Neal's Notes For November 2007

Health and safety needs boardroom leadership

On her first day in office the Health and Safety Commission's (HSC) new Chair, Judith Hackitt CBE, has called for more board level engagement and ownership on health and safety issues. Judith Hackitt, who has been a commissioner with HSC, returns from an assignment as Director of the Chemistry for Europe project with the European Chemical Industry Council, to take up the top post as the HSC and Health and Safety Executive (HSE) gear up to face challenging times ahead including a proposed merger to create a single regulatory body.

Ms Hackitt, who brings extensive industry experience particularly in the field of health and safety, said,

"I am delighted to return to HSC and lead an organisation that has played a crucial role in improving Britain's health and safety record. I look forward to working with members of the Commission, the Health and Safety Executive, our partners in local government, trade unions and business leaders who have all played a vital role in influencing the safety culture in this country."
"With the latest figures showing 241 workplace fatalities, 146,000 serious injuries and two million reported cases of work-related ill-health, there is no room for complacency. More needs to be done in addressing the enormous challenges of improving health and safety in our workplaces. To improve our safety record we need strong and committed boardroom leadership that focuses on real causes of harm in the workplace and not trivia."

HSE warns construction workers 'don't take the risk'

"Nearly 1 in 3 construction refurbishment sites inspected put the lives of workers at risk",

Stephen Williams, HSE Head of Construction said today.

This startling figure comes after The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) carried out over 1500 inspections as part of its rolling inspection programme, resulting in enforcement action on 426 occasions in just two months.

Stephen Williams said,

"We stopped work on site immediately during 244 inspections because we felt there was a real possibility that life would be lost or ruined through serious injury. It is completely unacceptable that so many lives have been put at risk. Our inspectors were appalled at the apparent willingness to ignore basic safety precautions"
"The simple fact is that despite knowing what they should be doing, too many people are prepared to allow bad practices to continue, even though last year 39 people died on refurbishment, repair and maintenance sites"
"We are determined to tackle this issue head on and will continue to take enforcement action against those rogues who flout safety precautions. Let me be clear to all those who put lives at risk - we will continue to carry out further inspections and will take all action necessary to protect workers, including closing sites and prosecution".

Work at height remains the biggest concern. Over half of the enforcement action taken during this inspection initiative was against dangerous work at height, which last year led to the death of 23 workers.

Stephen Williams continued,

"My advice to those who work in the refurbishment sector is to plan work, use competent workers and if working at height use the right equipment and use it safely".

Welcoming the Secretary of State's decision to hold a construction forum to discuss safety standards in the construction industry, HSE confirmed that inspectors will continue to target falls and trips in the refurbishment sector as part of their ongoing work.

More guidance and advice is available at hse.gov.uk/construction/index.htm

Safety representatives effective

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) in partnership with Unite has published a research report that evaluates the effectiveness of involving safety representatives in delivering health and safety initiatives in the workplace.

Geoffery Podger, Chief Executive of HSE welcomed the findings,

"This is an effective way to raise health and safety management in the workplace. Training and exposing safety representatives to new ideas on how to manage various health and safety issues is a valuable way of enabling the workforce to take action and educate those around them."

Rob Miguel, Unite Health and Safety Officer commented,

"Unite believe Safety Reps are an essential component to ensuring safe and healthy working conditions, we want them to receive the best training and be aware of, and involved in current initiatives. Our vision to encourage reps to be proactive, has proved through this work, to be a very effective way to raise health and safety awareness, leading to a more meaningful partnership between all the workforce."

According to the report focusing on HSE's recent Better Backs campaign, safety representatives' involvement has resulted in real improvements in the workplace. Unite trained and supported safety representatives by providing them with appropriate tools and literature that safety representatives could take back and promote in their work places. Results in the report suggest:

Since receiving the training, 59% of safety representatives increased the frequency with which they raised back safety issues with their colleagues, and 29% increased the number of times they raised back safety issues with senior management.
Three months after the training course, of the 24% of representatives who put forward buying new handling aids to their safety committee or senior management, all of them had seen new handling aids bought, and of the 29% who put forward new or updated training programmes on manual handling techniques, 93% had seen this implemented.

