Health & Safety Week 2014

Since the introduction of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, the rate of serious and fatal accidents in the workplace has fallen dramatically. Whether this is because employers are more aware of the legal and financial risks of not upholding an effective health and safety culture, or they have a better understanding of the benefits of maintaining a happy, healthy and productive workforce, it has caused the figures to drop by about 85%.
To celebrate this achievement, many health and safety organisations, including the Safety and Health Expo team, SHP and Barbour EHS, from across the UK have come together to launch the very first Health and Safety Week 2014. The event will take place between the 16^th and 20^th June 2014 at the Safety and Health Expo and aims to restore a more positive opinion of the prestigious health and safety profession, and celebrate the impressive health and safety record of the UK.

We are a world leader when it comes to the safety of our workers, as illustrated by the fact that no lives were lost during the construction of the Olympic Park for the 2012 London Olympics. This is not a surprising outcome; as a nation we would have been outraged if even one person had lost their life during such a major project. But over in Brazil, as they get ready to host the 2014 FIFA World Cup, they are mourning the loss of at least 8 workers who have tragically died during the construction of the stadiums. So, although health and safety is a regular and accepted part of our lives, it is obvious that this is not the case everywhere and we should be celebrating the success of the health and safety profession, who work hard to protect the lives of UK workers.

Many organisations who recognise the outstanding achievements have already signed up to the event, including the British Safety Industry Federation (BSIF) and the British Safety Council (BSC).

We’ve come a long way over the last 40 years, and although a large part of the event is to celebrate and recognise the value of health and safety and encourage the importance of engaging with health and safety, it is also about creating awareness of the next step.

Reducing deaths from work-related illnesses is still a major concern. Every year, around 13,000 people die from illnesses contracted throughout their working lives, such as lung disease and cancers. This is a fairly shocking statistic, and clearly needs to be addressed urgently. No worker should be subjected to life threatening risks in their job, and the first step towards reducing the figure is to raise awareness of it.

For more information, or to follow the event, check out the Health and Safety Expo website.