NEWS
TORIES SHOW “True Colours”
OVER HEALTH AND SAFETY REGULATIONS
Plans by the conservative party to allow employers to arrange their own externally audited health and safety inspections and ban the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) inspectors from the workplaces. Shadow business secretary Ken Clarke has published a report, ‘REGULATION IN THE POST-BUREAUCRATIC AGE’, which stated that the Tories plan to “drastically curb” the powers of HSE inspectors “by allow companies to arrange their own externally audited inspections, and providing they pass, to then refuse entry to official inspectors”.
Previous attacks on health and safety regulations, in 2004, in a report, ‘Reversing the drivers of regulations’, listed what was termed ‘unnecessary regulation’ targeted for repeal or reduction. These included at the time, the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations (COSHH).
PLEURAL PLAQUES
GMB helped organise a third lobby (in two years) of the Houses of Parliament on 28th October to highlight yet again the plight of current, and future, sufferers from Pleural Plaques. This follows a decision from the House of Lords in October 2007 to stop the payment of compensation from employer’s insurance companies. Previous lobbies had help convince the government to undertake a consultation on the matter, though this closed over a year ago! Since then repeated promises from Ministers and the Prime Minister of a decision soon have resulted in nothing as yet.
GMB has a long history of campaigning on asbestos related issues and we intend to keep the pressure on the government until justice for pleural plaques sufferers has been achieved. To us the position is very clear – there has been negligence by employers in allowing exposure to the deadly asbestos, there has been a sharp increase in mental stress for those diagnosed with pleural plaques, particularly where they have seen friends, family and workmates go on to develop mesothelioma.
SMOKE FREE LONDON
The GMB London region fully supports the "smoke
free London" campaign. Second hand smoke (passive
smoking) is a serious workplace Health & Safety
issue especially for workers in the hospitality sector. The government has accepted the overwhelming evidence
that tobacco smoke is harmful not only to those who
chose to smoke but also to the vast majority of public
and workers who do not, yet the governments proposed
legislation effectively gives no protection to our members
in work places such as casinos with private clubs and
some public houses being able to opt out of their duty
of care. Its estimated that around 1200 non smokers each year
die from smoking related illnesses.
The GMB have always
taken Health & Safety very seriously and this issue
is no different from asbestos or any other work place
hazard.
Please click here for the Passive
Smoke at Work Register Form
For more information please visit www.smokefreelondon.com
The Department of Health's Consultation on legislation
for smokefree workplaces has been published. We would
like to encourage as many people to respond to the document.
An online petition has been set up on the smokefree
action web site: www.smokefreeaction.org.uk/action.html
*ATTENTION*
The TUC and its affiliated unions have asked the Labour Research Department (LRD) to carry out a survey on climate change and the workplace. We hope to find examples of union workplace action on global warming and to identify the problems faced by union reps and activists in this area. The survey will contribute to union campaigning and publications on the environment.
The survey is on LRD’s website:
http://www.lrd.org.uk/surveys/climate/
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