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Do Employers have to provide PPE?

Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations 1992.

The regulation 4 states:
Every employer shall ensure that suitable personal protective equipment is provided to their employees who may be exposed to a risk to their health or safety while at work except where and to the extent that such risk has been adequately controlled by other means which are equally or more effective.

The accompanying guidance states:
Employers should, therefore, provide appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) and training in its usage to their employees wherever there is a risk to health and safety that cannot be adequately controlled by other means.

In order to provide PPE for their employees, employers must do more than simply have the equipment on the premises. The employees must have the equipment readily available, or at the very least have clear instructions on where they can obtain it.

By virtue of Section 9 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, no charge can be made to the worker for the provision of PPE which is used only at work. Section 9 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 states: “No employer shall levy or permit to be levied on any employee of his any charge in respect of anything done or provided in pursuance of any specific requirement of the relevant statutory provisions”. Section 9 applies to these Regulations because they impose a ‘specific requirement’ – i.e. to provide PPE.

Selecting the right PPE depends on the task you are performing, for example a construction worker will need to be provided with a lot of safety equipment in comparison to a butcher.

Contact us should you require information.

 

 

 

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Racking Safety

Racking safety should never be overlooked. And yet, because racking is something which is used everyday, it is easy for businesses to get complacent. This is something that happens to SMEs and multinationals alike. So whether you’re a start up entering distribution for the first time, or a warehousing veteran, you can always benefit from some top racking safety tips.

Plan your racking layout

HSE recommends that your racking is laid out so as to avoid “tight corners, awkwardly placed doors, pillars, uneven surfaces and changes of gradient”. Be realistic and look at the space you have. If you properly plan how your racking is going to be laid out, then you can make the most out of any kind of space. If you rush this stage, you are going to wind up with a storage space that is both inefficient and unsafe. If you find that your racking is blocking walkways, or if it doesn’t seem to handle loads very well, it may be the case that you need to rethink the layout of your warehouse.

Know the limits of your racking equipment

Each piece of racking has its own guidelines with regards to weight and load size. If you’ve been using the same piece of racking for years, it’s easy to start thinking that you know better than the recommendation. You’ve noticed that your racking can usually take more weight than is recommended, so where’s the harm? The harm is in the fact that, while you may consider yourself well acquainted with your racking equipment from several months or years using it, those guidelines have been put in place by the very people who designed the equipment. If your racking provider was confident that your racking could take more weight, then they would have said this when selling it to you. No racking designer or provider is going to undersell their product. Even if you’ve taken the risk of overloading your racking a hundred times and have gotten away with it just fine, that doesn’t mean that you will be safe the hundred and first time. Don’t take the risk.

Regular racking inspection

Inspecting your racking doesn’t have to be such a daunting task, and a little bit of effort will go a long way in the long run. HSE recommends using a logbook so that managers and staff can inspect racking on a daily to weekly basis. They recommend a colour-coded system to keep track of potential problems. Though it is important that this colour-coding is consistent among employees. One person’s green should not be another person’s amber. Be sure that both you and your employees know what you’re looking for and exactly what terminology you are using. Are you cantilever racking braces bent? If so, what should you do? HSE also recommend an annual check by a person who is “technically competent”.

Protect your racking

Racking protection is about more than wrapping your exposed frame in foam and hoping for the best. Rather, racking protection is largely about prevention. Putting in place forklift use protocols for your warehouse is an excellent form of protection. This way, you can stop a bump from happening rather than simply softening the impact.

Contact us for advice.

 

 

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Tips to Improve Transport Safety in Your Workplace

People die in the workplace every year from something as simple as not wearing a seatbelt. Make sure you train your drivers properly, and give them the tools they need to drive safely to protect both themselves and others.

  1. Undertake suitable and sufficient risk assessments which consider how people could get hurt. Think about how people could get run over or struck by vehicles, how people could fall out of them, how vehicles could overturn and how items could fall out of vehicles onto people.
  2. Ensure drivers are fully trained and competent to use the vehicles they will be operating. There should be direct supervision of vehicle movements – if you spot problems, consider refresher training for individuals.
  3. Make sure all drivers wear the seatbelts fitted in their vehicles. Use an interlocking system whereby the vehicle only starts when the seatbelt is engaged. Monitor drivers to ensure the system is not defeated. (If driving a forklift truck, wear the seatbelt if driving the vehicle for long periods of time or if there are surface changes – pot holes for etc..
  4. Look regularly at your accident and near miss data. Consider what changes need to be made to prevent an accident in the future. Adapt your risk assessment to reflect these changes.
  5. Take steps to segregate people from vehicles, and larger vehicles from smaller ones. Use fixed barriers and pedestrian walkways.
  6. Develop a comprehensive workplace traffic management plan. Consider the maximum speeds allowed, the permitted routes for different vehicles, and all vehicle-related activities that are permitted in certain areas – including contractors that may operate on site (such as waste collectors).

