HSE are to carrying out a programme of targeted inspections in the food manufacturing sector between 1 October and 31 December of this year. The inspections are focussing on:
HSE’s latest annual statistics have been published and show that while Britain continues to be one of the safest places to work in Europe, many workers are still being injured or made ill by work.
The statistics show that an estimated 30.4 million working days were lost due to work related ill health or injury in 2015/16 and the estimated costs to Britain of injuries and ill health due to current working conditions is £14.1 billion (2014/15 figures based on 2014 prices). For more information visit HSE’s Statistics Website.
Once again the European Week for Safety and Health at Work proved a big success. The week of 24 – 28 October saw activities take place all over Europe aimed at promoting healthy ageing and sustainable work for all ages.
Things kicked off on 24 October with, among others, a conference in Bratislava organised by the Slovak EU Council Presidency. The conference, entitled ‘A better preventive culture in a new labour market’, was attended by EU-OSHA director Dr Christa Sedlatschek who presented the campaign’s latest findings. The conference provided an excellent opportunity to discuss major challenges for OSH in the future, such as the demographic change. Among many others, labour inspectors from Cyprus, Poland and Slovakia showed their active involvement in the campaign and the European Week.
In Spain events took place in over 40 cities. Providing real solutions to businesses, workers and key stakeholders on how to achieve a healthy, sustainable working life was the main focus.
In Madrid a video screening, workshop and technical days took place – all focusing on the importance of sustainable work at all ages. And in Barcelona a seminar looked at the various advantages and inconveniences to having different age groups in the workplace.
On 28 October another focal point, the Swedish Work Environment Authority, held its annual Swedish OSH parliament event in Stockholm. Dr Sedlatschek was in attendance as Professor of Occupational and Environmental Medicine at Uppsala University, Eva Vingård, presented new research on “Healthy workplaces for women and men of all ages”.
The European Week was also promoted by The Institute for the Advancement of Safety at Work in Croatia who hosted the Good Morning Croatia television show to discuss the Healthy Workplaces for All Ages E-guide and how to adopt a holistic approach to health and safety at work.
As well as on television, there was online promotion by EU-OSHA’s media partners. PPE.ORG got things underway with a Twitter chat ahead of the European Week on 19 October. This was followed on 26 October by an exclusive ‘virtual Q&A session’ between media partners and EU-OSHA director Dr Sedlatschek who reminded us that, ‘healthy working lives are good for individuals’ wellbeing and the economy. Healthy workplaces are not a luxury; they are essential.’
Media partners also organised events to showcase the campaign. In Poland Promotor BHP hosted the ‘Human Factor in Safety’ conference to share tools and experiences for creating safe working conditions in the mining, fuel and energy and metallurgical industries. In Germany, the ISSA Mining Newsletter organised the first Vision Zero Europe Conference focusing on the prevention of accidents and illnesses at work.
Seguranca Comportamental in Portugal also organised several events and seminars including a course on preventive health and safety for young technicians and another looking at age as a factor in accidents at work. A number of other media partners, including Safety Management, Seguridad Laboral, Prevention World, Rhsaludable, Gesunde Arbeit and PrevenBlog also got involved in promoting European Week events.
EU-OSHA’s Official Campaign Partners were also busy hosting a number of activities and events. For example, In EU-OSHA’s home city of Bilbao, PESI, the Spanish Technology Platform for Industrial Safety, along with its European counterpart ETPIS (the Cross-ETP Initiative on Industrial Safety), held the European Forum S2R, ‘Future Safety & Security Research in Europe 2016’.
All these events were the perfect opportunity to bring together EU-OSHA’s network of partners, workers and employers together to exchange best practices and generate ideas on how make workplaces more sustainable. If you were at one of the many events, don’t forget to share your stories and post your pictures on our Facebook event page.
To find out more about safety and health at work visit the Healthy Workplaces for All Ages campaign website, and don’t forget to follow the campaign on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, using the hashtag #EUhealthyworkplaces to keep up to date with the latest news and events. You can subscribe to our newsletter via the campaign website www.healthy-workplaces.eu
Health and safety law is enforced by inspectors from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) or by inspectors from your local authority.
