A busy Occupational Health Theatre was put straight on a few confusing aspects of the 2010 Equality Act by Cynthia Atwell OBE, a well-known occupational health nurse and consultant, and then treated to an analysis of what makes good work by Barry Wilkes, a NEBOSH development manager.

Testing the fitness of all police officers will help forces meet their duties under the Police (Health and Safety) Act 1997 and the HSWA 1974, and result in lower rates of sickness absence.

The stress profession is the latest in the occupational health and safety field to embrace the current vogue for accreditation.

Company directors should be disqualified for serious cases of failing to protect their employees’ well-being, according to a new policy paper from the Liberal Democrats.

An electrical-components manufacturer has lost an appeal against a decision that the health of its workers was not adversely affected by strong smells generated by a neighbouring business.

A charity helpline for the retail trade has been swamped with calls from anxious employees, shopkeepers and managers unsure how to deal with the emotional consequences of the riots sweeping the country.

Younger workers are more stressed in their jobs and feel under more pressure to work long hours than their older colleagues.

Taking action to address staff obesity remains a thorny issue for most NHS trusts, according to an audit report on the progress that health-care organisations have made in implementing guidance on employee health.

Reinforcing understanding of the positive link between health and work is the focus of one of five ‘Responsibility Deal’ voluntary networks, established by the Department of Health (DH), to tackle current and future public-health challenges.

Helping small firms manage their employees’ mental health and well-being in the workplace is the focus of new guidance from the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) and mental-health charity, Mind.

The Government is to launch an independent review on how to reduce the cost to the economy caused by long-term sickness absence.

Potential cost savings on staff sickness absence in the NHS may be nearly half of what a government-commissioned review has challenged the organisation to achieve, according to a report by the Audit Commission.

The personal relationships of almost one in three people in the UK have suffered because of work pressures, according to a recent poll carried out by IOSH.

With ‘National Sickie Day’ fast approaching, employers are being urged to take action to address absence from work.

Older people in manual roles, women undertaking work that is likely to impact on their health in the long term, and employees without fixed-term contracts are among the most vulnerable workers in Europe, new research has found.

A new accreditation system for occupational-health (OH) providers will help the Government deliver its new strategy to improve public health in England.

Women who report having high job strain have a 40-per-cent higher risk of developing cardiovascular disease, compared with those with low job strain.

Awareness among GPs about the new ‘fit note’ is still limited, seven months after its introduction, and there is widespread lack of belief among doctors in the ability of the new system to meet its objectives.

The HSE has released new figures confirming that Britain has the lowest rate of work-related deaths in Europe and one of the lowest levels of occupational ill health, but there are fears that this record may not be sustainable in the face of cuts to the regulator’s budget.

A quarter of workers fears being sacked or earmarked for future redundancy if they take time off sick, according to a survey by the Chartered Society of Physiotherapists (CSP).

The majority of UK workers would rather keep a health concern or personal issue to themselves than tell their boss or colleagues, according to new research by Aviva UK Health.

Too many British businesses are jeopardising the health of their workforce by focusing solely on profit and productivity in these straitened times. This is the warning from Aviva Health, which recently carried out its annual ‘Health of the Workplace’ study.

An academic study has uncovered new evidence of the negative impact that workplace bullying can have on the mental health of those subjected to it.



The Health and Safety Laboratory is currently seeking views on managing common health problems in the workplace to identify the types of support and guidance needed in this area.

The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) has issued a stark warning to workers of the damage they are doing to their health, following research suggesting that a majority of employees go to work when too sick.

Around 27 million bogus sick days are taken every year, costing the UK economy £2.5bn, suggests the latest employee absence survey from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and Pfizer.

Middle-aged employees who routinely work overtime are at an increased risk of coronary heart disease, researchers have discovered.

Women under the age of 50 who experience high pressure at work have a significantly increased risk of developing heart disease, a Danish study suggests.

Little progress has been made on addressing NHS nurses’ health since a major report last year urged the organisation to become an “exemplar employer” on staff health and well-being.

Too few people with severe mental-health conditions are receiving funding from the Government’s Access to Work programme.

Looking after people’s health and well-being via the workplace is moving up the business agenda but more evidence of its positive effects is necessary if employers are to embrace it fully.

From 6 April this year, GPs will be required to issue those suffering from ill health with fit notes rather than sick notes, following the introduction of new regulations that aim to support more people with health conditions to return to work.

An MP has tabled an Early Day Motion to win backing for IOSH’s manifesto on improving UK citizens’ health and well-being.

A parliamentary committee has backed a change in the law regarding the disqualification of MPs detained under the Mental Health Act.

Advertising, marketing and PR have topped a list of the UK’s healthiest professions despite those working in these sectors claiming they have stressful jobs.

A new occupational-health advice line for small businesses is to be piloted as part of a wide-ranging government strategy to improve support for people with mental-health conditions.

The Government has ratified an independent report on NHS staff health and well-being by accepting all of its recommendations in full.

The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) has launched new guidance to help employers promote mental well-being in the workplace.

Employer understanding is a key factor in helping workers with arthritis keep their jobs, with flexible working and a sympathetic attitude by bosses the forms of support most valued by affected employees.

The NHS could save more than half a billion pounds a year and improve patient care by positioning staff health and well-being at the heart of the organisation. This is one of the striking messages of an interim report on the NHS Health and Well-being Review.

Medical professionals who become mentally ill are reluctant to seek professional advice because of concerns that it could affect their career, and the perceived stigma attached to mental-health conditions.

Snapshot research by the Institute for Employment Studies (IES) has revealed employers have a variety of anxieties over how the proposed new fit-note system will work.

The life expectancy of the average man born in the UK is still less than 75 years, and he can expect to be seriously or chronically ill for 15 of those, an advocacy group for male health has warned.

British workers are spending more time at work than prior to the recession for fear of losing their jobs, according to research from Lancaster University’s Centre for Organisational Health.

IOSH has launched its first-ever manifesto, focusing on the four areas it believes are vital to improving people’s health and safety: health, education, small businesses and good advice.

The Food and Drink Federation (FDF) has launched a workplace well-being report, which details how its members have been developing workplace schemes that go way beyond the traditional health and safety agenda.

A major study into work-related health and how organisations can successfully manage the issue has been launched as part of the “new approach” called for by Dame Carol Black in her review of the health of Britain’s working-age population.

More attention needs to be paid to the quality of jobs, if real inroads are to be made in improving the health of workers, particularly men, an MP has insisted.

Investing in employees’ health and well-being is arguably more important for companies during a recession than in times of growth, the Health and safety minister has told European business leaders.

People working in human resources and professional services are most likely to become ill and/or run-down as a result of their work, new research has revealed.