Report claims shiftworkers recieve 'second class safety'
June 19, 2009
A new report by an academic at the University of Stirling claims that shiftworkers in the UK are facing serious health risks and receiving "second class safety" because the HSE "clocks off" outside normal office hours.
The report, While You Were Sleeping, is by Professor Andrew Watterson, the Director of the Occupational and Environmental Health Research Group at the University of Stirling in Scotland. It claims that the estimated 3.5 million shiftworkers in the UK are getting second class treatment because no HSE staff are rostered to work outside of normal hours. The professor says this means that after hours, there is no preventive health promotion work and there are no routine graveyard shift health and safety inspections by the HSE's 1300-strong contingent of workplace inspectors.
The publication calls for more HSE resources to be targeted at workers on atypical hours and for rigorous enforcement of EU working time laws, as well as an end to the UK opt-out from these. It also asks the UK Government to follow the Danish Government's lead and compensate workers with breast cancer related to long-term night work.
Professor Watterson urges trades unions to step up their campaigns on occupational health issues, including shiftwork, and says at workplace level, union safety representatives should demand effective risk assessments on shift patterns to ensure the least unhealthy patterns are adopted.
In response to the report, the HSE defended its stance and John Osman, HSE's Chief Medical Advisor said, "HSE does carry out preventative inspections out of hours where appropriate and necessary; however, inspections are just one in a range of tools we use to regulate and influence employers."
He added, "Any concerns raised with HSE about shift or out-of-hours working are treated seriously and investigated - this may include an out-of-hours inspection."
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