Inspectors have the right to enter any workplace without giving notice, though notice may be given where the inspector thinks it is appropriate. On a normal inspection visit an inspector would expect to look at the workplace, the work activities, your management of health and safety, and to check that you are complying with health and safety law. The inspector may offer guidance or advice to help you. They may also talk to employees and their representatives, take photographs and samples, serve improvement notices and take action if there is a risk to health and safety which needs to be dealt with immediately.
On finding a breach of health and safety law, the inspector will decide what action to take. The action will depend on the nature of the breach, and will be based on the principles set out in HSE’s Enforcement Policy Statement. The inspector should provide employees or their representatives with information about any action taken, or which is necessary for the purpose of keeping them informed about matters affecting their health, safety and welfare.
Inspectors may take enforcement action in several ways to deal with a breach of the law. In most cases these are:
Informal
Where the breach of the law is relatively minor, the inspector may tell the dutyholder, for example the employer or contractor, what to do to comply with the law, and explain why. The inspector will, if asked, write to confirm any advice, and to distinguish legal requirements from recommendations.
Improvement notice
Where the breach of the law is more serious, the inspector may issue an improvement notice to tell the dutyholder to do something to comply with the law. The inspector will discuss the improvement notice and, if possible, resolve points of difference before serving it. The notice will say what needs to be done, why, and by when. The time period within which to take the remedial action will be at least 21 days, to allow the dutyholder time to appeal to an Industrial Tribunal if they so wish (see ‘Appeals’ below). The inspector can take further legal action if the notice is not complied with within the specified time period.
Prohibition notice
Where an activity involves, or will involve, a risk of serious personal injury, the inspector may serve a prohibition notice prohibiting the activity immediately or after a specified time period, and not allowing it to be resumed until remedial action has been taken. The notice will explain why the action is necessary. The dutyholder will be told in writing about the right of appeal to an Industrial Tribunal (see ‘Appeals’ below).
Prosecution
In some cases the inspector may consider that it is also necessary to initiate a prosecution. Decisions on whether to prosecute are informed by the principles in HSE’s Enforcement Policy Statement. Health and safety law gives the courts considerable scope for punishing offenders and deterring others. For example, a failure to comply with an improvement or prohibition notice, or a court remedy order, carries a fine of up to £20 000, or six months’ imprisonment, or both. Unlimited fines and in some cases imprisonment may be imposed by higher courts.
Fee for Intervention/Cost recovery
A Fee for Intervention (FFI) cost recovery scheme came into effect on 1 October 2012 and applies where HSE is the enforcing authority.
The Health and Safety (Fees) Regulations 2012 put a duty on HSE to recover its costs from dutyholders who are found to be in material breach of health and safety law. A material breach is where you have broken a health and safety law and the inspector judges this is serious enough for them to notify you in writing. This will either be a notification of contravention, an improvement or prohibition notice, or a prosecution.
Dutyholders have to pay a fee if an inspector identifies one or more material breaches of the law during a visit to their workplace. The fee is based on the amount of time that the inspector has had to spend identifying the breach, helping you to put it right, investigating and taking enforcement action.
Dutyholders who comply with the law, or where a breach is not material, will not pay a fee for any work that HSE does with them.
Further information on FFI, the hourly rate and what it could mean for you is available on the HSE website at www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/hse47.pdf.
Appeals
A dutyholder will be told in writing about the right of appeal to an Industrial Tribunal when an improvement or prohibition notice is served. The appeal mechanism is also explained on the reverse of the notice. The dutyholder will be told: n how to appeal, and given a form with which to appeal; n where and within what period an appeal may be brought; and n that the remedial action required by an improvement notice is suspended while an appeal is pending.
Information to employees or their representatives
During a normal inspection visit an inspector will expect to check that those in charge, eg employers, have arrangements in place for consulting and informing employees or their representatives, eg safety representatives, about health and safety matters. Such arrangements are required by law.
