We all know HSE statistics on work related fatal injuries do not depict the real story of the tragic consequences of health and safety failures.
Many more dying from occupational disease are not included in the HSE headline figures published annually, these deaths often relate to exposure to asbestos and other carcinogens where longer latency disease can be connected to negligent exposures many decades ago.
Admittedly these deaths are recorded elsewhere on the HSE website, however other fatalities including deaths invesitigated by the Air Accident Investigation Branch and the Marine Accident Branch are not included in the annual statistics of work related deaths, neither are workers who take their own lives by suicide related to their work or, in the vast majority of cases, deaths in road traffic accidents where the deceased driver has been killed in the course of their work.
We urgently require a review of reporting statistics on occupational deaths at work so lessons can be learned and public policy developed taking into the real tragedy of health and safety failure, regardless of where the death occurs or how long after the exposure to risk the workers loses their life.
An examination of fatalities from press reports in the current year 2017/18 reveal that 9 people have died from injuries at work.
However, looking at the HSE in year fatal injury statistics it would appear that only 7 have been investigated by the HSE.
On Monday 26 June, 23 year old Jamie Shannon, a tour guide with Edinburgh tour company, Haggis Adventures died when he fell from cliffs at Yesnaby in Orkney while guiding a party of tourists on a holiday in the Highland and islands. This incident was investigated by Police, but not the HSE as far as we can ascertain.
Less than a week later, on the 28th June 52 year old Keith Johnston, a road worker with Orkney Islands Council lost his life when he was struck by a vehicle driven by a colleague, this sad loss of life was investigated by the HSE and now appears on the record of fatalities.
However, 10 days later in another local authority, South Lanarkshire, 58 year old Gary Anderson lost his life in what Scottish Hazards can gather from press reports appear to be very similar circumtances. This incident is not included in the HSE statistics.
Scottish Hazards will be contacting the HSE seeking clarification into the deaths that have not been recorded as work related fatalities.
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