Contact us should you require assistance.

 

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Tips to Keep Your Loads Safe in Transportation

Transported loads can be extremely heavy and the slightest unintended movement can cause vehicles to turn over, or workers to be crushed if the load falls on them. Follow the advice below to make sure that an accident like this doesn’t happen in your workplace.

  1. All drivers must have had training in securing their loads properly. Drivers must also be taught how to drive safely when transporting loads – this includes keeping to set speed limits and taking corners in the correct manner to reduce the potential for overturning.
  2. Make sure you use the correct strapping to hold the load in place. Use either webbing straps or chains – not a mixture of the two. Check straps regularly for damage and before each use. Check the stitching isn’t coming undone and that there are no tears, however small, as this could cause them to fail in use.
  3. Use edge protectors on sharp or rough-edged loads to prevent straps being damaged by the friction when moving over them.
  4. Check that the vehicle bed can take the weight of the intended load, taking into account any additional equipment used to secure the load.
  5. Remember that anchor points should be capable of spreading the weight effectively across the main structure of the vehicle.
  6. Fill trailers tight to the headboard of the vehicle to prevent movement – drivers have been injured when loads have gone into the back of their cab. Restrict any moving parts of a load with restraints as well.
  7. Replace all individual pieces within a restraint system at the same time, to prevent undue stress on any part of the set.

Contact us for advice.

 

 

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The dangers of un-serviced equipment

We’ve all seen the little green “Service by” sticker on the electrical equipment in and around the office, and let’s be honest, how many of those dates on the equipment have come and gone?

When anyone comes to work, we place utter trust in the employer to provide us with a safe environment in which to work, the last thing we expect is to be put in danger or to have our health jeopardised.

We’ll look at some of the dangers that are found within the office when un-serviced electrical equipment goes wrong.

Air-Conditioning Units

You’ve probably heard that air conditioning units must be serviced properly and on a regular basis. Leading companies and government bodies, recommend that units must be maintained every spring, before the warm weather kicks in. The thing to bear in mind is that this system works for as long as you need it to keep you cool – as with anything, proper care and maintenance is essential.

However when the unit begins to collect dirt, mould and decomposing insects, it begins to pose a very serious health risk. The filters must be cleaned regularly, as they may cause serious lung problems such as legionnaires – whilst this is quite uncommon in this country, there were still a reported 284 cases in England and Wales in 2013 and any case can be very serious. The bacteria thrives in temperatures of between 20 – 50°C, and air conditioning units provide the ideal breeding ground.

Regular Sprinkler & Fire Alarm Tests

There were approximately 22,200 fires in non-domestic premises – and whilst these don’t specifically indicate these buildings were office spaces, most of them would be considered work places.

Regular fire alarm tests are a must, in most offices weekly fire alarm tests are done anyway. But the sprinkler systems must be maintained annually, the pipes should be maintained and changed where appropriate and the systems’ valves and sensors should be monitored. But as an employee you can ensure that fire exits are kept clear and there isn’t a build-up of flammable material in one small space, such as paper.

Electrical Equipment

All electrical equipment and accessories should be checked regularly. Obviously an element of common sense applies, if a plug has become frayed or damaged the equipment should be excluded and under no circumstances used. However when you buy things such as large printers and photocopiers, you should ensure that you allow them a good deal of space, to allow for the heat and fumes to be effectively filtered out. Overall, office safety is down to the employer or landlord, but there are several aspects of common sense that can be applied, to improve safety for everyone. Ensure that everyone is aware if something is faulty and must not be used; the last thing you need is someone pushing a ruler into a broken printer because they think it’s jammed.

Contact us if you require information or assistance on this topic.

 

 

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Walker Health and Safety Services Limited,
Suite 6, C1, Coalport House,
Stafford Court,
Stafford Park 1,
Telford,
Shropshire,
TF3 3BD

Telephone: 0845 834 0400
Fax: 0845 834 0401
Email: info@walkersafety.co.uk

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