PORTABLE OR TRANSPORTABLE ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT - GUIDANCE UPDATE
Posted Friday, August 27, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
HSE has just updated Maintaining portable and transportable electrical equipment (2nd ed.) containing practical advice for employers, employees and the self-employed who use, or have control over, portable or transportable electrical equipment. It is relevant to equipment that may be connected to either fixed mains or a locally generated supply, and which could result in an electric shock, burn or fire due to damage, wear or misuse.
The new edition draws on the requirement expressed in the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 r4(2) for employers, the self-employed and employees to ensure that all systems are maintained so as to avoid danger and:
contains updated advice; features new sections on cables and the repair and replacement of equipment; is applicable to a wide variety of equipment, used in all environments, from electric drills and extension leads, to floor cleaners, pressure water cleaners and electric kettles; advises on what the legal requirements for maintenance of electrical equipment can mean in practice; and
offers guidance on how to carry out a risk assessment in this area.
The maintenance strategy recommended is based on a simple and inexpensive system of visual inspections that can be undertaken by an appointed employee. In addition, a person with appropriate skill and technical knowledge should test equipment periodically.
Visit http://www.hse.gov.uk/electricity/index.htm for further information. Copies of Maintaining portable and transportable electric equipment - 2nd edition, ISBN 0 7176 2805 1, HSG107, price £7.95, are available from HSE Books
"Nearly a quarter of all reportable electrical accidents involve portable or transportable equipment. The vast majority of these accidents result in electric shock. If you use such equipment in your workplace, this guide can help you to maintain it in a safe condition and prevent such accidents from occurring." - Neil Gove, HSE Electrical Specialist Inspector.
MSDS AND MENTAL ILL HEALTH COMPRISE BULK OF OCCUPATIONAL ILL-HEALTH
Posted Friday, August 27, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
The Occupational Health Statistics Bulletin 2003/04 is now available on the HSE website relating the facts on work-related ill health in Great Britain.
Full statistics on all aspects of workplace health and safety will appear in Health and Safety Statistics Highlights 2003/04, scheduled for publication in November 2004.
The statistical summary is compiled from the latest surveillance data from specialist doctors in The Health and Occupation Reporting network (THOR), disablement benefit claims under the Industrial Injuries Scheme (IIS), and numbers of deaths from mesothelioma and other occupational diseases.
From these sources it is revealed that:
the most common types of work-related illness were musculoskeletal disorders (MSD's), in particular those affecting the back and upper limbs, and mental ill health (mainly stress, depression and anxiety), with each of these accounting for around a third of the total incidence; the highest risks of MSD's (2001-03) were in metal plate workers, shipwrights and riveters, with an annual average incidence rate approximately 40 times the average for all occupations, typists (18 times the average) and road construction operatives (16 times);
NCOs and other ranks in the UK armed forces had the highest incidence rate of work-related mental ill health in 2001-03, at around 15 times the overall average, followed by medical practitioners (12 times);
there are significant numbers of cases of lung diseases such as asthma and pneumoconiosis; contact dermatitis and other skin diseases; diarrhoeal and other infections; and disorders related to vibration or noise; vehicle spray painters had the highest estimated incidence rate for occupational asthma in 2001-03, at roughly 80 times the average for all occupations; floral arrangers/florists had the highest rate for contact dermatitis (14 times the average) and care assistants/home carers for occupational infections (25 times the average).
DISTURBING SNAPSHOT OF YORKSHIRE FARMING SAFETY STANDARDS
Posted Friday, August 27, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Improving health and safety performance in agriculture remains a priority programme in the HSC's 'Strategy for workplace health and safety in Great Britain to 2010 and beyond'.
As is the case UK-wide for the construction industry, HSE is using a programme of blitz visits by inspectors to raise awareness of health and safety among farm owners and employees. On such a recent exercise inspectors issued enforcement notices¹, disturbingly, at nearly a third of all farms visited in the Harrogate and Ripon area during targeted inspections, this despite forewarning of the topics to be assessed during visits.
Almost 100 farms were involved, having basic compliance assessed and a focus brought on the killer hazards inherent in working at height, the safe use of agricultural vehicles, grassland harvesting equipment, livestock and manual handling and child safety.
ENFORCEMENT AND ADVICE
In addition to enforcement action, visiting inspectors gave advice on a wide range of topics, including - the duty to identify, record and manage asbestos-containing materials which came into effect in May 2004; on-farm transport safety issues, including training for telehandler drivers; the need for cattle handling procedures to be reviewed where dairy breed bulls have been reintroduced into dairy herds; the need to provide secure play facilities where there are small children on the farm.
¹ Details of enforcement notices issued are as follows:
39 Prohibition Notices (some duplicated at farms with several active partners) were served at 21 farms immediately prohibiting a number of dangerous activities, in particular - the use of a chainsaw in the absence of suitable ppe (8 farms); the use of PTO shaft-driven equipment where PTO shaft guards were either missing or damaged or were defective due to inadequate maintenance (6 farms); the use of an obviously defective ladder (3 farms); the use of an ATV / quad bike in the absence of suitable head protection (4 farms).
18 Improvement Notices (some duplicated) were served at 9 farms covering a variety of topics. Improvements required included - protective measures at the open edges of 2 silage clamps and at a ramp; maintenance of a cattle crush; maintenance of the brakes of a trailer; protection of an LPG tank against possible vehicle impact; provision of a roll-over protective structure on a tractor.
"We wanted to send out a strong message to those in control of agricultural activities, including farmers and contractors, that failure to adequately assess the risks and control hazards can result in death, serious injuries and ill health.
The visits revealed that although many farmers take an active interest in health and safety and maintained reasonable standards, a disappointing number - almost a third of the farms we visited - had let standards slip and were prepared to run unacceptable risks whilst at work." - Charlie Callis, HSE Inspector
"Our campaign has concentrated on those day to day matters that give rise to the majority of serious accidents. Our intention was to promote good practice and to engage with the farmers that we met with the aim of changing attitudes to health and safety on the farm. Some farmers were happy to meet us half way - some were not. Inevitably we found unacceptable standards at some farms and when this was the case Inspectors have taken firm action to deal with poor standards.
Last year, discounting the deaths arising from the Morecambe Bay tragedy, there were 30 fatal accidents in farming, forestry, horticulture and associated industries across the country. Two children under 16 are included in this total. The number of deaths and injuries on farms is still unacceptably high, with 25 fatal accidents nationally recorded in the period April to mid-August this year.
We had two fatal accidents in Yorkshire last year. In October, near Thirsk, a self-employed farmer was killed when he fell through a fragile roof of a grain store onto a concrete floor. In November, near Beverley, a self-employed tree surgeon was killed when he fell as he as transferred from a ladder to a tree that he was reducing.
Such accidents are a tragedy for the individual and for their family and friends. The majority of accidents are avoidable. In a changing social and economic climate the farming industry must constantly be on its guard against bad practice and carelessness. A hazard identified and effectively controlled may save a life, or prevent a life time of incapacity." - John Micklethwaite Acting Principal Inspector of the Agriculture group, Leeds.
PILOT ARRESTED ON SUSPICION OF EXCEEDING ALCOHOL LIMIT
Posted Friday, August 27, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Greater Manchester police recently arrested and later released a Finnish pilot on suspicion of exceeding the blood alcohol limit. The pilot was due to fly holidaymakers to Turkey.
Aviation personnel are subject to stringent blood/alcohol limits, this meaning flight deck crew, cabin crew, and air traffic controllers, all are subject to a limit of 20mg of alcohol in 100ml of blood. Existing legislation makes it an offence for pilots and other members of the crew of an aircraft, air traffic controllers or licensed aircraft maintenance engineers to carry out their duties while impaired through alcohol or drugs.
The new limits apply to all pilots, cabin crew, air traffic controllers and licensed aircraft maintenance engineers within the UK, regardless of nationality, and to the crews of UK-registered aircraft anywhere in the world.
Because people can naturally produce trace amounts of alcohol, this limit represents the lowest point at which it is possible to be sure that alcohol has been imbibed.
Aviation personnel face a maximum £5000 fine and/or two years in jail if found to be over the limit.
ROSPA GUIDANCE FOR TELEVISION
Posted Friday, August 27, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) has produced a new guide advising on road safety issues for those involved in making television programmes and advertisements.
Presenting Road Safety: A Guide for the Media is funded by the Department of Transport and available in CD-ROM format.
“It is clear that the issues raising concern among people (viewers) who contact us are often unintentional on the part of the producers and could be fairly easily avoided. We hope the guide will help programme makers and advertisers to show road use positively.
We fully appreciate that there are times when poor road use is integral to a plot or character. But, for example, rather than simply showing a drink-driver or a mobile phone user at the wheel, it would be useful to indicate the potential consequences with a crash or court appearance.
Minor details, such as ensuring passengers are wearing seatbelts or presenters are looking at the road rather than the camera, may make a big difference in a viewer’s attitude without detracting from the message of the programme or advert.
Positive images, showing safe behaviour, may help to prevent accidents and even save lives. Images showing dangerous behaviour may, inadvertently, have the opposite effect.” - Kevin Clinton, RoSPA Head of Road Safety.
SCHOOL TRUST PROSECUTED OVER RISK ASSESSMENT FAILURE
Posted Friday, August 27, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
On 24th July 2002, at The Hawthorns School, Bletchingley, Surrey, Kevin Matthews was working on an extension to an existing building at the school, at a height of over 2 metres. While doing so he fell from the flat roof and sustained a fractured pelvis.
HSE investigation of the accident established that Mr Mathews worked without the benefit of implemented controls derived from risk assessment which had not been carried out prior to the commencement of the work. This was evident from the lack of edge protection or fall arrest system provided for the leading edges of the flat roof where Mr Matthews fell.
At Crawley Magistrates' Court The Hawthorns Educational Trust Ltd, owners and operators of the school, pleaded guilty to breaching r.6(1) of the Construction (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1996 for which it was fined £1,000 and breaching r.3(1) of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 for which it was fined £1,000. The Trust was also ordered to pay costs of £1250.
"This unfortunate accident should be a wake-up call to all schools to adequately assess and manage the Health and Safety risks that ancillary workers are exposed to in their work. Accidents such as this are totally avoidable if suitable and sufficient steps are taken by employers to prevent them." - Abosede Ogunsekan, HM Inspector of Safety and Health.
NATIONAL CONSTRUCTION COLLEGE REVEALS NEW COURSES
Posted Friday, August 27, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
The National Construction College, the training division of CITB-Construction Skills, is introducing 5 new courses to become available at venues across the UK, including the 4 National Construction College campuses, and at places such as hotels, conference centres and workplaces.
