Our Ref: HSR/4/4

Head Office Circular: NP/267/22

9^th December 2022

To: The Secretary

ALL BRANCHES

ALL SHIPPING BRANCHES

REGIONAL COUNCILS

 

Dear Colleague,

INDUSTRIAL MANSLAUGHTER

The Wessex Regional Council submitted the following resolution: 

 

This Wessex Regional Council notes the Industrial Manslaughter resolution at the 44^th ITF Congress, held in Singapore between 14^th and 20^th October 2018: 

1. Workers around the world are being killed on the job by total lack of safety procedures and precautions.

2. Since this congress, this Wessex Regional Council remembers fatalities in track workers employed by Network Rail and demolition workers in South Wales, where workers lost their lives. However, not one employer was jailed or held properly to account. 

3. This issue is country wide and international, the news continue to report of the fatalities of workers on the job being also on the rise.

4. We believe that every worker has the right to go to work and come home safely to their family. 

5. This Wessex Regional Council fully supports the call for the right for workers to go to work and come home safely to their loved ones.

6. Wessex Regional Council requests the General Secretary, through the RMT NEC to support the development of a worldwide strategy to legislate, if possible, in each country, that employers and the supply chain who deliberately undermine safety, if found guilty, have to face major fines or jail time. 

 

Your National Executive Committee (NEC) , at its meeting on 7^th December 2022, noted and adopted the following report from its Health and Safety sub-committee:

 

We note the resolution from Wessex Regional Council, for which they are thanked for raising the very important matter of appropriate redress for cases of industrial manslaughter.  This NEC shares these sentiments expressed in the resolution and recognise the importance of campaigning around corporate manslaughter.

 

In connection with this we instruct the General Secretary to write to the ITF to ascertain their progress in actioning the resolution, “Industrial Manslaughter”, passed at the 2018 ITF Congress. 

 

The General Secretary also to affiliate to FACK (Families Against Corporate Killing). 

 

General Secretary to report back to NEC as appropriate. 

 

Regional Councils and branches to be informed accordingly. 

 

I am acting in accordance with these instructions. 

 

Please bring the contents of this circular to the attention of relevant members. 

 

Yours sincerely

 

 

Michael Lynch

General Secretary