A system of unannounced inspections by health and safety regulators can not only improve injury rates in the organisations visited but also has no adverse effect on their bottom line, a US study has found.
There has been a sharp drop in the number of prosecutions of employees under section 7 of the HSWA in the last five or six years, according to figures collated by the HSE from its prosecutions database.
Practitioners should not be afraid to challenge regulators over decisions with which they take issue – but just as important as why you challenge is how you challenge.
There is a straightforward choice between cutting unnecessary health and safety regulations or losing jobs to other countries, Employment minister Chris Grayling said yesterday (2 May).
The Government has agreed to exempt mesothelioma sufferers from controversial ‘no-win, no-fee’ compensation reforms currently going through Parliament until a report into their impact has been published.
Almost one in five construction sites failed to satisfy inspectors during a national initiative of safety checks aimed at improving safety standards in the sector.
The HSE's 'Fees for Intervention' (FFI) scheme, under which it plans to recover its investigation costs from businesses it finds to be in breach of health and safety law, will not now start in April, as originally planned.
The case of a worker who was fatally crushed on a construction site is the inspiration behind a new Bill aimed at preventing companies going into administration to escape punishment following a death or serious injury.
Businesses that believe they have been the recipients of erroneous, or over-the-top advice from HSE or Local Authority (LA) inspectors can now appeal these decisions to an independent panel.
The number of directors and senior managers prosecuted under section 37 of the HSWA 1974 has rocketed by more than 400 per cent in the last five years, according to unofficial figures released by the HSE in response to a freedom of information (FoI) request.
Calls have been renewed for legislation governing gangmasters to be extended to the construction industry, with a Bill supporting the move set to be debated in the House of Commons in January.
A long-running legal dispute on offshore working hours and leave entitlement has ended with the Supreme Court ruling against the oil and gas workers who brought the case.
From April next year the HSE will charge duty-holders who materially breach health and safety law an hourly rate of £124 for its intervention, which will be counted from when a letter or e-mail recording the duty-holder’s breach is sent.
The Government has announced its intention to expand and extend the Local Better Regulation Office’s (LBRO) Primary Authority scheme as part of a package of plans to transform ‘front-line enforcement’ for businesses.
More than a third of basement construction sites visited by HSE inspectors during a recent initiative came up short on necessary safety standards, and required enforcement action to be taken.
The Government has announced an immediate consultation on the abolition, consolidation and further review of large numbers of health and safety regulations and aims to remove the first rules from the statute books within a few months.
Network Rail will face criminal proceedings for breaches of health and safety law, after an investigation into the deaths of two teenage girls at a rail-station footpath crossing was reopened because of new evidence.
Union officials have slammed the Government over planned changes to employment regulation, saying they could give bosses the freedom to bully workers without fear of legal repercussions.
The Scottish Chambers of Commerce (SCC) is concerned by the prospect of an “increasing disconnect” between the HSE and businesses operating in lower or medium-risk sectors, but still wants lighter-touch regulation of such companies.
The signing of a new three-way agreement between the NHS, Police and Crown prosecutors is expected to help the authorities take tougher action against individuals who assault health-care workers.
Businesses taking on more regulatory responsibilities and enforcement authorities giving greater recognition to companies’ efforts to comply with the law are two of the tenets of the Government’s vision for a better regulatory environment, Business minister Mark Prisk said yesterday.
New research would appear to fly in the face of government policy built on the notion that the retail sector is a low-risk workplace environment where health and safety is concerned.
The face of the UK’s workforce is set to change “dramatically” from tomorrow (1 October), as employers will no longer be able to use the Default Retirement Age (DRA) to force employees to retire.
Delegates at the TUC Congress have unanimously supported a motion condemning the cuts to the HSE’s budget and warning to fight any “watering-down of health and safety” imposed through the Government’s reform agenda.
The reporting period for injuries sustained at work is to be extended from three to seven days, following analysis of responses to the consultation on RIDDOR carried out earlier this year.
Bereaved family members of victims of workplace incidents should receive speedier justice as a result of forthcoming changes that will enable more health and safety prosecutions to proceed prior to a coroner’s inquest being held.
To merge or not to merge – that is the question the man tasked by the Government with reviewing Britain’s health and safety laws will be pondering over the coming months, as he analyses the evidence submitted by stakeholders last week.
The HSE has launched a three-month consultation on how it plans to recover costs for its interventions from businesses that fail to comply with health and safety laws.
“A disappointing year with clear evidence of a poor safety culture, patchy implementation of procedures and slow progress on some key risks – often requiring formal enforcement.” This is the Office of Rail Regulation’s blunt assessment of Network Rail’s health and safety performance in 2010/2011.
EU-wide legislation to outlaw the practice of blacklisting workers is looking increasingly likely, following a successful trip to Brussels last week by a UK pressure group.
Health and safety practitioners and other stakeholders are being urged to take part in the latest round of the Government’s rout of burdensome regulations.
A number of animal charities, enforcement agencies and trades unions has come together to call on the coalition Government to target irresponsible dog-owners to help reduce the thousands of attacks on workers and the public that occur each year.
The burden on businesses – particularly those recognised as low-risk – to comply with health and safety laws must be reduced and regulations made more industry-specific, according to a major employers’ group.
The leader of a new review of health and safety regulation in the UK has emphasised the importance of the contribution of “expert views” on the subject to inform his final report.
The way the HSE, Police and other regulators approach investigations into workplace fatalities was the topic of hot discussion at the SHP Legal Arena today.
A proposed change under RIDDOR 1995 to report incidents that lead to a worker being incapacitated for more than seven days rather than three days, as is currently the case, has been described as a potential retrograde move for health and safety.
"It has been rather an eventful year”, said Judith Hackitt, as she gave the opening address in the SHP Legal Arena at Safety & Health Expo this morning.
