Health and safety

Revitalised or reversed?

Phil James and David Walters, Institute of Employment Rights, 46 pages, £6.50

In 2000 the government launched its health and safety strategy, known as Revitalising - aiming to drive down rates of injury and ill health at work. This booklet evaluates the strategy - and finds it wanting.

After nearly five years, the targets set are not likely to be met, and none of the legal reforms promised have been passed. The ill-health epidemic continues.

Enforcement has declined. Safety reps have not been given the powers they need to make improvements.

The booklet argues that the voluntary approach for getting employers to comply, which goes back to the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, has also failed. But this is not just a critique - the booklet also offers a way forward. Essential reading on a vital issue.