How employers can foster a culture of safety in the workplace
Apr 8, 2024
According to the Health and Safety Executive, fatalities in the workplace due to working at height have increased to 30%, up from 25% the previous year. Given recent news regarding the messaging around building mobile access towers by mixing and matching tower components from different manufacturers, which should be avoided, it is important that all employers and employees are on the same page when it comes to preventing accidents. Here, Dave Elson, Compliance Manager at WernerCo UK, discusses how employers can ensure they cultivate a culture of safety.
Tradespeople will know that working at height comes as part of the job. However, given the associated risks, it is important that employers take their responsibilities seriously when it comes to employee safety. Therefore, work should be, according to Working at Height Regulations, adequately planned, supervised and carried out by competent workers.
Regulations also dictate that the right type of equipment for the job should always be used. Failure to comply with regulations can not only result in civil litigation and prosecution, but most significantly, this can cause serious harm to employees.
Considering this, employers should ensure they are nurturing a culture of safety within their organisations.
Provide regular and engaging training
Regulations state that employees must report hazards and use their equipment responsibly. However, in order to ensure all employees have an adequate understanding of what is expected of them, regular and engaging health and safety and equipment handling sessions should be provided by the employer.
Not only does continued and quality training enable employees to develop their safety knowledge, but it also empowers them to report risks and propose ways to manage those risks, resulting in a safer site environment.
Encourage planning and organisation
Many of the requirements written into the Working at Height Regulations reflect the importance of preparation on site. Considering this, it is important for employers to educate and empower employees and provide the correct tools for the job.
Therefore, they should encourage employees to consider general site safety, weather conditions, the likelihood of falling objects and the site layout for emergency contingency plans before beginning work.
Organisation and preparation are the key to reducing the risk of accidents and in understanding how to act should an incident occur.
Providing the correct equipment
It is essential that employers provide the correct equipment for their employees to use. For example, when it comes to ladders, within EN131 there are two classifications – Professional and Non-Professional. To ensure the highest quality for the intended use, employers should always provide employees with Professional ladders that meet EN131 standards.
All EN131-certified ladders feature markings that indicate their suitability for commercial use.
Ladders intended for work on private dwellings, in other words, ladders certified for ‘Non-Professional Use’, should not be provided to employees.
Insist on regular inspections
While the correct equipment may have been provided, caution is still required as ladders can become damaged. Therefore, checks should be carried out by a competent person each time a ladder or piece of access equipment is used.
It is also essential that employees are encouraged to keep a record of all inspections for reporting.
In addition, ladders and access platforms should be assembled according to the manufacturer’s guidance. As mentioned, for example, it is vital that components across different manufacturers aren’t used to assemble tower structures.
Once inspections are complete, it is recommended that a competent person with the appropriate level of knowledge, training and experience checks the tower structure or ladder’s assembly.
Employers looking to build a strong culture around safety can look to a wide range of resources available that can support them in creating this, including the information laid out as part of WernerCo’s Stepping up to Safety initiative. This includes a variety of practical guides and the latest information on safety standards. For this, please visit: Stepping up to Ladder Safety.
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