One of the new courses concerns Working at Height, designed to ensure operatives work in accordance with new regulations; another course, Safe Support to Excavations, developed in response to industry demand through the Construction Plant Hire Association (CPA), is aimed at reducing associated risks for operatives and supervisors using shoring equipment.
Details can be found in the National Construction College’s 2005 prospectus, available from October.
SCOTTISH WORKPLACES TARGETED IN HSE BLITZ ACTIVITY
Posted Friday, August 27, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
HSE officials are to undertake a programme of suprise 'enforcement-led' health and safety inspections of manufacturing businesses in the Scottish Borders during October 2004. As one would expect, work activity related to HSC's priority programme topics will come in for particularly close scrutiny during these visits, falls from heights, workplace transport, musculoskeletal disorders, slips and trips and occupational asthma.
Before the inspections begin businesses are being offered free advice on health and safety matters at an HSE/ Business Gateway seminar being held next month in Selkirk on Wednesday 8th September.
Delegates attending will learn how to identify the steps required to achieve a safe and healthy working environment.
The event will feature: presentations by an HSE Principal Inspector and other Inspectors on Revitalising Health and Safety and related priority topics; and an opportunity to ask questions and to seek advice at a neutral venue.
Those in manufacturing businesses in the region not already contacted may find this seminar useful, and should contact Ailsa Braidwood at the HSE on 0131 247 2000 to check for availability and to register.
OCTOBER CONSTRUCTION SAFETY AND HEALTH AWARENESS DAY FOR NORTH WEST ENGLAND
Posted Friday, August 27, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
The latest in a nationwide series of Construction Safety and Health Awareness Days (SHADs), part of the Working Well Together (WWT) programme, is to take place at Haydock Park on Friday 8th October. Smaller construction firms are being invited to attend the free HSE safety awareness day, and delegates from around 200 North West firms are expected to attend.
The event is intended for small contractors who employ fewer than 15 people, sole traders and the self-employed, who together make up 83% of the industry, and permits the construction industry itself to advise others in the business on key safety issues while offering practical advice on how to avoid risks on construction sites.
For further information/ bookings contact Martin Heywood at HSE's offices at Grove House, Skerton Rd, Old Trafford, Manchester, tel 0161 952 8200, by fax on 0161 952 8206, or E-mail to nw.external.relations@hse.gsi.gov.uk
CHINA HOSTS MAJOR OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY EVENT
Posted Friday, August 27, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
The 2nd China International Occupational Safety & Health Exhibition takes place September 1-4, 2004, Beijing, sponsored by the China State Administration of Work Safety (SAWS), with more than 300 delegates attending the 2nd China International Forum on Work Safety and the 20th Asia Pacific Occupational Safety and Health Organization's Annual Conference (APOSHO).
The events have attracted global recognition and representation from leading bodies and eminent persons, including Director of ILO Subregional Office for East Asia; Assistant Secretary of Labor & Administrator of OSHA; Chief Deputy of Federal Mine and Industrial Supervision of Russia; Director General of the HSE; CEO of National Occupational Health & Safety Commission, Australia; CEO of the Industrial Accident Prevention Association, Canada; and President of JISHA, Japan.
The 2002 event attracted over 8,000 visitors and 140 exhibitors from over 20 countries, for more information visit
www.sino-safework.org.cn
DO MORE THAN SCRATCH THE SURFACE OF SURFACE ENGINEERING HEALTH AND SAFETY
Posted Friday, August 27, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Surface engineering encompasses a range of technologies designed to modify the surface properties of metallic and non-metallic components and is the subject of a new HSE website area for the surface engineering sector.
Consideration of the type of processes and the hazards involved - electrolysis, the application of powders and sprays, galvanising, heat treatments etc will explain the sector's significantly high accident rate.
TEA-SHACK NEWS HITS THE .... PLATFORMS?
Posted Friday, August 27, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
All with an interest in Offshore health and safety, but especially the workforce, can now more easily keep abreast of the latest health and safety news relating to their work environment and developments courtesy of HSE's Offshore Division's (OSD) new information sheet - Tea-Shack News - offering the latest direct from HSE.
The first edition features details with links to further information on: the current safety case regulation consultation; the working time directive; latest safety statistics; and OSD's plans for tackling installation integrity and maintenance management matters.
HSE says its officials will be distributing copies of Tea-Shack News during normal inspection activity and that copies can be obtained at heliports. Copies are going to dutyholders, trade unions and trade associations for further distribution. It can also be read on the HSE website at www.hse.gov.uk/offshore/information.htm.
"For some time my inspectors have received feedback for direct information straight from the safety regulator. Tea-Shack News forms an important part of my division's plan and HSE's wider revitalising commitments, in getting key safety information to the workforce. These are, after all, the people, together with the support of their managers, best placed to make offshore workplaces safer. Working in partnership with employers and the Unions has brought some very positive progress towards better health and safety performance offshore. Tea-Shack News fills a separate need to have a direct pathway between the workforce and HSE for information and advice." -Taf Powell head of HSE's Offshore Division.
"The introduction of Tea-Shack News will ensure that important safety information is given direct to the offshore workforce. This will also strengthen the existing strong links between HSE and workers." - John Taylor, Chairman of the Inter Union Offshore Oil Committee.
BT PROSECUTION OVER ENGINEER'S DEATH
Posted Friday, August 27, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
British Telecom is to face charges that it breached duties it owed under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 (Capabilities and training, r11) and S's 2 and 3 of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 in the circumstances surrounding the death in an industrial accident of its employee engineer, Tara Whelan, 33, in May 2001 in Trowbridge, Wiltshire.
Ms Whelan died some days after the accident in which she was pulled 5 metres from a pole brought to the ground by a passing vehicle which snagged aerial cables attached to the pole.
JAIL FOR UNREGISTERED GAS FITTER
Posted Friday, August 27, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Custodial sentence for unregistered gas fitter
William O'Sullivan, trading as MCP Plumbing, of Shadwell, Leeds, this week pleaded guilty to a contravention of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, in that he had been installing gas equipment and advertising as CORGI (Council for Registered Gas Installers) registered, despite never having obtained registration.
He received a 4-month custodial sentence at Leeds Magistrates' Court. His misdemeanour was compounded by his defiance both of an order to desist from this work until he became fully qualified and a pending court appearance.
MISADVENTURE VERDICT DETERMINED FOR MILITARY TRANSPORT ACCIDENT
Posted Friday, August 27, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
An inquest into the May 2003 death of army Corporal Thomas Rees, 32, has determined a verdict of Misadventure at Teesside Magistrates' Court. Mr Rees was crushed between two military vehicles as he assisted with their removal from a low-loader at Teesport Docks, Teesside.
The chains securing the two armoured vehicles had been removed and as Mr Rees gave signals to the driver of one of the vehicles being driven off the low-loader the other rolled backwards inflicting multiple injuries. An outcome of the accident has been the revision of guidance for this activity both by the army and civilian contractor, Elliott Sergeant.
WORKER KILLED AS VEHICLE CONTACTS OVERHEAD CABLE
Posted Friday, August 20, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
A workman, James Watson, 46, said to be an employee of E. Watson & Son Plant Hire of Stonehaven, has died after a raised part of his vehicle contacted 11kV overhead cables at a farm outside Stonehaven, Kincardine. It is speculated that he stepped from the vehicle and was electrocuted as he touched it again.
APPLY OLD AND NEW TECHNOLOGY TO AVOID TRENCH COLLAPSE TRAGEDIES
Posted Friday, August 20, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Three fatal excavation collapses have occurred in the UK since April prompting the HSE to once more draw to the attention of construction workers the fatal consequences of not controlling the risks when working in excavations.
The 3 fatal accidents, described as avoidable by HSE, occurred in:
Scotland, in April, a man died when the 2.5 metre unsupported trench he was working in collapsed on top of him;
East Sussex, May, a man was killed whilst working on a conservation development when he jumped into a 3-metre deep trench which then collapsed on him; and
Yorkshire, July, a man was killed and another injured when a 3-metre deep trench collapsed on them in an unsupported area of work.
REMEDY
The remedy, says HSE, is the application of technology old and new, and advises: if appropriate, using trenchless technology such as directional drilling or impact moling, to avoid the need to excavate a trench in the first place; if a trench is used, preventing the sides and the ends of trenches from collapsing by battering them to a safe angle or supporting them with proprietary support systems, trench sheets or timber; providing suitable edge protection to prevent persons or materials falling into the excavation, and not entering unsupported excavations; avoiding surcharging the ground adjacent to the excavation with plant, stored materials, spoil or foundation loads from existing structures; never working ahead of the support; ensuring there is a suitable means of access and egress;
remembering that work in shallow trenches can be dangerous, i.e. if the work involves bending or kneeling in the trench; and locating existing services in the vicinity of and above the line of the excavation.
For guidance, HSE has published Construction Information Sheet No.8 (rev 1) Safety in Excavations and Health and Safety in Excavations: Be safe and shore, HSG 185, ISBN 0-7176-1563-4, price £8.50, both available from HSE Books
"Trench collapses are entirely avoidable. Without suitable support, any face of an excavation will collapse; it's just a matter of when. The steeper and deeper the face, the wetter the soil, the sooner the collapse.
Trenchless technologies are available which avoid many of the hazards of excavation, but if a trench is required modern proprietary systems allow the ground support to be installed without the need to enter the excavation." - Nigel Thorpe, HSE Specialist Inspector.
CHARGES ARISE FROM WORKPLACE DEATH
Posted Friday, August 20, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
A man from Shropshire is to appear at Cannock Magistrates' Court next week after being charged with the unlawful killing of Mark Jones who died following a 10-metre fall from an unstable elevating platform on a building project at Kinver Edge, west of Stourbridge, in February.
LOOKING AFTER HOMEWORKERS
Posted Friday, August 20, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
The proportion of the workforce now carrying out employed work from their homes for at least part of their working week will probably continue to increase.
A new research report Health and safety of homeworkers: Good practice case studies - RAS/04/08, by the Science Group: Human Factors, aims to offer examples of good practice in addressing homeworker health and safety issues, especially useful given the forthcoming revision of the HSE guidance on homeworking.
The study considers workers and employers engaged across four different sectors/activities to obtain information on any difficulties encountered in addressing homeworker health and safety and how these have been resolved.
Twelve organisations were visited, matters addressed included: sources of health and safety information; communication; risk assessment; equipment provision and maintenance; organisation; information; training; and incident reporting.