This research provides strong evidence that safety representatives are valuable partners in addressing important health and safety issues affecting those whom they represent and given the right training and support, all employee representatives could be equally effective in their workplaces.

HSE adapts to a changing world

Geoffrey Podger, Chief Executive of the Health and Safety Executive, outlined the health and safety challenges facing the modern workplace.

In a speech at the Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) conference. He explained how the world of work had changed since the Health and Safety at Work Act was first introduced in 1974.

He told the conference:

"If we are going to ensure the world of work is as safe and as sustainable as possible, then we need to be flexible enough to respond effectively to the challenges as they arise."

Mr Podger reiterated that a flexible and resolute approach will be required to respond to constantly changing work environments and make them as safe, healthy and sustainable in the future.

A key aspect of his speech was to outline the new ways that HSE are working in response to these changing times,

"Partnership is one of our key strategic themes. We cannot be responsible for improving the nation's occupational health and safety on our own."

HSE is working very closely with local authorities, and other organizations such as the Institute of Directors (IoD) to achieve mutual objectives. Through a new authoritative guidance on directors' responsibilities for health and safety, HSE with the IoD is reaching out to boards and directors to secure their commitment to ensure successful health and safety performance.

Mr Podger also urged sensible risk management, saying that the principle of health and safety was to ensure the good health of all, and not to stop people living normal lives. Sensible risk management is about taking practical steps that benefit all.

The HSE has seen much progress since the year 2000. The average days lost per worker due to work related ill health and injury has dropped from 1.8 to 1.3. However, he stressed there was no room for complacency - there were still 28 million working days lost each year due to ill health, while occupational ill health costs the UK economy over £11 billion each year.

Setting out a clear challenge for employers Mr Podger concluded,

"Health and safety will always be a 'Forth Bridge' problem: as soon as restoration is finished, the need is to start again. Nevertheless, we have seen improvements - the challenge to all of us is to maintain our present success whilst working on new and reactive areas."

HSC Chair stresses the vital link between health and safety and active involvement of the workforce

Delivering the annual lecture in memory of Sir Pat Lowry, the former Acas Chairman, Bill Callaghan, Chair of the Health and Safety Commission, stressed the vital link between good health and safety and active employee involvement and set out the challenges that have to be met to prevent harm to workers and to promote health and well being in the workplace.

Bill Callaghan paid tribute to the ground breaking work of the Robens Committee's work leading to the enactment of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act in 1974. Robens, who recognised that the new statutory arrangements should be designed to provide a framework for better self-regulation, wrote

"Safety and health at work is a matter of efficient management. But it is not a management prerogative. Workpeople must be encouraged to participate fully."

Citing the success of the close collaboration between Acas and HSE on stress management Bill Callaghan called on other stakeholders to follow this lead,

"Health and safety needs to re-discover its roots, re-discover the art of the possible, rather than pursue the ideal of the perfect. The human relations and health and safety communities need to work more closely together to achieve this goal."

Bill Callaghan praised the partnerships between trade unions and employer and trade organisations in industries such as construction, paper and board and quarrying. Innovative approaches had been put in place by employers and trade unions which had resulted in the building of constructive and fruitful partnerships, genuine worker involvement and consultation, the reduction in disputes and the achievement of exemplary standards of health and safety. But these arrangements were not as numerous as they might be.

Bill Callaghan added that employers and unions might both have missed opportunities,

"It must be to the benefit of both the regulator and the regulated that we spend less of our scarce resources on the relatively good performers and more on the poor performers. But in this country, unions have viewed initiatives such as the US Voluntary Protection Programme with suspicion. And on the other side of the table some employers may well be suspicious of giving trade union or other employee representatives more of a role, for example a quality assurance check on the company's safety performance and procedures."

Bill Callaghan also emphasised the need for genuine involvement and consultation rather than rigid structures. The aim should be to achieve progress by mutual consent.

Bill Callaghan went on to say,

"My view is that informal regulation via unions and employers will be more efficient and less onerous than regulation imposed externally, either by HSE or through the courts." "Joined up inspection", he said, " had a considerable role to play too if we are to achieve our health and safety goals and the case for joining up the different labour market inspection regimes had considerable attraction. Not every health and safety problem needs a new law. We also need to work closely with our partners to join up and make readily accessible the wealth of advice, guidance and best practice that already exists. Self-regulation and worker involvement are inextricably linked."

