News from around the World

News Archive

March 2003

28 April 2003 - World Day for Safety and Health at Work

See www.ilo.org/public/english/protection/safework/worldday/index.htm for more information.

Why go to extremes? ... Register for FREE now! ... for the SHE show, 19-22 May 2003

Whether it's to meet up to 300 suppliers of safety & health products and services including the EurOhs team; to sit in on a FREE informative presentation within The Information Theatre; to congratulate the winners of the Product Innovation Awards or simply to keep up to date or source new suppliers - you need to attend Safety & Health Expo 2003 which takes place at the NEC, Birmingham, UK from 19th - 22nd May 2003.

For more information on the added value features at this year's show click below and plan your visit - find out more about the The Runway sponsored by DuPont Personal Protection.

Running alongside the exhibition is the annual RoSPA Congress.
This year's theme "Strengthening the Team Approach" tackles the latest thinking on many issues including, Team based target setting, Changing Cultures, Improving safety learning and sharing to name a few. For more information and the full programme contact RoSPA for a congress brochure on +44 (0) 870 777 2120

Sheila Pantry Associates Ltd

offers the following products, using SilverPlatter WinSPIRS or WebSPIRS software. Available on CD-ROM and via the Internet. All are updated quarterly.

ENVIRONMENT PLUS
Do you need up-to-date environment and integrated pollution prevention control (IPPC) information? Looking for essential environment and IPPC legislation and guidance? Need to meet ISO 14001 requirements? Don't look any further! It's all on ENVIRONMENT PLUS

FIRE WORLDWIDE
Aimed at everyone in the fire industry internationally with the emphasis on all aspects of fire management principles, practices and research. Used worldwide. Fire Worldwide is the World's premier collection of validated, authoritative information and contains two major collections - the Full Text Collection and the Bibliographic Collection.

OSH-IRELAND
OSH-IRELAND has become the essential OSH source for organisations and practitioners seeking up-to-date information on all aspects of health and safety in Ireland. OSH-IRELAND is published with the co-operation of the Health and Safety Authority, Ireland and other organisations. Includes RoSPA's. extensive bibliographic database of records to a wide range of journal articles, guidance and advice from worldwide organisations.

FREE TRIALS
All the above products are available on a 30 day free trial.

Also check out the following websites

www.shebuyersguide.com
Safety, Health and Environment (SHE) Buyer's Guide Web Service......

www.sheilapantry.com
website gives you a range of information. It also gives samples the content of the databases.

Contact: Sheila Pantry Associates Ltd, 85 The Meadows, Todwick, Sheffield S26 1JG, UK | Tel: +44 (0)1909 771024 | Fax: +44 (0)1909 772829 | Email: sp@sheilapantry.com

News from Japan

The 62nd National Convention of Industrial Safety and Health 2003 and The Green Cross Exhibition October 29 (Wednesday) to October 31 (Friday), 2003

Will be held at Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture in Japan
Contact: International Cooperation Division, Japan Industrial Safety and Health Association (JISHA), 5-35-1 Shiba, Minato-ku, Tokyo 108-0014 Japan | e-mail: kokusai@jisha.or.jp | Tel & Fax: +81-3-3454-4596

Innovative new course in Bolted Joint Integrity combines computer-based and on-site training

As an Engineering and Construction Industries Training Board (ECITB) credited training provider, Hedley Purvis recognised the need to make the PF010 and PF015 courses and its own, related training programmes far more accessible to clients with personnel based worldwide. The result was the development of an innovative computer-based product. Currently available in English and Russian the programme will soon also be available in Spanish, Portuguese and Malay.

The need for a new way of training
Attending a training course can involve significant time away from work. Whilst the value of attending the course is indisputable, there is often a need for a flexible approach on the part of both employer and training provider. Since the students can be working virtually anywhere it is costly and time-consuming to send them back to a base point to undergo both the theoretical and practical training sessions.

