New videos about the economics of health and safety
British Safety Council launches two new videos on ‘business benefits’ and ‘economic incentives’
SOME €570 billion from Europe’s GDP was lost in 2014 because occupational risks were not properly managed – be that from healthcare costs, lost productivity or lost earnings, according to two new videos from the British Safety Council.
Made with the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA), the two videos –‘Business benefits of health and safety’ and ‘Economic incentives for investing in health and safety’ – explore issues around investing in health and safety to prevent these losses.
‘These videos present the costs of failure, the benefits of taking action to train workers and ensure safe and healthy systems of work, and possible incentives to encourage employers to do more,’ said Neal Stone, acting chief executive of the British Safety Council.
‘With €570 billion wasted and 450 million work days lost each year across the EU, it is clearly in every employer’s interest to take health and safety seriously. Our ‘Benefits’ video presents evidence to support claims that investing in health and safety produces a return on investment (through better productivity and avoided sick leave) of 2.2; that is employers get more than €2 back for every euro invested.
‘Yet, still not enough employers are taking action to invest in health and safety. As well as highlighting the evidence of the benefits, other parties can incentivise employers to do more. Our ‘Incentives’ video examines a points approach to setting insurance premiums that is being trialled in Germany, as well as looking at how the tax system can encourage employers to invest in training or safer machinery.
‘We hope these videos will both bring home the seriousness of health and safety and stimulate ideas and action to prevent further injury and ill-health at work. As the EU-OSHA says, a general approach that includes training, involving workers and a commitment from senior management, is decisive for good health and safety.’
Both videos are freely available via YouTube and accompany the British Safety Council’s recent research report into the benefits of investing in health and safety.
