Health and Safety in a Changing World

When health and safety regulatory frameworks took their present form in the 1970s, they were seen as a triumph of welfare state intervention. Since then, as heavy industry has declined and office and retail employment have expanded, new ways of working have radically altered the context of health and safety policy. Many people have come to see health and safety interventions as an obstacle to innovation.


This book aims to address the changing context of health and safety policy, exploring concerns arising within the profession and the appropriate responses. Its manifesto for reform promises to frame the debate within the professional and policy community for a generation.


The result of a major research programme funded by the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH), Health and Safety in a Changing World shows how health and safety policy has developed over time, how it is applied in practice and how best to make it fit-for-purpose in the 21st century. The book will be essential reading for professionals, practitioners and academic readers with an interest in the rapidly-evolving field of health and safety.