Category Archives: Office Health and Safety

Maintaining high levels of hygiene should be an essential element of how any workplace operates. As an employer, the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 requires you to have a general duty to ensure the health, safety and welfare of all your employees, so far as is ‘reasonably practical.’

The issue of hygiene is a part of this legislation, so you need to be sure you are providing the facilities and information for your employees to create a hygienic and clean workplace.

Why is workplace hygiene important?

There are potential dangers for any workplace if there is little or no emphasis on why hygiene is important. Primary among these risks is the possibility of infection, whether it’s through poor personal hygiene, slapdash office cleaning or badly managed washroom facilities. You can prevent many of these problems by having a strategy for maintaining a hygienic workplace.

Personal hygiene

This refers to the habits, cleanliness and appearance of your employees. It can be a sensitive area for employers and managers, so an official policy can diffuse any awkwardness by setting down exactly what is expected from everyone. Depending on your business, there may be options to provide shower facilities if employees exercise before work or rely on a bike for transport, and you can ask that hair washing and grooming facial hair is a part of usual personal hygiene for work. Hand washing and the use of hand sanitisers are also key tools to help prevent the spread of illness.

Washroom facilities

Your policy on hygiene requirements should ensure that washrooms equipped with running cold and hot water are provided for all employees. You should also provide hand soap, toilet paper and towels for drying hands. This allows employees to attend to their personal hygiene when they have finished using the facilities. If you contract the cleaning of toilets and washrooms to an outside agency, you should be clear about the levels of cleanliness you require and how often cleaning should be done.

Kitchen

Kitchens can be a health risk if proper cleanliness is not observed. Any area where food is prepared or hot drinks are made should have a high level of cleaning, including preparation surfaces, utensils and cups, mugs, plates and cutlery, where provided. Your employees are entitled to complain if they consider there is a health risk through poor maintenance and cleaning of the kitchen area, but you can also encourage them to take responsibility to protect themselves and practice a good hygiene regime.

Office cleanliness

Employees should be encouraged to be responsible for cleaning and maintaining their own work areas or workstation. This can be part of your hygiene policy so everyone is aware of it and agrees with it. Surfaces can be cleaned with disinfectant to reduce the possibility of bacterial infection, and desks should be kept tidy and as clutter-free as possible. If employees have individual bins, it’s important to ensure these are emptied on a daily basis.

Good hygiene makes good sense

When your employees are aware of why it is important to have a hygienic workplace, they are more likely to follow your policy guidelines and create a pleasant and safe environment in which to do their jobs. If everyone is vigilant, sickness levels in the workplace can be significantly reduced.

Contact us should you require assistance.

Just like safety issues in the home, such as maintaining electrical appliances and protecting children from hazardous materials, a workplace needs adequate maintenance and protection to keep employees safe. Sensitive problems such as bullying can be addressed by training and the implementation of proactive management policies, but other common health and safety hazards that can have a serious physical impact need to be addressed by supplying the correct safety equipment. Here is a quick guide to what employers should be aware of to ensure workplace safety.  Continue reading →

Epilepsy is a neurological condition affecting around 600,000 people in the UK — so it’s essential that every employer knows how to help those with the condition. Health, safety and ergonomics consultants System Concepts lay out the 10 key actions to take.

What every employer needs to know

The majority of people diagnosed with epilepsy are likely to be classified as disabled by the Equality Act 2010. This means that employers must make reasonable adjustments for people with epilepsy, and complete appropriate risk assessments.

There are many different types of epilepsy, but people who have it have a tendency to have epileptic seizures. A seizure is a sudden burst of electrical activity in the brain, which causes a temporary disruption to the way the brain normally works. Seizures can range from the person remaining alert and aware of their surroundings, through to the person losing awareness and becoming stiff, falling to the floor and/or experiencing uncontrollable, jerky bodily movements.

If your organisation has an employee with epilepsy, these are the 10 key actions you should take.

1. Understand the nature of the condition. Have a private talk with the affected employee to discuss how the condition affects them. Ask about:
   • medication requirements (particularly at work)
   • how well their epilepsy is managed
   • type, duration and frequency of seizures
   • any associated musculoskeletal issues
   • any medication side effects
   • any warning signs that they are about to have a seizure.
2. Identify any triggers for seizures. This will help you work out how these can be eliminated or reduced to minimise the risk as much as possible. Consider:
   • temperature
   • light
   • stress
   • tiredness
   • flicker
   • season
   • whether the work is indoors/outdoors
   • computer screens, etc.
3. Understand the individual’s requirements during and after a seizure. Once you know these, you can ensure that appropriate provision is made, eg a suitable place for rest/recovery, such as a first-aid room with appropriate facilities. Questions to ask would include:
   • the likely recovery time
   • the individual’s preferences for recovery (location, need for sleep or rest, desire to be accompanied, ability to continue working, practicalities of recovering at work or home)
   • when paramedics are required or when first aiders should be able to manage the situation.
4. Develop a care plan. This should be an individual care plan that sets out the details of the above three points.
5. Consider allocating the person a dedicated locker. This would allow them to store items needed during/after they have a seizure (if not fully controlled by the medication). This could be used for:
   • their care plan
   • a breathable pillow
   • a blanket
   • any required medications
   • a spare change of clothes.

   Ideally, their line manager and first aiders would have a key to the locker for use when the individual is unable to access the contents themselves.

6. Organise the individual’s work. Working hours, tasks and the pace of work should all be evaluated to ensure:
   • targets and workload are manageable
   • lone working is avoided
   • driving is not required
   • shifts that might influence seizures or medication times are avoided
   • adequate breaks are given
   • there will be at least one first aider on site with the individual at all times.
7. Complete a DSE workstation assessment. This may indicate that certain equipment may be useful. Someone who has epileptic seizures is likely to require a:
   • LCD screen
   • fully padded chair with armrests, high backrest, headrest and braking system
   • padding around any hard surfaces or sharp corners (such as the desk)
   • wireless headset
   • large space around the workstation, free of any hazards (such as loose cables).
8. Ensure their safety in the workplace. Things to consider would include:
   • implementing a buddy system or asking the individual to wear a fall-activated or pendant alarm
   • reducing the need for them to use stairs, wherever possible (the importance of enforcing this is dependent on the nature and frequency of their seizures)
   • (with the individual’s permission) inform everyone who regularly comes into close contact with them about the nature of their condition and how to react in an emergency situation — this includes site first aiders, close colleagues, reception staff, canteen staff and security staff.
9. Provide easy access to an accessible toilet. If they are at risk of seizures, an accessible toilet offers more space and:
   • the risk of injury is reduced
   • they can use the alarm pull cord to request assistance, if needed
   • the door can be opened from the outside in the event of an emergency
   • how they will make their way to their nearest fire escape route
   • what assistance they will need to get to the nearest fire escape route
   • how they will travel down stairs to the final fire exit, including use of an evacuation chair and who is trained to use it
   • what assistance they will need outside of the office at the assembly point. Complete a Personal Emergency Evacuation Plan (PEEP) for the individual.Epilepsy at work is a more common issue than you may have realised, and employers need to be aware of their responsibilities to help employees with this neurological condition.

Contact us should you require advice.