HEAVY FINE FOR SUSSEX COMPANY OVER PESTICIDE USE
Posted Friday, August 20, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Anglian Timber Limited of Battle, East Sussex, has pleaded guilty to and been heavily fined for breaching health and safety legislation governing the use of pesticides. The breaches related to the company's April and May 2003 use of Copper, Chrome, Arsenic (CCA) at Beechdown Sawmill to treat timber which was then machined within 48 hours. The failure to observe health and safety requirements was compounded by the transporting of the dripping wet timber on lorries, investigation establishing that the company provided inadequate welfare facilities and inadequate personal protective equipment for its employees.
3 OFFENCES
At Hastings Magistrates' Court Anglian Timber Limited pleaded guilty to all 3 offences and was fined:
£20,000 for breaching S.2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974;
£5,000 for breaching r.4(4)(a) of the Control of Pesticides Regulations 1986 (as amended)¹; and
£5,000 for breaching 4(5)(b)(i) of the Control of Pesticides Regulations 1986 (as amended)².
The company was also obliged to meet the prosecution costs of £2,645.60.
For anyone wishing to learn more about safe timber treatment, free copies of the BWPDA Timber Treatment Installations 2003 Code of Practice for Safe Design & Operation can be found at: http://www.bwpda.co.uk/timbercode.pdf
Matters related to occupational hygiene at industrial treatment plants can be found on the HSE website at http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/wis29.pdf
¹ Regulation 4(4)(a) of the Control of Pesticides Regulations 1986 (as amended), states that 'No person shall store a pesticide unless the Ministers jointly have given approval under Regulation 5 in relation to that pesticide and a consent under Regulation 6(b).' Paragraph 2(1)(a) of Schedule 2 (Conditions Relating to Consent to the Sale, Supply & Storage of Pesticides) states 'Any person who sells, supplies or stores a pesticide shall take all reasonable precautions, particularly with regard to storage & transport, to protect the health of human beings, creatures & plants, safeguard the environment & in particular avoid the pollution of water.'
² r.4(5)(b)(i) of the Control of Pesticides Regulations 1986 (as amended), states that 'No person shall use a pesticide unless the conditions of the approval related to use have been complied with.'
"The substantial fine given in this case should send a strong message to the woodworking industry that breaching health and safety legislation is taken very seriously by the Courts. The case highlights the need for employers to ensure that suitable control measures are in place to protect employees from the risk of exposure to hazardous chemicals in the workplace.
Employers must also take suitable steps, when using pesticides, to ensure that people and the environment are not put at risk. If Anglian Timber Limited had followed guidance available from the HSE and the British Wood Preserving & Damp Proofing Association (BWPDA) this case would never have come to Court." - Mike Walters, HM Inspector of Health & Safety.
EMPLOYERS FAILED TO ENSURE SCHOOLBOY'S SAFETY
Posted Friday, August 20, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Former landlords of the Ship Inn public house in Oldbury on Severn, Gloucestershire, have admitted and been fined for breaching the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 in the circumstances surrounding an accident in which a 15 year-old was injured working in its kitchens.
At N. Avon Magistrates' Court Alastair and Sarah Sadler were fined £3,500 with £2,000 costs over the accident in January this year in which the young employee sustained burns from fat spilled from an unsecured fryer that had no lid. Investigation revealed that the Sadlers were also in breach of education welfare legislation for which they were also fined.
MULTILINGUAL GUIDANCE FOR THE CATERING INDUSTRY
Posted Friday, August 20, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
The following series of leaflets providing guidance for all those working in the catering industry are now available in a variety of different languages: Bengali, Chinese, Gujarati, Greek, Turkish and Urdu.
CAIS2 Priorities for health and safety in catering activities.
CAIS3 Precautions at manually ignited gas fired catering equipment.
CAIS4 Managing health and safety pays in the catering industry.
CAIS5 Health and safety training pays in the catering industry. Guidance for owners and managers.
CAIS6 Slips and trips. Summary guidance for the catering industry.
CAIS7 An index of the health and safety guidance for the catering industry.
CAIS8 Managing health and safety of catering equipment and workplaces.
CAIS9 Planning health and safety when selecting and using catering equipment and workplaces.
CAIS10 Ventilation of kitchens in catering establishments.
CAIS11 The main health and safety law applicable to catering.
CAIS12 Maintenance priorities in catering.
CAIS13 Manual handling in the catering industry.
They can be obtained at http://www.hse.gov.uk/languages/index.htm or from HSE Books on 01787 881165.
KITCHEN DESIGN FAILING TOO MANY SAYS UNISON
Posted Friday, August 20, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
All is not going well in the kitchen for those who have to work there say UNISON, who say that poor layout and design of fixtures and fittings combined with unhelpful working practices give rise to unnecessary musculoskeletal disorders. The union raises the issue following the results of a University of Sheffield survey study of the prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders in kitchen workers. For many, the kitchen/catering environment requires repetitive movements, including bending, twisting, working in awkward positions and lifting heavy objects, survey respondents claimed that they had experienced pain in the past week (49%) and significant pain in the past 12 months (77%), with over half being obliged to seek medical help as a consequence.
Hope Daley, UNISON Senior National Health and Safety Officer explains: “Living with pain should not be an option, especially when employers could take action to prevent it. We need proper risk assessments to monitor where the real danger areas are and immediate action where solutions have already been identified.
Most kitchen workers are women and they have to adjust themselves to the work surface, instead of work surfaces adjusting to them. Surfaces are designed at a standard height, leaving people who are above or below the average, working in an awkward posture, particularly when cutting or chopping.
This problem must be addressed when designing workplace kitchens. It should be possible to have workbenches at different heights, or with adjustable surfaces that would reduce the risk of injury. The survey showed that the way people work also contributes to the risk of developing musculoskeletal injury. The likelihood of injury increased when employees were working very fast and intensively. When in a hurry workers, tended to lift badly, putting stress on their lower backs. If staff are able to take more time over tasks, then the risk of injury is reduced.
However, the survey found that the greatest number of complaints were about how heavy many kitchen tasks were and how awkward they were – particularly when they meant long periods bending over."
UNISON has produced its own guide for health and safety representatives Catering with care available on the union’s website.
REMEDY FOR APPARENT TEACHER IGNORANCE OF RISK ASSESSMENT
Posted Friday, August 20, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) has discovered that new teachers are largely unaware of the process of, and the need for, risk assessment relative to their duties at school and on excursions. A recent survey conducted by the Society found only 1 in 20 teachers had the benefit of risk assessment training, and only 1 in 4 had received health and safety induction training at their school.
As a remedy RoSPA, with the support of the HSE, has developed a module for the School of Education at Birmingham's University of Central England to familiarise new teachers with the means to managing risk in schools and on school visits.
200 new teachers have completed the course which met with general approval, but RoSPA would like to see more research carried out into the success of this pilot scheme and eventually for the programme to be rolled out nationally.
“It is concerning to know that teachers are being involved with and going on school trips and educational visits without having an understanding of the risk assessment needed for a particular activity. High-profile media coverage has shown that some teachers are still taking unnecessary risks when escorting students on trips. They need to know if they are suitably equipped with the skills needed to identify and respond to risks before they go ahead with certain activities. It is crucial that all teachers are aware of hazards and risks on an everyday basis, and are confident in their knowledge of risk management to ensure the health and safety of the young people they are working with.” - Juliet Barratt, RoSPA Head of Safety Education.
HSE RAISES HEALTH AND SAFETY AWARENESS AMONG ASIAN COMMUNITIES
Posted Friday, August 20, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Last weekend's London Mela in Gunnersbury Park, West London, featured an exhibition staffed by HSE officials aimed at raising awareness of health and safety issues among London's Asian communities. The HSE stand presented useful information about workplace health and safety hazards and control of the risks they pose. Punjabi, Hindi, Bengali and Gujarati versions of HSE's 'Introduction to Health and Safety' leaflets about workplace safety are available.
"The London Mela provides an excellent opportunity for the HSE in London to pass on the positive messages about workplace health and safety to people from diverse communities.
This year we will have copies of our most popular leaflets translated into the main Asian languages as part of our work to improve communications with workers and employers from ethnic minorities.
All of us can contribute to making London's businesses healthier and safer places in which to work by being better informed about the work-related risks we face and how to control them." - Charles Horsefield, Director of HSE's London field operations.
WELSH BEES GET ANGRY!
Posted Friday, August 20, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Following a number of incidents in which the Environment Agency Wales emergency work force were attacked by bee swarms, field staff are being reminded of the need to consider the possible presence of nests before commencing work.
Although no such incidents have been reported in England, Welsh workers have experienced nasty incidents:
Porthmadog - an Agency worker using a strimmer was attacked by a swarm after disturbing a nest and is recovering from multiple stings;
Corwen, Conwy Valley, a ‘near miss’ incident also involved strimming;
on the River Loughor, Carmarthenshire, emergency work force staff ran for cover after a swarm of bees attacked them while using a chainsaw.
The Agency advises long-sleeved tops kept buttoned up, neck scarves and long trousers when carrying out essential work in the field. Because multiple bee stings can cause severe reaction, staff are advised of the importance of attending the local emergency hospital if they are stung. Staff who are sensitive to bee, wasp or other insect stings are being advised to ask their doctor to provide them with emergency medication.
"Our red alert to the emergency work force is aimed at raising awareness and ensuring the potential threat from bees is kept in mind. Workers are being advised to look for evidence of bee or wasp nests when planning or checking out work, avoid using machines close to nests and known nest locations. Local knowledge here can be invaluable." - Bob Ashman, Agency health and safety adviser.
HSE & POLICE INVESTIGATE DEATH OF BOY AT SCHOOL
Posted Friday, August 20, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Kian Williams, 3, who on July 7th sustained head injuries in a fall at Hillgrove School, Bangor, N Wales, has succumbed to them at Alder Hey Hospital.
Kian apparently fell around 3 metres on the school premises, HSE and the police are jointly investigating the tragic incident.
UNREGISTERED GAS INSTALLER BROUGHT TO BOOK
Posted Friday, August 20, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Paul Lake of Loughton, Essex, this week pleaded guilty to contravention of r.3(7) of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998, in that he had been trading and advertising as CORGI (Council for Registered Gas Installers) registered, despite never having obtained registration.
The matter came to the attention of the HSE as a result of complaint about the standard of Mr Lake's work carried out between October 2002 and February 2003 in Barnet and Redbridge, North London, he had been falsely trading as a fitter registered with CORGI for which he was fined £5000 with costs of £3,766.85 at the City of London Magistrates Court.
