Minister: Health and safety cost-cutting 'is not on'

Employers have been told by the Minister for Labour Affairs Billy Kelleher not to cut back on safety to achieve cost savings in the current economic slowdown.

Speaking at the opening of new offices for Health and Safety Services, Training and Consultancy Ltd (HSS) in Cork, the minister said that while it might be tempting for employers to cut back on safety measures, this would represent a “very false” economy and more importantly could put the lives and health of workers at risk.

And while employer and employee consciousness of safety issues has improved in recent years, there was no room for complacency.

“In the current economic climate and particularly in sectors like construction, there may be a pressure to cut corners.”

But Mr Kelleher said this should be resisted very strongly. “While there will continue to be strong regulation of safety standards from the State, fundamentally safety at work must be a priority for all those in the workplace in the first instance.”

Recent figures from the Health and Safety Authority reveal that 67 people were involved in fatal accidents in the workplace in 2007.

HSS, which has headquarters in Newmarket, north Cork, is one of the biggest health and safety consultancies in Ireland. The company currently employs 30 staff.

The complex on a 10-acre site at Newmarket includes training  facilities for forklifts, excavators and other equipment and enables a huge range of work simulation exercises to take place.

“We find that there is an increasing demand for our services from retail, customer and financial service sectors and the move to Blackpool Retail Park puts us within easy reach of these customers and new clients,” said Mr Browne, HSS business Development Manager.

Mr Browne said that Minister Kelleher’s warning was timely: “HSS has observed safety being compromised in many areas of late particularly in the under-pressure construction sector.”

Danger signals include a drop in the amount of safe scaffolding used, a reduction in the maintenance of machinery on site, increased use of unsafe and uncertified machinery and in the use of unqualified workers to carry out electrical work and the lack of security fencing to keep the public and children out.

Article courtesy of The Evening Echo