ABSTRACT
The connected themes of 'health' and 'work' are not new for sociology. However, fifteen years after the passing of the 1974 Health and Safety at Work Act (HSW), there is a need for a new perspective on occupational health in the UK. In addition, perspectives and definitions of occupational health problems have broadened during the 1980s, raising questions about the nature of risks and hazards, as well as the groups of workers affected. This chapter contributes towards the development of a new perspective, drawing upon policy analysis as well as empirical work. The 1974 HSW, which followed the Robens Report of 1972, remains in place as the dominant piece of legislation on the subject in the UK. A feminist perspective on occupational health needs to take into account not only the ideological biases which characterize arrangements, but the effects of institutional sexism in health and safety policy making.
