7 Fire Safety Precautions Every Employer Must Know To Ensure A Safe Work Environment
Lets face it, it’s easy to have the “it won’t happen to me” mentality when it comes to fire safety in your workplace. But the truth is, a fire can be catastrophic for your business, your employees and of course your brand reputation. This is why fire safety is an incredibly important aspect of risk management that needs to be taken seriously by every employee and manager in your business.
So, to help you improve the fire safety of your workplace, here are 7 precautions you must know to keep those detrimental fires at bay.
Appoint fire wardens
First and foremost, you should appoint at least one fire warden in your workplace. Fire wardens are members of staff who are responsible for taking control of creating and maintaining fire safety procedures. In the event of a fire, they’ll know how to keep employees, contractors and customers safe, and will be the person in charge coordinating the evacuation.
Stock relevant fire safety equipment
In the event of a fire in a workplace, having the right equipment is essential for alerting employees and members of the public, and potentially extinguish the fire before it gets any bigger and out of control.
With this in mind, ensure your workspace has working universal smoke alarms, the correct fire safety signs, fire escape ladders if necessary and fire prevention systems such as fire extinguishers and sprinklers.
Communicate appropriate fire escape routes
In the event of a fire, clear escape routes out of the building are absolutely vital. All escape routes must be easily identifiable and with instructions about the means of escape displayed. You also need to provide training for your employees on how to escape in the event of an emergency.
Escape routes must be adequately illuminated and free of any obstacles. As an employer, yourself or the fire warden should do daily checks to ensure these areas are not blocked in case a fire were to occur that day.
Keep your workplace tidy and clean
You don’t have to be a genius to work out that messy workplaces contain more health and safety hazards than tidy ones, and many of these hazards are related to fire safety.
Any spare stock should be stored safely, and appropriate control measures implemented to safely store flammable materials and liquids in line with COSHH regulations. You should also ensure that you are regularly removing combustible waste, including accumulations of dust, before it has a chance to build up and become a safety hazard.
Create a fire safety plan
When it comes to keeping your employees, contractors and visitors safe, it is crucial that you have a clear fire safety plan in place. Delivering a fire safety plan is also a legal requirement for workplaces operating in the UK and employers, business owners and landlords are all equally responsible for delivering an adequate fire safety plan.
If you’re unsure where to start, here is everything you need to know about how to create a fire safety plan for your workplace.
Carry out thorough risk assessments
You can’t effectively safeguard against fire if you’re not fully aware of the hazards in your workplace and the risks they pose. So before you begin implementing fire safety control measures, carry out a thorough risk assessment of your workplace.
For businesses with more than five employees, risk assessments are a legal requirement, but they’re also hugely important for protecting your business from harm.
Risk assessments should identify fire hazards i.e. what could cause a fire to start?
Then they should assess the level of risk posed, consider who could be affected, and how fire risks can be alleviated. You can then implement control measures proportionate to the level of risk. To ensure long-term fire safety in the workplace, it’s important to review and potentially revise risk assessments regularly.
Crack down on electrical safety
Last but certainly not least, don’t forget electrical safety! Most businesses will use electrical equipment of some sort – and where there’s electrical equipment, there are fire risks. Faulty wiring or overloaded plug sockets can overheat and spark fires that can quickly spread across the room.
To reduce the risk of electrical fires, repair or get rid of faulty electricals as soon as possible, don’t overload plug sockets, and make sure equipment is regularly inspected and PAT tested.
Contact us to discuss your requirements.
Guest blog by Kate, on behalf of Morsafe Supplies.
Is workplace noise contributing to employee burn out?
The HSE have recently highlighted how workplace noise could be contributing to stress levels in employees working in the hospitality industry. Businesses in this industry are being urged by the HSE to reassess noise levels as they fear this could be contributing to workplace stress. This comes after a recent survey which exposed restaurants in London as having the highest workplace noise levels in Europe.
According to a recent article, over half of the restaurants tested had noise levels over 76 decibels, which is around the same loudness as a lawn mower. And as if that wasn’t bad enough, the noise levels during peak times often exceeded 80dBA.
Workplace noise is regulated by the HSE and the ‘Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005’. This states that employers must assess risk to employee health when noise reaches a level of 80dBA. At these noise levels, information and training should be provided to staff. However, if these noise levels reach 85dBA, employers are legally required to provide hearing protection and specialist hearing protection zones.
The HSE is now working alongside ‘The Burnt chef Project’ to raise awareness of the signs of stress within hospitality workers. This looks to specifically address when noise levels reach a dangerous level so that employers can respond to and reduce any risk to workplace health.
