Initiatives on workplace accidents

PROPOSALS aimed at accidents in the workplace been presented to the Minister of State for Commerce, Mr Pat Rabbitte. They were compiled by a group representing employers, trade unions and State agencies.

The proposals, contained in the interim report of the Initiative on the Workplace Safety group, deal with the level of accidents, the cost of claims and the system for compensation.

The group urges employers to resist spurious claims and discourage exaggerated and opportunistic ones. But employers should deal fairly and efficiently with genuine victims and encourage and facilitate their speedy recovery.

The group wants changes in the ways claims are processed through the courts, to include:

. a code of conduct on advertising by lawyers;

. making claimants aware of potential costs involved in taking a claim to court;

. making claimants aware of employers' compensation offers.