"Anyone who works on gas appliances must be competent, and if they are doing the work as a business, they must be CORGI-registered. Mr Lake was advertising as being CORGI-registered in Yellow Pages and local papers for North London and Essex and was also using the CORGI logo on his business cards. The magistrates clearly took a serious view of this offence and imposed the maximum fine available to them.
It is essential that members of the public only have gas work done by CORGI-registered installers. In order to protect the public, CORGI-registered installers are given an identity card which should be shown on request, are required to demonstrate their competency in areas of gas work they do, and are required to update their proof of competence regularly. They are also subject to regular work inspection carried out by CORGI." - Mike Gibb, Principal Inspector, HSE.
POUNDSTRETCHER FINED OVER ASBESTOS EXPOSURES
Posted Friday, August 20, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Poundstretcher Ltd, part of the Brown & Jackson Group, has been prosecuted and fined for breaching health and safety legislation following an investigation instigated by visiting officials of Leicester City Council, the enforcing authority for retail activity, who discovered disturbed asbestos-containing materials (AIB) at its store in Leicester during a routine visit.
The company had been aware of the presence of asbestos for a number of years and unfortunately employees had been exposed during this period. Poundstretcher was fined £6,000 with £9,000 costs at Leicester Magistrates' Court.
CENTRE OF EXCELLENCE IN FIRE SAFETY ESTABLISHED
Posted Friday, August 20, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
A joint initiative by the University of Edinburgh and FRS, the Fire Division of BRE, has resulted in a new national Centre of Excellence in Fire Safety Engineering at the University.
The Centre boasts a new University Chair of Fire Safety Engineering, jointly funded by the BRE Trust and the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAE), and the Centre promises a national focus for fire engineering research through which a much greater level of cooperation between fire engineering and structural engineering will generate performance-based fire safety engineering design solutions.
In a similar vein, it is understood that a number of planned collaborations between BRE and universities in the areas of construction and environment may result in further centres.
Professor Farshad Alamdari can be contacted at alamdarif@bre.co.uk
"Establishing a recognised Centre of Excellence will give fire research a much needed boost, allowing FRS and Edinburgh University to jointly exploit research opportunities and attract funding from both national and European sources." Professor Farshad Alamdari, BRE Chief Scientist.
PAINTER BADLY BURNED
Posted Saturday, August 14, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
It is reported that an employee of South Staffs Protective Coatings Limited, Tipton, West Midlands, has received around 30% burns to his upper body, apparently after an explosion occurred while he painted the inside of a metal tank yesterday morning.
MOTORISTS ASKED TO RESPECT ROADWORKERS
Posted Saturday, August 14, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
During 2002, 5 roadworkers were killed and 29 seriously injured in the course of their work on Highways Agency roads, now a recent survey has given further insight into the lot of the road maintenance crewman, in particular his risk of death or injury at work.
The Highways Agency internal staff survey found that of the 400 workers who responded: almost 20% said they had suffered some injury caused by passing vehicles in the course of their careers while working on our road network; 3% sustained major injuries; more than 77% said they had suffered verbal abuse from drivers; 40% reported having objects thrown at them by motorists; 13% of roadworkers surveyed had sustained slight injuries; and 54% had a near miss with a vehicle.
DRIVING TOO FAST
According to the roadworkers, what in their experience caused most drivers to have accidents in roadworks' areas was: driving too fast ( 89% of respondents); lack of concentration (76% of respondents), and
drivers not observing road signs (73% of respondents).
The Agency urges drivers to display care and consideration, and in particular to make sure they slow down, keep within the signed speed limits, and pay attention to road signs and works traffic.
Further advice is available in a new leaflet - Driving Through Roadworks, to be distributed by the Agency at exhibitions and shows.
"Today's roadworks are tomorrow's better roads, but this survey highlights the risks to the workforce and the completely unacceptable behaviour that staff have to put up with simply because they are doing their job.
Road works are essential to keeping our roads safe and in good condition for all road users. Roadworkers are out often at night and in all conditions, every single day of the year." - David York, Highways Agency National Traffic Director.
HSE INVESTIGATES LONDON LIFT SHAFT DEATH
Posted Saturday, August 14, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
It is reported that HSE is investigating the death in an industrial accident on Monday of a man employed as a steel fixer who, according to one account, fell more than 10 metres down a lift shaft from his working position on the site at the Discovery Dock development. He is said to be an employee of Laing O'Rourke.
APPEAL TO FARMING COMMUNITY TO HELP STOP CHILD DEATHS ON FARMS
Posted Saturday, August 14, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
It is perhaps the most shocking UK workplace safety statistic that in the 10 years from 1993 to 2003 35 children have been killed on farms. It is known that around 400 children sustained serious injuries derived from work activity in agriculture during this period, probably many more went unreported.
Currently, HSE inspector Mike Walters is seconded to the Transport & General Workers Union (TGWU) undertaking a research and development project for the Rural, Agricultural & Allied Workers (RAAW) National Trade Group of the TGWU in partnership with Cardiff University School of Social Sciences. Details of Mr Walters' work can be found at: www.hse.gov.uk/agriculture/secondment.htm, and to further his research aimed at discovering ways of eliminating accidents to children in this environment, people in farming are urged to take part in 2 surveys which can be completed on-line at the HSE website. Alternatively, the surveys can be download as Word documents, and returned by post, fax or e-mail to Mike Walters, c/o HSE, International House, Dover Place, ASHFORD, Kent TN23 1HU. Fax: 01233-634827 or e-mail mike.walters@hse.gsi.gov.uk .
"Part of my research during my secondment is to examine current attitudes towards child safety, and formal and informal arrangements for childcare provision in rural communities. To help give a fuller picture on these very important issues I'm inviting members of the farming community to complete two surveys. The first is designed to help try and solve the difficulties faced by farming families in relation to childcare. The second is an investigation into the awareness of the farming community of the risks faced by children on farms and to see what current action has been taken to control some of the identified key risks.
These surveys provide an opportunity for all of us involved in agriculture to seek solutions to reduce the number of incidents on farms involving young children." - Health & Safety Executive (HSE) inspector, Mike Walters, currently seconded to the Transport & General Workers Union (TGWU).
"Farms are workplaces NOT playgrounds. Mike's surveys are vital to the TGWU's campaign to keep death and injury off the farm. I hope there is a big take up of the surveys by the farming community." - Chris Kaufman, TGWU National Secretary, Food & Agriculture.
HSENI INVESTIGATES RAILWAY EMPLOYEE FATALITY
Posted Saturday, August 14, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Officials of Northern Ireland's HSE are investigating last weekend's death of Nigel Shiels, 36, a train conductor employed by Translink who it appears fell accidentally from a train near City of Derry Airport, Co. Londonderry.
It is reported that investigators have the benefit of CCTV footage, and there has been speculation that Mr Shiels fell out while closing a door.
LPG FUELLED STAGE EFFECTS
Posted Saturday, August 14, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Information has been published on the HSE website concerning standards that enforcement officers will expect in establishments where LPG (usually propane) fired stage flame effects are present for use in concerts and theatrical performances. This equipment creates a significant risk of fire or explosion, either as a result of a failure of these units or because of a fire elsewhere in the venue affecting the units.
The information is in the form of a local authority circular Safe use of LPG fired stage flame effects which explains what is expected and that failure to follow recommendations may result in enforcement action. In particular it discusses the requirements for risk assessment, operator training, the need to meet the requirements of The Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations 2002 (DSEAR), The Pressure Systems Safety Regulations 2000 (PSSR), CE marking and many other specific technical matters.
REVERSING DELIVERY VEHICLE FATALLY INJURED SENIOR CITIZEN
Posted Saturday, August 14, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Ben Glass, a senior citizen, was struck and killed by a reversing delivery vehicle in Golders Hill Park on 10th March 2003. HSE investigation resulted in the prosecution of park owners, Corporation of London, who pleaded guilty at Marylebone Magistrates Court to breaching of S.3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 in the circumstances of the tragic accident.
Last week the Corporation was fined £80,000 with costs of £8,687 at Blackfriars Crown Court.
"I hope this sends out a clear message to all operators of parks or other public open spaces that they need to control vehicle manoeuvring on their premises, and, where possible, eliminate the need for vehicles to reverse. Where vehicles have to reverse, then a banksman should be used to guide the vehicle back and keep pedestrians clear." - Mark Farrell, HSE inspector.
MVR WORKPLACE BECOMING INCREASINGLY DANGEROUS
Posted Saturday, August 14, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
The frequency of fatal injuries occurring in local authority-enforced motor vehicle repair (MVR) activity is an alarming feature of the recently collated statistics for 2003/04 showing 8 workers losing their lives with a further 6 deaths occurring thus far in the current reporting year.
The UK MVR industry employs around 170,000 persons in about 44,000 enterprises and is dominated by small and medium-sized companies, over half the workforce employed in either zero-employee enterprises e.g. sole traders or partnerships, or businesses employing less than 10 people.
The 8 workers who died in 2003/04 lost their lives in the following ways: 3 fatal incidents caused by workers being struck by a moving vehicle because the handbrake had been left off; a mechanic died when another vehicle travelling along the motorway struck the vehicle he was working on; 3 employees were crushed to death while working under vehicles, in one case at the roadside and in another when the vehicle fell off a raised two-post vehicle lift; and one in a fire resulting from the mishandling of petrol where an apprentice mechanic died after being engulfed in flames.
HSE publishes specific health and safety advise for the MVR sector at http://www.hse.gov.uk/mvr .
"All of these deaths were avoidable. Simple things such as leaving parked vehicles with their handbrakes on or ensuring that vehicles were properly supported before going underneath them could be enough to save a life. Precautions to prevent almost all types of accidents in MVR are often simple and inexpensive.
Sadly, there have been a further 6 deaths in the first 4 months of this year, 3 of them in separate fires or explosions to self-employed workers and involving the ignition of petrol vapours.
The death toll in the MVR industry is unacceptable. Everyone must work harder to ensure that the appropriate measures are in place to prevent further tragedies.
The HSE and representatives from the industry have been working together to publish best practice solutions. If businesses bookmark HSE's MVR website as one of their favourites they will be 'just one click away from health and safety advice' to prevent accidents and ill health in the industry". - John Powell, HSE's Manufacturing Sector and Chair of the MVR Health and Safety Forum.
CCA CONFERENCE FOR SCOTLAND
Posted Saturday, August 14, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
The Centre for Corporate Accountability is to hold its second major conference in Scotland on the 2nd October 2004 at Glasgow's Moir Hall/ Mitchell Theatre complex.
