British Safety Council praises HK’s work safety record

Advocacy group British Safety Council on Wednesday praised Hong Kong for improvements in workplace safety and urged businesses to keep up the effort as they stand to gain from greater safety.

1-MIN READ1-MIN

Published: 4:41pm, 24 Sep 2014Updated: 9:57am, 25 Sep 2014

Advocacy group British Safety Council on Wednesday praised Hong Kong for improvements in workplace safety and urged businesses to keep up the effort as they stand to gain from greater safety.

Hong Kong’s workers are safer compared with the past, according to figures from the Labour Department. The number of reported workplace accidents in Hong Kong went down by 4.7 per cent from 2012 to 2013. There were 38,027 reported injuries last year and 188 deaths. The number of injuries has been decreasing steadily since 2006 by an average of around 19 per cent.

“Hong Kong has made significant strides in improving occupational safety and health, demonstrated by strong reductions in occupational injuries,” said Alex Botha, chief executive of the British Safety Council.

The British Safety Council said Hong Kong should keep paying attention to workplace safety, pointing to a recent report that shows businesses can save costs by ensuring safety.

Hong Kong has made significant strides in improving occupational safety and health

Alex Botha, British Safety Council

It cited various businesses that have optimised costs through safety measures, including AstraZeneca Research, which, it says, gained up to HK$8.89 million in added productivity through an in-house health drive.