Bill Callaghan concluded:

"We have come a long way since the early 19th century, though we cannot take the safety improvements made for granted. Inspectorates need to work more closely together, as do employers and employee representatives, not just to prevent harm but to promote well being, good jobs and a high performing and competitive workplace. Now there is a challenge for us all. And we meet that challenge through partnership."

Health and Safety Commission endorses new approach to worker involvement

The Health and Safety Commission (HSC) has reiterated its strong support for worker involvement for the health and safety system. HSC Chair Bill Callaghan said:

"A fully involved and consulted workforce is a major contribution to achieving a healthier, safer workplace. All workers have a right to work in places where all risks to their health and safety are properly controlled. We have made good progress in promoting worker involvement but not enough employers properly involve and consult their staff on health and safety. Equally, not enough workers feel able to come forward and take on health and safety responsibilities."

The Commission strongly endorsed the value of consulting and involving workers in improving health and safety performance, and commended the achievements on worker involvement delivered by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to date. These achievements include:

The first practical guidance for employers on how to involve workers in the management of health and safety;
Improved online tools and guidance for safety representatives http://www.hse.gov.uk/workers/safetyreps/index.htm ; and
Mainstreaming of worker involvement messages into HSE corporate campaigns and activities, such as the Better Backs 2006 campaign.

The new approach to worker involvement will build on the foundations created by these achievements. Work being taken forward will concentrate on four key areas:

Revitalising the guidance available on involving workers. Updating and simplifying existing guidance, and making better use of practical examples and illustrative case studies to share good practice.
Extending the work on mainstreaming worker involvement activity in HSE, with a particular focus on the construction industry and the Public Sector.
Ensuring that HSE Inspectors and Local Authority Enforcement officers promote the value of consultation and involvement during interventions with businesses both large and small.
Working closely with other key stakeholders, such as Acas, to encourage worker involvement more widely in business.

Bill Callaghan went on to say:

"This new approach, building on the achievements already delivered, will help to bring worker and their employers together to raise workplace standards and improve health and safety performance."

The Commission also considered the case for regulatory change to support consultation and involvement, and noted that there was no consensus on this issue for the consultation. They took the view that it would be difficult to recommend such as change in these circumstances but agreed to come back to this at a later meeting following further discussion among social partners.

Contractors tell construction firms why design matters

The main construction contractor for Newport's Riverfront Arts Centre will be talking about on the importance of taking health and safety issues into account at the design stage, at a seminar to be held in the venue next month.

Wilmott Dixon is just one of the organisations that will be on hand to share their expertise at the Designer Safety Awareness Day, which is supported by the Health and Safety Executive as part of the Working Well Together (WWT) group, a cross industry partnership with the aim of improving health and safety standards across the construction industry. Other speakers come from the WWT membership, including Costain and Cardiff County Council.

The session is free of charge to those in the construction industry and will include a tour of The Riverfront led by Philip Wolfenden of Wilmott Dixon, who will point out some of the key design features that have been included in the £16 million building, as well as sharing some of the experiences in complying with new health and safety regulations.

HSE's principal inspector for Construction in Wales, Chantal Nicholls, said:

"Construction is one of the most hazardous industries to work in. There are more than two million people employed in construction in Britain, which makes it one of the country's biggest industries. But by its very nature, it's also one of the most dangerous, with many deaths caused each year, as well as considerably more injuries or illnesses."
"The recently introduced Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 place health and safety duties on virtually everyone working on a construction project and this event will help those in construction industry obtain clear information on these important changes."

The event also provides an opportunity for those attending to seek advice from experts and practitioners from across the Working Well Together Partnership, including the HSE and the South Wales construction industry.

The event takes place at The Riverfront Arts Centre, Newport at 8.45am on Wednesday October 10th. Anyone working in construction, including architects, designers, building service engineers, structural engineers, mechanical engineers, civil engineers and chartered surveyors, may attend. For further information, please contact 029 2026 3033 or email info@constructingexcellencewales.org.uk

£100,000 fine follows construction worker death

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has warned construction companies of the dangers of using improvised procedures when dismantling heavy machinery.

