H&S News September 2007

John Pointon and Sons fined £620,000 and costs of £80,000.  Glyn Thompson died after being overcome by fumes while trying to rescue his colleague, Ivan Torr, who had slipped and fallen into a machine used for rendering animal carcasses.  The judge said the company's attitude to an H&S structure was "flimsy and ineffective" and its failure to respond to earlier incidents was an "aggravating feature".

Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Peter Hain is to convene a forum of construction employers and trade unions to find ways to curb rising fatality rates, after the HSE's latest figures revealed a jump of more than 25% in building deaths.

McGregor Construction (Highlands), has been fined £9,000 after a labourer was struck on the head by a 6m-long 44kg steel post while erecting a fence.  The company had not taken account of slippery ground and a gradient at the site in Argyll.

Eastbourne Buses fined £25,000 and costs of £12,725.  Engineer Richard Gander suffered serious injuries when an engine he was repairing toppled off a trolley and fell on top of him.  No RA for the job, Mr Gander had received no training on the type of engine he was working on that day.

Harbourside Marina fined £150,000 and costs of £38,250.  A member of the public drove off a dockside and drowned.  Failure to ensure a safety chain, which acted as a barrier at the water's edge, was in place at all times.

Carpetright fined £45,500 and costs of £10,000.  Despite warnings and advice from Gloucester City Council about the risk of falls, the firm continued to let staff climb on a roof in the warehouse and climb racking using unsafe and unsuitable equipment.

The HSE, the Institution of Engineering Technology and the British Computer Society have published guidance to help companies manage the competence of their employees working with electronic safety-related systems.

Calendar of new and upcoming legislation.

Whether it's because of reduced running costs, beating congestion or sheer exhilaration, more and more people are choosing motorbikes over cars.  Kevin Clinton suggests employers should help them protect themselves.

Arson accounts for around 40% of all business fires, but many organisations don't take any steps to address the risks.  (Jocelyn Dorrell)

A shopping centre operator's enforcement partnership which takes in 23 local authorities across the UK.  (Sara Bean)

Health assessments for safety-critical staff make sense, but in other cases their value may be limited.  (Lucie Ponting)

Advice on how to ensure the consultant you hire is the right one.  (Louis Wustemann)

In the latest of his articles for students of the NEBOSH National Diploma, Lawrence Bamber considers monitoring strategies for hazardous substances.

The arguments for the safe use and careful maintenance of warehouse racking systems.  (Philip Pinel)

Evidence of abuse among vulnerable workers will be considered by a new enforcement forum.  The forum will decide whether abuses are tackled effectively through existing enforcement and support mechanisms, or if new approaches are needed to raise compliance without increasing burdens for good employers.

Household surveys have revealed that during the 12 months up to March last year, about two million people claimed they were suffering from health problems caused or aggravated by their current or previous jobs.

Emergency workers from UK ambulance trusts will soon be recognised officially for their actions in dealing with large scale industrial and transport accidents.

The HSE is targeting the high concentration of print specialists in the Yorkshire and Humber region, with an intensive inspection campaign starting next month in Leeds, Wakefield and York.  Nationally, there are around 1,200 accidents in the printing industry each year, 200 of which result in major injuries like fractures and amputations.

The investigation established that it was possible for the live virus strain to enter the site effluent drainage system.  Having entered the pipework, it was likely that the waste water containing the virus then leaked out and contaminated the surrounding soil.  Both human and vehicle movements were not adequately controlled.  Vehicles near to the drainage system were likely to have been contaminated with the live virus.

Philip Goodman, a self-employed plumbing and heating engineer, was fined £3,000 for working on gas appliances without being CORGI registered.  The prosecution came after the investigation of complaints relating to work Goodman had carried out at four separate addresses.  At three of the four addresses, gas appliances that Goodman had worked on were found to be "immediately dangerous" or "at risk".

Menzies Aviation (UK) Ltd fined £11,000 and costs of 10,986.  The company failed to ensure the health, safety and welfare of their employees while loading and unloading aircrafts, and failed to comply with an IN requiring them to reduce the risk of injury to employees during baggage handling.

HSE are warning students not to forget to check that their gas appliances have received their annual safety check - to prevent them suffering carbon monoxide poisoning.