Understanding that this difficulty existed led to the development by Hedley Purvis of its new CBT (computer-based training) program for the theory part of both the ECITB courses and its own training programmes which lead to NVQ certification.

Hedley Purvis teamed up with Atlas Interactive in Aberdeen to develop the product. Atlas specialises in providing computer-based training for the oil and gas industry. Together they have created a package which provides web or CD access to the entire theoretical part of the courses. Being able to access this computer-based option means students are away from their place of work for a minimal amount of time but still gain maximum benefit.

This helps the client companies who want to train their employees in correct, professional procedure and practice by keeping their costs down and minimises the trainee's time away from post. It also helps the students as they are able to study at a time and pace most suited to them as individuals.

The major advantage of the new program is that trainees will be able to complete the first part of the course from absolutely anywhere in the world providing they have either Internet access or the correct CD. Students can work at a desk, at home or while on the move.

To find out how it works and why the training is needed
Training contact details: bob.fogerty@hedley-purvis.com

New 'Definitive catalogue' reveals expanded range

Hughes Safety Showers has issued a new 84-page colour catalogue covering its complete range of Emergency Showers, Eyebaths and Decontamination Equipment.

A recent review of the entire range has involved the redesign of many products and the introduction of completely new models. "It's something we do regularly to ensure that they remain the most effective and technically advanced on the market," says Managing Director, Tony Hughes.

The range includes heated and unheated Emergency Safety Showers suitable for indoor and outdoor use as well as Emergency Eyebath and Facewash Equipment.

It also includes Decontamination Showers for Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and Mass Decontamination Shower Systems for treating casualties in major incidents.

Hughes Safety Showers is Europe's largest manufacturer of Emergency Safety Showers, Eyebaths and Facewash Equipment, exporting to more than 125 countries.

The new 'Definitive Catalogue' features the most comprehensive range of this type of equipment currently available from any manufacturer anywhere in the world.

For a free copy of the catalogue:
Tel: +44 (0)161 430 6618 | Fax +44 (0)161 430 7928 | Hughes through their web site www.hughes-safety-showers.co.uk

Be a winner with RoSPA at SAFETY & HEALTH EXPO 2003

Visitors to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents stand at Safety & Health Expo 2003 will have a chance to win a prize worth more than £6,500.

A free draw winner will be given a place on RoSPA's NEBOSH National Diploma Part 1 - full course, including five weeks accommodation sponsored by Moathouse Hotels, and the examination fee.

RoSPA is co-sponsor of the event at the NEC, Birmingham, May 19-22, and will be offering the broadest range of products and services available for organisations to ensure they manage health and safety correctly.

The Society will be based at stand U46 in Hall 12. Visitors will find information about training and consultancy, signs, posters and publications. It will be the place to tap RoSPA's experience and expertise for those who want the complete health and safety solution.

RoSPA members will be told about new products and services and how to make even better use of their membership package.

Applications for membership will be welcomed at the exhibition. Benefits include technical advice and substantial discounts on most RoSPA products and services, including health and safety training. The Society's training covers everything from practical skills courses to management and professional qualifications, including NEBOSH Diplomas.

The RoSPA Safety and Health at Work Congress - Strengthening the Team Approach - will be held alongside Expo 2003, and the Society will also be presenting around 1,000 occupational health and safety awards to businesses and organisations.

To learn more about RoSPA visit www.rospa.com

Title you may have missed.......

Managing Change for Safety & Health Professionals, F. David Pierce, Government Institutes Division of ABS Consulting.

"Change within the workplace has become increasingly commonplace.... The declared aim of this book was to offer a successful method for implementing change with a view to ensuring the survival of the safety and health industry.... ...a comprehensive and well-written publication....could just as easily have been 'Managing Change'. ..... The advice provided....is equally relevant to businesses in the UK and the US. So if you are about to implement change in your company, you could do a lot worse than read this book first."

Quoted from a review in the March 2003 issue of Health and Safety at Work and reproduced by permission of the publishers.