Prominent speakers include a Scottish Minister, senior officials from the HSE, Crown Office, trade unions and safety activists. The event will consider a range of important developments including homicide law, the proposals for investigating work-related deaths and the adequacy of Fatal Accident Inquiries.
For full conference details and registration form visit the CCA website.
GOVERNMENT TARGETING DRINK AND DRUG DRIVING
Posted Saturday, August 14, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Speaking at the International Conference on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety (ICADTS) in Glasgow earlier this week Road Safety Minister, David Jamieson, spoke of the government's commitment to further reduce UK road casualties.
In particular he outlined measures to curb drink and drug driving, namely:
trials of alcohol locks - devices fitted to the car which require the driver to provide an alcohol-free breath sample before the car will start; evidential roadside breath test - meaning that the breath test taken at the side of the road can be used as evidence, rather than a blood test taken later; continuation of the successful Think! anti-drink-driving campaigns; wider use of field impairment testing - roadside tests to help police to judge whether a driver may be impaired; technology to detect the presence of drugs at the roadside is being developed; continued targeted publicity to inform people of the dangers of driving while impaired by drugs.
"The UK generally has a good road safety record, but on average 10 people are killed and 100 seriously injured every day - with about one in 6 of these as a result of drink-driving. We must reduce that number.
There is a lot that we are doing in many aspects of road safety, but this conference places prominence on the dangers of drink and drug-driving. These are areas of concern. Drink-driving, and the casualties it causes, has reduced considerably over the last 30 years, but there is a small core of people who continue to drink and drive. This is a danger to them and all other road users.
Drug-driving is a newer problem, and considerably more complex. By co-operation and collaboration at events such as this we can make headway on dealing with the problem. But we must continue to educate people that if you're using drugs you must not drive, and we will continue our enforcement and severe penalties against those people who do." - David Jamieson, Road Safety Minister.
DISAPPOINTMENT EXPRESSED OVER OFFSHORE HEALTH AND SAFETY PERFORMANCE
Posted Saturday, August 14, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
The HSE's Offshore Safety Statistics Bulletin 2003/04, providing provisional health and safety figures for the period between 1 April 2003 and 31 March 2004, show 'an unacceptable slow decline in fatal and major injury rates' according to the regulator.
The statistics disclose, with comparisons for the previous year:
3 fatal accidents, up 3
48 major injuries, down 16;
102 over-3-day injuries, down 18;
the combined fatal and major injury rate decreased to 271.4 per 100,000 workers, down from 310.4
the over-3-day injury rate declined from 582 per 100,000 workers in 2002/03 to 542.8 in 2003/04;
13 cases of ill health, down 6;
543 reported dangerous occurrences, down 92.
The provisional offshore population figure calculated from the Inland Revenue survey shows a 9% decrease on the previous year, 18,793 as opposed to 20,619 for 2002/2003.
WORKING HARDER
HSE says it will work even harder with the offshore industry to speed the decline in fatal and major injury rates, other prominent persons in the industry share HSE concern and impatience.
Graham Tran, Regional Officer of Amicus commented: "The statistics in relation to fatalities and major incidents/accidents are wholly unacceptable. It is important that the reasons behind these statistics are identified and addressed as a matter of urgency to ensure that there is no repetition. I therefore welcome the HSE's approach in putting in place a more rigorous programme of work to restore improvements throughout the sector. However, I would question if they have the resources to carry this out effectively."
Alison Goligher, Chair of the Step Change in Safety initiative, found a measure of comfort in some aspects of the figures: "The reversal in the trend of major injuries is a positive outcome. However we have performed better in previous years and must really do significantly better in the years ahead. Slightly more promising is the continued improvement in the over-3-day injuries rate which continues to improve despite a small decrease in the number of workers."
Touching on the levels of reporting, she said: "Step Change is working to provide an increasingly positive environment for workers to openly report incidents offshore, and while there may remain a few areas still to reach acceptable levels, we must continue the momentum in this area to ensure that everyone feels comfortable to speak freely about their concerns."
HSE has created a new Offshore Industry website area.
Taf Powell, Head of HSE's Offshore Division comments at length on the industry's health and safety performance record disclosed by the Offshore Safety Statistics Bulletin 2003/04
"Last year was a bad one for fatal accidents: 3 men were killed bringing the total number of work related deaths offshore to 10 since 6 January 2000. Furthermore the combined rate of fatal and major incident accidents has declined by less than 10% in the past 5 years, and has been lower than today's results on 2 previous occasions over this period. This is unacceptable and I know the industry agrees."
UNDER-REPORTING
"Under-reporting from the sector, non-reporting by individuals to their employers and contractors reporting from onshore offices could be some of the reasons behind these low figures. However, the information we receive under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) is now supplemented by information in the offshore industry's own reporting scheme set up by Step Change in Safety. This gives further insight into work-related ill health in the sector, including matters not covered by RIDDOR."
PERFORMANCE
"Oil and gas escapes are one of the strongest indicators of integrity of offshore installations and my inspectors are now working even harder with industry on a programme of work to restore the improvements in rates of hydrocarbon escapes we have seen in the previous few years.
The rate of major injury accidents is in fact 25% lower than last year but because total numbers are low, longer term trends are a more statistically reliable guide to performance, which is why I have to draw attention to the fact that the long term rate of more serious accidents is both high, and flat. Encouragingly, the downward trend in over-3-day injuries continues to decline steeply, and dangerous incidents also continue to fall, but more gently.
We are considering why, over the past 5 years there has been a continual change in the ratio of minor to serious accidents. A much bigger percentage of reported incidents are now fatal or major injuries than 5 years ago. This ratio change could be due to the changing nature of work offshore or a change in reporting standards - either way we need to fully understand the reasons behind it."
CAPABILITY AND COMMITMENT EXISTS
"HSE will be working with industry to answer these key questions and will report back before the end of the year. This industry has the capability and commitment to secure much greater improvements in incident rates, and it is in the economic interest of the industry, and Britain, that it succeeds. HSE has been fairly upbeat in its assessment of a general improvement in health and safety in recent years and the potential to get better - this potential still exists. I base this on the apparent strong improvement in over-3-day and dangerous occurrences and the commitment of senior industry managers - with all the resources they command - to work in partnership with Government and worker representatives to make Britain the world's safest offshore sector by 2010."
LEARNING, SHARING, MOVING FORWARD - ROSPA SCOTLAND
Posted Saturday, August 14, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
This year's RoSPA Scotland event on 15/16thSeptember 2004 in Glasgow
has the theme ‘Learning, Sharing, Moving Forward’ and as always provides an opportunity for the country's health and safety community to network, explore new directions and learn of the latest innovative solutions that can be employed to save lives and safeguard health in the workplace. Delegates can learn of developments on issues such as the role Employers’ Compulsory Liability Insurance can play in raising standards; embedding health and safety management in business education; compensation and rehabilitation; work- related road safety; slips, trips and falls; team-based approaches to health and safety management; health at work; managing asbestos in buildings and promoting healthy working lives.
For more information including booking details visit RoSPA Scotland Safety & Health at Work Congress 2004.
COCKLERS COURTING FURTHER DISASTER
Posted Saturday, August 14, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Last Saturday's incident involving cockling activity in Morecambe Bay apparently placed scores of lives at risk, according to Liverpool Coastguard who were alerted by phone call that a collision between 2 vehicle tractors had occurred 4 miles out from the shoreline. One vehicle trailer was carrying 60 Scottish cocklers whilst the second trailer was carrying 76 Chinese cocklers. The rescue was accomplished by two hovercraft, two rescue helicopters and inshore and all- weather lifeboats.
Liverpool Coastguard's Watch Manager, Paul Parkes, explained that the
group had splintered into various smaller groups making their way back and required the rescue units to round them up.
At least 21 Chinese cocklers drowned in February, and since then the emergency services have rescued cocklers on many occasions.
Last year a multi-agency operation on the Wirral Peninsula, between Thurstaston and Heswall gave an insight into the nature of the industry, netting 80 suspected fraudsters and featured 2 arrests; 47 vehicles without road tax; 48 vehicles which were unroadworthy and were served with prohibition notices; and a 10-tonne lorry found with a tank full of red diesel which was impounded.
RUBBER INDUSTRY ALERTED TO CHANGE IN GUIDANCE
Posted Saturday, August 14, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
In the rubber manufacturing industry calenders are used to achieve thickness and create different finishes in rubber, achieving this by running the material under pressure through horizontal rollers, giving rise to the potential for injury when material is threaded into the rollers. Fingers, hands or arms can become trapped, now the HSE has issued supplementary guidance detailing the safeguards required for threading up calenders in the rubber industry.
The supplementary advice applies to calenders installed before 1998, revising guidance first published by The Rubber Industry Advisory Committee (RUBIAC). The guidance on threading in RUBIAC's original Safeguarding of Calenders in the Rubber Industry was found to be impractical for most calenders that predate the publication and the guidance was routinely ignored, and now the single page amendment to the specific section covering threading is available and can be obtained, free of charge, from HSE's Manufacturing Sector at Marshalls Mill, Marshall Street, Leeds LS11 9YJ or e-mail - Rubiac Area14@hse.gsi.gov.uk . The remaining parts of Safeguarding of Calenders in the Rubber Industry, ISBN 0 7176 1456 5, price £6.00, are unaltered and it is available from HSE Books .
EAST ANGLIA WWT VAN ON THE MOVE
Posted Saturday, August 14, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
The East Anglia Working Well Together (WWT) group's first regional White Van Roadshow is on the move taking a health and safety message throughout the region to smaller construction sites (fewer than 50 workers). The group comprises a partnership between the WWTC, members of the East Anglia WWT group, the construction industry and the HSE, and aims to raise awareness of the biggest dangers on construction sites and how to deal with them.
This initial tour lasts all of this week and is to be followed up with further tours planned for September, October, November and December.
The Roadshow features a 10-minute health and safety video, highlighting the areas of greatest risk on site - the High 5 - and how to stay safe and healthy. Nationally WWT is the country's largest construction health and safety campaign, with over 4,000 participating organisations.
In East Anglia the WWT Group members include Persimmon Homes; Tamdown; RG Carter; CITB; Contain; Proflat Roofing; Maygurney; Pretty's Solicitors; Barnes Group; Bizz Safe; Countryside Properties; Bovis Lendlease; UCATT; Knight Group; John F Hunt; Taylor Woodrow; Kier and Jackson Construction.
