United Kingdom National Work-Stress Network

UK National Stress Network

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What's New 05.05.09

UKNWSN Annual Conference 2009

Our Annual Conference will be held as usual at Hillscourt Conference centre in Rednal, near Birmingham, over the weekend of November 21st/22nd 2009 and you can now download our booking and information form. Hillscourt's exact location can be found here.

We have the 2008 Conference report available as a summary of all the conference sessions in one easy to read document. Copies are in Word ® & PDF versions.

2008 Conference

Thank you to all those who made the Conference weekend a great success, and especially to NASUWT for their sponsorship of the weekend.

To view reports and photos of the conference proceedings please follow the links below

Petition to: Stop Bullying in the workplace. Number10.gov.uk

This is a reminder to please sign the Petition against Bullying at work. You can find the 'Stop bullying in the workplace petition' at http://petitions.number10.gov.uk/09Bullying/

Trade Unions welcome government moves on Workers Memorial Day

(From TUC Risks newsletter 404, dated 02.05.09)
The TUC and trade unions have welcomed an announcement by the government that it is looking at officially recognising Workers Memorial Day. In an announcement on Tuesday, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, James Purnell confirmed that a consultation will look at how the day could be officially recognised in the UK. The Secretary of State said 'I would like to send my support to all those people around the world commemorating Workers Memorial Day. I want to look at how the UK could join the many other countries that officially recognise the day.The fact that some people go out to work and never return home to their families is a human tragedy. Workers Memorial Day is a mark of respect to those killed and injured at work and to the bereaved.' The consultation will run until the autumn and will also look at a lasting memorial to all those killed and harmed by work activity.' TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber said 'Workers' Memorial Day is a major event on the trade union calendar and is marked in hundreds of workplaces and by memorial services up and down the country, as well as by many local authorities. Official recognition of the day would acknowledge the terrible toll that work has placed on many families whose loved ones have been killed at work or more slowly through a disease caused by their work. It will also act as a reminder of the need to ensure that action is taken to ensure that such deaths are prevented in the future.'

Our next Newsletter has arrived:

Our Spring 2009 Newsletter is now available in pdf and Microsoft Word ® formats.

Asbestos Petiton - SIGN UP NOW

This message has been received from Tony Whiston of the Greater Manchester Asbestos Victims Support Group

Hi Hazards Campaigners,
Can you please check that you have signed the petition below which is being sponsored by the Daily Mirror but comes from the Asbestos Victims Support Group Forum. and that you circulate it widely to members, to friends, to any networks you have, urging people to sign up.

The Asbestos demands raised in the Daily Mirror this week. Your petition reads:

We the undersigned petition the Prime Minister to Support the aims of the Daily Mirror's Asbestos Timebomb campaign

"We urge the Prime Minister to work towards implementing the five campaign demands. These are:

The Chartered Society of Physiotherapists

The Chartered Society of Physiotherapists have added a link to us on their website and we have reciprocated the same.

The Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) is the professional, educational and trade union body for the UK's 48,000 chartered physiotherapists, physiotherapy students and assistants. They are a progressive, member-centred organisation based in central London. A look at their website is well worth the visit

Combating mental health problems during hard times

This article appeared in Training Zone written by Jo Johnston the personnel manager at The Eden Project. Jo Johnston explains why combating workplace stress has risen up the agenda as the economy has turned down, and highlights the benefits of training.

"The economic downturn could cause a 26% rise in mental health problems, according to recent news reports. It is more evident than ever that businesses need to invest in their workforces to ensure they are happy and engaged - both in their job as well as in their home life. This issue has the potential to affect more than 1.5 million people in the UK......"

To view the article in full please visit the Training Zone.

The 20th National Hazards Conference: Hazards 2009

Hazards Conference is the UK's biggest educational and campaigning event for trade union safety representatives and activists. Lack of regulation and enforcement has allowed the rampant greed of individua ls, financiers and globa lised casino capitalism to create the current recession. Globalisation at the expense of workers rights and health & safety has been supported and promoted by de-regulating and businessloving governments , and this is where it has led us. Slavish adherence to the neo-liberal agenda has finally put all our lives, jobs and future security at risk.

Hazards 2009 focuses on supporting safety reps activities and improving our campaigning so that we can keep workplace health, safety & welfare on the political agenda in the recession, and combat any deregulation or weakening of standards on cost or competition grounds. We demand a better world of work, based on good, safe and healthy jobs for everyone, and improving our lives by making homes, services and jobs as near carbon neutral as possible.

We'll look at the new HSE guidance on safety reps functions and employers duties issued at the end of 2008, hear about examples of workerled initiatives on green jobs from other countries, and in workshops and meetings learn and share ideas on how we campaign and work for the better world we believe is essential. So come and join us to meet 500 likeminded people, debate the issues, share and compare experience, and recharge your safety rep batteries. you can obtain a booking form by following this link to their website

The HSE launch a new version of the work-related stress website

The re-launched site has a range of helpful advice, online tools and guidance to help you tackle stress in your workplace. For those familiar with the old site, this revised version is designed to be more accessible and provides tailored messages for different audiences. On the site you will find a brand new self-assessment tool for line managers to test their skills.

Please follow this link to find out more.

Medical referrals in employment - Is the Doctor appropriately qualified?

Many union representatives will wish to ensure that those who are giving medical advice to either employees or employers on occupational health issues are suitable qualified. This short guide for employees and their representatives outlines the various qualifications that occupational health doctors may have and what they mean. Visit this link to view the documents in full, in print format or in text-only format.

Institute of Employment Rights

The Institute of Employment Rights was established in 1989. It is an independent organisation acting as a focal point for the spread of new ideas in the field of labour law. In 1994 the Institute became a registered charity. Members of the Institute include the general secretaries of most trade unions, many of the leading law academics and practitioners and a number of highly distinguished experts from other fields.

The Institute aims to make a constructive contribution to the debate on employment law, using historical analysis, international comparisons and consideration of the economic and social implications of present and future policies. By doing so they hope to develop an alternative approach to law and industrial relations.

The Institute run regular conferences and seminars and in their 2008/9 programme still have 'The Employment Act: A Critical Overview' and '10 years of the National Minimum Wage' to come. For more information please visit their website

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DID YOU WATCH YOUR OWN HEART ATTACK?

If you missed it: visit www.2minutes.org.uk.

If you watched it: send the link to everyone you care about. It could be the most important two minutes of film people will ever see.

The British Heart Foundation has created a set of resources to help you with the health of employees in the workplace.

Our Think Fit! resources cover physical activity, healthy eating and mental wellbeing and include a range of ideas, challenges and signposts, as well as an employee booklet, great giveaway item and fun packaging. Employers who offer workplace health programmes really will see the benefits.

To order your free pack or find out more, visit bhf.org.uk/thinkfit

Guidance to the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007

The Centre for Corporate Accountability has published comprehensive Guidance on the new Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act which begins to apply after 6 April 2008. It is intended to help a range of interested groups and individuals - whether they be lawyers, other advisors, bereaved families, trade unions, managers, employers or others - to understand the nature of the new offence, the type of organisations to which it applies, the circumstances that will lead to prosecution, areas in which the Act remains open to legal interpretation, and so on.

Whilst detailed and comprehensive, the guidance tries to explain the new law in as accessible a manner as possible.

To obtain the guidance, follow this link

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