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Health and safety is a notion that is often derided, but many companies accept that any help and advice that enables them to increase the health of their employees is generally a good thing.
The safety features of any tool are often the first thing mentioned in spec sheets issued by manufacturers, and lines of protective clothing and other safety equipment are important features of any tool retailer’s ranges.
So keeping ahead with current campaigns by the HSE is a good way of staying in touch with what safety features and equipment are likely to grow in demand in the immediate future.
The following are a few recent news stories about the HSE:
‘Shattered Lives’ could affect you, says HSE
Every 25 minutes, someone breaks or fractures a bone at work according to the latest figures from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). Recently, the HSE launched the ‘Shattered Lives’ campaign, to highlight the devastating consequences of simple slips, trips and falls - including falls from height - in the workplace.
The figures are alarming - every week, one person dies from a slip, trip or fall at work and the serious injuries from slips, trips and falls make up almost a third of all injuries reported to the HSE.
Introducing the ‘Shattered Lives’ campaign, Dr Elizabeth Gibby, Head of the Injuries Reduction Programme, HSE said, “Each year slips, trips and falls cost the British society nearly £811 million pounds. But what these figures don’t reflect, is the extent to which these injuries affect individual workers and their families.
Slips, trips and falls can be viewed as being minor, funny accidents but the effects are not. It can lead to major injuries, and a lifetime of disability or time off work and in worst cases, fatalities. ‘Shattered Lives’ will encourage people to change their attitudes: if you spot a hazard, don’t assume ‘somebody else will sort it out’.
Slips, trips and falls can also have a shattering effect on businesses through costs such as employee absence, sick pay and reduced productivity. Irrespective of the size of the business and the job that you do, it could happen to you.”
HSE’s Shattered Lives campaign will offer guidance to employers and employees in the construction, building and plant maintenance and food manufacturing and retail industries where the incidence of injuries resulting from slips, trips and falls is highest.
Of the almost 11,000 injuries reported to the HSE last year from slips, trips and falls in the sectors targeted through this campaign, nearly half (46%) were from the construction, building and plant maintenance industries.
HSE launches occupational health management tool for construction industry
Last year 1.8 million days were lost in the construction industry due to work related ill health compared to 0.9 million days lost due to accidents. As the construction industry, which employs nearly 2.0 million site workers, continues to work hard to reverse the trend on fatalities, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has challenged it to make remarkable changes to its attitude towards health.
In a bid to help the construction industry tackle occupational health issues, HSE recently launched its Construction Occupational Health Management Essentials (COHME) for construction companies.
Stephen Williams, Chief Inspector of Construction at HSE said: “We want occupational health to move up the agenda for all construction companies. Large companies can show real leadership in influencing this cultural change. Properly managing occupational health is not a new legal requirement and we expect to see good practice in the industry.
The COHME tool will equip all construction companies with practical advice on how to tackle rising occupational health issues such as dermatitis, asbestos, respiratory diseases and musculoskeletal disorders.
The COHME tool will facilitate the initiative and leadership that the construction industry needs to take to tackle the occupational health issue. I urge large construction companies to act on this, with smaller companies adopting this as a part of the supply chain process. Time is ticking and now is the time to show ownership of this issue.”
COHME is a web-based guidance tool on the management of occupational health risks faced by large construction companies. This guidance is designed to help large construction clients, designers and contractors to understand the management of occupational health risks in construction.
The tool will provide the industry with a single point of access to clear guidance on managing health risks, customised for construction. The website also provides links to further material, including other parts of the HSE website and other useful websites and case studies giving practical examples of solutions developed or adopted in the construction industry.
The COHME tool can be viewed on the HSE website: www.hse.gov.uk/construction/healthrisks/index.htm
1000 spot checks of refurbishment sites across Great Britain
Last year over half of the workers who died on construction sites worked in refurbishment, and the number of deaths on refurbishment sites rose by 61%. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) announced that throughout February it inspected around 1000 refurbishment sites across Great Britain, to tackle poor safety standards.
Working at height, which last year killed 23 construction workers, and good site order will be the focus of inspections and contractors can expect strong enforcement action. During a similar initiative carried out last summer, enforcement notices were issued at one in three sites visited.
Speaking after attending a number of site visits in Manchester today, HSE’s Chief Inspector of Construction Stephen Williams said,
“It is totally unacceptable that so many lives have been lost and continue to be put at risk on construction sites, particularly within the refurbishment sector.”
“We will continue to take firm action against rogue elements who ignore safety precautions. Sites where health and safety is taken seriously have nothing to fear, but we will root out those that put lives at risk”.
During the inspection initiative, HSE inspectors were looking at whether:
• Jobs that involve working at height have been identified and properly planned to ensure that appropriate precautions are in place
• Equipment is correctly installed / assembled, inspected and maintained and used properly
• Sites are well organised, to avoid trips and falls
• Walkways and stairs are free from obstructions
• Work areas are clear of unnecessary materials and waste
• The work force is made aware of risk control measures
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Airstream Business Communications Ltd