On a visit to CEMEX sand and gravel quarry, Sir Bill said that he "is encouraged that the quarry industry is now working towards 'Target Zero' - no reportable injuries by 2015 - a commitment which shows quarrying's ambition to be a world-class performer in H&S.  Involving workers in safety issues and ensuring training and competency will be pivotal in meeting this goal."

As the Museum in Docklands gets one of its galleries ready for a new exhibition, HSE's Programme Manager for Falls from Height, Eddie Bailey, highlighted good practices followed by maintenance staff at the museum and urged London businesses to ditch their dodgy ladders.

Ian Whewell, Head of HSE's Offshore Division: "Worker involvement has always underpinned the offshore division's interventions and this year it is a priority objective for its current work plan.  Anecdotal evidence suggests that companies who involve their workforce in key safety critical decisions have a better safety performance record and higher morale among the workforce than those who do not."

Mr Stephen Jordan, trading as Central Linemarkings, fined £5,000 and costs of £10,000.  Employee Mr Graham Yule, was knocked down and seriously injured while painting road lines.   As the work was considered to be of short-duration, the workers did not lay out any cones or signs to warn oncoming traffic that they were working in the road.

As a result of recent publicity, staff at the Blue Reef Aquarium in Tynemouth checked the ladder they use for access to feeding tanks and checking valves, realised it wasn't suitable and contacted HSE for advice.  A quick call to Speedy Hire, and the aquarium is now the proud owner of a new fit for purpose ladder.

A great draw for tourists worldwide, the Bluebell Railway provided an impressive backdrop to today's photo call with HM H&S Inspector, Caroline Skinner, to highlight the importance of safety when working at height.

Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Trust fined £14,000 and costs of £3,982.  A 30-year-old patient with mental health problems was seriously injured when he managed to get out of a first floor ward window at Leighton Hospital, Crewe.  The restrictor on the window had been defeated.  The Trust had not responded to a previous similar accident at the same hospital.

Lord McKenzie visited London Luton Airport to see at first hand the scale and complexity of keeping airport workers safe and healthy, including the risks from activities involving lifting, handling and moving loads.

Fined total of £7,750 under PUWER 1998 and HASAWA 1974 s33.  Failure to comply with PN.

Fined £2,600 under WHR 2005.

Fined total of £11,500 under HASAWA 1974 s2 and s3 and ELCIR 1998.  Employee injured when he was crushed by metal sheeting which fell on him when a guillotine tipped over in an engineering workshop.  Emergency services who attended were concerned for their own safety on site.  No Employers' Liability Insurance in place.

Fined total of £2,500 under GSIUR 1998.  Partner of Mrs E Struthers.

Fined total of £2,500 under GSIUR 1998.  Partner of Mr P Preece.

Fined £10,000 under HASAWA 1974 s3.  MOP sustained fatal head injuries in fall from rear tail lift of welfare bus, part of Dial a Ride Service.

Fined £5,000 under HASAWA 1974 s3.  MOP sustained fatal head injuries in fall from rear tail lift of welfare bus, part of Dial a Ride Service.

Fined £300 under HASAWA 1974 s3.  MOP sustained fatal head injuries in fall from rear tail lift of welfare bus, part of Dial a Ride Service.

Fined £1,000 under HASAWA 1974 s3.  Accident causing non-fatal injury to 3rd party employee resulting from failure to ensure pedestrians kept out of operational area of scrap metal handling activity.

Fined £7,500 under HASAWA 1974 s3.  Contractor's employee working in water treatment tank affected by chlorine dioxide fume.  Inadequate procedures for entry and rescue.

Fined total of £6,000 under HASAWA 1974 s2 and s3.  Employee adversely affected by chemicals contained in a herbicide he had been spraying in parks and bowling greens.  Council failed to provide him with adequate information, instruction and training and failed to ensure that members of the public using the parks were not exposed to risks whilst the spraying was carried out.

Fined total of £13,500 under WHR 2005 and CHSWR 1996.  Unannounced inspection at which notices were issued.

Fined £8,000 under LOLER 1998.  Mr Radostin Stoyanov was fatally injured when struck by five, 8x4 plywood boards that fell from a load being lowered from a gantry scaffold using a beam hoist.  The boards were slung using two 3m straps in a basket hitch configuration.

Fined £10,000 under HASAWA 1974 s2.  An inspection identified poor guarding and poor machinery safety management.

Fined £3,000 under PUWER 1998.  Employee's finger became trapped in a rolling machine.

