Lawford Kidd's Blog

Health and safety in the UK Aviation industry is to be the focus of a conference hosted by the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health's (IOSH) later this month (2 July, Imperial War Museum, Duxford).

Following a number of major aviation incidents, such as the recent Germanwings plane crash, IOSH's Aviation and Aerospace Group plan to illustrate the best ways for Aviation workers/employees and bosses to prepare for and mange similar crisis'. IOSH also hope to improve industry continuity.

A business man in charge of converting an old mill in Blackburn has been jailed, and his father, the owner of the building, given a suspended jail sentence following an incident in which a Lithuanian worker died in a fall.

The worker, Ivars Bahmanis, was involved in building work at the former canal works building. While he was working alone he fell nearly eight metres, due to a complete lack of safety measures in place, and died as a result.

During the investigation the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) discovered that previously another employee had fallen from a height and broken his leg at the same site. This accident was not reported to HSE.

In a meeting with members of the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH), racehorse breeders from Coolmore Ireland Stud, - which is Ireland's largest thoroughbred racehorse breeding outfit - demonstrated their commitment to safety and health.

The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) is calling for action to be taken to tackle the dangers faced by HGV drivers and other transport workers.

To assist, IOSH is hosting a safety event later next month (Wednesday 3 June) to highlight the various hazards faced by workers in the transportation sector.

This year’s Workers’ Memorial Day took place on Tuesday 28th April. The day is an internationally recognised event that gives people across the world the chance to remember those who were killed or seriously injured while doing their job, or who suffer from work-related ill health, such as asbestos-related conditions.

This year, the theme was “removing exposure to hazardous substances in the workplace”, and dozens of events took place in the UK in honour of those who have suffered. The events also provided an opportunity to reflect on the reasons why these injuries occured, and what can be done differently going forward.

“Some of the memorials commemorate high-profile disasters that claimed the lives of many workers while others remember lesser-known accidents,” explained Karen McDonnell, RoSPA’s occupational safety and health policy adviser. “In each case, there are lessons to be learned about how to prevent these happening again. We need to stop “new” people having “old” accidents by continuing to campaign for improvements in health and safety standards in businesses across the UK, and spread the good practice we have developed in the UK across the wider world.”