The warning follows the successful prosecution of Dawson-Wam Limited of Westoning Road, Greenfield, Bedfordshire, after an employee, John Walsh, was killed when the auger drive unit of a piling rig he was attempting to dismantle flew off its stand and struck him. Dawson-Wam Limited had been contracted to carry out piling around the perimeter of the site to form a retaining wall, enabling the site to be excavated for the construction of a new office block.

Dawson-Wam Limited pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and was fined £100,000 and ordered to pay costs of £76,128.68 at Croydon Crown Court on Wednesday 26 September 2007.

Two piling machines were used, each comprising a carrier with a leader mast and an auger bit unit. Part of the process by which the machines were dismantled involved lowering the auger drive unit onto a stand. Once on the stand the unit was intended to be separated from the leader mast by hydraulic release of two grab pins.

The hydraulic mechanism failed during the dismantling of both piling machines. On the first occasion a number of improvised methods were tried before deciding to disconnect the drive unit from its backplate. The unit would remain on its stand while the backplate was swung away. This method was passed on verbally but it appears there was no appreciation that when the backplate was sung away the drive unit's centre of gravity would be fundamentally altered.

On the second occasion that the hydraulic release mechanism failed Dawson-Wam Limited's employees, including Mr Walsh, tried the improvised method used previously. However the stand design was different and did not allow the backplate to swing away. Mr Walsh tried to free the motor by fastening chains to the auger drive unit and connecting them to the arm of an excavator. The excavator pulled the chains, causing the drive unit to fly off the stand and strike Mr Walsh, who sustained serious injuries from which he subsequently died.

HSE Inspector Alec Ferguson said,

"Where a pulling force is exerted by using an excavator, the load can increase rapidly to very high levels, leading to a sudden release when the point of resistance is overcome. Employers need to ensure that where circumstances prevent the use of standard methods of work, then the risks arising from any method subsequently adopted should be very carefully assessed. In particular, employers who are even considering departure from manufacturer's guidance in respect of specialist equipment should assess the risks which may result very carefully indeed before proceeding. Attempting to dismantle heavy equipment in a way not recommended by its manufacturer is likely to be a very risky enterprise which should only be embarked on when absolutely necessary and, even then, only following very careful planning of a truly safe system of work."

Dawson-Wam Limited accepted that it failed to suitably assess the risk from dismantling the piling rig in a different method from the manufacture's operators manual, and that it failed to provide adequate instruction and information to its employees for dismantling the drive unit from the carrier in such circumstances.

Health and safety needs boardroom leadership

Ms Hackitt, who brings extensive industry experience particularly in the field of health and safety, said,

HSE warns construction workers 'don't take the risk'

"Nearly 1 in 3 construction refurbishment sites inspected put the lives of workers at risk",

Stephen Williams, HSE Head of Construction said today.

Stephen Williams said,

"We stopped work on site immediately during 244 inspections because we felt there was a real possibility that life would be lost or ruined through serious injury. It is completely unacceptable that so many lives have been put at risk. Our inspectors were appalled at the apparent willingness to ignore basic safety precautions."
"The simple fact is that despite knowing what they should be doing, too many people are prepared to allow bad practices to continue, even though last year 39 people died on refurbishment, repair and maintenance sites."
"We are determined to tackle this issue head on and will continue to take enforcement action against those rogues who flout safety precautions. Let me be clear to all those who put lives at risk - we will continue to carry out further inspections and will take all action necessary to protect workers, including closing sites and prosecution".

Stephen Williams continued,

"My advice to those who work in the refurbishment sector is to plan work, use competent workers and if working at height use the right equipment and use it safely".

More guidance and advice is available at hse.gov.uk/construction/index.htm

Safety representatives effective

Geoffery Podger, Chief Executive of HSE welcomed the findings,

Rob Miguel, Unite Health and Safety Officer commented,

Since receiving the training, 59% of safety representatives increased the frequency with which they raised back safety issues with their colleagues, and 29% increased the number of times they raised back safety issues with senior management.
Three months after the training course, of the 24% of representatives who put forward buying new handling aids to their safety committee or senior management, all of them had seen new handling aids bought, and of the 29% who put forward new or updated training programmes on manual handling techniques, 93% had seen this implemented.

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