Found guilty and jailed under HASAWA 1974 s33 and GSIUR 1998.

Rokbuild Ltd fined £175,000 and costs of £26,733.  RB Contractors fined £5,000 and costs of £1,000.  Christopher Feeley was driving a dumper when the front wheels slipped into a small trench.  Another worker used the bucket of a mini excavator to try to pull the dumper out of the trench.  The bucket slipped down and hit Mr Feeley in the back, leaving him paralysed.

A total of 241 workers lost their lives in 2006/07 - up 11% on last year's record low of 217.  Speaking at the launch of the statistics HSE Chief Executive, Geoffrey Podger, said: "What we are seeing is a failure to follow established good procedures and practice, not the emergence of new risks."

The day after the fatal injury statistics were launched the HSE was the subject of an investigation by the BBC Radio 4 programme, 'Face the Facts', which claimed around 85% of major workplace accidents are not investigated by the Executive owing to resource cuts.

According to Unite (Amicus section), the HSE's optimism for the future of H&S in the offshore industry is unfounded because the "improving" statistics it is based on are not the full picture.

The Health and Safety at Work Act (HASAWA) and The Working Time Regs (WTR) are on a hitlist of legislation earmarked for "repeal, consolidation, or significant amendment" by the Conservative Party, should it win the next General Election.

Following the recent consultation on societal risk and the HSE's land use planning advice on development around gasometers, the Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, has lambasted the HSE over what he sees as an attempt by the Executive to "wipe out" jobs and homes for thousands of Londoners.

James Porter, headteacher of Hillgrove School in Bangor, has been found guilty of breaching H&S laws in relation to the events leading to the death of three-year-old Kian Williams.  Kian suffered major head injuries after jumping off some steps at the school, landing face forward.  The steps were out of bounds to kindergarten children, but there was no physical barrier in place.  Inadequate supervision.

Shah Nawaz Pola has been jailed for six months, fined £1,500 and ordered to pay £90,000 in compensation to employee Slovakian Dusan Dudi.  While working on his own to demolish a wall, Mr Dudi was struck by a concrete lintel.  He somehow survived what were thought to be non-survivable injuries.  At the site, there was no proper scaffolding in place, and Mr Dudi was working on an improvised working platform, which was just two planks wide.  The workers had not been given any protective clothing or training.

Expert witnesses can be vital in H&S cases but, as a recent case illustrates, they need to be chosen carefully.  (Mike Appleby)

Historically, merchant seafaring and trawler fishing have been the most hazardous of all occupations.  Dr Chris Ide rounds up a considerable body of research that proves this to be the case, and suggests how things can be improved for those who earn a living on the high seas.

The concept of behavioural safety is not new - it has long been recognised that rules and regs work well until people are added to the mix, as human beings are, by nature irrational and unpredictable.  When embracing behavioural safety, the most important thing for any organisation is to make sure everyone is singing from the same hymn sheet.  (Jane Gilham)

Safety passports are increasingly being used to monitor contractors coming on site.  Their history and how they could develop in the future.  (Ray Gibbs)

The commonly-held view is that drug and alcohol misuse is an employee-relations issue, rather than a H&S one.  However, with recreational drug use and alcohol consumption on the rise in the UK, the line between HR and H&S concerns becomes blurred.  A look at the considerations for practitioners when formulating a drugs and alcohol policy in their workplace.  (Richard Byrne)

In some business areas there is a 25% shortage of qualified professionals, so now would be a good time to weigh up your options.  (Helen Gotts)

Why is it that companies are so eager to pigeonhole H&S practitioners and make it difficult for them to move from one industry to another?  Many candidates argue that the skills are the same and can be used in any sector, but just as many employers claim experience isn't transferable.  Practical advice for practitioners on how to surmount this problem.  (Charlotte Dawe)

Workers in the music and entertainment industry are being invited to comment on a draft Sound Advice web guide to avoiding the harmful effects of prolonged exposure to noise.

Business leaders will be briefed on the importance of their role in saving lives and reducing injuries at two RoSPA events this autumn.  The first conference will be held on 26th September in Glasgow and the second will be in London on 26th November.

Philip Barlow was admitted to hospital on his return to the UK after contracting Legionnaires disease whilst working abroad as a lorry driver.  Claire Pearson of law firm Irwin Mitchell, said, "Companies providing accommodation or shower facilities for lorry, coach or other drivers at service stations and elsewhere should ensure that appropriate procedures are in place to protect against this disease."