"HSE is delighted to support the East Anglia WWT group's regional initiative. We want everyone in the industry, whether they work on a large or small site, to be aware of how to stay healthy and safe on site. The White Van campaign is a step in the right direction" - Patricia Dair, HSE Principal Inspector.
NEW FIREWORKS REGIME FOR ENGLAND AND WALES
Posted Wednesday, August 11, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
From Saturday 7th August, new fireworks' laws took effect in England and Wales. It is now illegal to discharge fireworks between 11pm and 7am and for retailers to sell fireworks that are louder than 120db. Suppliers who sell fireworks all year round will in future need to apply for a licence from their local authority, other suppliers, such as newsagents, are limited in the periods when they can sell fireworks.
On 5th November the 'curfew' will begin at midnight, the start of the curfew will be later for some occasions during the year when fireworks are normally used for traditional or cultural events such as Diwali Night, the Chinese New Year and New Year's Eve, when it will not start until 1am.
On January 1st 2005 the new licensing system for those supplying fireworks all year round, whether retail or wholesale, and improved controls on the import of fireworks, will come into force.
The legislative change makes permanent the emergency Fireworks Regulations 2003 under which it is an offence for under 18s to possess fireworks in a public place and for anyone other than a fireworks professional to possess category 4 fireworks.
MUD ON ROAD LED TO FATAL ACCIDENT
Posted Wednesday, August 11, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Foundation Developments Ltd (FDL), of Clarendon Road, Wallington, Surrey, and Exterior International Plc, of Appold Street, London EC2A, have pleaded guilty to breaching S.3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act etc 1974 in the circumstances surrounding the death of Mark Lewis, 21, who sustained his injuries in a road traffic accident during February 1999.
FDL had been hired by the principal contractor Exterior to remove a large volume of material from the Lakeshore development at Bedfont Lakes, Middlesex, but trucks used to remove the material were leaving deposits of clay on the road. The road cleaner FDL used was unable to clean the mud away, and Mr Lewis was driving along Bedfont Road when his car skidded on the mud from the site and crashed into an oncoming delivery van.
At Isleworth Crown Court, London FDL and Exterior International Plc, of Appold Street, London EC2A, were each fined £20,000 and both ordered to pay £30,000 costs.
CONTRACTOR DID NOT WARN YOUNG WORKFORCE OF ASBESTOS RISK
Posted Wednesday, August 11, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Contractor Dalebrick Ltd of Nuneaton and its officers have been prosecuted and fined for a range of serious breaches of health and safety legislation during its conduct of clearing and stripping works 3 years ago on premises on New John Street West, Birmingham, prior to their development.
Dalebrick hired 5 persons ranging in age from 16 to 26 on a temporary basis and a foremen for the contract, giving them no information about the risk of asbestos on site. After almost 5 weeks the team walked off site.
A second team comprising 4 men and the same foreman were hired to replace them, but after 2 days an HSE inspector intervened to stop work having been alerted by one of the original workers.
The inspector discovered the site lacked adequate welfare facilities, having neither lavatories nor running water. Critically, there had been a failure to provide a safe system of work for the removal of asbestos-containing materials.
DISQUALIFIED FROM HOLDING DIRECTORSHIPS
Dalebrick Ltd pleaded guilty to breaching:
Ss.2(1) and 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 (HSW);
r.3(1) of the Asbestos (Licensing) Regulations 1983 (ALR)¹; and
r.17(1a) Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations 1987 (CAWR)²,
for which it was fined £50,000 for each offence, and ordered to pay £65,000 costs.
Mr Morris Edward Williams pleaded guilty to breaching:
Ss 2(1) and 3(1) of the HSW Act;
r.3(1) of the ALR; and
r.17(1a) CAWR,
for which he was fined £10,000 for each offence, ordered to pay £10,000 costs, and disqualified from holding any directorship for a period of two years from 3 August 2004.
Ms Joanne Carroll pleaded guilty to breaching:
S.s 2(1) and 3(1) of the HSW Act for which she was fined £2,500 for each offence, ordered to pay £500 costs, and was also disqualified from holding any directorship for a period of one year from 3 August 2004.
HSE has published information on asbestos on its website at: http://www.hse.gov.uk/asbestos/index.htm .
CHARGES
The asbestos legislation charges were as follows:
¹ r.3(1) of the Asbestos (Licensing) Regulations 1983 (ALR) - Carrying out work with asbestos without a licence, contrary to r.3(1) of the ALR in that, between the 22nd day of August 2001 and the 27th day of September 2001, work was undertaken with asbestos insulation, asbestos coating and asbestos insulation board at premises at 401-414 New John Street West, Birmingham without holding a licence relating to such work.
² r.17(1)(a) of the Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations 1987 (CAWR) - in that, during the above period, it failed to ensure that adequate washing and changing facilities were made available to their employees and persons under their control who were exposed to asbestos during works for the removal of asbestos at the above premises.
"This one of the worst situations I have come across, not only in the relation to the asbestos risks, but because work was allowed to go ahead despite the concerns of the workforce.
There were serious breaches of health and safety law and these attracted serious fines. The law requires work with asbestos to be done safely and there is published guidance available to help achieve compliance. HSE is grateful to the worker who, realising that the conditions were not right, alerted us to the problem. Had he not done so, this work could have gone on for much longer. " - Pam Folsom, HSE inspector.
GUILLOTINE REMOVED WORKER'S FINGERS
Posted Wednesday, August 11, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
In January this year Inderjit Sandhu lost 3 fingers to a packaging machinery's guillotine blade as she reached forward to cut film on a problematic production line. Surgeons restored two of Ms Sandhu's fingers but she is left with a degree of disability in that hand.
Her employers, Mission Foods of Coventry Business Park in Canley, Coventry, permitted the line to operate without it being fully guarded and as a consequence were in breach of health and safety legislation for which they were fined £10,000 by Coventry Magistrates' Court. The equipment should have stopped automatically when her hand approached the blade.
ISO TO GUIDE ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
Posted Wednesday, August 11, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
The International Standards Organisation (ISO) is to publish a guidance document on social responsibility which it says will be written in plain language', 'be understandable and usable by non-specialists' but 'not intended for use in certification purposes.'
To develop the standard, ISO is setting up a new working group of experts reporting directly to ISO's Technical Management Board.
"ISO's decision is based on a thorough analysis of trends and initiatives relating to social responsibility and the active involvement of all interested groups of stakeholders. The consensus achieved on the way forward for an ISO contribution illustrates the broadening of the scope of our work and the recognition that today, ISO not only provides a growing portfolio of technical standards, but may also supply solutions and guidance on social and environmental issues in the global economy. This new venture is obviously of great interest to stakeholder groups such as consumers, NGO's, labour and regulators whose participation and input ISO both needs and values." -General Alan Bryden, ISO Secretary.
ARC WELDING & SKIN CANCER
Posted Wednesday, August 11, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
The Medical Journal of Australia has published a review study that sets out to consider whether it is possible that non-solar sources of UVR (such as arc welding) may also cause cancer. Studies have demonstrated that welding increases the risk of ocular melanoma. Arc welding and skin cancer can be accessed through The Medical Journal of Australia web site.
TOPPLING GOAL FRAME KILLS IRISH BOY
Posted Wednesday, August 11, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Andrew Fitzgerald, 10, of Limerick, Rep. of Ireland, was killed last week after being struck on the head by a falling goal frame as he participated in a football camp at Bruff.
According to one account a shooting practice net cover blew up against the frame pushing it over.
NURSING HOME WORKER FELL ON TO KNIFE
Posted Wednesday, August 11, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
An inquest jury considering the tragic July 2003 event at Brockwell Nursing Home, Consett, Co Durham, in which Linda Hayes, 51, lost her life in a workplace accident has determined a verdict of accidental death at Durham Magistrates' Court. Mrs Hayes fell in the kitchen of the home inflicting what proved to be a fatal blow from a knife she was holding at the time which severed an artery in her neck, probably as a result of a trip or 'blackout' rather than a slip in the view of an expert HSE official.
AGRICULTURE BLITZ WILL PUT SULPHURIC ACID SPRAYING OPERATIONS UNDER SCRUTINY
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
It is the practice of potato farmers or their contractors to treat potato foliage during summer months with sulphuric acid, an operation not without hazards. Last year a spraying contractor was fined £3,000 with £500 costs following an incident in Staffordshire in which a member of the public whose house was close to a potato field was not notified that sulphuric acid was being sprayed. Farmers or their contractors need to notify people who occupy premises within 25m of the boundary of potato fields and put up warning signs on roads and footpaths before commencing spraying.
To remind all involved the HSE has sent a checklist to known local farmers and contractors and is publicising a forthcoming blitz of potato farms in Shropshire and Staffordshire.
To help further, the comprehensive Code of Safe Practice on the use of sulphuric acid has been produced by the National Association of Agricultural Contractors.
"In view of complaints and incidents we have had to deal with in past years we know what can go wrong, but as this is a yearly activity, farmers and contractors have no excuse for not having worked out safe procedures.
Inspectors will take a firm enforcement line if they find those responsible are not complying with their legal obligations." - Dr Phil Smith, HM Principal Inspector for Agriculture in Shropshire and Staffordshire.
ASSESSING RISKS ON BOARD FISHING VESSELS
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Fishing as a living is undoubtedly a hazardous occupation, an estimated 24,000 fishermen around the world are killed each year. It is the single most dangerous work activity in the European Union in terms of fatal accidents.
What is believed to be the first safety and health guide for small fishing vessels, factsheet No. 38, Risk Assessment for Small Fishing Vessels, has been published by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, complementing its new web feature on good practice in the fisheries sector.
The guide includes a step-by-step guide to assessing and preventing on board risks, eg: falls overboard; musculoskeletal disorders; and
environmental hazards, such as excessive exposure to water.
"Dramatic incidents remind us again and again of the occupational health risks in the fisheries sector, the single most dangerous work activity in the European Union in terms of fatal accidents. But accidents and ill-health levels can be reduced considerably.
Conducting a risk assessment is an essential first step fishing captains must take in order to eliminate these problems. Once the hazards are identified and prioritised, there are numerous tried and tested solutions to efficiently manage the risks, many available via our new fisheries website." - ’ Hans-Horst Konkolewsky, Agency’s Director.
WEST NILE VIRUS NO RESPECTER OF BOUNDARIES
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
During 1999 an outbreak of West Nile virus occurred in the city of New York from where it spread quickly across the United States killing 284 people in one year. The Department of Health takes the view that an outbreak of West Nile virus (WNV) in the United Kingdom is unlikely but, in the event of this happening, there is now in place a WNV virus contingency plan to protect the public’s health defining the roles and responsibilities of the parties who would be involved in tackling the disease in the event of a UK-acquired case of infection. The chances of an outbreak may increase as a result of climate change, long-haul travel and changes in land-use.
