Elephant poll urges world not to forget key issues
This year, it seems an appropriate day to reveal what occupational safety and health (OSH) professionals believe to be the chief ‘elephant in the room’ when it comes to their practice.
All of us will talk about the weather, we’ll talk about sport, we’ll talk about anything but the ‘elephant in the room’. The elephant in question, of course, being metaphorical and used to describe that significant problem, or sensitive issue everyone is aware of but will avoid discussing.
So, IOSH took to LinkedIn to poll its members and fellow OSH professionals on what they would describe as the elephant in the room for their sector. And, asked to restrict themselves to one elephant rather than a whole herd, their answers highlighted their concerns on a number of key issues, but especially health and safety culture, economic pressures and professional readiness. Here’s just a flavour of the different ‘elephants’ that were suggested, with comments.
Read more on the IOSH website.
Company fined for not having compulsory insurance for its workers
Britain’s workplace regulator is reminding all company owners of their legal responsibility to hold Employers’ Liability Compulsory Insurance (ELCI).
The message comes from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) following its prosecution of Mill House Metals, a scrap metal merchant based in Widnes, Cheshire.
The company was fined £1,000 and ordered to pay £2,000 towards costs after pleading guilty to breaching the Employers’ Liability Compulsory Insurance Act 1969. By law, employers are required to insure against liability for injury or disease to their employees arising out of their employment – it is compulsory insurance.
Learn more on the HSE website.
Stress named top workplace safety issue
To mark World Day for Safety and Health at Work, EcoOnline, a leading global provider of safety and sustainability software, today released new findings from its annual Workplace Safety Report. The report found that, of 1,300 workers surveyed across the UK and Ireland, 90% said a safer workplace made them more productive, with 79% saying they would consider leaving a position due to unsafe workplace conditions.
The research shows that the barriers to worker safety, productivity, and operational resilience are becoming more varied and more persistent:
- Nearly a third (30%) of UK lone workers experienced an accident while working alone in 2025, while confidence in employer responsibility fell from 68% to 62% year on year
- Stress remains the dominant factor (61%) among the 39% who say they or a family member have experienced a workplace accident or illness
- Chemical exposure is rising, with 44% of workers now handling chemicals at work, up from 42% in 2025, but efforts to phase out hazardous substances remain flat at 62%
- Just 30% say they are aware their employer has a crisis plan and understand it well
Visit the HSM website to read more.
Chemical company fined £3.8 million after investigation into serious chemical burns suffered by two employees
Industrial Chemicals Limited (ICL), a chemical manufacturing company based in Essex, has been fined £3.8 million after two employees at two separate sites suffered serious chemical burns as a result of exposure to sodium hydroxide, known as caustic soda.
In the most serious incident, an employee lost his leg below the knee. In the second, another employee sustained burns requiring skin grafts to heal.
Across both sites, HSE found a consistent failure to properly assess and control the risks associated with handling and containing hazardous substances.
For more on the case visit the HSE website.
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