Construction union UCATT are calling on the Government to swiftly introduce statutory director's duties, after the current voluntary code was shown to be a complete failure.

UCATT have led the campaign for the introduction of statutory directors' duties, which would require companies to nominate a director responsible for health and safety. If someone died as a result of flagrant breaches of health and safety, there would be the possibility of a director being prosecuted and if found guilty the option of a custodial sentence.

Instead of lobbying for a statutory directors' duties the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) with the aid of the Institute of Director's published a new voluntary code in October 2007.

The HSE has recently conducted a survey of companies to discover whether they were aware of the new voluntary code. The HSE claimed that a humiliating 33% of companies were "aware of the code". However research has revealed that the survey excluded the 130,000 construction companies with fewer than 5 employees, these companies make up roughly 50 per cent of the entire construction workforce.

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The survey undertaken by Databuild did not even record if companies had adopted the voluntary code. UCATT believes this was deliberate as it was likely to show that as the vast majority did not know of the Code's existence, it was likely that just a tiny fraction have moved to voluntarily adopt it.

Alan Ritchie, General Secretary of UCATT, said: "Once again it has been shown that construction companies have complete contempt for the voluntary code. This is not arguing over bits of papers. The introduction of statutory directors' duties would help to make industries like construction safer almost overnight."

When the latest voluntary code was published in October 2007, UCATT produced a report Bringing Justice to the Boardroom, which proved that the HSE had deliberately distorted the success of the initial code. The HSE claimed that 79% of companies had adopted the code. In fact this applied only to very large companies with 4,000 or more employees. The true figure for all companies was just 44%.

Mr Ritchie added: "It is very difficult to retain faith in an organisation that continually distorts vital information. I urge the HSE to start telling the truth. Accept the voluntary code hasn't worked, doesn't work and will never work and join with the union movement in campaigning for the introduction of statutory director's duties."

(CD/JM)