Trade Union Health and Safety Education, Agitation and Organisation for safer and healthier workplaces.

 

The best (or worst) examples of widespread failure by employers to assess occupational risk can be evidenced in approaches taken to manage psychosocial risks at work over the last 20 years and the rapid, and more recently some positive response to COVID risk assessment. 

In 2018 Scottish Hazards submitted 159 requests for information on stress in Scotland’s public sector with around two thirds responding.

 

Of those who responded, Scottish Hazards concluded only 37% had adequate risk assessments, (including a few questions from the stress management standards in a general staff survey does not a risk assessment make!), 44 public bodies had spent over £112.5 million on sick pay relating to work stress illnesses and 30 had lost 336,000 working days due to stress. Glasgow City Council claimed to have noticed a reduction in stress illness of 37% between 2005/6 and 2017/18 but were oblivious to the fact that their head count had reduced by 48% in the same period.

 

Thankfully, our experience from speaking with public sector trade unions is that employers have been far more willing to engage with unions on COVID security and risk assessment, but there have been notable exceptions in UK public sector employers, the UK Government, (Jacob Rees  and Mogg et al), the DWP and DVLA are just some examples . However, the picture of COVID risk assessment and employee consultation has been far more bleak in non-unionised private and third sector workplaces. In these workplaces Scottish Hazards came across widespread abuse and ignorance of the requirement to assess COVID risks and to consult with their workers on proposed control measures.

 

Trade unionised workplaces are safer workplaces, a fact that is not disputed. They will only remain so if trade unions continue to challenge unsafe working practices across public, private and private sector workplaces and are not hampered by further attacks on health and safety and employment legislation.

 

It may well be that health and safety disputes become more common, ASLEF’s campaign “We need to talk about toilets” to mark World Toilet Day in 2021 is an excellent example of the work trade unions continue to do to keep members safe and healthy at work. There are many others.

 

Right wing politicians and media may scoff at these campaigns, using their own political prejudice and opposition to trade unions to attack those campaigning to keep members safe. 

 

Lack of access to toilet facilities is a health and safety issue, a serious one for those working in freight and passenger transport as well as other workplaces where permission is often required to go to the toilet. It is also a matter of public health and a basic human right to have access to toilets yet, here in the 21st century, too many workers are denied access to adequate facilities and breaks.

 

 

Now is the time to go back to basics, we need to campaign to ensure the UK Government recognises occupational health and safety as a fundamental workplace right, we need to fight to ensure employers assess health and safety risks in their workplaces and consult with their workers on health and safety matters.