The Government wants to encourage more people to cycle to work.  That's why it has created the Cycle to Work scheme for buying bikes at up to 50% off the retail price.

Dennis Wheeler fined £6,000 and costs of £5,000.  John Greig was left paralysed when he fell off an unsecured ladder while trying to access scaffolding with a circular saw.  The ladder was not tied correctly and access to the scaffolding was blocked by a guard rail.

Owners of J & B Fitton Ltd, and the shop's manager, Daryl Lees, each fined £750 and costs of £200 for illegally employing a child.  Sam Ashworth, 15, lost his arm when it became trapped in a mincer.

To spur people into action HSE has begun a 12-month initiative.  Materials have been produced, designed to help reduce the risk of slipping in kitchens and help employers comply with H&S legislation.  Environmental Health Officers will be visiting premises and encouraging employers to attend the various events planned.

This year's ban bullying day is set for the 7th November.  The Andrea Adams Trust wants to raise awareness of the complex problems caused by bullying behaviour in the workplace right across Britain.

'Eve's first day' is a short film following a new recruit on her first day at the offices of Hurt & Payne.  Her tidy, well-adjusted workstation is opposite her colleague Mary, whose disregard for good posture, hygiene and housekeeping has to be seen to be believed.

RoSPA has produced the 'Safer Motorcycling Through Work' guide, giving advice on promoting motorcycling initiatives via the workplace, so that staff who ride outside working hours have the opportunity to develop their skills.

Dignity at work is billed as 'the world's largest anti-bullying project', made possible thanks to just under £1million worth of funding from the DTI.  The aim of the partnership is to encourage employee reps and employers to build cultures in which respect for individuals is regarded as an essential part of the conduct of all those who work in the organisation.

September 2007 is Pregnancy Health Month.  Safety Express asked Tommy's, the baby charity, what businesses could do to improve things for pregnant women in the workplace.

Find out all you need to know about behavioural safety and also why you should ensure that your H&S policy is up-to-date at two EurOHSE workshops on 10th October.

It is all too easy to develop poor driving or riding habits without realising.  For this reason, RoSPA encourages all road users to consider some kind of refresher training.  Their new website for advanced drivers and riders includes advice for all road users on safer driving and riding techniques.

Unionlearn have designed Health and Safety stage 1 - an online course for new safety reps offering a convenient and flexible approach to training.

E-learning provider Absolutely Training has launched a free training course to help businesses cope with the smoke-free legislation which came into force at the beginning of July.

The Battersea Crane Disaster Action Group (BCDAG) has called for good intentions announced at an industry-led crane safety summit to be translated into real action.

A safety workshop for farmers was held this week by the HSE and LANTRA, agricultural training specialists.  Attendees were shown six recreations of farming scenarios with high accident rates.

The HSE has carried out over 1,500 inspections of construction sites as part of its rolling inspection programme, resulting in enforcement action on 426 occasions in just two months.  Nearly 1 in 3 construction refurbishment sites inspected put the lives of workers at risk.

The Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Trust fined £15,000 and costs of £2,520.  Roger Bunker was repairing a leaking steam valve on a pressurised pipeline when high pressure steam erupted from a flange bolt, leaving him badly scalded.  The Trust should have carried out an RA of the work, which would have included a permit to work on the system.

AGC Automotive (UK) Ltd fined £150,000 and costs of £9,460.  Visiting IT contractor, Bill Williams, 60, suffered serious injuries to his leg when he was hit by a reversing FLT on the company's premises.  AGC showed a reckless disregard of its duties towards Mr Williams as a non-employee visiting its site.  No separation of vehicles and pedestrians.

A 70-year-old self-employed farmer was killed by falling hay bales that he was unloading from a trailer at Wooleys Farm, Nantwich, while a 21-year-old was seriously injured by a falling silage bale at Castle Clough Farm, Burnley.  A quick reference for advice can be made to HSE leaflet, 'Safe working with bales in agriculture'.

His Grace the Duke of Northumberland and over 20 organisations across Alnwick have promised their support to the Alnwick Safer Working Community initiative to take place from 29th October to 2nd November.  During the week, a series of H&S advice sessions on a range of subjects relating to the main employment sectors in the area will be held.

