HSE commends firms who have improved safety regulations
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE), has revealed in a recent report the businesses that have improved their safety regulations and public liability insurance issues.
It also highlighted the regions that have failed to tackle accident preventative techniques.
West Midlands improve
The document displayed that the West Midlands has dramatically improved its health and safety work ethics, with a reduction in the number of workers being killed or injured. Public liability owners were also praised for reducing injury rates by 35%.
The figures demonstrated that between April 2008 and March 2009, 12 people died, which was down by ten from the previous year.
Rosi Edwards, HSE regional director for the Midlands, said that it was good to see that West Midlands public liability insurance customers are continuing to take health and safety seriously with incident figures falling.
She added: “In the current economic climate there may be a temptation for employers to cut corners or turn a blind eye to incidents, wrongly believing that health and safety in the workplace is something they can do without as they try to keep their businesses going.”
London Figures
The HSE also praised firms in London for their work accident rates dropping. The report showed that 20 workers were fatally injured at work in the area between April 2008 and March 2009.
This figure has reduced from 26 in the previous year, whilst the total of major injuries plummeted by 104 over the same time span.
Stephen Williams, director of field operations for the London division of the HSE, said that it is really encouraging to see the improvements in the number of fatal incidents.
“In spite of the encouraging overall statistics today, let us not forget that they tell us a story of individuals and families who have suffered. This underlines the real risks that people face in work every day,” he said.
North east to improve standards
Despite the applause for companies who have improved their health and safety standards nationwide, the HSE has warned that sectors in the north-east must take matters more seriously.
Whereas other businesses have worked hard to reduce work accidents and injuries, the report reveals that such incidents have increased within the region.
There were nine deaths in the workplace from April 2008 to March 2009, up from seven in the previous year, while serious injuries were also up by 52 incidents to 1,362.
David Snowball, HSE regional director for the north-east and Yorkshire, said that the fact that nine people died last year was a tragedy.
He furthered: “We owe it to those workers, to their families and friends, to increase our efforts to ensure that risks are properly managed in the workplace.”
Principal environmental health officer, Keith Anderson, urged all firms to pay attention to safety regulations: “We will be looking to ensure that companies are taking the necessary steps to identify and minimise the risks to help ensure a safer workplace for all,” he said.
HSE statistics showed that nationwide, 180 workers were killed at work, with a further 132,000 other injuries being reported. Workplace injuries were reduced by 7,000.
Updated on 03/11/2009