The safety record in the building industry will be transformed the minute a building industry boss is jailed following the death of a building worker

Jack Dromey, TGWU

Union bosses want tougher controls on employers who fail to protect the health and safety of employees.

The HSC says it is concerned at the increase in deaths which marks an increase of a third on the previous year.

Jack Dromey, TGWU national organiser for services, told BBC News Online that the union would be launching a campaign for a corporate killing law once Parliament resumes.

"I believe the safety record in the building industry will be transformed the minute a building industry boss is jailed following the death of a building worker.

"It remains a national disgrace that since 1974 over 3,000 building workers have been killed, yet no company director has spent one night in prison as a result," he said.

Lessons learned

The call for legislation on corporate manslaughter is backed by the Trades Union Congress.

But a spokesman said that there also needed to be more health and safety inspectors.

TUC General Secretary John Monks said: "The law needs to be flexible, but it must make sure lessons are learnt and tragedies aren't repeated.

"The law mustn't be a bureaucratic paperchase, or an exercise in shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted."

The 295 deaths in Britain in the year to April compared with 220 in the previous 12 months.

The number of non-fatal injuries fell from 29,315 to 27,935, according to the report.

Of the fatalities, 73 were caused by falls from heights, 64 from moving vehicles, 52 from falling objects and 37 by objects collapsing or overturning.

There were 106 deaths of construction workers.

Accidents preventable

HSC chairman Bill Callaghan said: "We are greatly concerned at the increase in fatalities which goes against the downward trend of recent years".

Mr Callaghan said most of the fatalities were preventable.

He insisted there was "absolutely no excuse" for employers to ignore their duty to safeguard workers' lives.

He said health and safety had to be top of the agenda and that responsibility started with the chairman or chief executive.

Each and every death is one too many and represents a tragedy

CBI spokeswoman

A spokeswoman for employers' organisation the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said they were saddened to hear of last year's work-related fatalities.

"Each and every death is one too many and represents a tragedy," she said.

But she said legislation already existed to protect the health and safety of workers.

She said many organisations were proactive in managing risks and the CBI viewed health and safety as a priority.

She said the CBI was working with industry and the HSC to ensure targets for further reducing accidents and ill health at work were met.

And she said the CBI welcomed the continued reduction in the number of reported non-fatal major injuries.