Business As Usual
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INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE OF RISK AND SAFETY MANAGEMENT Issue 08/2016 Visit our website at www.iirsm.org Business as usual The UK’s decision to leave the European – many commentators and internationally sectors, to focus on the issues which mustt be Union has prompted the question of recognised institutions have estimated it addressed,” she says. “That is not necessarily whether current EU regulations could be could take ten years. the best approach for risk and safety revoked immediately. This is not the case. “As there is no time limit to invoke management.” Until the UK government invokes Article Article 50 to withdraw from the EU now Throughout the UK’s membership of 50 of The Lisbon Treaty, nothing changes. that the decision to leave has been made, the EU, the Health and Safety at Work Act Only when a qualifi ed majority of the the government does not need to rush,” says has been in place and effective and we European Council gives fi nal consent to the IIRSM Technical Director Peter Hall FIIRSM. should continue to apply our successful terms of withdrawal, and permission by the There are many facets to risk risk-based management systems. Many UK European Parliament is granted, can Article management and our profession. There will organisations will want to continue to work 50 be triggered. be lots of different views on what legislation and trade within the EU and it will be in their EU directives have had a signifi cant may need to be reviewed, changed or interest to continue maintaining compliance. infl uence on UK legislation – particularly revoked, but that is for future discussion. The UK has been a leader in infl uencing other health and safety, environmental and According to Ian Dalling SFIIRSM, the key EU nations and regulators in developing workers’ rights, which have been transposed message should be to carry on as usual. “Any strong foundations for future health, safety into the successful risk-based UK law in proposed changes to the HSE and legislation and environmental laws. place today. will take place to the current timescales and “Brexit should be considered as just Withdrawal from the EU will take a consultation processes,” he notes. IIRSM another risk category,” offers Deputy lot of planning and negotiation to ensure echoes Ian’s comments; the legal position is President Andy Hawkes. “Businesses should the right deal is reached. It will require the clear – businesses operating in the UK must have a risk management process in place to expertise of trade and legal professionals, continue to comply with EU and UK law. deal with the risk, whatever that risk may be.” including those with a wide knowledge of Dr Gayle Brewer SIIRSM, from the The Institute will continue to promote risk management. From the time Article 50 University of Central Lancashire, thinks it and support effective management of risk is triggered, it could take up to two years to would be helpful to highlight the difference and the health, safety and environmental negotiate the UK exit (the maximum time between compliance and best practice. standards that provide protection and allowed). But this may not be long enough “There can be a tendency for people, in all welfare standards of those they apply to. INSIDE THIS ISSUE Construction still Volunteering: Study on public Risk management 03 most dangerous 06 making the world 08 health impact of 10 techniques to tackle industry a safer place chemicals workplace bullying News Prosecutions News Prosecutions RISK ASSESSMENT WORK EQUIPMENT HEALTH AND SAFETY EXECUTIVE ANNUAL STATISTICS Council to pay Construction Worker killed by stack of 400 1.2 350 £500k over tree 1.0 frozen fi sh boxes still most 300 0.8 cutting injury 250 uries to workers dangerous j 200 0.6 150 0.4 atal in atal ● High fi ne refl ects new sentencing f f 100 guidelines industry Rate of fatal inury 50 0.2 (per 1000,000 workers) 1000,000 (per umber o 0 0.0 4 A London borough council has been N 0 1 2 3 5 6 ● Decline in fatal injuries starts to plateau, HSE fi ned 500,000 after a road worker was 96/97 97/98 98/99 99/00 00/01 01/02 02/03 03/04 04/05 05/06 06/07 07/08 08/09 09/10 10/11 11/12 12/13 13/14 14/15 15/16 fi gures reveal seriously injured while cutting trees. Employee Self-employed Rate of fatal injury per 100,000 workers Southwark Crown Court heard how The rate of fatalities has more than halved over the last 20 years an employee of the London Borough Provisional fi gures have revealed 43 of Havering was using a cut-off saw construction workers were killed at work fi tted with an “inappropriate