As part of the ladder exchange activity, HSE Inspector Steve Flanagan visited Blists Hill Victorian Town, one of the ten Ironbridge Gorge Museums.  A costumed demonstrator (John Dench) from Blists Hill highlighted the differences between the type of ladder used in the Victorian period and those in current use by the Museum. 

BSN Medical Ltd fined £175,000 and costs of £36,228.70.  Empress Mills (1927) Ltd fined £25,000 and costs of £10,000.  Lisa Regan died in a reservoir at Briarfield Mill where she was playing with three other children.  The children were playing in the car park of BSN Medical Ltd when they strayed onto nearby reservoirs.  At the time of the accident, the main gates to the factory were off their hinges because work was being carried out on the site, and a second gate, which led to the reservoir, was only secured with a nylon rope.

The Mid-Wales Manufacturing Group and the HSE will be holding a H&S conference in October. The theme of the conference will be 'Make it for Life', promoting the idea that good health is good business.  Grand National-winning jockey Bob Champion will be talking about his experience in overcoming the odds to ride the winner of the world's most famous steeplechase.

RTP Construction Ltd fined £4,000 and ordered to pay £2,000 in compensation.  A child suffered serious injuries after two paving stones, weighing 64kg each, fell and struck his leg.  The child was playing on the estate where he lived, in Hunwick, where the paving stones were being stored during construction work.

Fined total of £14,700 under HASAWA 1974 s2 and PUWER 1998.  Employee lost a finger whilst using an unguarded machine.

Fined total of £8,000 under MHSWR 1999 and PSSR 2000.  Over-pressurisation of unvented atmospheric-pressure bulk storage tank (approx 20-tonne tank) causing damage to workplace during receipt of product from road tanker.  No RA, no inspection/thorough examination by competent person of the tanks.

Fined total of £4,000 under MHSWR 1999 and HASAWA 1974 s2.  Employee fell approx 3.5m through a fragile roof.  Failure to ensure safe access and egress from the roof, failure to identify the risks of working at or near a fragile roof.

Fined £75,000 under HASAWA 1974 s2 and s3 and Manslaughter s1.  Chris Meachen was fatally crushed in a concrete manufacturing machine.

Found guilty under HASAWA 1974 s2 and Manslaughter s1.  Chris Meachen was fatally crushed in a concrete manufacturing machine.

Found guilty under Manslaughter s1.  Chris Meachen was fatally crushed in a concrete manufacturing machine.

Fined £3,500 under PUWER 1998.  IP injured while manually feeding wood through a moulding machine.

Fined £2,500 under HASAWA 1974 s3.  Member of the public, 84, fell into  an excavation, sustaining serious injuries.  Inadequate barriers in place.

Fined £4,000 under HASAWA 1974 s2.  Water/molten metal explosion.

Fined £13,500 under HASAWA 1974 s3.  CO fatality to council tenant following building works to relay and repoint upper parts of chimney.  No checks carried out.

Fined £500 under RIDDOR 1995.  Employer failed to report a defined accident within the required time period.

Fined £500 under RIDDOR 1995.  Employer failed to report a defined accident within the required time period.

Grundy and Co Excavations Ltd fined £100,000 and costs of £9,034.  Joshua Beswick, 20, was killed instantly when struck by a wheeled loading vehicle.  Failure to ensure the safety of an employee by the provision of safe working systems.

Research from the Rail Safety and Standards Board (RSSB) has found that fitting seatbelts on trains would increase passenger injuries and fatalities in a crash situation, whereas getting rid of breakable windows would save lives.

More than one third of nurses working alone have been assaulted or harassed in the last two years.  A survey by the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) also found that more than half of nurses working alone believe the threat of violence or abuse has increased over the same period.

The introduction of a new gas installer registration scheme moved a step closer this month, with the close of the first round of the competition process to appoint the body that will run it.

The Highways Agency is carrying out a review of bridges in England following the collapse of the eight-lane Minnesota Bridge during the rush hour, the worst bridge collapse in the US for twenty years.

BSI British Standards has published a new standard, BS 7273-4:2007 'Code of practice for the operation of fire protection measures.  Actuation of release mechanisms for doors'.

A study published in medical journal, 'The Lancet', has concluded that nurses, printers and cleaners are at a higher risk of developing occup asthma compared to the general public.

Almost two years after its investigation into allegations of bullying and harassment of staff at East Sussex Hospitals NHS Trust, the Healthcare Commission has commended the Trust on the efforts it has made to tackle the problem.

