Health and Safety Executive Health and Safety Executive Health and Safety at Work: A Tedious Obligation or Part of Economic Success? Kevin Myers Director General, Regulation, HSE President, International Association of Labour Inspection (IALI)

The Return on Prevention Costs × More than 4000 work- related fatalities across the EU each year × More than 3 million people suffer a serious accident at work × 23 million suffering illness caused or aggravated by work × Decrease EU GDPs by 2.6 – 4% Benefits 2.2 : 1 return on OSH investment (ISSA) Protect workers Avoid insurance and healthcare costs Longer, more productive working lives Enhance corporate reputation Less impact on GDP

Improving Compliance Without Reducing Protection Complexity of current EU H&S Framework Scattered across different Directives Difficult to understand and to regulate effectively Requires: –Simplification to improve understanding of requirements –Removal of complexity and duplication –Flexibility to adapt to changing work environment and national circumstances –Proportionate framework focused on outcomes –Goal-based regulation

Business OSH Risk Regulator Media Trade Bodies Public/Social Pressures Economic/Market Pressures Insurance Customers Unions/ Workers Civil Society/ Third Sector Strategic Approaches to Regulation

Best Practice Example: London Olympic Build (2012)

Outcomes No work-related fatalities Accident rate of 0.16 – well below construction industry average 126 RIDDOR-reportable injury accidents 30 periods of 1 million hours worked without a reportable injury ‘Big build’ completed on time and within budget hemes/health-and-safety/ hemes/health-and-safety/

Conclusions Intangible benefits of good H&S can result in positive economic returns Tangible returns on H&S are possible where interventions are targeted, practical and proportionate Risk-based labour inspection and engagement can drive high standards without the need for prescriptive legislation

Thank you