POTENTIAL BAN ON WORKPLACE ENTRANCE SMOKING
The Government has announced that smoke-free legislation could be extended to building entrances, including workplaces, by 2020.

In ‘A Smokefree Future’ the Government says “Particularly, we will look to promote and support smoke-free prisons and examine the case for extending smoke-free requirements around building entrances. We will also review how ‘smoke-free environments’ are implemented and managed in other countries”.

Currently a failure to display no-smoking signs in smoke-free premises and vehicles can attract a fixed penalty notice of £200 or a fine up to £1,000. Failure to prevent smoking in a smoke-free premises or vehicle can lead to a fine up to £2,500.

MANSLAUGHTER LETTER WARNING
The HSE’s Construction Division has issued a warning about a bogus letter claiming to be from the HSE which has been sent to several construction companies in East Anglia and the Home Counties. The letter concerns director’s duties under the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007. The letter is headed with an old HSE logo, is unsigned, and contains no HSE address details (against HSE policy).

Companies receiving a similar letter and who have concerns, should contact the HSE to check its validity.

WORKERS MEMORIAL DAY – IT’S OFFICIAL!
Workers Memorial Day, which has commemorated people who have died, been seriously injured or made ill through their work, for some years has been officially recognised by the Government.

This year the Day takes place on 28 April, the International Day of Action for Safety and Health at Work. The Government says formal recognition will reinforce the significance of the Day and raise awareness of the number of people who are killed, disabled, injured or made unwell through their work.

SLIP RESISTANT SOLES
Employers may have put in several control measures to reduce the risk of slips, but if a slip risk still remains, introducing footwear with slip resistant properties may be the only effective way to further reduce the risk. While an HSE Research Report into shoes marketed as being slip resistant is scrupulously fair in trying to avoid singling out any particular product, readers may want to scrutinise it if considering buying such a product.

Overall, the report concludes that test results show that there is an increasing number of shoes available on the marketplace that provide a good level of slip resistance in the water-wet condition even on highly demanding surfaces such as sheet steel. However, there are fewer shoes that perform well with more viscous contaminants such as glycerol.

Other results include:

• Shoes with a low slip potential on steel in a water-wet condition were supplied by companies including Crocs, Goliath and Shoes for Crews.
• The top performing shoes on steel contaminated with glycerol were Shoes for Crews, which presented a moderate slip potential, all the other shoes tested presented a high slip potential.
• Providers of products with low slip potential on quarry tile in the glycerol- contaminated condition ranged from Arco to TredSafe.

HSE RR 780 ‘Monitoring the slip resistance of emerging workplace footwear’ can be obtained from
www.hse.gov.uk/research

EU REPORT CALLS FOR TIGHTER VOC PRODUCT LIMITS
Limits on volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the EU Paints Directive (2004/42/EC) should be extended to other products, according to a recent report produced for the European Commission. Products that should be subject to the Directive include solvent-based adhesives, window cleaning products and wood coatings, says the report.

More information is available from http://ec.europa.eu/environment/air/pollutants/paints_review.htm

MIGRANT WORKER GUIDANCE
An advice sheet from the HSE gives guidance for small businesses with migrant workforces.

When undertaking risk assessments particular considerations include:

• language and communication issues;
• basic competencies, such as literacy, numeracy, physical attributes, general health, and relevant work experience;
• whether vocational qualifications are compatible with those in Great Britain, and are genuine; and
• the possible effects of the attitudes and assumptions of workers new to work in Great Britain, or of British workers towards them.

To improve communications with migrant workers, the guidance suggests:

• using translated materials (for simple, short phrases, try sites like Google language tools or Babel Fish on the internet) or an interpreter;
• using a ‘buddy’ system, pairing less experienced workers with experienced co-workers who speak the same language;
• using DVDs (like the ‘Napo’ series) or signs instead of written information/ instructions;
• providing clear explanation of signs (including hand signals) and instructions for emergencies; and
• training supervisors in how to communicate clearly.

The cultural attitudes of migrant workers may be different, so employers are advised to:

• emphasise the importance of reporting accidents and near misses;
• thoroughly investigate accidents, specifically to ensure underlying causes such as behaviours and attitudes are picked up;
• explain clearly, during training, the employer’s responsibilities for risk assessment and control measures, and workers’ responsibilities for their own health and safety too;
• give supervisors guidance on cultural differences that could affect working relationships.

To check competence employers are advised to use the National Recognition Information Centre for the UK
(UK NARIC) system (www.naric.org.uk) to check equivalence to GB qualifications, where relevant to
the work.

The sheet can be obtained from: www.hse.gov.uk/migrantworkers/employer/protecting.pdf

DEPOT DRIVING DEATH
The HSE warned employers and drivers last month about the consequences of not taking reasonable care for the safety of others after a council employee was killed.

Dudley Metropolitan Council was fined £30,000 by Wolverhampton Crown Court and ordered to pay £20,000 in costs after pleading guilty to breaching s.2(1) HSWA.

Council employee George Pagett was struck and killed by a wheeled shovel loader, driven by Michael Lilley, a council employee, in Dudley MBC’s Lister Road Depot in Netherton on 27 October 2006. Mr Lilley drove against the direction of the site’s one-way system and had the loading shovel at a height that meant he could not see in front properly. He also did not take suitable precautions to make sure he did not damage any other vehicles or harm pedestrians.

Mr Lilley pleaded guilty to two breaches of s.7 HSWA and was fined £750 and ordered to pay £500 in costs.

WARNINGS IGNORED
A police receptionist who was injured by a hazard she complained about to management three months earlier has received more than £10,000
in compensation.

The 53-year-old from Middlesex was left with serious whiplash injuries to her shoulder and neck following the accident in May 2007. She was forced to change jobs and now works at a different police station.

She suffered whiplash when her foot caught on loose wires underneath her desk as she was standing up. Following the accident she needed intensive physiotherapy and rehabilitation.

Her injuries mean she is unable to lift and cannot do the gardening. She has been told she is likely to suffer from pain in her neck and shoulder for life.

The Metropolitan Police admitted liability and settled the case out of court.

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