The Dignity at Work Partnership has published a booklet setting out the business case for tackling bullying at work.  The new booklet also examines what has worked for other organisations, provides recommendations for preventing bullying arising and contains advice for employers on how to deal with it if it occurs.

The Health Protection Agency is investigating an increase in the reported number of cases of Legionnaires' disease.  A total of 163 cases of Legionnaires' disease were reported in the first half of the year, compared with 120 cases the year before (January to June 2006), and 103 cases in the same period in 2005.

Peter Nelson has been awarded £12,000 in compensation after he sustained irreversible noise-induced hearing loss as a result of being exposed to noise from power tools while he was working for Plumb Furniture Systems Ltd.  He had never been warned or advised about the dangers of noise-induced hearing loss nor was he provided with any PPE.

Analyses of saliva taken from bar workers before and after the introduction of the smoke-free legislation in England show that since the new law came into force, workers are being exposed to about 80% lower levels of nicotine - comparable to levels found in most non-smokers in the general population.

First aid providers - St John Ambulance, St Andrew's Ambulance Association and the British Red Cross - are urging the public to equip themselves with life-saving skills.

Nestlé UK Ltd has paid compensation to four workers from its Burton coffee making site, after each of them developed tennis elbow as a result of digging out blocked coffee cyclones - a heavy and prolonged process which often took 3-4 days to sort out.

Changing work patterns and the need for businesses to 'downsize' are resulting in more and more staff becoming lone workers.  Lone working can potentially be found in most jobs and therefore should be considered in every H&S RA.  (Nick Cook)

Astute is the first nuclear submarine to be launched in the UK for almost a decade.  She will never need to be refuelled and her advanced on-board life support systems mean she can circumnavigate the globe without needing to surface.  But what will life on board be like for her crew?  (Elizabeth Gates)

The Control of Vibration at Work Regs 2005 introduced new levels at which employers must take action to control vibration exposure at work.  The regs also set new limits on the daily maximum amount of vibration workers can be exposed to.  These levels cannot be exceeded.  (Steve Walter)

Making effective safety decisions is never easy.  Taking care to ensure that the safety measures you eventually choose are neither excessive nor insufficient is a difficult path to tread.  Do we need some general ground rules as to when a hazard should be banned as opposed to managed?  (Roger Bibbings)

The North Western Branch of the Institution of Fire Engineers, in conjunction with the Access Association, is hosting a debate on 'Means of Escape for Disabled People' at Chorley, Lancashire on 15th Nov.

London Fire Brigade is calling on borough councils in the capital to help raise awareness of the risks from acetylene gas cylinders.

Reductions in the numbers of primary fires, dwelling fire deaths and road vehicle fires are among the encouraging figures set out in the Government's latest 'Fire Statistics Monitor'.

How fire RA and control measures can help keep schools in business.  (Ian Rawlings)

When it comes to schools, fire engineers should be prepared to challenge the norms and provide inspirational and practical designs.  (Steven Cooper)

An holistic solution that includes extra passive fire protection can help reduce fire risks in schools.  (Wilf Butcher)

TH White Installations Ltd and RF Stratton & Co, owners of Manor Farm, each fined £35,000 and costs of £8,000.  Timothy Kynaston, employee of TH White, was fatally injured when he fell 8m through a fragile rooflight at Manor Farm.  No safety measures in place.

Workers at Jarrow Town Hall are currently using scaffolding to access corroded guttering, and are supporting the HSE's ladder exchange by urging companies to consider alternatives to ladders when working at height.

The HSE together with the Environmental Health Departments in Suffolk (EHDs) will be carrying out targeted inspections in Suffolk from September 18th to make sure companies are not exposing employees to potentially harmful asbestos fibres.

A significant number of PNs and INs have been served at construction sites around the country as a result of the HSE's rolling inspection programme.

Industria Armamento Meridionale S.p.A (INARME) trading as The Grimaldi Group, of Palermo, Italy, fined £75,000 and costs of £25,000.  Aniello D'Urzo suffered fatal injuries when he fell approx 12m whilst painting the crane of a ship in dry dock.  Mr D'Urzo was seated in a bosun's chair supported by a rope, when the rope parted and he and the chair fell to the deck.

DMD Electronic Engineers Ltd fined £3,500 and costs of £1,510.  Mr Egbert Johnson was feeding metal sheets into a roll forming machine when the right hand of his leather glove became caught between the rollers and pulled his hand into the machine.  No guards covering rollers, no RA of machine.

