June 2009

Continuing to support the working at height safety initiative, Facelift Access Hire is offering a free full colour safety poster. The poster is designed to be a constant and professional reminder of how to work safely at height. It incorporates the eight key elements which employers and employees need to consider when setting up their access machinery. Simple display pictures and short sharp instructions really get the message across, and it’s ideal for use in site offices and more. You can either download it from the website at www.facelift.co.uk and use the health and safety navigation button on the left of the page, or email the training department at trainingposters@facelift.co.uk.

Make sure you provide your full postal address and the number of posters you require, these will then be mailed out to you free of charge. If you have any other questions or require further information you can contact the training department on 0800 072 55 72 or visit www.facelift.co.uk

If you have any other questions or require further information you can contact the training department on 0800 072 55 72 or visit www.facelift.co.uk

April 2009

The appalling toll of death and serious injury in the construction industry has been brought home to me by two meetings I have had recently.

I have had a meeting with Rita Donaghy, probably not a name you are familiar with, but she is a former President of the TUC who has been appointed by Rt Hon James Purnell MP, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, to undertake an inquiry into the underlying causes of construction fatalities. Ms Donaghy is due to report back to Mr Purnell by the end of April 2009 and she has invited the FMB to present its thoughts to her. I have also had a meeting with Lord (Bill) McKenzie, the Minister responsible for Health and Safety at the Department of Work and Pensions, for a more general discussion about the implementation of safe working practices.

FMB COMMITTED TO PROMOTING SITE SAFETY

Although some improvement has been made since the 1980s and early 1990s when construction deaths were averaging 130 every year, 72 people in the industry lost their lives last year whilst at work. Falls remain the predominant cause, with accidents involving moving vehicles, plant or materials close behind. While FMB members are not so likely to be the victims of accidents involving tower cranes or on motorway maintenance sites, the evidence points to a significant proportion of accidents occurring on small sites and with smaller employers. My concern remains that the quality of data collected does not allow any differentiation between smaller employers who take their responsibilities seriously and those operating in the grey economy that treat Health and Safety in just as cavalier a fashion as paying their taxes.

My clear message to both Rita Donaghy and Bill McKenzie was that the FMB, and its members, consider Health and Safety to be the highest priority. The FMB is actively engaged with many statutory and cross industry bodies working in this area, and we offer members a range of support services for advice on health and safety. Our Information Services Department (tel: 0870 162 0947) can answer most enquiries and a specialist helpline is available for more detailed questions.

Factsheets on many aspects of Health and Safety are available on the FMB website, or can be requested in hard copy from the information department. Regular articles appear in Master Builder magazine and specialist workshops are run around the country. Above all, the FMB works closely with the Health and Safety Executive to ensure that each is aware of the needs and concerns of the other.

WORKER SAFETY ADVISOR SCHEME

But more needs to be done. Above all the statutory regime needs to be simplified. The FMB has identified 26 separate Acts of Parliament and Regulations that need to be complied with and where breaches could result in prosecution. We have long argued that whilst managing this volume of legislation may just be possible for a larger business with specialist staff available to scrutinise, explain and train, smaller companies need fewer regulations, with clearer explanations in the source documents and effective enforcement.

The FMB is also arguing for the Government to put funding into a nationwide Worker Safety Advisor scheme. The pilot run by the FMB, the Transport and General Workers Union (now Unite), and UCATT in 2005-07 was highly successful in taking specialist support to building sites to give practical advice. Rolling that scheme out now would be highly cost effective.

Another concern of the FMB is the availability of advice from the HSE. A number of publications still remain available only at a cost, and the FMB believes that high quality advice from the regulator must be freely available to all those from whom compliance is required. The FMB has offered the HSE a regular page in this magazine to put across its key messages. I hope that this offer will be taken up.

EVEN PLAYING FIELD

Finally, there is a need to tackle the informal economy. The difficulty of targeting those businesses that operate informally (who I am convinced are where a disproportionate amount of accidents occur), means that the limited resources available for enforcement remain focussed on those who work legitimately. At the same time with clients, particularly those in the domestic sector still driven almost entirely by price, responsible builders will be at a real disadvantage against those prepared to cut corners and put lives at risk. Perhaps the time has come to put domestic clients under the same liability as commercial clients for ensuring same working practices on their property.

Richard Diment

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December 2008

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) says that the evidence is clear that where businesses have good workforce involvement, they achieve better performance in health and safety and better productivity because staff are motivated and feel engaged in the organisation.

To assist organisations in the changing world of work, the HSE has launched a new set of guidance on consulting and involving the workforce. This includes a completely new good practice guide that draws upon the established legislation and applies this to today’s workplaces through a series of good practice tips and new case studies.

Launched in October at the HSE Worker Involvement Conference, the publications aim to reinvigorate and emphasise the importance of staff participation in managing health and safety issues.

Better guidance for employers

The new good practice guidance ‘Involving your workforce in health and safety: Good practice guidance for all workplaces’ will help employers in their duty to consult and involve their workforce on health and safety matters. The guide concentrates on good practice based on the Safety Representatives and Safety Committees Regulations 1977 (as amended) and the Health and Safety (Consultation with Employees) Regulations 1996 (as amended). The guide is designed to distinguish different types of information with references to the regulations colour coded. It was developed in partnership with key stakeholders in response to the need for better guidance for employers on how to consult. A web-version of the good practice guidance is available at the HSE website www.hse.gov.uk/involvement/index.htm along with detail on some of the topics (for example safety committees).

Consulting with employees

Two free leaflets were also launched - ‘Involving your workers in health and safety: A guide for small businesses’ aimed mainly at employers in workplaces with fewer than 25 employees and where it is normally practical for employers to consult with employees directly. In addition, another called ‘Consulting employees on health and safety – a brief guide to the law’. This leaflet provides an overview of employers’ duties to consult with their employees or their representatives on health and safety matters, providing a brief overview of the legal requirements.

Finally, the revised legal series ‘Consulting workers on health and safety’ publication gives the law and guidance on the Safety Representatives and Safety Committees Regulations (1977) and the Health and Safety (Consultation with Employees) Regulations (1996). It explains the relationship between the two sets of regulations and how they affect the employer and their workforce and how in some organisations the employer may need to consult under both sets of regulations. The publication contains revises, and brings up-to-date the guidance given in earlier once separate versions and contains additional information including an overview of the specific requirements to consult employees, or their health and safety representatives on other health and safety legislation which applies to specific industries. The law has not changed.

Worker in involvement

Involvement of the workforce is a principle which applies to every organisation irrespective of size, representation, structure or any other factor, so the HSE publications should apply to the majority of workplaces.

Statistics from HSE’s latest 2007 Fit3 survey show that nine out of ten employers state that their workers are involved in health and safety management through either a formal or an informal system. However, when asked for further information only about four in ten employers have regular meetings with workers, designated health and safety representatives or a health and safety committee. So, whilst the majority of employers report they involve their workers, only a much smaller number appear to have practices that approach those considered good practice by HSE. There is still plenty of room to improve the quality of worker involvement.

The law clearly places duties on those who create the risks but it also requires employers to work co-operatively with their workforce to reduce the toll of harm in the workplace. Most employers, ensure that they are meeting their legal duties, but do welcome guidance and advice.

Consulting and involving the workforce in making work activities safe and healthy should be normal practice because it is the right thing to do and because it works and delivers real benefits. Health and safety matters should be the basis of trust, co-operation and joint problem solving between employers and employees in every workplace. The new guidance will help organisations put in place what is appropriate for their organisation.

Visit: www.hse.gov.uk for more information