In the Workplace – Nothing’s More Important than Health & Safety

Two million people work in Britain’s construction industry, making it the country’s biggest industry. It is also one of the most dangerous. In the last 25 years, 2,800 people have died from injuries they received during construction work. Many more have been injured or made ill. Whether working in the construction industry, or in any other, health and safety in the workplace should be every organisation’s top priority.

For up-to-date information on health and safety in the workplace, there is no better source of information than from the Health & Safety Executive. The organisation’s website, www.hse.gov.uk, is an invaluable source of advice, whether you are an employer or an employee.

New on the website is information on proposals for new regulations amending the Management of Health & Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and the Health & Safety (Consultation with Employees) Regulations 1996.

The H.S.E produces a plethora of useful publications on a variety of health and safety topics.  Of particular interest to those working in the public sector might be a title only just launched in January 2005 called ‘Health & Safety in Local Authority Enforced Sectors’. This presents a picture of local authority working in enforcing health and safety law. 

Also of interest to those in the construction sector is an announcement by the HSE that it will be carrying out a ‘blitz’ of construction sites across Great Britain in March 2005 as part of a nationwide initiative to tackle serious work-related ill health.

‘Healthy Handling 2005’ is aimed at clients, planning supervisors and contractors in the construction industry and is targeting poor work practices that can cause long term disability and could end careers.