Workers believe health and safety legislation needs rethink

BSC says 1974 Act provided a foundation upon which an effective health and safety regime has been built, and urges next Parliament to similarly prioritise workers’ health and safety

50 years after the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 was introduced, 94% of workers and 97% of managers agree it’s due an overhaul, with 78% of workers believing there is an opportunity for it to better reflect the current working and risk landscape and to improve safety in their sector.

“The general trend is that workers feel H&S in workplaces is better than previous, and is on a good trajectory, but probably needs some tidying up and tightening around the edges when it comes to issues such as new technology, and new ways of working,” said Professor Craig Jackson, Professor of Occupational Health Psychology at Birmingham City University. “This will no doubt apply to newer industries such as green energy, recycling, re-using, tech companies and AI applications which are moving ahead at leaps and bounds, and legislation will struggle to stay relevant.”

The Dräger Safety and Health at Work Report 2024 also revealed 82% of workers believe a ‘greater focus on mental health and wellbeing’ is the most important factor in a future rethink. However, it also found this is being prioritised ahead of more traditional topics like asbestos risks, fire safety, working at height or in confined spaces.

Over a third (37%) of employees say their mental health and wellbeing is affected by cost-of-living pressures and financial difficulties, with sleep (46%), focus (44%), decision-making (26%) and communication (23%) negatively impacted. These issues disproportionately affect younger generations with 59% of Gen Z workers reporting anxiety or depression compared to just 18% of Baby Boomers.

Andrew Berrie, Head of Workplace Wellbeing at Mind said: “The Draeger report highlights the changing needs of health and safety provision and rightly shows that the mental health and wellbeing of staff should be a priority for employers.”

“There is both a moral and legal obligation for employers to prioritise the mental health of their employees, but we need to ensure it is enforced.”

Mind’s research shows the cost-of-living crisis is impacting the nation’s mental health, with one in five reporting worsening depression because of it. Mind has also seen a 55% increase in the number of people contacting its Infoline about financial difficulties.

“Mind is a partner of HSE’s Working Minds campaign and together we want to ensure psychological risks are treated the same as physical ones in health and safety risk management,” added Berrie. “There is both a moral and legal obligation for employers to prioritise the mental health of their employees, but we need to ensure it is enforced.”

Professor David Walters, Professor of Work Environment and Director of Cardiff Work Environment Research Centre (CWERC) agreed that “the legislation should be seriously overhauled”.  In July 2022, he and colleagues noted in Work and Health: 50 years of regulatory failure that in the 50 years since the act was introduced, “these requirements have been the subject of some tinkering but no fundamental change.”

Phil Pinnington, Head of Audit and Consultancy at the British Safety Council (BSC) said, "The 1974 Act was never intended to provide a solution to every problem, but as enabling legislation, served to provide a foundation upon which an effective health and safety regime could, and has, been built.

“The 1974 Act was a product of a legislative environment that sought to put workers’ health and safety first and that’s what we’d like to see throughout the next Parliament."