Hazards 113, January-March 2011

6-7 Life support? After Dorothy Wright watched her son Mark die from horrific injuries suffered in a workplace fireball, she at least expected justice. But she says blundering officials failed her family and warns a government “hell-bent” on slashing safety protections will consign more families to the same fate. more

8-9 Is HSE finished? It doesn’t have the money to do its job, enforcement is already at a record low and it is banned from conducting any health and safety campaigns. As disillusioned Health and Safety Executive (HSE) staff queue to leave, Hazards asks what future can there be for the beleaguered watchdog. more

10-21 News in brief Safety calls after four die in factory. Two killed at Sonae plant. Death highlights green job dangers. Businessmen behaving badly. ‘Mindboggingly stupid’ injury reports plan. Network Rail suppressed injury figures. Employers pay 3 per cent of work asthma costs. Employers took no notice of notices. Firms fail to control cancer chemicals. Work linked to male breast cancer. Asbestos fight goes to top court. Cancers at work. Stressful work is bad for kids. Job strain heart risk for women. Drug workers get a dose of dermatitis. Health and safety in Europe.

Centrepages Job killers Pesky safety regulations and meddling inspectors are bringing the economy to its knees and stifling job creation, or so the business lobby says. But there’s a couple of large flies in their deregulatory ointment - the arguments are bogus and the statistics behind them are rigged. more

24-25 Fashion victims Would you want to see someone choke and die, just so your jeans could have a fashionably battered look? Hazards discovers the sandblasting process used by garment firms is ripping to shreds the lungs of the workers churning out billions of pairs each year. more

26-27 Rotten example The UK’s offshore safety system has been hailed as a model of good practice. But US critics say they don’t want it over there, because it contains very risky assumptions – including an allowable death rate of one in every thousand workers. more

28-37 Unions and campaigns Unions hold ‘rotten’ Network Rail to account. TUC slams business lobby’s unhealthy attitude. Safety tsar falls on his sword. Government’s ‘dangerous’ plans for EU law. Mass payouts for car workers’ lung. Safety improvements follow compo case. Heavy recycling work caused hernia. What price on your life? Government dumps fitness test promises. Apology for body part tests. Overworked social workers face burnout. So, you think safety fines hurt? Steel union concern over punitive policies. Construction firm guilty of blacklisting. Union calls for talks on piracy. Alert on chemical safety.

38-39 International news End made-in-Canada deaths in Asia. IKEA hurt workers then attacked union. Thai workers win marathon cotton lung case.

40-41 Resources Publications and tools for safety campaigners.

Backpage Workers’ Memorial Day poster
A ‘Job Killer’ poster for 28 April 2011. more