Safety risk blitz

WORKPLACE slips and trips injuries affected more than 4,000 people in the West Midlands in 2003/4 and in 90 per cent of cases, the injured person was absent from work for at least one week, the HSE announced as it launched a seriesof work place inspections across the region.

HSE inspectors will be visiting businesses and organisations and advising employers on preventative measures to be taken in a bid to save firms millions in lost revenue through sick days.

Boots merger

BOOTS and Alliance UniChem announced the terms of a £7bn merger to create a pharmacy giant with around 2,600 stores in the UK.

The new company - to be called Alliance Boots - will employ more than 100,000 staff in the UK and mainland Europe.

The tie-up comes days after Boots shocked the City with a thinly-veiled profits warning and marks the end of its 156-year history as a standalone company.

MFI warning

THE beleaguered chief executive of MFI will step down today as head of Britain's biggest furniture store chain, it was reported.

The Financial Times said the troubled group will also issue a profit warning in a statement to shareholders.

UK pay rises

WORKERS in the UK can expect average pay rises of 3.5 per cent next year, below the predicted figure for many other European Countries, according to a new report released today.