Safety Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4500 words

Safety - Essay Example All this has contributed to an overall shift to the working and safety patterns in Britain as there has been a massive increase in temporary, agency and contract working, together with an inflow of migrant workers both from within and outside the EU. Also there has been an increase in the use of public places and thus safety issues become focal and form a large part of government planning and policy.(Booth 1992) There is an increased need for interference by the relevant health and safety law enforcement authorities and in Britain the Health and Safety Authorities deal with these activities which range from workplace concerns,nuclear plants,power plants,and offshore installations to colleges and manufacturing factories.However every year many thousands of workers suffer injuries at the work place.(HSE statistics 2007). The laws have been updated to give the workers/labour force protection by focusing on sector specific laws. The Health and Safety Act 1974 alone extended protection public sector employees working in local government, hospitals, education and other services. It also imposed duties on self-employed people and on the designers, manufacturers and suppliers of equipment and materials and those affected by their duties.The past several decades have seen many tragic sagas like that of the Piper Alpha oil installation explosion, the Clapham train crash and the Kings Cross fire which created large health and safety issues.(Booth 1992). The Health and Safety Commission has thus played a seminal role in the management of the health and safety regulation in Great Britain by looking after health and safety in nuclear installations and mines, factories, farms, hospitals and schools, offshore gas and oil installations, the safety of the gas grid and the movement of dangerous goods and substances, and many other aspects of the protection both of workers and the public. The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 is a part of a century long safety tradition in Britain and it set up new institutions and provided for the progressive replacement of all safety law which was then in place.The Act also provided for the setting up of two main institutions .Firstly the Health and Safety Commission(which consists of ten people who are appointed by the Secretary of State for Transport, LocalGovernment and the Regions). HSC makes arrangements to secure the health, safety and welfare of people at work, and the public, in the matters of making new law and conducting inquiries.The Employment Medical Advisory Service run by it advises people on health and safety