Category Archives: Health and Safety


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International Women’s Day 2024

8 March 2023 marks International Women’s Day. It’s a day that celebrates ‘the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women’ whilst also calling for equality – where men and women are treated the same. No one government, country, charity or group is responsible for it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We hope you found this of interest. Here are some useful links

IWD: About International Women’s Day (internationalwomensday.com)

International Women’s Day 2024: UK Statement to the OSCE – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

International Women’s Day | World Vision UK

 

 

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Tackling exposure to airborne contaminants through LEV exhaust ventilation

The UK has a strong framework and reputation when it comes to health and safety and the approach towards airborne contaminants is no exception. In 2022, there was an estimated 19,000 new cases of breathing or lung problems made worse by work, according to the HSE.

What the law says

The primary legislation that addresses harmful airborne contaminants in the workplace is the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations (COSHH) which outlines that employers have a legal duty to access risks associated with hazardous substances and make decisions on what measures to use to protect the health of their employees. It is important that employers are engaged with airborne hazard safety not only for the health of their employees but to also avoid enforcement action.

How can workers be exposed to airborne contaminants?

As a result, some industries are more susceptible to the presence of harmful substances such as construction, manufacturing, and mining. Manufacturing roles such as brick and tile manufacture, ceramics and stone working and foundry work are particularly prone to harmful effects.

Airborne contaminants can occur from a variety of outputs depending on the occupational setting via substances such as dust, gases, fumes, mists, or vapours present in the air.

Even dusts created by foodstuffs that we consider to be safe can be hazardous, if there is continuous exposure. Output is often invisible to the naked eye, and workers are not aware that they are exposed.

What are the dangers of being exposed to these kinds of hazardous substances?

Every year, thousands of workers in the UK experience damaging lung-related effects from airborne contaminants such as lung cancer, asthma or lung scarring because of airborne contaminants they have breathed in at work. The severity of harmful effects will ultimately depend on duration, frequency and degree of exposure to the substances.

Is it difficult to control exposure to airborne contaminants?

As a result of the variety of airborne contaminant transmission and the often-imperceptible output, the HSE has identified a concerning trend: that employers are often unaware that their workers are being exposed to hazardous substances or that their existing controls may be insufficient.

This lack of awareness gives rise to several issues including the sources of exposure being missed, the deterioration of existing controls and incorrect utilisation of the implemented safeguards.

What is the process for installing LEV in the workplace?

There is a systematic approach to installing LEV in the workplace to make sure that it is fit for purpose and effective. All LEV systems must comply with the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 (HSWA) and the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH).

You must manage LEV risk assessment properly; Safety First carries out LEV inspection and testing in the workplace to help companies ensure that they are fully compliant with COSHH regulations. Our qualified occupational hygienists are experts in local exhaust ventilation systems. They will monitor and analyse system performance data, as well as perform qualitative evaluations on the control of potential contaminants. Measurements from the test results are compared with the original LEV specification and performance criteria outlined in HSG258.

How often do LEV systems need to be monitored and checked?

Regular inspections of LEV systems should take place to ensure the smooth running of the device.

Safety First’s LEV inspection and testing 

Safety First will produce reports and records that will assist your business in improving control measures, plus serve as evidence of your company’s compliance with COSHH regulations.

Contact us should you require further information.

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Safer Heights

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New stress campaign to help HGV drivers

Working Minds campaign will now target HGV drivers and their bosses to promote good mental health whilst at work. The Road Haulage Association (RHA) on Thursday 10 August joins as a campaign partner.

Health and Safety Executive (HSE) view is that more needs to be done to protect Britain’s truckers from work-related stress.

Long hours away from home, demanding delivery times and limited access to toilets and showers are common causes of stress for drivers.

As part of the campaign, when safe to do so, drivers can text “BeAMate” for free confidential health support 24/7 – a service provided by Working Minds campaign partner, Mates in Mind.

Material and advice from the Working Minds campaign for drivers and employers can be found here.

Mental Health Statistics

Mental health charity Mind revealed 30 per cent of work-related illness in the transport and logistics sector is due to stress, depression, and anxiety. One in four HGV drivers will experience mental health issues at some point throughout the year.*

Talking about mental health can be a struggle for many people, especially men, who make up 80 per cent of our industry’s workforce. Due to the stigma surrounding mental health, 95 per cent of workers calling in sick due to stress give a different reason to their manager. Mind also reports that 22 per cent of workers have been diagnosed with a mental health problem, but less than half have told their manager.*

Elizabeth Goodwill, from the HSE’s Stress and Mental Health Policy Team said: “HGV drivers keep the country and our economy moving. It’s therefore vital employers meet their legal duty to ensure risks of stress and mental ill health are factored into risk assessments.

