Health and Safety in the news this
week
Why Health and Safety Signage Is Important to Your Business
According to the Health and Safety Executive there were 144 UK workers killed at work
between 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2016. Having the correct signage in place can
lead to greater prevention of accidents in the workplace.
In November 2016, the HSE released its annual statistics report with information about workplace-related injuries and illnesses. The HSE UK statistics also showed that there were 1.3 million people suffering from a work-related illness, over 621,000 work-related injuries and 2,515 people died from mesothelioma due to past asbestos exposure.
Accidents are unpredictable, however there is a lot that can be done to prevent accidents happening in the first place. One of the key ways of keeping people safe in any environment is using the correct signage.
In the past 20 years, there has been a downward trend in the rate of fatal work-related injuries. In 1992 the Safety Signs Directive was adopted by all European Union member states. In 1996 the changes were implemented through the Health and Safety (Safety Signs and Signals Regulations) Act. This required employers to provide specific safety signs whenever there is a risk that has not been avoided or controlled by other means.
The introduction of Safety Signs and Signals Regulations protects workers and members of the public. Since then the rate of fatal injury has reduced by over 50%. In 1996 there were 0.9 fatal injuries per every 100,000 workers, today the figure is 0.4.
There is a correlation between the introduction of safety signage and a reduction in the number of accidents. The first step of ensuring safety to everyone is being able to alert them to danger and having compliant signage in place. Today there is a huge range of signs available for all types of hazards. Signage is a small investment, but it will encourage safer working environments.
RoSPA’s campaign manager Rebecca Hickman said:
“Our work over the past 100
years has taught us that accidents do not have to happen, and that’s why we’re
stepping up our activities to help keep people safe. Our mission is to save
lives and reduce injuries and our vision is to lead the way on accident
prevention. RoSPA plays a unique role in UK health and safety. As a member
organisation that campaigns for safety change we also provide services and
support to help organisations on their own journey to become safer and
healthier places in which to work.”In November 2016, the HSE released its annual statistics report with information about workplace-related injuries and illnesses. The HSE UK statistics also showed that there were 1.3 million people suffering from a work-related illness, over 621,000 work-related injuries and 2,515 people died from mesothelioma due to past asbestos exposure.
Accidents are unpredictable, however there is a lot that can be done to prevent accidents happening in the first place. One of the key ways of keeping people safe in any environment is using the correct signage.
In the past 20 years, there has been a downward trend in the rate of fatal work-related injuries. In 1992 the Safety Signs Directive was adopted by all European Union member states. In 1996 the changes were implemented through the Health and Safety (Safety Signs and Signals Regulations) Act. This required employers to provide specific safety signs whenever there is a risk that has not been avoided or controlled by other means.
The introduction of Safety Signs and Signals Regulations protects workers and members of the public. Since then the rate of fatal injury has reduced by over 50%. In 1996 there were 0.9 fatal injuries per every 100,000 workers, today the figure is 0.4.
There is a correlation between the introduction of safety signage and a reduction in the number of accidents. The first step of ensuring safety to everyone is being able to alert them to danger and having compliant signage in place. Today there is a huge range of signs available for all types of hazards. Signage is a small investment, but it will encourage safer working environments.
RoSPA’s campaign manager Rebecca Hickman said:
It is essential for businesses to have up-to-date signage. Enforced by the HSE, if non-compliant signage is being used it could lead to extensive fines or serious consequences including prison sentences, personal injuries or even loss of life.
Source: NewsNow.co.uk
HSE prosecution round up:
Packaging manufacturer in court over workplace injury
A West Bromwich supplier of
corrugated packaging has been fined after a maintenance employee was injured
when he was pulled into machinery.
The injured person was
repairing a cardboard printing, slotting and forming machine at Diamond Box
Ltd’s Shaw Street plant when he put his foot onto an exposed conveyor and was
dragged into the machine’s moving parts.
Wolverhampton Crown Court heard
that the packaging company allowed uncontrolled maintenance work to take place
without any assessment of the risks posed by maintenance activities or having
procedures in place for safe maintenance.
A Health and Safety Executive
(HSE) investigation found that the machinery had a ‘jog mode’ which could have
been set up to enable such maintenance work to be carried out safely, but the
company had not identified this, trained staff to use it or enforced its use.