The HSE and local authorities across Essex are hosting a free seminar at Chelmsford County Hall on 24th Sept.  The half-day seminar aims to raise awareness of the dangers of incorrect floor cleaning regimes that lead to slip and trip accidents.

Fined £42,500 under HASAWA 1974 s2.   Employee died of serious head injuries after falling from a height of over 2m while making alterations to adjustable pallet racking.  No safe system of work.

Fined total of £2,000 under CAWR 2002.  Employees were exposed to asbestos when they removed a storage heater from a council chamber.  No asbestos assessment carried out beforehand.

Fined £2,000 under DR 1988.  IP crushed between timber packs.

Fined total of £1,500 under MHSWR 1999 and PUWER 1998.  Employee injured his hand while changing the blade on a circular saw.  Company failed to provide training.

Fined £3,250 under WHSWR 1992.  Employee injured when struck by FLT.  No segregation between vehicles and pedestrians.

Fined total of £80,000 under HASAWA 1974 s2 and MHSWR 1999.  Employee died whilst recovering a broken down bus.  Company failed to properly assess the risks of vehicle recovery and had promoted an unsafe system of work.

Fined total of £10,000 under HASAWA 1974 s37.  Employee died whilst recovering a broken down bus.  Company failed to properly assess the risks of vehicle recovery and had promoted an unsafe system of work.  Mr Farrell was the MD.

Fined £9,000 under MHSWR 1999.  Failure to provide and maintain a safe system of work for the erection of a steel fence.  Employees were required to manually lift steel posts from postholes whilst standing on a slippery and sloping surface.  One employee slipped, causing colleagues to lose their grips on the posts, which then fell on an employee causing serious injuries.

Fined total of £25,000 under HASAWA 1974 s3.  Patient was injured falling from a bed when the bed rail collapsed.  The patient later fell again when placed on a bed without bed rails.  Lack of preventative maintenance system on beds and bed rails.  Lack of information given when patients transferred wards, which meant they were being nursed on unsuitable beds.

Fined £3,000 under PUWER 1998.  Accident involving an untrained person using a circular saw bench.

Fined total of £6,000 under WHR 2005 and MHSWR 1999.  Fall from height.

Fined £75,000 under HASAWA 1974 s3.  Two boys drowned at a swimming event.  The lifeguard was attending to a boy who had injured his leg.

Fined £16,500 under HASAWA 1974 s3.  Two boys drowned at a swimming event.  The lifeguard was attending to a boy who had injured his leg.

Fined total of £7,500 under LOLER 1998.  Two steel erectors injured when a tower crane dropped the manrider they were in.  Assembly bracing rope failed.  Crane erected incorrectly, out-of-date erection manual.

Fined £8,000 under HASAWA 1974 s2.  Accident to Christopher Reynolds involving a laminating machine.  Company failed to provide a safe system of work.  Access was possible to dangerous parts of machinery.

Fined £10,000 under HASAWA 1974 s2.  Engineer sustained fatal head injuries when struck by ejected fitting from hydraulic cylinder during pressure testing.  Inadequate control of test components which had been extensively re-used.  No segregation of employees from unit under test during pressurisation.

Fined £2,500 under HASAWA 1974 s4.  IP was lifted by an FLT, whilst standing on a pallet, to a height of approx 15ft.  He fell through a raised storage area on to a concrete floor, sustaining a broken arm.  Employer failed to ensure that work at height was properly planned, appropriately supervised and carried out in a manner which was safe SFARP.

Fined total of £3,000 under GSIUR 1998.  CO poisoning.

Campaigners are urging judges to use their new powers of 'naming and shaming' in the Corporate Manslaughter Act, which could force convicted companies to publish adverts in national newspapers explaining why they were prosecuted.

Ahead of the launch of the Government's consultation document on children's play and risk, Ministers have called on children to play conkers in autumn and throw snowballs in winter, in a plea to schools not to be cowed by 'compensation culture' into banning traditional games.

Commissioners formally announced the leap in deaths at work last month - up 11% to 241 from the year 2005/6 - but defended the HSE's enforcement record.  However, Commissioner John Spanswick said that increasing the number of inspectors won't solve the problem, "leadership must be taken by the industry."

BP is attempting to face down local business opposition and gain permission to re-open the Buncefield fuel depot site next spring.