WNV
WNV may be transmitted from certain species of animal to humans by mosquitoes. It is known to be transmitted to birds by the bite of infected mosquitoes, the virus circulates and multiplies in the bird's bloodstream, and is picked up by other mosquitoes that bite the infected bird. Those insects can in turn infect other animals and humans.
The contingency plan features the control of mosquitoes using pesticides regulated by HSE. In order to facilitate such activity, Ministers have considered certain specific products and the active ingredients that they contain, and agreed their use as part of a WNV control plan, subject to particular conditions of use. Ministers have therefore extended the approval of certain pesticide products containing particular active ingredients.
HOTEL FINED FOR KEEPING COMBUSTIBLE MATERIAL IN PASSAGE
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
In April 2001 William Robertson, 75, and his wife Margaret, 81, perished in an outbreak of fire while resident at Bolton's Moat House Hotel.
Operators ESB Hotels Ltd, part of the Queens Moat House Group, admitted their failure in the circumstances of the tragedy to meet the requirements of fire safety legislation in respect of means of escape. The fire was started by an employee who ignited bedding material on the first floor.
At Bolton Crown Court ESB was fined £400,000 with £11,000 costs.
WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY SAFE?
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
A report, produced by the National Radiological Protection Board's (NRPB) Radiation, Risk and Society Advisory Group and derived from the conclusions of a seminar, examines what should be perceived by the public to be the meaning of the terms related to the concept of risk, for example 'precautionary approach', the 'precautionary principle', and 'safe', helping to pin them down to a precise meaning.
The report, In Terms of Risk, also looks at the role of those deemed to be experts in assessing risks, such as public authorities and bodies like NRPB, and how they can be observed to be open, transparent and impartial when dealing with these issues.
YOUNG EMPLOYEE PUT HAND IN EQUIPMENT DANGER ZONE
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Sunlight Service Group Ltd has been fined £32,000 with £1,600 costs after pleading guilty at South Derbyshire Magistrates' Court to breaching health and safety legislation, failing to provide a safe system of work for employees at its Duffield industrial laundry in Derbyshire.
HSE prosecution followed the incident last year in which Carl Cunningham, 17, a new employee, sustained a hand injury reaching for an object in an inadequately guarded zone between two conveyors.
Investigation revealed the standard of supervision of the young employee was inadequate and he had also worked without the benefit of knowledge of the risks he faced as a consequence of not having been informed of the outcome of a risk assessment for the activity.
QUAD BIKE CHECKS ON FARMS
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
HSE has the safety of quad bikes users in mind as they begin inspection visits to Northumberland's Allendale, Hexham and Bellingham districts to improve safety in the use of these vehicles. They will make enquiries that riders have been adequately trained, wear suitable head protection, and that their vehicles are properly maintained, particularly regarding tyre pressures, brakes and steering. The visits will include dealerships who supply quad bikes to assess the safety information provided to customers.
HSE guidance is available in Agriculture Information Sheet No. 33 - ATV safety.
"This initiative follows a similar one we did last year in Teesdale and Weardale. The main deficiencies we found then were ATV users not wearing suitable head protection and not being adequately trained. Where appropriate during the blitz we will be prepared to take enforcement action, including issuing Prohibition and Improvement Notices, and I would urge farmers to ensure that they and their equipment meet the required safety standards."- Peter Dodman, HSE's Principal Inspector agriculture.
WORKMAN'S FATAL FALL FROM UNGUARDED PLATFORM
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Mark Butler arrived on the construction site for the development of buildings in Fitzroy Square, London on 9 October 2000. He was employed as a heating engineer and using an unguarded ladder accessed a half platform to measure for an installation, at which point he fell 2.4 metres to a basement below. Mr Butler died 12 days later from his injuries, the platform had no edge protection, nor had the area been designated an exclusion zone.
Developer Cherren III of Brook Street, London, who was also Principal Contractor for the development, pleaded guilty to breaching S.3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, in that it failed to ensure persons not in their employment, including Mark Butler, were not exposed to risks to their safety for which it was fined £75,000 with £25,000 costs at Southwark Crown Court, London. Investigation had established that Cherren III had not carried out a risk assessment for the area in which Mr Butler was working.
“The sad death of Mr Butler was easily avoidable. Property developers who act as principal contractors have a responsibility to ensure that adequate arrangements are made for the daily management of health and safety on their construction sites. Cherren III neglected the safety of people working on the site. This is the type of incident that needs to be prevented if the construction industry is to improve its safety record. As figures published today indicate, falls from height still account for over half of all fatalities in construction. The safeguards needed are straightforward and easy to put in place. Experience shows these events usually arise from poor management control rather than because of equipment failure. Wherever anyone could fall more than 2 metres the first line of defence is to provide adequate edge protection.” - Michael La Rose, HSE inspector.
NANOSCIENCE AND NANOTECHNOLOGY - A THREAT TO WORKPLACE HEALTH?
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
A report by The Royal Society & The Royal Academy of Engineering - Nanoscience and nanotechnologies: opportunities and uncertainties, that considered the implications of the technology, suggests that any health, safety and environmental hazards of nanotechnologies are restricted to discrete manufactured nanoparticles and nanotubes in a free rather than embedded form.
It recommends that:
the HSE reviews the adequacy of its regulation of exposure to nanoparticles, and in particular considers the relative advantages of measurement on the basis of mass and number; and HSE should consider setting lower occupational exposure levels for manufactured nanoparticles.
The Government commissioned the report's authors to discover whether nanotechnology raises or is likely to raise new ethical, health and safety or social issues not covered by current regulation. The study defined what is meant by nanoscience and nanotechnology, summarises the current state of scientific knowledge about nanotechnology.
Nanoscience: the study of phenomena and manipulation of materials at atomic, molecular and macromolecular scales, where properties of matter differ significantly from those at a larger scale.
SHARP DROP IN SCOTTISH WORKPLACE DEATHS
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
HSE-published statistics for Scottish workplace fatal injuries show a drop from 37 to 18 in 2003/04 which HSE suggests is the lowest ever recorded.
During recent years a marked and worrying trend had set Scotland aside from the rest of the UK as a relatively more dangerous place to work, but now the rate has fallen from 1.25 to 0.54 deaths per 100,000 employees, compared with 0.67 in Great Britain. However the tragic event at the ICL Plastics factory in Glasgow in May in which 9 lives were lost is not included in this year's figures.
Statistics of Fatal Injuries 2003/04 reveal of the 18 fatal injuries in Scotland:
4 were in construction (11 in 2002/03);
4 in manufacturing (4 in 2002/03);
4 in the extractive and utility industries (1 in 2002/03);
3 in the services sector (9 in 2002/03) and
3 in the agricultural sector (all self-employed, 12 in 2002/03).
"The drop in Scottish deaths to an 8 year low is very welcome news but there can be no room for complacency. The construction and agricultural sectors have had historically higher fatal injury rates and it is encouraging to see a reduction to only 7 deaths in these 2 sectors in Scotland this year compared to 23 in the previous year although one death is still one too many.
We need to continue our work with employers, employees, and other stakeholders including the Scottish Executive to better understand the causes of fatal injuries in the workplace. This, together with independent research commissioned by the HSE into construction accident patterns will help ensure better targeting of prevention programmes to reduce the number of deaths across Scotland in the future." - Stewart Campbell, HSE Director for Scotland.
FATAL INJURIES UP BY 4%
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
HSC/E-published statistics of fatal injuries - Statistics of Fatal Injuries 2003/2004 in HSE and local authority (LA) enforced sectors show a rise in fatally injured workers of 4% to 235, there being a corresponding rise in the rate of fatal injury of 3% to 0.81 per 100,000 workers.
Scrutiny reveals:
9% of all fatal injuries to workers in 2003/04 occurred in one single incident when 21 people drowned while harvesting cockles at Morecambe Bay;
49% (114) of worker fatalities occurred in construction (70) and agriculture, forestry and fishing (44);
29% of fatal injuries to workers resulted from falling from a height, up from 50 to 67;
manufacturing continues to improve performance - the number of fatalities fell for the third consecutive year, from 43 in 2002/03 to 31 in 2003/04;
in extractive and utility supply industries there were 10 fatalities compared with 3 in 2002/03 and 14 in 2001/02 - the 10 deaths in 2003/04 occurred in the supply of gas and electricity (2); opencast coal working (2); the extraction of crude petroleum/natural gas (3); and other mining and quarrying (3).
371 members of the public were fatally injured in 2003/04 of which 240 resulted from acts of suicide or trespass on railways. For 2002/03, the corresponding figures were 396 and 257 respectively.
HSC Chairman Bill Callaghan comments at length on the latest statistics
235 INDIVIDUAL TRAGEDIES
“I am disappointed that there has been no improvement in the number of reported fatalities this year– behind these aggregate figures represent 235 individual tragedies. These can be avoided, but often simple measures, ones that can prevent accidents are not being put in place.
Clearly the results of this year’s report show falls from height remain a big safety problem, but incidents such as Morecambe Bay raise new issues. HSE has been working with industry to provide guidance in this area of work as the investigation continues. All workers whatever their nationality or employment status are subject to the protection and responsibilities of health and safety law."
FALL FROM HEIGHT
"Falls from height continue to account for a large proportion of fatal injuries to all workers amounting to 29% (67) of all incidents in 2003/04. This represents the first upturn in 3 years and the results confirm that fatal falls can and do occur across all sectors of industry with construction and services sectors presenting particular problems. Our falls from height programme will continue with a strategy of pilot projects and sector-based approaches aimed at maintaining the general downward trend. Implementation by the end of the year of the proposed Work at Height Regulations will feed other planned activity."
STRUCK BY A MOVING VEHICLES
“There were 70 construction fatalities this reporting year – no change from last year. However, employment has increased in construction and the fatal injury rate fell to 3.55 deaths per hundred thousand workers, the lowest level on record.
Being struck by a moving vehicle is also one of the common causes of fatality for workers, increasing from 39 to 44. Segregation of vehicles and pedestrians and reversing vehicles remain the most frequent hazards. However, we are developing and sharing best practice with industry and others to take action for safer vehicle design, selection and maintenance, better site layout and better driver training."
