16/06/10
It has often been the source of much ridicule and scorn, but Assembly Member for Mid and West Wales Joyce Watson has voiced her concern at government plans to re-assess strategy on health and safety in the workplace. Such has been the public perception of overzealous enforces that ‘Health and Safety gone mad’ has become part of the national vocabulary and recently Prime Minister David Cameron recently appointed Lord Young to review the strategy which he believes has ‘overwhelmed businesses with red tape’.
Speaking during a debate on the Queen’s Speech in the National Assembly for Wales debating chamber, Joyce Watson stated that instances of fatalities serious injuries which occurred at work had fallen dramatically since targets were introduced in 2000. The number of sick days taken by staff had fallen sharply in the space of three years, suggesting that working conditions have improved since the health and safety drive was introduced.
Joyce Watson said: ‘David Cameron recently described the strategy as one which overwhelms businesses with red tape, what he neglected to say was that the strategy works and in fact businesses have understood the need to place an emphasis on the health and safety of their staff. Let us not forget that the employers stand to gain as much as anybody from a healthy workforce and they have worked hard to comply with guidance issued over the past decade. Businesses are by no means overwhelmed by red tape, they were asked to follow guidance relating to the wellbeing of their staff and they complied.’
Statistics published by the Health and Safety Executive show that in 2000, there were an estimated two million people in the UK who believed that they suffered from ill health caused by their work, costing society around £10 billion per year. In 2009, this figure had dropped by nearly half, illustrating the point that over the past ten years the workplace has become a safer environment.
In 2006, thirty-six million days were lost due to work related ill-health or work related injury; the figure for last year stood at just over 29 million, a significant drop in just three years. Health and safety concerns are relevant to all types of employment, in the agriculture sector, the 3 main causes of death over the past 10 years have been the result of transport (24%), such as poorly maintained tractor handbrakes; falls from height, in particular roofs (17%); and being struck by moving or falling objects (15%).
The Member for Mid and West Wales commented: ‘Over the past decade the number of fatalities which occur in the workplace has dropped significantly, as has the number of work-related cases of stress, depression or anxiety. There can be no doubt, therefore, that the emphasis placed on ensuring that the workforce is protected has had a tangible benefit on its physical and mental health, justifying the government’s policy in this area over the past decade. Surely this should be the priority concerning health and safety in the workplace, rather than adopting a mocking and scornful tone which is sometimes the case.’