Diamond Box Ltd of Unit 4, Shaw
St, Hill Top Industrial Estate, West Bromwich, B70 0TX pleaded guilty to a
breach of Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and was
fined £400,000 with £9886.04 costs.
Speaking after the case, HSE
Inspector Caroline Lane said:
“The company relied on the
experience of maintenance employees rather than controlling risks through
careful assessment and putting safe systems of work in place. In summing up, his Honour Judge Berlin
considered the maintenance practices used by Diamond Box to be ‘utterly
dangerous’ and the risk to workers was wholly avoidable”.
Bury demolition contractor fined for failing to prevent exposure
to Asbestos
A demolition contractor has
been sentenced after admitting illegally removing asbestos from a building he
was working on.
David William Briggs, trading
as Briggs Demolition was found to have ignored an asbestos survey while
demolishing the former Oakbank Training Centre in Chadderton, Oldham.
Manchester Magistrates’ Court heard he also failed to prevent exposure to
asbestos to workers and others on site.
The firm from Bridge Works,
Wellington Street, Bury, was contracted to demolish the former education centre
off Chadderton Park Road and advised the site owners to have the site surveyed
for asbestos before demolition could began.
Mr Briggs recommended a
suitable surveyor and the site owner paid for a full asbestos survey to be
carried out on Mr Briggs’ recommendation.
The Health and Safety Executive
(HSE), prosecuting, told the court that Mr Briggs then chose to ignore the
asbestos report which identified approximately 230 square metres of asbestos
materials throughout the buildings, and began demolition without having any of
it safely removed.
HSE first visited the site in
2015, and met Mr Briggs on site. They found that approximately half of the
buildings had been demolished or partly demolished. When Mr Briggs was asked if
the asbestos had been removed he denied there was any on site.
A HSE Prohibition Notice (PN)
was served on Mr Briggs and on the site owners, stopping work until the extent
of the asbestos disturbance could be established. HSE visited with scientists
from the Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL) and confirmed the findings of the
original asbestos survey report and identified hazardous asbestos in the
remaining buildings.
The court heard that three
workers were potentially exposed to deadly asbestos fibres. They also heard
that local residents and passers-by to the site were also at risk due to the
uncontrolled method of demolition where large amounts of asbestos were present.
David Briggs was charged with
failing to protect the safety of his employees, failing to protect the safety
other persons not employed by him, i.e. members of the public, failure to
prevent the spread of asbestos and one count of illegally removing asbestos
materials without a license.
David William Briggs of
Wellington Street, Bury, pleaded guilty at Manchester Magistrates’ Court to
breaching Section 2(1) and Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc
Act 1974 and Regulations 8(1) and 16 of the Control of Asbestos Regulations
2012 and was sentenced to 24 weeks imprisonment.
HSE inspector Matt Greenly said
after the case:
“Mr Briggs wilfully ignored a
professional asbestos survey, instigated by himself, and in doing so failed in
his duty to protect his workers and anyone else around this site from a
foreseeable risk of serious harm. Asbestos related diseases are currently
untreatable and claim the lives of an estimated 5,000 people per year in the
UK.
Anyone who worked on this site
at this time, due to the lack of care taken by Mr Briggs, could possibly face a
life shortening disease at some point over the next 30 years from an exposure
which was totally preventable. This case sends a clear message to any
individual or company that it does not pay to ignore known risks on site,
especially to increase profits at the expense of people’s lives”.
Firm fined for failing health and safety standards
A Kent-based box manufacturing
company has been fined for health and safety failings.
Maidstone Crown Court heard how
an external consultant had highlighted a number of concerns eight months prior
to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) visit. The visit found areas including
electrical safety, machinery guarding and the storage of materials needed
improvement. As the result of concerns raised by an ex-employee, there were two
visits by the HSE and a total of 14 notices were served.
W E Roberts (Corrugated)
Limited, of Boyne Park, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, pleaded guilty to breaching
Regulation 11 of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998
(PUWER); Regulation 4(2) of the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, and
Regulation 5(1) of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations
1999, and was fined £297,000 and ordered to pay costs of £14,180.
HSE inspector Robert Hassell
said after the hearing:
“The need to effectively manage
health and safety is not an ideal, it is a regulatory requirement. Employers
need to ensure that any issues in relation to health and safety in the
workplace that are brought to their attention need to be suitably addressed.”