An inspector will meet or speak to employees or their representatives during a visit, wherever possible, unless this is clearly inappropriate because of the purpose of the visit. When they meet, employees or their representatives should always be given the opportunity to speak privately to the inspector, if they so wish.
The inspector will provide employees or their representatives with certain information where necessary for the purpose of keeping them informed about matters affecting their health, safety and welfare. This information relates to the workplace or activity taking place there, and action which the inspector has taken or proposes to take. The type of information that an inspector will provide includes: n matters which an inspector considers to be of serious concern; n details of any enforcement action taken by the inspector; and n an intention to prosecute the business (but not before the dutyholder is informed).
Depending on the circumstances, the inspector may provide this information orally or in writing.
Added: 01.11.2016
Bolton night club owner fined over asbestos exposure
A Bolton night club owner has been sentenced after admitting a failure to carry out a survey for asbestos before starting on the refurbishment of a local night club.
Added: 04.11.2016
Worker dies when temporary platform collapses
A worker died and two others were badly injured at a construction site in Putney, when a temporary platform collapsed.
Plastics processing company fined for safety failings
A Liverpool plastic processing and reprocessing company has been fined after a worker suffered serious injuries when his arm was caught in a machine.
Worker seriously injured in mobile platform fall
A Buckinghamshire waste equipment maintenance firm has been fined after a worker suffered serious head injuries when a mobile elevating work platform (MEWP) overturned.
Farming and drilling contractors fined after mast strikes power line
Two Norfolk-based companies have been fined after a worker suffered life-changing injuries following an overhead power line strike.
Recycling firm fined after worker injured in shredder
A Kent based recycling company has been fined after a worker was injured whilst repairing a shredder.
Environmental Services firm fined over electrocution of worker
A company providing environmental services has been prosecuted after a worker was killed during asbestos removal work at a Welsh High school.
Testing Services firm fined over worker’s CO death
A Nottingham based company has been fined after a worker died from carbon monoxide poisoning while using an accommodation unit.
Council and contractors fined after man dies and another seriously injured in road works
Liverpool City Council and two of its contractors have been prosecuted following two separate incidents involving road works on a busy city centre road.
London garage owner sentenced for health and safety failings
A garage owner in Seven Sisters, North London, has been fined for several health and safety breaches after a worker was attacked by a guard dog.
Research has shown that just cutting two valley roof tiles in-situ in each daily shift (about fifteen minutes of work in eight hours) resulted in the operator being exposed to levels above the occupational exposure limit for respiratory crystalline silica (RCS). Colleagues working close by were also placed at risk. The research findings led to a change in working practices in the construction sector.
Read the case study to find out what this means for you
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Posted 26th October 2016:
Employer jailed for killing teen who fell from a ladder
Read the full police press release
05/10/16: Worker suffers severe injuries in roof fall
Further information
Free leaflet – Fragile roofs
Busy Builder leaflet –Fragile roofs: What you need to know as a busy builder, contractor or maintenance worker
Busy Builder leaflet – Fragile roofs: What you need to know as a building owner, user or managing agent
06/10/16: Building contractor prosecuted following worker’s fall
07/10/16: Council fined after employee was injured from fall
Further information
Busy Builder leaflet – Construction Phase Plan
Construction Safety Topic – Assessing all work at height
Construction Safety Topic – Working at height
Construction Safety Topic – Using ladders safely
05/10/16: Worker injured after being struck by concrete skip
13/10/16: Building contractor in court after worker killed by falling load
Further information
Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 (LOLER)
Construction Safety Topic – Lifting operations
Further information
Construction Information Sheet (CIS 53) – Reducing risk in temporary traffic management operations
21/10/16: Testing Services firm fined over worker’s CO death
Further information
Construction Health Topic – Carbon monoxide
07/10/16: Construction company fined after worker losses both legs
Further information
Construction Safety Topic – Dumpers
03/10/16: Bolton night club owner fined over asbestos exposure
Further information
24/10/16: Farming and drilling contractors fined after mast strikes power line
Further information
Construction Safety Topic – Overhead power lines
24/10/16: Worker seriously injured in mobile platform fall
Further information
Construction Safety Topic – MEWPS