News from the European Union

The Activities page on EUROPA web site has been completely updated. With improved structure and graphics, the site brings together information and links from all of the EU Institutions and agencies to provide 'mini-portals' for each policy area of the EU.

The site provides details of 30 different policy areas. Each has a brief general overview, and you can also look at the latest brochure from the 'Europe on the Move' series.

Key sites from the European Parliament, Council of the EU and the European Commission are listed, along with links to other relevant EU Institutions and Agencies. Links are also provided to clear summaries of EU legislation provided by SCADPlus.

Each page will be kept up to date with the latest news and developments. There is a special section at the top of each page for news headlines, and the 'press releases' link in the documentation section sorts out all the relevant press releases from the EU press service's 'Rapid' database.

There are also tools for more extensive research. The section on legal texts provides the relevant section of the Treaty establishing the European Community, existing legislation and legislation in preparation. You can also find details of recent case-law from the European Court of Justice and the Court of First Instance. Regular updates from the Bulletin of the European Union and the General Report on the Activities of the European Union are also provided.

In this way each page brings together all the information and communication products to provide an inter-institutional thematic index for the EU. What's more, you can easily switch between policy areas using the navigation bar on the left hand side of the screen.

New Look for Canada's Workplace Health Centre!

Canada's Workplace Health Centre began the year with a new look and up-dated features that make it even easier to find the information you need!

• Check out the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). Now arranged by topic for easy browsing!
• Click on "noteworthy resources" in the Features section near the top of the page.
• Continue to click on Guided Search to browse the entire collection of workplace health resources... now over 450 English and 240 French resources!
• Looking for a searching shortcut? Go to Quick Searches and choose from a new list of popular topics such as work-life balance, stress, and workplace health research.
• Use the new, conveniently located Keyword Search box to search the entire CHN site.
• View the up-dated lists of Key Canadian and Key International resources.
• Note the attractive photos, icons and colours!

We'd like to know what you think of the new look and features. Please email: Sandra Clark sandrac@ccohs.ca with any feedback, or suggestions for features you'd like to see.

Please be sure to visit us at:

Workplace Health
www.canadian-health-network.ca/1workplace_health.html

Santé en milieu de travail
www.canadian-health-network.ca/2sante_en_milieu_de_travail.html

Been wondering what is happening in the occupational health and safety field on a global basis?

The CIS Newsletter is a monthly newsletter from the International Labour Organisation (ILO) - International Occupational Health and Safety Information Centres (CIS) and is edited by Sheila Pantry OBE.

The CIS Newsletter is not an official publication of the ILO but a newsletter containing information from CIS Centres and other sources. (For example: CCOHS is the CIS national centre for Canada.) You are encouraged to use and pass on the information you find useful from these newsletters. For a listing of CIS newsletters available on the web, please visit:

www.sheilapantry.com/cis/index.html

European Industrial Relations Observatory (EIRO): Annual update on pay developments 2002...
Reversal in upward trend of agreed pay increases

Average nominal pay increases declined by 0.3%, to only a 3.5% rise in 2002, for the first time in three years. This downturn effectively ends the upward trend in pay increases since 1999 (2.9% in 1999, 3.2% in 2000 and 3.8% in 2001) and is a direct result of calls for wage moderation at EU and national levels.

The average nominal agreed increase in the three candidate countries considered (Hungary, Slovakia and Poland) was far above the EU and Norway average at over 6% in 2002.

'The average increase fell from 2001 to 2002 in eight countries, with pay moderation most evident in Ireland, Portugal, Finland, the Netherlands and the UK,' says Raymond-Pierre Bodin, Director of the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, the EU-agency behind the report. 'However, the rate of increase rose in five countries, most notably Greece and Germany, and remained stable in two, Sweden and Denmark'.

The average real pay increase (adjusting nominal figures for inflation) in 2002 also fell to 0.7 % in the EU Member States, down from 0.8% in 2001.

