferior health & safety measures in the workplace killed 229 men and women and injured 136,000 employees - costing the industry £7.8bn.

Workers feel safer

The survey shows a noticeable improvement in workers' perceptions of their own safety since opinion was first measured in 2007. The proportion who feels 'very safe' has increased significantly, from 57% to 71%, while the proportion who does not feel safe has dropped from 7% to 4%. Overall, 96% of employees now feel safe at work, with 98% of bosses believing their workplace to be safe.

Regional Statistics

Employees in Wales feel the safest in the UK, with 84% saying they feel very safe compared to two thirds (67%) in 2007. Perceptions of workplace safety are particularly high in Yorkshire and Humberside, the South West, the East Midlands and East Anglia.

In the North West, almost half of workers feel very safe (49%, a decline from 61% in 2007). 17% in the region say their employer is bad at reminding them of their responsibilities regarding health and safety, compared with a national average of 6%.

Sector safety

Those who work in construction have shown a considerable improvement in their perception of safety, with only 2% feeling unsafe compared with 21% in 2007.

The catering/hospitality sector 11% do not feel safe at work compared to an average of 4%.

Almost a quarter of workers here say they are now less likely to raise a health and safety concern with their employer, due to the economic climate, compared with an average of 11%.

You can download the full report from the British Safety Council website.

Employers 'must not let health and safety slip in recession'

Health and safety in the workplace cannot be allowed to slip because of the recession, a minister has warned.

Lord McKenzie of Luton, the health and safety minister, explained that there has been little change in the injury and death rates in the UK over the last six years.

However, he stressed that this did not mean the Health and Safety Executive would be taking a more relaxed stance to the issue during the current economic downturn.

Speaking at the Institution of Occupational Health and Safety 2009 conference he said: "Skimping on health and safety is wrong - the financial and reputational consequences can be severe."

The Independent recently noted that a report published by the American Journal of Epidemiology has suggested that working for long hours could be damaging to people's health.

Middle-aged employees doing over 55 hours a week were found to be less mentally alert than those doing 41 hours.