HSC press release C013:05 - 12 May 2005
The Health and Safety Commission's (HSC), Paper and Board Industry Advisory Committee (PABIAC) has launched a new strategy to secure further improvements in health and safety performance in the papermaking, corrugated packaging and recovered paper sectors over the next three years.
The new strategy, Making a difference, available from the Confederation of Paper Industries (CPI) website at www.paper.org.uk was prepared by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), the CBI and TUC which together form the PABIAC partnership. The document was developed following extensive consultation with executives, managers, trade unions and employee safety representatives in the industry and received full backing from chief executives at a one day conference organised by the CPI to launch the strategy.
Making a difference sets out the strategic direction for health and safety in the industry and explains how the papermaking and conversion sector will support HSC's strategy for health and safety to 2010 and beyond. It sets ambitious targets for reducing annual injury incidence rates from the current figure of around 1,545 per 100,000 employees to less than 1000 per 100,000 employees by 2008 and for cutting the number of days employees are absent from work through occupational injury or ill health by 9% over the same period.
Other targets require employers in the industry to have in place formal safety management systems and to be able to demonstrate a continuously improving safety climate as well as having formal occupational injury and ill health rehabilitation schemes and providing occupational health services for their employees.
Commenting on the strategy Owen Coop, National Officer for Amicus GPM said:
"Amicus strongly supports PABIAC's strategy in Making a difference on health and safety in the paper-related industries.
We welcome the endorsement of the strategy by the Chief Executives' conference and look forward to a continuing partnership that involves trade union safety representatives in all aspects of health and safety. We have made progress on health and safety in the paper industries, but there is still a long way to go before we can confidently say these are safe industries for our members to work in".
Speaking on behalf of the CPI's Paper Safety Council, Martin Millar said:
"The papermaking and partner industries have developed with their PABIAC partners a robust programme of safety action planning that has delivered measurable improvements in safety performance and demonstrable advantage in management systems and behavioural attitudes. The strategy Making a difference reflects the extent to which the allied industries, now within CPI, have developed and it provides a sensible and achievable strategic direction. It includes measurable targets that meet the moral requirements of a modern industry in today's society with strong underpinning of the business necessity and wisdom of good health and safety management systems. The enthusiasm to "make a difference" was tangible at the Chief Executive Officer's conference".
James Barrett, Head of HSE's Manufacturing Sector commented:
"I am pleased that PABIAC have agreed to this targeted action which builds on the solid achievements of parts of the papermaking and conversion sector in recent years while recognising there is still work to be done. Making a difference will help encourage those companies who have yet to show real progress to make a start on the road to improvement and will also encourage those who have already made good progress to maintain their momentum. The targets support HSC's own injury, ill health and days lost reduction programme and are a good example of our commitment to working in partnership with those who can deliver the improvements".
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