Accidents and Consequences

With an increase in the number of recorded workplace fatalities, accidents and consequences, Mike Ellerby this month looks at the some of the commonest causes of workplace fatalities and considers what companies can do to help to prevent these and to protect their employees and their businesses.

How many people are killed and injured at work each year?

The HSE Statistics for the period 2006 to 2007 includes 241 workers who were killed at work (a fatality rate of 0.8 per 100,000 workers). This figure is up on the average number of workplace fatalities for the previous five years of 231. Further to this, there were 141,350 other injuries to employees that were reported under RIDDOR (which is an accident rate of 535.1 per 100,000 employees). According to the Labour Force Survey, there were 274 000 reportable, which a higher accident rate of 1,000 per 100,000 workers.

In addition to the accidents at work, there are about 2.2 million people who are suffering from an illness that they believed was caused, or made worse, by their current or past work and 646 000 of these were new cases in the last 12 months. As a result of these workplace accidents and ill health, about 36 million days are being lost each and every year, which is equivalent to about one and a half days a year for each worker. About 30 million work days are lost annually due to work-related ill health and a further 6 million due to workplace injury.

What are the commonest types of fatal accidents at work?

If we ignore road traffic accidents, more people are killed each year as a result of falls from a height. Nearly 19% of the work related deaths (45 people of the 241 fatal injuries) for the period 2006 to 2007 were due to falls from a height. In the previous year, this figure was 22%, with 48 of the 217 workplace deaths arising from falls from a height.

The common causes of workplace fatal injuries are:

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What about deaths relating to asbestos?

Deaths continue to occur in large numbers from previous exposure to (workplace) asbestos, According to the HSE Statistics, 2037 people died of mesothelioma during 2005 (last reporting period) and thousands more from other occupational cancers and lung diseases. The HSE is working with key stakeholders (such as the Trades Unions and various Trade Associations) to continue to raise awareness amongst tradesmen that they are at risk from exposure to asbestos. During February and March 2008 a campaign will be rolled out to target building maintenance and repair workers (such as electricians, IT data cable companies, plumbers, carpenters and joiners, etc.) using the theme ‘You are more at risk than you think!’ that features both national and regional activity.

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In the event of being prosecuted following a (fatal) accident, is it true that the employer is “guilty until proven innocent”?

Section 40 of the Health and Safety at Work, Etc Act 1974 states that:

“ in any proceedings for an offence and any of the relevant statutory provisions consisting of a failure to comply with a duty or requirement to do something, so far as is practicable or so far as is reasonably practicable it shall be for the accused to prove (as the case may be) that it was not practicable or not reasonably practicable to do more than was in fact done to satisfy the duty or requirement, or that there was no better practicable means that was in fact used to satisfy the duty or requirement.”

This has the effect of shifting the onus of proving the limits of what is even practicable or reasonably practicable and makes the task of the prosecution significantly easier than would be the case in normal criminal trials. It is for the prosecution to prove beyond all reasonable doubt, that:

• the breach of legislation took place, and
• the accused was responsible for the breach

Once these facts have been established it is for the defendant to prove, on the balance of probabilities, that:

• it was not practicable; or
• it was not reasonably practicable; or there were no better practicable means than those used to discharge the duty

If the accused is unable to accomplish any of these requirements, then the case against him will be considered to be proved.

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