Landlord prosecuted for gas safety failings
A Preston Landlord has been
given a suspended prison sentence after failing to ensure gas appliances in one
of her properties were checked for safety.
Preston Magistrates Court heard
that following a concern received from Preston City Council about the gas
appliances in a property on Alvern Avenue in Fulwood, the Health and Safety
Executive (HSE) made contact with the landlord, Mrs Pritpall Kaur Singh, 44, to
establish whether she was complying with her legal duties as a landlord to ensure
annual gas safety checks were carried out.
Mrs Singh failed to co-operate
with HSE and failed to produce a Landlord Gas Safe Record to demonstrate that
these checks had been undertaken correctly.
An Improvement Notice (IN) was
issued to Mrs Singh by the HSE for non-provision of a gas safety record for the
gas appliances in her property, but Mrs Singh did not comply with that notice.
Pritpall Kaur Singh pleaded
guilty to breaching section 33(1)(g) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act,
1974 and to one breach of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations
1998 (36 (3)) and was sentenced to a 26 week prison sentence, suspended for 12
months and was ordered to pay £1,000.00 costs.
After the hearing, HSE
inspector Anthony Banks commented:
“If you rent property out, you
must comply with requirements of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use)
Regulations, including the need to have a gas safety certificate. Gas
appliances should be regularly checked, as faulty appliances can kill.”
Overhead crane worker suffers life threatening injuries
A Cleckheaton engineering firm
was sentenced today for safety breaches after a worker suffered life changing
injuries.
H E Realisations Ltd (now in
liquidation, formerly Hogg Engineering Ltd) of pleaded guilty to breaching
Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and Reg 8(1) of the
Lifting Operation and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998.
Gateshead Magistrates’ Court
heard that on 24 February 2015, Kevin Tait was using equipment to lift an 18
tonne steel roll at the company’s premises at Carlington Court, Factory Road,
Blaydon-on-Tyne. The equipment being used was not suitable for the lifting
operation due to the fact that the load being lifted exceeded the equipment’s
safe working load.
During the lift, part of one of
the shortening clutches sheared causing the load to swing and strike Mr Tait on
the head. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuting told the court the
lifting operation had not been suitably planned and the equipment in use was
poorly maintained.
H E Realisations Ltd of
Moorland House, Snelisins Road, Cleckheaton was fined £40,000 and ordered to
pay £2230 costs.
After the hearing, HSE
inspector Laura Catterall commented:
“Lifting operations are
hazardous and require a competent person to properly plan and supervise them to
ensure that suitable and properly maintained equipment is used in the right
configuration to avoid exceeding safe working loads.
Kevin is incredibly lucky that
he was not killed in this incident and he has suffered permanent life changing
injuries as a result. This workplace accident has changed the lives of Kevin
and his family irrevocably.”
Fencing business owners receive suspended sentences after worker
injury
The two owners of Kidderminster
based fencing firm Hoo Farm Fencing have been given suspended sentences after a
worker was hit by timber posts and frames which fell from a fork lift truck.
Forty-nine year old Raymond
Lainsbury suffered injuries that still require regular physiotherapy sessions
following the incident on 12 February 2016.
Worcester Magistrates’ Court
heard how Hoo Farm Fencing’s method of working was unsuitable for the task they
were carrying out at the time of the incident. Mr Lainsbury was helping to dip
timber posts and frames in preservative, when they fell from the metal frame on
the fork lift truck, striking him.
A Health and Safety Executive
(HSE) investigation found that the company had not been using the suitable
equipment for the task. The operator had not been properly trained to operate a
fork lift truck. The company also failed to have the fork lift truck in
question thoroughly examined up to required standards.
Maurice James Blackford of
Minster Road, Stourport, Kidderminster, pleaded guilty to breaching section 2(1)
of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and Susan Hawthorne of Blackthorne
House, Hartlebury Road pleaded guilty to the same breach.
Both were sentenced to 18 weeks
imprisonment suspended for two years and fined £10,000 each. Full Prosecution
costs of £4318 split between the two defendants, were awarded to the Health and
Safety Executive (HSE) that prosecuted the case.
Speaking after the hearing HSE
inspector Tariq Khan said:
“The seriousness of the safety
failings could have resulted in much more severe injuries to Mr Lainsbury who
was lucky to walk away from this incident.
“This case highlights the
importance of maintaining proper safety practices and also all duty holders
will be held accountable for failing to do so.”
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