Are health and safety rules stopping work experience?

David Cameron has told an audience of small business leaders that onerous health and safety regulations are partly responsible for discouraging businesses from offering work-experience placements to young people.

Speaking at a PM Direct event at the University of Central Lancashire, which was taking place to promote the Government?s Start-Up Loans scheme, the Prime Minister bemoaned that fewer companies were offering work-experience positions. During a Q&A session he described the trend as ?very, very bad news?.

He said:

?We do have a potential problem here because a lot of kids aren?t getting the sort of work experience that you used to get because of all the concerns about health and safety, and it?s all too difficult, and all the rest of it. So, if we?re not careful, there?s a danger that schools and businesses will separate even more than they are today.?

He continued:

?We need to encourage businesses to offer that work experience; we need to simplify health and safety rules; we need to say to schools: ?every school should have a plan for how you are going to teach children about enterprise and business?.?

Disagreeing with the claim that health and safety rules are too heavy in relation to work experience, the Institution?s Head of policy and public affairs, Richard Jones, said:

?Work experience helps foster people?s risk awareness and education, preparing our UK workforce of the future for sustainable and productive careers.

?Sensible risk management is also a part of successful business ? good health and safety saves lives, supports business and sustains the economy. And, by taking a proportionate approach to work-experience health and safety, companies have nothing to fear, as the requirements are not onerous.?

He did however, warn that young and inexperienced workers are more vulnerable to accidents and require proper training and supervision, saying:

?In the last decade, five under-19s were killed on average each year, with over 5,000 seriously injured.

?It?s important that our political leaders encourage good health and safety to foster risk intelligence in our workforces of the future.?

Source: http://www.workplacelaw.net/content/45507

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