The safety of migrant workers in the UK hit the headlines when 23 cockle pickers were killed at Morecambe Bay. No one keeps national figures that record the numbers killed or injured at work every year, but it is clear that many face specific difficulties.
Hence the publication by the TUC of a practical guide called “Safety & Migrant Workers”. Aimed at safety representatives and other union officials, the purpose of the publication is to make sure that the rights of migrant workers, most of whom are concentrated in London and the south east, are protected.
The TUC points out that, given that organised workplaces have half the injury rates of those without trade unions, one of the best ways to protect migrant workers is to recruit them into a union.
To download the publication, go to: www.tuc.org.uk/extras/safetymw.pdf