The British Energy group has suggested that consistent training and reward is vital to ensuring fewer major health and safety incidents in the workplace. Despite proclamations from government that the number of overall work related accidents is lower, the reality is quite different. The NHS, for instance, has continued to see the number of accidents involving NHS staff increase by almost 25% despite a government pledge to cut it by the same amount.
The British Energy group has suggested how rewarding employees who had contributed to increased prevention of accidents at work, can in fact help to cut accidents in future as it makes them feel like an asset for safe and reliable operations and that they can have a role in the future to marking up safety standards.
As well as improved training, communication was also an important necessity in that every employee should fee obligated to raise concerns about safety and suggest improvements without feeling that such truth-telling is frowned upon for raising criticisms.
The National Audit Office’s paper on NHS accidents a year ago highlighted problems in the NHS that still have not been acted upon. That report wrote about how staff shortages and increased workload had led to difficulties in complying with guidelines, which in turn had led to an increase in accidents.
The NHS in particular proved to be a minefield of accidents; the suggestions expounded by the NAO have yet to be acted on. For example, they suggested that the NHS should take immediately steps to provide a safe working environment for nurses in particular, given that they are scarce in number.
The government’s slow response to the problem is indicative of the approach worldwide by independent jurisdictions. The International Labour Organisation (ILO) submitted that there are more than 3,300 work-related deaths a day.
One field where the government is being seen to make changes is in relation to building sites. Over the course of last year, deaths on building sites rose by a quarter and the government is suggesting that building workers should be trained to better understand health and safety issues. Furthermore, that union health and safety representatives should be appointed at every building site. This would also be an ideal way to tackle a specific problem regarding building sites, where it seems many self-employed workers, including migrants, are denied employment rights and do not have essential safety training.
Saurav is an author of several articles pertaining to No Win No Fee, Compensation Claims,
Work Accident Claims and other legal articles.
