Lawford Kidd's Blog

According to new figures recently published by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), between April 2013 and March 2014, 133 people in Britain died in workplace accidents - 17 less than the previous year, 42 less than 2010/11, 46 less than 2008/09 and the lowest number since records began.

With the number of fatal injuries now at 133, the overall rate of fatal injuries in Britain has also dropped from 0.51 per 100,000 workers in 2012/13 to 0.44 in 2013/14 and below the five-year average rate of 0.56. At 0.51 per 100,000. It is thought Britain has the lowest rate of fatal injuries to workers, when compared to the following major industrial nations: Germany, France, Spain and Italy.

The HSE statistics show the rate of fatal injuries in certain industrial sectors. For instance, between April 2013 and March 2014, there were 27 fatal injuries to agricultural workers, 42 in construction and 4 in waste and recycling.

One of the UK’s main health and safety bodies has reiterated its opposition to Government plans to deregulate areas of health and safety.

The Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) is opposed to a clause in the Government’s Deregulation Bill that exempts certain self-employed workers from health and safety law.

The clause suggests that workers will be exempt from health and safety law if they are self-employed, do not employ anyone else, that their activities pose no potential risk of harm to others, and that they do not work in a high hazard or high risk sector (to be designated ‘prescribed’) such as agriculture, construction or gas fitting and installation.

Two Scottish engineering businesses have been fined for safety failings after a worker’s hand was crushed while helping a forklift truck driver to unload steel beams.

The 54-year-old was an HGV driver and had delivered the beams to a company in Stirling. He was standing on the flatbed trailer while a forklift began to unload the second bundle of steel. As it was lifted, the steel became unstable and rolled away from the forklift truck. The metal strapping broke and the beams separated, falling towards the driver.

He attempted to jump out of the way but was hit by one of the beams which trapped his feet against the flatbed trailer. He fell towards the ground with his feet still trapped and put his right hand down to break his fall.

A recent report from the British Safety Council has highlighted why investing in health and safety makes sound business sense.

According to the report, the true cost of failures in occupational health and safety to the UK economy amounted to £13.8 billion in 2011/2012, with work related illnesses costing around £8.4 billion.

“At a time when the latest GDP figures show the country slowly returning to economic health, we know that making workers ill and injured hurts all of us,” said Alex Botha, Chief Executive of the British Safety Council. “What this literature review tells us loud and clear is that getting health and safety right makes good business sense and can save organisations money.”

A worker suffered serious injuries when he plunged nine metres through a fragile warehouse roof in Northampton.

The man was walking on fragile asbestos cement sheeting during roofing work when it gave way beneath him and he fell onto a metal pallet and then the concrete floor.

He sustained three fractures to his right arm, multiple fractures to his face and head, a punctured lung, damage to his chest and a severe gash to his right leg. He still suffers from reduced movement in his right arm and right leg, numbness in his left arm, chest problems and dizzy spells and has so far been unable to return to work.