| Welcome to the December 2006 edition of the Mesh Consultants Safety Matters email newsletter.
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In this issue:
Smoking ban in England will take effect on July 1, 2007, the Government has announced
New legislation to punish companies whose negligence leads to the death of an employee or customer look set to be introduced after being included in the Queen's Speech
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has issued warning about the risks of carbon monoxide poisoning
Employers have been warned to consider the safety risks posed by staff listening to MP3 players at work
Two-thirds of call centres are failing to protect employees against hearing damage from acoustic shock, experts have warned
Insurance firm AXA carried out a survey that identifies slipping of standards
Garage was found not to have Employers Liability Compulsory Insurance after accident
Two companies fined £466,000 following farm death
Company failed to adequately protect Czech worker
Poor organisation of health and safety resulted in lorry driver’s death
Are your company's safety systems up to scratch or are you risking prosecution? At MESH we have extensive experience of helping companies to improve their health and safety and in many cases improve their competitiveness.
Smoking ban in England will take effect on July 1, 2007, the Government has announced
Welcoming the announcement, TUC secretary general Brendan Barber said: "We're pleased that the Government has moved quickly to bring in the ban and make all public places and workplaces smoke free by next July. The UK's pubs, bars and restaurants will become healthier places to work overnight, and in the longer term fewer workers will fall ill or die as a result of second-hand smoke.
The TUC urges that employers shouldn't leave it until the last minute before thinking about how to introduce the smoking ban in their factories or offices. To help them start to act now, the TUC has produced a simple guide containing advice on how employers should go about closing smoking rooms, how to introduce smoking restrictions and how they can help smoking staff to give up.
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New legislation to punish companies whose negligence leads to the death of an employee or customer look set to be introduced after being included in the Queen's Speech
The Corporate Manslaughter and Homicide Bill, carried over from the last parliamentary session, will create a new offence of corporate manslaughter in England, Wales and Northern Ireland and of corporate homicide in Scotland.
The new offence would apply to corporations and public bodies and would introduce unlimited fines for deaths which follow a serious failing by senior managers. Individual directors would not be personally liable but the courts will be able to examine a wider range of management conduct than previously.
The Institution of Occupational Health and Safety welcomed the inclusion of the Bill. "Improved corporate accountability is vital to improving health and safety standards," said the group's president Neil Budworth.
Are your companies health and safety systems operating effectively or could you be found negligent? If you are concerned then why not look at some of the companies MESH has worked with to improve health and safety.
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The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has issued warning about the risks of carbon monoxide poisoning
A checklist has been published by the HSE reminding employers of the simple steps that can be taken to protect employees from harm. Advice in the checklist includes:
- Get appliances checked and ensure that they have access to a good supply of fresh air - carbon monoxide is produced when there isn't enough air for complete burning of the fuel;
- Never use a gas appliance if you think it is not working properly;
- Watch out for yellow or orange flames, soot or stains around the appliance and a pilot light that frequently blows out.
- Watch for symptoms such as tiredness, drowsiness, headaches and breathlessness.
Annually, 30 people are killed by CO poisoning and encouraging public understanding is an important weapon in cutting the number of people killed or made seriously ill each year as a result of carbon monoxide poisoning. If appliances are not properly installed and adequately maintained by a competent CORGI-registered installer, the gas may not burn properly meaning that potentially deadly carbon monoxide fumes are released.
High levels of CO can also build up in unexpected places such as cold stores where LPG powered fork lift trucks operate, if the area is poorly ventilated. Forklift trucks operating inside should be fitted with catalytic converters to reduce emissions, but these may at times fail. This should be considered as part of the employers risk assessment process.
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Employers have been warned to consider the safety risks posed by staff listening to MP3 players at work
According to a recent survey, some 22 per cent of employees use their digital music player for up to three hours a day in the office. The study raised concerns about the impact that this may have on productivity but, according to John Phillips of Norwich Union's Risk Service, the use of MP3 players also needs to be considered from a health and safety perspective.
"It is common for people to wear in-ear style headphones when using MP3 players, and these tend to fully isolate the wearer from all external noise. In any situation where workers need to be tuned in to their surroundings for safety's sake, this is clearly unacceptable," he said.
Although cognitive tests on workers in the past had shown that some benefited from listening to music, others showed poor levels of concentration and competence.
It is clear that anyone operating machinery could easily become distracted from the task by wearing an MP3 player, and of course there is the added danger of wires getting caught up in certain equipment.