Adding to unsociable hours and tough working conditions, the hospitality sector needs to now be aware that they face legal obligations to protect their employees from noise. A combination of these conditions could lead to rising levels of stress and employee burnout.
The HSE remains committed to looking after employee mental health and wellbeing as much as physical health and safety, commenting that “We need to make looking after our mental health just as routine as managing safety at work. The first thing for employers to be aware of is that the law requires employers to assess the potential risk from work related stress and act on it.” (cite)
As part of our range of occupational hygiene services, we regularly visit our customers’ sites to measure workplace and environmental noise. From an overall perspective, workplace noise can contribute to many health problems that can make working hazardous. Employers have a legal duty to ensure their employees have a safe working environment to both reduce worker health problems, and also to protect their business.
Many businesses fall into the trap of thinking that something will never happen on their premises. However, last year alone the HSE has fined UK businesses £26.9 million (cite) for breaches of health and safety.
Businesses in the hospitality industry that haven’t yet had a workplace noise assessment, really need to be planning for one ASAP.
Contact us to book a call to discuss your workplace noise requirements.
Guest blog Safety First Group Ltd
Are your FLT drivers fit to drive?
As the ‘medical considerations’ section of the HSE publication Rider-operated lift trucks explains, although there is no specific legal requirement for forklift truck drivers to undergo medicals, it is recommended that they do. This is because an employer would need to ensure those selected are able to safely control and operate lift trucks. Drivers should be reasonably fit, both physically and mentally, and possess the learning ability and potential to become competent operators.
Workers should be free from disabilities, either physical or psychological, that might pose a threat to their own health and safety or the safety of others who might be affected by them operating lift trucks. Fitness for operating should always be judged on a case-by-case basis. You will need to do a risk assessment to identify any hazards associated with the job and working environment and to identify areas of concern. Never allow anyone who is unfit because of alcohol or drugs (prescription or recreational) to drive a lift truck.
People with disabilities do not need to be excluded and may have developed skills which compensate for their disability. You should obtain medical advice about their suitability for the particular work they will be required to do. Reasonable adjustments may be required to enable some disabled people to work as lift-truck operators. The Equality Act 2010 is likely to apply.
The Drivers’ Medical Unit at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) publishes guidance aimed at health professionals regarding lift trucks on the road, but this can be applied to all work with lift trucks.
For most work with lift trucks, a standard of fitness equivalent to that for the Group 1 entitlement (ordinary driving licence holders) would be appropriate. Activities such as working in a particularly demanding environment, working at night, or moving highly toxic or explosive materials would probably be more appropriate to the Group 2 entitlement (heavy goods vehicle licence holders).
You may choose to screen potential operators before placement and then follow the guidelines for Group 2 licences, which require medical examination every five years from age 45, and every year from age 65 (in line with licence renewal periods). Always seek medical advice where there is any doubt about a person’s fitness to operate a lift truck.
It may be useful to apply a selection test to avoid wasteful attempts to instruct unsuitable trained. Read more about medical fitness and FAQs.
Contact us for further information.
A DSE assessment is an assessment of risk from the way we use computers, laptops, tablets and other display screens at work. Each workstation should be assessed, and the risks reduced as low as is practical.
A DSE assessment looks at how a user works at their workstation. Like any risk assessments, the aim is to identify the hazards and assess the likelihood and severity of harm to those that may be affected. Then, reduce the risk by altering the workstation or providing tools to make it comfortable.
The Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations. These regulations lay out some key requirements for employers surrounding the use of DSE, one of which is the need to carry out a suitable and sufficient assessment of workstations used in the workplace.
2.—(1) Every employer shall perform a suitable and sufficient analysis of those workstations which – (regardless of who has provided them) are used for the purposes of his undertaking by users; or have been provided by him and are used for the purposes of his undertaking by operators The Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992
Any workstation used by your business, regardless of who provides it, should be assessed. So DSE requirements apply to co-working spaces, remote working, temporary workplaces and your own offices.
Display Screen Equipment.
We have put together an infographic. I would recommend that you share the information with employees as it could be beneficial to them.
Contact us for further information.
Guest Blogging
If you feel that you could contribute to this blog then please feel free to send me a proposal of your guest blogging ideas and we can discuss these further info@walkersafety.co.uk . Please note any proposals must be of benefit to my readers from individuals with knowledge of their subject matter.
What is ISO 45001 and why should my business get certified?
The 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:
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.
How have ISO certifications helped organisations during the COVID-19 pandemic?
COVID-19 has certainly been a testing time for businesses, especially when it comes to keeping their workforce safe and healthy. But ISO 45001 has certainly supported businesses throughout the crisis.
“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:
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 to discuss your health and safety requirements, or to make an appointment to discuss 45001.
