HSE FAILING IN DUTY ON HEALTH PROTECTION?

British Medical Journal article condemns regulator enforcement

The independent occupational health physician, Anne Raynal, has written an article published today (11/11) in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) arguing that Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is “failing in its statutory duty to protect workers from occupational disease”.

Ms Raynal states that whilst more than 13,000 deaths a year in Britain are directly attributable to occupational exposures fewer than 15% of all working people are likely to have access to occupational health services.

Britain is said to be the only major European country that does not have a legal requirement for the provision of occupational health services, by the state or employers adding that the HSW etc Act 1974 implies a duty on the employer based on risk, but this is “minimally enforced”.

The author points out that

“Only 0.3% of the 500 000 annual incidences of work related ill health, estimated from the Labour Force Survey, are reported to the HSE. However, no prosecutions have been brought for not reporting occupational diseases or related deaths under the statutory regulations in the past five years.”

Read the full article

This article was posted on 12th November 2015 in ALL LATEST NEWS, MANUAL HANDLING, MSD & ULD, NOISE & VIBRATION, OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH, SILICA.
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HSE FAILING IN DUTY ON HEALTH PROTECTION?

British Medical Journal article condemns regulator enforcement

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