A decade after the Labour government first committed itself to overhauling the law on corporate manslaughter, the new offence has finally arrived.  How the new law will work and how firms can protect themselves from prosecution.  (David Leckie)

Over 10,000 students have already been registered by their schools to undertake the BSC Awards Entry Level Award in Workplace Hazard Awareness when they return to school this month.  The BSC hopes that over 50,000 pupils will achieve the qualification in 2007/08.

Although the idea of a career close to nature might appeal to many, work in the great outdoors holds many challenges to H&S.  Commercial timber felling and processing is one sector that throws up more challenges than most.  (Mike Gannon)

Slips and trips account for more than one third of all workplace accidents, yet with a little bit of common sense, they can be all but eradicated.  (Eddie Bailey)

Staff driving for work are protected by the HASAWA just like everyone else, and as eyesight is so important for drivers, regular eye tests are a must for the responsible employer.  (Andrew Adams)

A&A Building Services Ltd fined £55,000, director Darren Barrie Atkins fined £15,000 and foreman Paul Nolan fined £5,000.  Employee Alexander Hayden killed when dumper truck he had been driving overran the edge of an embankment.  In trying to jump clear, Mr Hayden sustained extensive injuries when he was crushed by the toppled truck.  During the two months he had been driving the truck, he had not received the required training, and had two previous accidents.

HSE ran its third Safety and Health Awareness Day for the forestry industry on 27 September, in an effort to tackle the high rate of fatal and major injury in the industry.

Community Waste Ltd fined £6,000 and costs of £1,600.  Forklift truck driver Andri Halonka severely injured when the forklift truck he was driving overturned.  The HGV he was loading and unloading moved whilst the forks of the forklift were still inside the trailer of the HGV.

HSE's recent initiative to tackle the rising number of dermatitis cases in the catering sector.  It is estimated that dermatitis costs the catering sector up to £20 million every year, even though the control measures to prevent the disease costs less than 1% of the average restaurant meal.

Carole Ann Hible, trading as Specialised Movers, fined £9,000 with £4,335 costs.  Lorry driver Stephen Warner was observing a grinding machine being unloaded by forklift truck when, after the forklift truck reversed away from the removal lorry, the forks began to drop and the heavy machine began to slide towards the tips of the forks.  Mr Warner moved towards the load as it continued to move and then fall partially to the ground trapping Mr Warner beneath.

Urbisity Ltd fined £40,000 and costs of £15,928.  Carl Bold, a ground work labourer, suffered severe spinal injuries as a result of a three storey extension to a Victorian property collapsing whilst undergoing refurbishment trapping Mr Bold under the rubble.

Ethos Recycling Ltd, formerly known as Sweeney Environmental Ltd, fined £35,000 and costs of £2,904.  Nicolai Danut-Puiu, a Romanian national who understood little English, had been working in the loading shed sorting waste when he was struck by a 20 tonne loading shovel.  Investigations found there were no clearly identified walkways on site, meaning that heavy plant and pedestrians had to operate in close proximity to each other.

Noon Products Ltd fined £13,000 and £2,561.06 costs.  Thomas Lewis ran to avoid a pallet falling off racking onto him when he slipped, dislocating a hip.

James Porter, proprietor of Hillgrove School, fined £12,000 and £7,500 costs.  Kian Williams died after falling down steps at the school.  HSE's investigation identified shortfalls in the levels of supervision for pre-school aged children at the school resulting in Kian being able to enter an area which was off-limits.

Fined total of £20,000 under HASAWA 1974 s2 and s3, and MHSWR 1999.  Prosecution after two separate accidents involving fork lift trucks in Norlec's despatch yard.

Fined £25,000 under HASAWA s2.  Employee injured whilst working under engine of bus that was not correctly supported on trolley following removal two weeks earlier.

Fined £8,000 under HASAWA s2.  IP fell through fragile roof on an asbestos cement roof.

Fined total of £4,000 under MHSWR 1999 and PUWER 1998.  Accident occurred as direct consequence of a breakdown in the management arrangements for health and safety.

Fined £75,000 under HASAWA 1974 s2.  Prosecution following fatal accident in which an employee was crushed in a collision between a wagon and semi trailer.

Fined £10,000 under HASAWA 1974 s2.  Employee suffered serious injury to hand whilst operating pressure diecasting machine.  Guard on machine had not been properly set.