Employers willing to allow staff to use MP3 players at work also needed to aware of the potential for damaged hearing, Mr Phillips warned.
"It is important that employers who allow their staff to listen to MP3 players warn them of the risks of prolonged use or playing their music too loudly. The requirements of the Control of Noise at Work Regulations should also be taken into account," he said.
Is this an issue in your workplace and is it something that you have considered in your risk assessments and noise survey? If you require help with this then please drop us a line for a no-obligation discussion on how MESH may be able to assist your company.
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Two-thirds of call centres are failing to protect employees against hearing damage from acoustic shock, experts have warned
The Acoustic Safety Programme, an independent body seeking to protect the hearing of call centre workers, will warn an acoustic safety conference in Glasgow that many of the UK's 900,000 call centre staff are at risk of permanent hearing loss. So far, over 700 workers have been diagnosed with acoustic shock, with compensation payouts totalling £2.5 million.
Acoustic shock is defined as "any temporary or permanent disturbance of the functioning of the ear, or of the nervous system, which may be caused to the user of a telephone earphone by a sudden sharp rise in the acoustic pressure produced by it". The sound could be a bleep, whistle or any unexpected noise.
The Acoustic Safety Programme warns that, while some organisations are taking action to safeguard the hearing of their call centre staff, the vast majority are not.
Employers can provide equipment such as headphones which remove any potential causes of acoustic shock to protect workers hearing. They should also ensure that they raise awareness of the problem amongst employees and have rigorous incident reporting procedures in place.
Chris Atwell, operations director for the Acoustic Safety Programme, said: "It can be a debilitating occurrence for a call centre worker. They can develop permanent damage to their hearing."
Dr Mark Downs, executive director of technology and enterprise for the Royal National Institute for the Deaf, said: "Acoustic shock is not the same as noise-induced hearing loss and is believed to occur at sound pressure levels below those which present an immediate risk to hearing damage.
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Insurance firm AXA carried out a survey that identifies slipping of standards
The research found that 27 per cent of employees who were injured at work say their employers had not followed proper safety procedures. More than 25 per cent did not receive any health and safety training, whilst almost 70 per cent who were injured at work were not offered any support by their employer.
A representative from AXA commented that this research appears to have identified that some businesses have let their health and safety standards slip. They warn businesses of the need to assess the potential risks and dangers in their working environment.
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Garage was found not to have Employers Liability Compulsory Insurance after accident
The accident involved a 17 year old worker suffering injuries to her left leg resulting in a stay in hospital and permanent scarring. The owner had falsely claimed to the college she attended that he did have insurance cover.
The courts found him guilty and ordered him to pay a total of £11,500 in fines, costs and compensation.
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Two companies fined £466,000 following farm death
The two companies and a company director were fined a total of £250,000 and ordered to pay costs of £216,000 after the death of a 31 year old. The charges related to the overturning of an articulated dumper truck which was moving soil around the farm.
The HSE investigation found that the truck was fitted with seatbelts and roll over protection but the worker was not wearing his belt. It was identified that he was neither trained nor supervised on the work he was undertaking. The inspector reported that had he been wearing his belt there would have been a high probability that he would have survived the accident.
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Company failed to adequately protect Czech worker
The company pleaded guilty to three criminal charges after the employee suffered serious injuries to his left hand whilst using an inadequately guarded circular saw. The company was ordered to pay £12,500 in fines and costs.
The court heard that as he worked his hand came into contact with the blade and he suffered severe lacerations which could have been prevented with simple guarding and the provision of suitable training in the use of the circular saw. Furthermore the company had not carried out a risk assessment for the task.
The HSE inspector commented that it is particularly important that companies employing foreign workers make sure that they are properly trained and understand UK health and safety requirements.
Do your risk assessments consider all groups of people who may be put at risk by your business operations? Is this an area that you need assistance? If so then why not contact us for expert help?
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Poor organisation of health and safety resulted in lorry driver’s death
A logistics firm was ordered to pay £241,000 in fines and costs following an accident when the driver was fatally crushed against a wall by a reversing lorry. The HSE inspector commented that the tragic accident could easily have been avoided if the company had strictly followed safety regulations.
In fact, an inspection by the company's own health and safety team the previous year identified that only 29 out of 40 necessary checks were being made by the company. The judge in passing sentence said that at the time there was no supervision in place for reversing vehicles - which is not acceptable.
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