ENFORCE HEALTH & SAFETY RULES

RMTnews :: march 2006 :: www.rmt.org.uk 18 T he Health and Safety Executive and other regulators are failing to enforce legislation on employers who shun consultation with union safety reps, RMT activists have warned at the fourth annual RMT health and safety conference in Blackpool last month. Delegates urged the HSE to take action against recalcitrant bosses in the rail, maritime and road industries. Moving a motion on the issue, Birmingham Engineering delegate Pat Collins argued that health and safety consultation rights remain “one of the most important weapons we have as trade unionists”. When employers do consult in good time and good faith, significant improvements in workplace health and safety usually result, the motion noted. “However, the vast majority of employers fail to consult with the union in any meaningful way. “We note that there has been little or no enforcement action taken by the HSE or other safety regulators against any employer for failing to comply with their legal duties in this matter. “The companies aren’t fulfilling their function properly – we have the right to be consulted,” he told delegates. Warrington delegate Lawrence Jones also warned that consultation can simply mean bosses telling workers what to do, as opposed to unions and employers negotiating a deal. “I get concerned when I hear the word ‘consultation’ too much. “We have the right to negotiate. We can make these people come to the table and if we allow them to do whatever they want, they will never come to the table,” he said. John Milligan from RMT’s organising unit told conference that unions could not rely solely on statutory bodies. “Yes, we can have health and safety legislation and the HSE. But what we do need is good, strong organisation in every workplace. “We’re driving to maximise the RMT in every industry we negotiate with – and in places where we’ve got no recognition at all,” he said. FUTURE CAMPAIGNING Conference passed a raft of health and safety resolutions to guide future RMT campaigning. Delegates backed a call from London Orient to raise the issue of planning failures involving track maintenance work with Network Rail as a matter of urgency. Kent Knight of Southall, Ealing & Slough warned: “Most of our planners are taken straight off the street and have no rail training whatsoever. There is no way to make a proper assessment of staff.” Alex Holden, Manchester Victoria recalled that the 2004 Tebay tragedy, in which four RMT track workers died when hit by a runaway truck, happened in his region. “People will continue to die” unless action is taken, Alex told delegates. BRITISH Transport Police chief constable Ian Johnston (above) told delegates that the 2,385 recorded physical assaults on staff on Britain’s railways last year probably represent “the tip of the iceberg”. But the figure – up 5 per cent on the previous year – can be tackled more vigorously thanks to recent changes in legislation and new Crown Prosecution Service guidelines, the conference guest speaker said. Train staff are to be classed as “public servants”, meaning that any assault is more likely to result in a charge against the perpetrator, rather than a caution. “This is quite a breakthrough in policy – the next thing is to make it a breakthrough in practice.” He also condemned the fact that “route crime” – vandalism against trains and track – is currently classed as a fixed- penalty offence, meaning that perpetrators can escape with a £80 fine. “Lobbing bricks at trains is trying to kill people. The criminal justice system in general trivialises it. We’re having a real go at changing that,” he said. He maintained that his 2,700 officers were “pretty thinly spread” across Britain’s 3,000 rail stations and 10,000 miles of track, warning that “it is a challenge every year to get the resources we need to support you.” Several delegates challenged the effectiveness of the BTP. “Some station staff have never seen an officer in years,” said Warrington District delegate Dave Wilson. “We are facing drunks and abuse day-in and day-out and police cover is non- existent,” he complained I t’s time for the government to deliver on its promise for legislation covering corporate manslaughter, RMT general secretary Bob Crow told conference delegates. Tony Blair’s administration has failed to honour its pledge to put culpable bosses in the dock since coming to power in 1997. With incidents such as the Tebay tragedy, “our members lay dead and their families have their lives wrecked because of negligence,” said Bob. “When bosses pursue profits at the expense of workers, there will always be a temptation to cut back on health and safety. “These are the kind of people, who when a train comes off the track, we want to see in the dock,” he said. He urged that policy outcomes from conference be transformed into action. “If we pass a resolution, we should be asking what we are doing to implement it in full. That’s the only way we will win a safer workplace.” RMT senior assistant general secretary Mick Cash warned that assaults on rail staff are “on an upward spiral,” with far more occurring than the officially recorded 6,500 of last year. He accused rail bosses of providing “security on the cheap” by using low-paid security staff with little or no training. Dealing with employers throughout the fragmented rail system on health and safety issues has been difficult, added Mick, with many “very reluctant to sit down and talk.” ENFORCE HEALTH TIME FOR ACTION