A two-day conference organised jointly by the Republic's Health and Safety Authority and the Health and Safety Agency for Northern Ireland in 10 days time should set the agenda for developments in the rapidly changing world of work and the increasingly important place of health and safety within it.
Entitled "Employability - a new era in workplace health and safety", Dr P.J. Claffey, deputy chief inspector at the HSA, will explore how the changing patterns of work are leading to changing patterns of risk.
Dr Dan Murphy, director of occupational medical services at the HSA, will explore what is meant by "employability", while Mrs Janet Asherson, head of environment, health and safety at the Confederation of British Industry will give a European employer's perspective on employability. Meanwhile, Mr John Walls, an economic adviser to Britain's Health and Safety Executive, will give an economic perspective on whether "humanising" the workplace is a benefit or a burden. The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act, 1989, is 10 years old and a review was recently initiated by Minister of State, Mr Tom Kitt TD. Mr Con Body, board secretary of the HSA, will lead a workshop on the review which is expected to be completed by next autumn.
The review, which will be carried out between the social partners on a consensus basis, is expected to look at the implementation and application of the current legislation. It can be expected that safety representation, especially in the construction sector, will be revisited. It might also be expected that penalty provisions would be reviewed, with a maximum £1,500 (€1,905) fine in the District Court for the death of a worker. Workplace health and safety is in many respects a model for cross-Border co-operation. For instance, this annual joint conference rotates each year between Belfast and Dublin. If the Republic faces a review of its health and safety legislation, Northern Ireland too is about to undergo significant changes to the structure of workplace health and safety with the formation from next April of the Health and Safety Executive of Northern Ireland.
The Republic's HSA does not yet come under the Freedom of Information legislation. Dr Denis Cusack, director of the division of legal medicine at University College Dublin, will explore whether freedom of information would be a benefit or threat to workplace safety. A spokesman for the HSA told The Irish Times that in the move towards openness and transparency, the Freedom of Information Act "at some future date may become a live issue for us". Currently, the HSA does not release the names of companies which receive improvement notices or prohibition notices, although its annual report summarises cases and names companies against which proceedings were taken in a given year.
Mr Tony Briscoe, assistant director of social policy at IBEC, will speak on health and safety as a key aspect of working in partnership, while Dr Tim Carter, development director of the recently launched Occupational Safety and Health Institute of Ireland (OSHII), which is based at Dublin City University, will speak of the role of the new institute. Other speakers or leaders of workshops include: Mr John Hegarty, chief executive of the Health and Safety Agency for Northern Ireland; Mr Peter McCarron, director of quality at the Industrial Development Board of Northern Ireland; Mr Fergus Whelan, industrial officer of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions; Dr John Gallagher, of Employment Health Advisers Ltd; Mr Dermot Breen, principal inspector of the health and safety division at the Department of Economic Development in Northern Ireland; Mr Peter Kirby of Britain's Trades Union Congress; Dr Cecily Kelleher, professor of health promotion at the National University of Ireland, Galway; the manager of the Meath GAA football team, Mr Sean Boylan; and Mr Tom Walsh, director general of the HSA.
Health and safety inspectors will be available during the two days to give individual advice on any health and safety problems experienced by delegates. To avail of this service, delegates should inform the HSA that they would like to make an appointment with an inspector while booking for the conference.
The conference takes place at Dublin Castle on March 1st and 2nd and costs £200 (€253.95) per delegate. For further details, contact Ms Debbie McDonnell, HSA, 10 Hogan Place, Dublin 2. Telephone: 01 614 7066. Fax: 01 614 7023.
