MANCHESTER, England, 08 April 2024—(BUSINESS WIRE)– Health and safety laws are not new. In fact, the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 – the main piece of legislation covering this area – will be 50 years old this year. So why do so many people still die in workplace accidents?
In 2022/23, 135 people lost their lives at work – a 10% increase on the previous year. 1.8 million people also suffer from a work-related illness. A staggering number of which:
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875,000 you suffer from work-related stress, depression or anxiety
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473,000 you have a work-related musculoskeletal disorder
Stephen Galley, director of SafeCheck at Peninsula, says: “Having worked in health and safety for the past 20 years, I’ve heard all the jokes. And this can certainly be a very dry subject. But ensuring the safety and health of your employees is no laughing matter.
“The fact is that too many people are still seriously injured and killed at work. The latest figures released by the HSE are telling, but all too often it takes a major accident or incident for people to sit up and take notice. For example, the Grenfell Tower fire in 2017 led to stricter fire regulations being introduced.
“Unfortunately, most business owners and directors only really start to pay attention to health and safety after a significant event in their workplace, such as an accident, incident, insurance claim or enforcement visit. By then it is often too late. The employee may have lost their life or suffered life-changing injuries.
“In addition to the human costs, there are also financial penalties for companies that get things wrong in health and safety. Last year, British firms paid off £20.7 billion, another 10% increase over the previous year. The average cost of ill health was £19,300 per case, the average cost of an injury £12,200 and the average death rate is staggering £1.9 million.
“Furthermore, the average fine for health and safety last year was £106,984. So not only does it make moral and ethical sense for businesses to know their risks, it also makes financial sense.
“The first priority for any responsible business owner is to know where their business is right now. What are the risks and how does it manage them? Do they follow the law? If not, why not?
“95% of employers have five critical health and safety hazards in their business – are you one of them?
“Having an independent health and safety audit like Peninsula’s SafeCheck is a sensible place to start. This will highlight areas of vulnerability so they can put measures in place to protect themselves, the business and their employees who deserve the right to leave the workplace in the same condition they arrived in.
“What better way to recognize the 50sth anniversary of this legislation than by making 2024 a golden year to reduce the number of workplace accidents? Nothing would make me happier.”
Notes to the editor
About the peninsula
Peninsula protects employers worldwide with employment law, human resources and health and safety services.
From small start-ups to well-known brands, we support tens of thousands of HR and health and safety businesses. Business owners reduce their legal risk and save time with our expert advice, documentation and more.
www.peninsulagrouplimited.com or www.peninsulagroupglobal.com
Check out the source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240408729706/en/
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