Over the five-year period 1998-2002, the EU Member States and Norway can be divided into:

• Low nominal pay-increase countries (those where pay increases have averaged 2%-3%): Austria, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany and Italy,
• Medium nominal pay-increase countries (those where pay increases have averaged 3%-4%): Belgium, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the UK, and
• High nominal pay-increase countries (those where pay increases have averaged over 4%): Greece, Ireland, Luxembourg and Norway.

Women in all countries covered in the report earn, on average, less than men.

The full comparative report on pay developments 2002 is available at: http://eurofound.europa.eu/observatories/eurwork/articles/pay-developments-2002

The European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions is a tripartite EU body, whose role is to provide key actors in social policy making with findings, knowledge and advice drawn from comparative research. The Foundation was established by Council Regulation EEC No 1365/75 of 26 May 1975. More information about the Foundation is available on www.eurofound.europa.eu

Further information regarding this press release or any other information from the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, please contact Mr. Måns Mårtensson, press officer | Tel: +353-1-204 3124 | Mobile: +353-876-593 507 | E-mail: press.officer@eurofound.eu.int

Keep up with news from the European Foundation in our newsroom at http://eurofound.europa.eu/news

Workshops on improving work-related road safety

Nottingham Business School's Centre for Automotive Industries Management, the New Zealand AA Driver Education Foundation and the Centre for Accident Research and Road Safety - Queensland (CARRS-Q) are launching a series of management development workshops on work-related road safety.

Fleet or work-related road safety is emerging as an important issue in the UK, Australia and New Zealand offering a range of societal, business, legal and financial opportunities. For this reason a one-day management development workshop has been designed, based on our research findings over the past 15 years. Over 500 delegates have already attended this program in the UK and Australia.

The workshops will examine the costs, causes and countermeasures for improving work-related road safety, and will introduce the newly researched WIPE model.

On successful completion participants will obtain an insight into:

• understanding the benefits of improved work-related road safety
• analysing the causes of poor safety performance
• developing countermeasures for improving safety and reducing costs
• evaluating the success of their programs.

Other benefits include:

• access to objective, researched, non sales-based fleet safety
• improvement tools, structures and frameworks
• networking and sharing ideas with other participants
• post event follow up and helpline.

The workshops will run from 9.00 am to 4.30 pm at the following locations.

Date	Location	Cost per participant
Friday, 4 April 2003	Nottingham, UK	£250 (including VAT)
Friday, 2 May 2003	Wellington, NZ	$300
Monday, 5 May 2003	Christchurch, NZ	$300
Thursday, 8 May 2003	Auckland, NZ	$300
Tuesday, 13 May 2003	Brisbane, Australia	$400 (including GST)
Friday, 30 May 2003	Nottingham, UK	£250 (including VAT)

For a brochure with more information and booking instructions:

• UK: contact Dr Will Murray by email will.murray@ntu.ac.uk or telephone (0115-848-4234)
• New Zealand: contact Peter Sheppard by email: PSheppard@nzaa.co.nz or telephone (04 931 9968)
• Australia: see the internet at www.carrsq.qut.edu.au/aboutus/staff/staffprofile.jsp?id=341
• or contact Judy Williams by email j4.williams@qut.edu.au or telephone (07 3864 4568)

Dr Will Murray, Principal Lecturer, Centre for Automotive Industries Management (CAIM), Nottingham Business School, Nottingham Trent University, NG1 4BU, UK | Tel: +44 (0)115 848 4234 | Fax:+44 (0)115 848 6037 | Email: will.murray@ntu.ac.uk | Web: www.nbs.ntu.ac.uk/depts/caim

Titles from the European Union

New titles uploaded on the Europa web site:

• Learning for employment: a second report on vocational education and training policy in Europe
• The Velvet Curtain. A Journey along the Eastern Borders of the New Europe
• Europe from A to Z. Guide to European integration