Half of UK workplaces are not inspected for safety

Lives are being put at risk because too few workplaces are visited by health and safety inspectors, according to a TUC safety survey published last month.

Almost four in 10 (39%) of the union safety reps questioned said their workplaces had never been inspected by either the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) or local authority environmental health officers. A further 11% reported that it was over three years since their workplace had last been inspected for health and safety risks.

And even when inspectors do visit workplaces, in almost four out of 10 cases (38%) they don't talk to the union safety reps.

The figures come from the fifth biennial TUC safety reps survey, carried out by the Labour Research Department.

TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said: "Regular inspections are an ideal way of keeping firms on their toes, but at the current rate, they could wait years for an inspector to call. In the meantime, workers and members of the public are being put at risk.

"If we are serious about improving the UK's poor workplace safety record, the government must allocate extra resources to the HSE and local councils to enable them to increase the number of inspectors able to visit companies on a regular basis."

The results of the survey are in the Trade Union Trends report Focus on union safety reps, available from the TUC by calling 020 7467 1217.