The government is currently part way through a consultation on Health and Safety law.
Cutting back red tape is a good aim – but in this age of global information sharing, we see many countries where workers go without the protections that they deserve because government regulations are too weak to offer meaningful protection to workers in roles where risk is a factor.
We are wary that this should not happen in Britain, where Labour, Liberal and Conservative governments past have all contributed to a society where workers are rightly protected by their employers – direct or indirect.
Recent articles have highlighted the importance of considering a company’s Health and Safety policy when looking to choose the best provider – and they are right to do so. A company which doesn’t respect its own workers is unlikely to respect its customers either.
We operate with the highest standards of Health and Safety because we respect and value our employees, as well as because we respect the houses, shops, factories and developments on which we work for our clients.
We are concerned about the potential effects of any ill-though-out changes. Changes in the law are unlikely to affect what we do as a company – we will continue to maintain the highest standards of Health and Safety on any site we attend – but what other companies do could have impacts both on our industry and Solutions’ site operatives.
Other companies may not be so diligent – we see many cases where unscrupulous employers cut corners to save costs when they are only subject to ‘voluntary’ regulation, and we worry that rolling back Health and Safety laws will open the door further to contractors who don’t follow best-practice guidelines.
We hope that the government take such concerns on board.
Operations Department.