blade” to in the UK during 2015–2016. Though the latest available fi gures on deaths from ● 76,000 other injuries to employees cut tree roots and branches in March number was the same as the average for asbestos-related cancer. Mesothelioma, reported under RIDDOR 2015. the previous fi ve years, the Health and one of the few work-related diseases where ● 611,000 injuries occurred at work The blade became jammed and on Safety Executive (HSE) said it was 23% deaths can be counted directly, contracted according to the Labour Force Survey pulling the blade free it ran across the up on the 35 construction fatalities in through past exposure to asbestos, killed ● 27.3 million working days lost due to top of his left knee. He suffered a deep 2014–15. 2,515 in Great Britain in 2014 compared to work-related illness and workplace cut above the knee which damaged More workers are killed in construction 2,556 in 2013. injury ligaments and cartiledge. compared to any other industry in the UK. The provisional annual data for work- ● £14.3 billion estimated cost of injuries HSE investigators found that the In agriculture there were 27 deaths last year related fatal accidents in Great Britain’s and ill health from current working E S H “wrong equipment” was being used (compared to the fi ve-year average of 32); workplaces does not include three people conditions (2013–14). © for the task and a risk assessment had and in manufacturing there were also 27 who died in the collapse of Didcot Power not been undertaken regarding use of deaths (compared to fi ve-year average 22). Station in February, whose bodies are yet to “Behind every statistic lies a real story of He said the stacking of boxes up to the saw and blade. The long-term trend has seen the rate of be recovered. loss,” said Martin Temple, HSE chair. “One ● Judge compared stack of boxes to the ‘Leaning Tower of Pisa’ six metres high was haphazard – and A safe system of work should have fatalities more than halve over the last 20 Other statistics revealed: death at work or life needlessly shortened. compared at least one tilting tower in been in place to identify suitable and years. However, fi gures indicate that a total ● 1.2 million working people suffering “Britain has one of the best health and a photograph to the “Leaning Tower of compatible machinery for certain tasks. of 144 people were killed while at work in from a work-related illness safety systems in the world but we should A fi sh processing company has been fi ned Pisa”. London Borough of Havering 2015–2016 – up from 142 in 2014–5. ● 2,515 mesothelioma deaths due to past always be looking to improve and to £500,000 after a young worker was killed In passing sentence, Judge Lawrie added pleaded guilty to breaching The executive has also released the asbestos exposures (2014) prevent incidents that cost lives.” by the collapse of a tower of heavy boxes. that supervisors had failed to use common Regulations 4(2) and 4(3) of the On 18 October 2013, Interfi sh employee sense when they sent staff in to clear up Provision and Use of Work Equipment Tomas Suchy was helping to clear up a fallen the mess after one stack had collapsed at Regulations, and was fi ned £500,000 PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT stack of frozen fi sh boxes when another the Cattedown plant. plus costs of £8,240. InBrief pile fell over and struck him. He sustained The Plymouth-based fi rm admitted It is thought to be the fi rst multiple severe injuries and later died. breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and conviction of a local authority since Female workers highlight PPE problems Wall collapse leaves fi ve dead The HSE investigation found that there Safety at Work Act. At Plymouth Crown the new sentencing guidelines, which Five people have died after a wall was no safe system of work or instruction Court on 24 June, it was fi ned £500,000 are based on an employer’s turnover, ● Poll reveals just 29% of women say manufacturing, construction, research collapsed at a Birmingham scrap to staff on how pallets should be stored. and ordered to pay costs of £24,800. came into force in February. The Judge their PPE is designed for females and development and the nuclear metal recycling plant. Interfi sh also failed to create a written “Safe stacking of stock is a cross- said “the appropriate fi gure” would industry, reported that their PPE West Midlands Police were called procedure for dealing with falls of stock industry necessity and can often be have been £750,000, but the local Women are still encountering sometimes or signifi cantly hampered to Hawkeswood Metal on Aston when the incident happened.