HSC/E COMMITTED TO BEING A GOOD PARTNER
“The fatal statistics are one part of a composite indicator that go to show the overall picture of British industry’s health and safety performance. Injury statistics, which are published later this year, will give further indications of how British industry is performing. These figures show that HSC/E’s chosen priorities, as set out in the strategy document are correct and that concentrating on these key hazards in the workplace is the right thing to do. HSE and local authorities are concentrating their efforts on clear priorities. I look now to our stakeholders to take action.
Great Britain has the second lowest rate of workplace fatalities in the European Union, beaten only by Sweden, but this should not be taken as a call for complacency. Most accidents can be easily prevented, though this needs the commitment of senior managers and the involvement of employees and the union representatives. These are the people who are best placed to achieve improvements. HSC/E are committed to being a good partner – working with others to improve health and safety, but this needs the support of industry to make sensible health and safety the cornerstone of a civilized society.“
CHALLENGING TIME FOR OFFSHORE INDUSTRY
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
This week sees the latest HSC Offshore Advisory Committee open session in Aberdeen, the meeting will allow those attending to catch up with the latest issues such as the progress made in the joint Government/Industry initiative, 'PILOT’, aiming to make the UK sector the safest place to work offshore by 2010.
Another topic will concern the importance of risk assessment in the offshore industry, this being covered by speaker Rab Wilson of Amicus trade union.
There will be an opportunity to participate in an offshore health and safety question and answer session, the top industry experts will be present.
This fifth annual open session takes place at 9.40 am at Lochter Fishery, Old Meldrum, Aberdeenshire, on Wednesday 4 August 2004, and it is part of the Step Change in Safety Combined Networks meeting. Places are limited, registration is necessary, Tel HSE, OIAC Secretariat: 020 7717 6707
“This is a challenging time for the industry with new companies moving into the UK sector. Now more than ever we need to build partnerships with all those within the industry who can help to improve health and safety standards. Developing closer partnerships – working with others to improve health and safety - is a key part of HSC’s strategy.
OIAC is grateful to Step Change for this opportunity to address the networks it has set up. This will be the first time OIAC has been able to interact directly with such a large and knowledgeable audience to discuss health and safety in the UK offshore sector.” - Stewart Campbell, the Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE) Executive Director for Scotland.
INDUSTRY WARNED ON CONFINED SPACE WORKING
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
For the second time in 12 months confined space tragedies have prompted HSE to warn industry that confined space working is extremely hazardous unless the correct controls are in place. This time the warning directed at those engaged in manufacturing, waste and recycling follows the death of 3 employees on a farm near Thetford who were asphyxiated in a slurry tank, overcome by carbon dioxide compounded by a lack of oxygen, resulting in drowning. Such atmospheres can result in people being quickly overcome with little or no warning, plunging the victims into unconsciousness.
In Hereford last month 2 employees died due to lack of oxygen whilst working in a 'pit' associated with a high-pressure special atmosphere furnace and in April a worker in West Thurrock died whilst welding the inside of a petrol tanker.
THE REGULATIONS
The Confined Spaces Regulations 1997 require employers to first try to avoid the need to enter a confined space. Where this is not possible, they must:
carry out an assessment of the risks associated with entering a confined space and draw up a safe system of work;
limit entry to the confined space to employees who are competent for confined space work and who have received suitable training;
verify, prior to entry, that the atmosphere in the confined space is safe to breathe;
provide any necessary ventilation; and
make sure suitable rescue arrangements are in place before anyone goes in to the confined space. These rescue arrangements should not involve risks to the safety of the people intended to carry out the rescue.
Safe work in confined spaces. Confined Spaces Regulations 1997 L101, price £7.50, ISBN 0 7176 1405 0, is available from HSE Books
"This latest incident highlights the risks common to all industries and everyone; employers, trade unions, and workers themselves, need to be alert to the dangers.
It is not as if the risks from confined spaces are new. Workers need to stop and think before they enter any confined space, even those with an open top. Toxic gases can build up or the space may contain little or no oxygen.
It is no good managers implementing a safe system of work and assuming employees will follow it. Workers need to be carefully trained and supervised by a competent manager. Senior management must carry out regular checks to be sure the correct procedures are always followed. Anything less is just not good enough and people will continue to die". - James Barrett, Head of HSE's Manufacturing Sector.
CONTROLLING RISKS AT COMPOSTING SITES
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
The Composting Association has produced updated guidance - Health and Safety at Composting Sites: A Guide for Site Managers on controlling the risks associated with the activity, advising on safe systems of work, work equipment, manual handling, exposure to bioaerosols, PPE, and health surveillance.
The publication costs £45 for members of the Composting Association and £65 for non-members, tel 0870 160 3270 for more information.
"The physical hazards associated with the operation of machinery can be relatively easily assessed and simple practical measures introduced. However, other hazards related to health, such as the dust and bioaerosols which composting activities create, are far less easy to identify.
We need to manage the challenges now to safeguard both those already employed in the industry, and the growing number of workers who will be required in the future. And, as the nature of these challenges evolves, we will revise this guide as necessary." - Jane Gilbert, chief executive of The Composting Association.
CUSTODIAL SENTENCE FOR MANAGING DIRECTOR
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Ben Pinkham, 21, sustained horrific 90% burns from which he died 5 days later when acetone vapour from the solvent he was using to clean a tank in February 2003 exploded when a lamp was knocked over. The tank was in Princess Yachts International Ltd's boat building premises in Coypool, Plymouth, and normally held resin. Mr Pinkham was unaware of the danger inherent in the chosen system of work within the confined space, was untrained, and was working without the benefit of controls derived from risk assessment.
Managing Director, Alan Mark, and his company, Nationwide Heating Systems Ltd, which was contracted for work on the tank, denied but were found guilty of the manslaughter of Mr Pinkham by gross negligence at Exeter Crown Court, for which he was handed a 12-month prison sentence. Mr Mark and his company also admitted several breaches of health and safety legislation.
Princess Yachts International Ltd was fined £90,000 with £10,000 costs.
COURT SAVAGES HAMPSHIRE COMPANY FOR LACK OF HEALTH AND SAFETY MANAGEMENT
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Prosecution has followed an incident last August in which an employee of an office furniture manufacturer fell a distance of 3 to 4 metres from a ladder whilst dismantling storage racking with colleagues.
Brian England, a delivery driver for SIG Trading Ltd at its Andover premises, was removing a top cross-beam when he fell and shattered a kneecap, as a result of which he suffers a degree of disability rendering him unable to work.
SIG Trading Ltd was fined £20,000 after pleading guilty to breaching S.2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 with prosecution costs of £2,259.40 at Andover Magistrates' Court.
SIG Trading Ltd is owned by SIG plc, it operates under the trading names of Screenbase and Komfort Office Environments and has a number of sites across the country where office screens and furniture are assembled.
"In delivering its sentence, the Court described as 'appalling' the 'slipshod' way in which the work was organised and carried out, and it put the blame for this squarely at the door of the management of the company. Despite a guilty plea, the Court saw fit to impose the maximum fine available to it.
The Magistrates' comments and the size of the fine send a strong message to businesses that they must manage health and safety properly and avoid needlessly putting their staff at risk. On this occasion, no risk assessment was carried out, no instruction or training was given to staff who lacked any experience of working at height, and there was no supervision of the work. Ladders should not be used to work from where it is possible to use safer access equipment, and on this occasion a work platform had been available on site. As a result, an employee suffered an injury that will affect him for the rest of his life." - Julian Moss, HM Inspector of Safety and Health.
B&Q FINED OVER SHOPPER'S DEATH
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Bournemouth Crown Court has fined B&Q Plc £550,000 with costs of £250,000 for breaching health and safety legislation in the circumstances surrounding the death of Pamela Hinchliffe, 68, in an accident at its Poole store in June 2001. Mrs Hinchliffe was struck by a reversing forklift truck and crushed against a shelving unit, she died later in hospital. The truck driver had been operating without the benefit of a banksman.
THE INSPECTION, REGULATION AND AUDITING OF THE HEALTHCARE ENVIRONMENT
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Several agencies, including the HSE, are now signatories to the new Healthcare Commission Concordat, Sandra Caldwell, HSE’s Director of Field Operations, remarked: "The healthcare industry is of vital importance to every citizen and HSE are determined to support service delivery by preventing accidents and reducing occupational sickness absence. We can only achieve this in partnership with all the other key bodies, concentrating on sensible health & safety improvements and avoiding disjointed initiatives. This Concordat is an important step in the right direction."
The Concordat Between Bodies Inspecting, Regulating & Auditing Healthcare and the Concordat Strategy for Delivery are available on the HSE website.
"HSE’s national programme for health services has concentrated on the health and safety risks that result in the greatest harm and the longest absences. This risk-based approach, integrated with other aspects of management and performance improvement, can make a real difference to healthcare delivery. The Concordat is a welcome opportunity to work in a more coordinated fashion with the signatory bodies under the leadership of the Healthcare Commission. The next 12 months will be a demanding period for all of us in turning this opportunity into demonstrable improvements." - Murray Devine, HSE’s Programme Manager for Healthcare.
LIFT CRUSHED EMPLOYEES TOES
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
Proprietors of a company who acquired new warehouse premises in Greenford, London, neglected to ensure that a lift there was properly maintained and safe to operate. During November last year employee Nishit Patel, 21, sustained crush injuries to his toes when they were pinched between the lift carriage and the lift shaft wall, as a consequence of which they had to be removed, resulting in a degree of disability.
At Acton Magistrates Court Hitesh Nathwani and Chunilal Nathwani, proprietors of V.B and Sons Ltd, pleaded guilty to breaching the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 in the circumstances of Mr Patel's accident for which it was fined £7,000 with £3,050 costs.
STORING PESTICIDES - GUIDANCE
Posted Tuesday, August 10, 2004 by Ahmed Khan
The Agriculture Information Sheet, Guidance on storing pesticides for farmers and other professional users (AIS16), is now available on the HSE website.
It describes the requirements likely to meet the legislation for storage relevant to: fixed stores including purpose-built stores;
converted existing buildings or parts of existing buildings; small scale storage in cabinets; mobile stores providing short-term storage away from base in vehicles, bowsers and sprayers etc; and storing small amounts of particular pesticides whose hazardous chemical properties require additional precautions to be taken.
Specific advice covers store construction, signage, converting existing structures eg shipping containers, and dealing with specific hazards such as moisture-activated gassing compounds and oxidising agents.
The guidance does not cover storing methyl bromide, storing pesticides by suppliers (which includes contractors who supply pesticides), nor transporting pesticides from suppliers to the end user for which you should consult the DEFRA Code of Practice for suppliers of pesticides to agriculture, horticulture and forestry (the Yellow Code).