Trade union health and safety reps, health and safety campaigners and activists from across Scotland and further afield will discuss the implications of Tory Government attacks and the forthcoming Brexit on workplace protections at the 17th Scottish Hazards Conference to be held on Thursday 9th November.
Scott Donohoe, Scottish Hazards Chair said
“The Government’s ideological drive to deregulate one of the most lightly regulated economies in the world has led to increasing attacks on employment and health and safety legislation as well as the trade unions who champion the rights of workers to work in a healthy, safe environment.
“Unfortunately we have also seen the tragic consequences that this light touch, self regulation can have on communities as witnessed by the Grenfell fire on June 14 this year where at least 80 people are believed to have lost their lives, hundreds more made homeless and the physical and psychological health of fire fighters and other emergency workers is unnecessarily put at risk.
“The Government’s response to Grenfell has been appalling as has their approach to health and safety in the United Kingdom. We have seen the figures for fatalities published by the HSE plateau in Scotland at 19 over the last two years and further cuts to HSE budgets and Government interference in their work can only make things worse.
“There are far more work related deaths in Scotland than HSE figures show, they do not include those killed by occupational diseases such as mesothelioma and other occupational cancers, work related road traffic accidents, suicides caused by, or partly related to, work or deaths investigated by other regulators such as the Air Accidents Investigation Branch and and Marine Accidents Investigation Branch.
“The regulatory race to the bottom in regards to occupational and public safety has to end and our conference will be looking at how we can make our workplaces safer, healthier and fairer for our workers”.
Ends.
Further Information Contact:
Ian Tasker, Scottish Hazards 07736167404
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