Lancashire Textile Manufacturers' Association (LTMA).

Health & Safety

Corporate Manslaughter
 
The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act comes into force on 6 April 2008 and will introduce a new offence of corporate manslaughter. It will allow the prosecution of an organisation where the way its activities are managed or organised, amounts to a gross breach of a duty of care, and leads to a person's death.
 
No other aspect of health and safety law will change. Previously, whilst an organisation could be prosecuted at common law for manslaughter, attempts to do so were frequently unsuccessful, as a result of the need to identify the 'controlling mind' behind the breach. This requirement has now been removed.
 
Meanwhile, the Institute of Directors and the Health and Safety Commission (HSC) have produced joint guidance to directors and board members entitled 'Leading Health and Safety at Work'. The guidance is aimed at organisations of all sizes and in all sectors. It mandates organisations to place health and safety firmly within the remit of the organisation's leadership.
 
At its launch event, the newly appointed chair of the HSC, Judith Hackett, emphasised that inspectors will be using the guidance as a benchmark when examining the role of the board when investigating incidents. It was clear that whether an organisation has implemented the advice of the guidance will play a crucial part in a decision as to whether to prosecute under the new act
 

Managing Stress
 
Work-related stress is a major cause of occupational ill health, poor productivity and human error. That means increased sickness absence, high staff turnover and poor performance for member companies and a possible increase in accidents due to human error. Based on the Management Standards, this new guide will help you, your employees and their representatives manage the issue sensibly and minimise the impact of work-related stress on your business. It might also help you improve how your organisation performs.
 
The guide Managing the causes of work-related stress: A step-by-step approach using the Management Standards is available at:
www.hsebooks.com/Books
 

Working at Height
 
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is warning company directors and owners of the importance of implementing safe systems for working at height. This follows the HSE prosecution of a company after an incident in which a worker was seriously injured.
 
John Ruck Construction Ltd of Leominster, Herefordshire was (on Monday 17 December) ordered to pay £3,500 in fines, with £1,165 costs after pleading guilty to breaching Regulation 9(2) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005.
 
The court heard that, on 4 December 2006, employee Mark Woodward (25), fell more than 4.5 metres (15ft) through a roof whilst working at Leadon Court near Ledbury.
 
HSE Principal Inspector Tony Woodward said: "The roof where John Ruck Construction Ltd was contracted to work had measures in place to protect employees but, when the work plan changed, those employees were passing across other roofs which were totally unprotected. Mark Woodward suffered a broken arm that, even 12 months later, was sufficiently serious to require ongoing surgery. He is extremely lucky to be alive; we would not normally expect someone falling from that height onto a concrete floor to survive. Such falls remain one of the biggest killers of employees and last year, across the country, in the construction industry alone there were 10 employees killed, 13 self-employed killed and 3,409 seriously injured after falling from height.
 
Further information on falls from height can be found at: hse.gov.uk/falls/index.htm
 

LOHSG
 
The Lancashire Occupation of Health and Safety Group are presenting a full day seminar on Tuesday 18th March 2008 in conjunction with the Health and Safety Executive and some guest speakers. The seminar will cover areas such as COSHH Principles, Work at Height, Workplace Transport and a Noise Update. The cost of the seminar is £65 per delegate including lunch.
 
The seminar will be held at Barton Grange Hotel, near Preston and further details can be obtained from this office.