IOSH 10 – Commitment and communication key to making health and safety case

Coping with the recession and its aftermath, adapting to the changing political environment, and driving a more positive media portrayal of health and safety are the three main challenges currently facing the profession, the IOSH chief executive told delegates at the Institution’s conference this morning (Thursday).

Rob Strange reassured the audience of practitioners that their commitment to good health and safety practice, their support for each other, and their ideas on how to improve and progress are a key part of the solution to making the case for health and safety.

But he acknowledged that there is no single answer to how best to achieve this. He said: “It is up to all of us to help build a more positive media profile, convince employers of the importance of educating employees in health and safety, drive the subject on to the political agenda, and build the business case for good health and safety.”

Rob reminded delegates of the extensive lobbying and media work the Institution has been engaged in recently. With regard to the forthcoming election, he said: “We welcomed David Cameron’s speech in December and now we need to take that debate forward in an intelligent way. We are talking to the three main parties, and have been for three or four years now. We have a very proactive lobbying and campaigning wing, and we have one-to-one meetings with MPs, ministers and peers 30 to 40 times a year.”

As for Lord Young’s controversial address to the conference yesterday, Rob was adamant that it was “not a bad thing” for IOSH. He explained: “The fact that Lord Young said his door is firmly open to lobbying from us is very significant. Before conference, we had two positive meetings with him – and perhaps they were not as positive as we thought! – but the way really is open now for us to take this debate forward.

“Yes, one or two things he said yesterday were factually inaccurate but when we pointed this out to him, he accepted it and vowed to put the correct interpretation in his final report to David Cameron.”

Much of the buzz around the peer’s address yesterday related to his views on the competence of health and safety professionals, and there was a number of questions on this topic for Rob from the floor. Asked if he thought IOSH was “dumbing down” in terms of how it selects people for membership, he strongly disagreed, saying any time spent looking through the IOSH online discussion forums would reveal that most people actually going through the process think the opposite. “The process to go through to chartered membership is very stringent,” he averred.

He was also asked what he acknowledged was a recurring question relating to the potential for exemptions during the process for those with long experience in health and safety. He explained: “To get recognition for chartered status from the Privy Council we had to meet very stringent requirements, so giving exemptions is difficult within those rules.”

Indeed, when pressed on what he thought would be his legacy as chief executive Rob said he was most proud of the fact that chartered status was gained “on my watch”. He added: “We had to move a long, long way from what IOSH was in the 80s and early 90s to get to that, and it has made a huge difference. It has given us a real voice and put us firmly on the map.” He also cited the rising professional ism of practitioners as a key contributor to the improving health and safety record and decrease in work-related fatalities and injuries in the UK in recent years.