“Initiatives such as ‘BeAMate’ are helpful for people needing individual help, but we would like to see more focus on preventing work-related stress at an organisational level, to stop it developing into poor mental health. We look forward to working with the Road Haulage Association and Mates in Mind to provide employers with the help they need to protect and support drivers.

Michelle Upson, a lorry driver who has been in the industry for more than three decades said: “I’d say there is a mental health problem in the industry. Especially for the guys up the road all week and without their families – it is a lot tougher for them.

“Most of the workforce is men and the age demographic is still high. I think they are less likely to talk about their mental health problems so promoting it is a good thing.”

Work-related stress is on the rise

HSE and the Working Minds campaign warns that the scale of work-related stress across the economy has increased in recent years. Stress, depression or anxiety is now the number one cause of work-related ill-health in Great Britain.

Within the transportation and storage sector as a whole (which includes road haulage), around four in ten cases of work-related ill-health are due to stress, depression or anxiety.

Text “BeAMate”: If you or someone you know needs help or support, you can use our “BeAMate” text support service. To use the service, simply text “BeAMate” to 85258 and trained volunteers can help with issues including anxiety, stress, loneliness or depression and are available 24/7.

Contact us for further advice.

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What is ISO 45001 and why should my business get certified?

whss 1The importance of health and safety in the workplace can never be underestimated. As well as being written into law, ensuring staff aren’t at risk of injury or illness is also an integral part of being a responsible employer.

Maybe one of the biggest drivers for employers to take workplace health and safety seriously is that it allows you to show your customers and employees that you are committed to a safer workplace. This is one of the many reasons why organisations invest in ISO 45001 certification, the internationally recognised Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S) Management System Standard, which sets out the requirements for an organisation to ensure a safe and healthy workplace and to prevent work-related accidents and illnesses.

ISO 45001 is a framework that helps businesses to raise the awareness of health and safety risks among their employees as well as create controls that help them to mitigate or remove these risks from the workplace. By doing so, employers can help to keep their staff happy, healthy and safe, reducing the likelihood of absenteeism, injury, mental ill health and breaches of legislation. Not only can this reduce staff turnover, but it can raise your business’ reputation in the marketplace and benefit your bottom line.”

Why should I get my business ISO 45001 certified?

ISO 45001 certification is a fantastic way of presenting your organisation’s commitment to providing a workplace in which the risk of illness and injury to your workers, community or clients is minimised.

Achieving this accreditation in order to make your organisation a safer place to work is also a fantastic way to boost productivity by reducing the number of disruptive incidents. It can also help to boost your workforce’s morale.

The benefits in seven key points: 

  • Establish controls to ensure legal compliance
  • Increase health & safety awareness
  • Enhance your reputation
  • Reduce absenteeism
  • Reduce insurance premiums
  • Improve management of H&S compliance issues
  • Enhance management of health & safety risks

The certification can be achieved by businesses of any size and it is suitable for all organisations that are looking to improve risk management, protect their reputation and drive productivity at work.

“A robust framework of health and safety processes has meant that businesses with ISO 45001 have had the procedures in place to quickly assess the new risk and its implications for the health and safety of their staff, as well as the means to communicate these risks and what the business planned to do to control them”

How can I gain ISO 45001 certification? What are the requirements? 

Gaining ISO 45001 certification is a straightforward process, but it does require you to have some things in place before you start. You also need to be willing to change certain processes if required to gain certification.

For example, you need to determine the internal and external factors that affect your business, communicate roles and responsibilities clearly and adapt/react to changes. Other key actions include:

  • Supporting staff with training and the provision of personal equipment, etc.
  • Assessing existing procedures, assessments and planning how to identify and respond to emergencies.
  • Evaluating your current health and safety performance.
  • Striving for continual improvement in pursuit of better performance.

What’s the most effective way of getting certified?

The most straightforward way to gain ISO certification is through the use of an experienced external party that can assist you in creating, implementing and certifying your ISO 45001 management system. This will help to ensure your organisation has adopted the right processes from the beginning in order to achieve certification quickly.

Contact us for further information.