HC Deb 08 February 1994 vol 237 cc131-3W
Mr. Alfred Morris

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what estimate his Department has made of the incidence of work-related upper limb disorders; what

Mr. Michael Forsyth

Provisional figures for the year commencing 1 April 1992 are provided in the following table:

discussions his Department has had with the TUC and the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers about their work on these disorders; what action he will be taking; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Michael Forsyth

Evidence from a supplementary questionnaire to the 1990 labour force survey indicates an annual prevalence of around 117,000 self-reported cases of upper limb disorders caused by work. Health and Safety Executive—HSE—officials have attended meetings of a TUC working group to discuss work-related upper limb disorders, and a conference in July 1993 organised jointly by the TUC and the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers. Guidance for employers on prevention of upper limb disorders was published by HSE in 1990, and a four-year "Lighten the Load" campaign to raise awareness of musculoskeletal harm was launched in 1991. An action programme to tackle upper limb disorders agreed by the Health and Safety Commission in December 1993 is now underway.