IOSH Magazine - February 2020

Behavioural safety

Health in construction

Data privacy

Pulling strings to encourage safe decisions

How the industry is raising the bar on occupational hygiene

Responsibilities of the OSH professional

Safety, health and wellbeing in the world of work

February 2020

ioshmagazine.com

THE RISK OF FATIGUE Drivers who are excessively tired pose as much of a risk as those who are drink driving

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Less haste more safety

The consequences of rushing health and safety training can be fatal. So Managing Safely takes exactly the right amount of time to get participants up to speed. That’s why our three day health and safety course is the most popular for line managers, in any sector, worldwide.

Managing Safely Tried. Tested. Trusted. www.iosh.com/managingsafely

Comment Behavioural safety

Health in construction

Data privacy

Pulling strings to encourage safe decisions

How the industry is raising the bar on occupational hygiene

Responsibilities of the OSH professional

Safety, health and wellbeing in the world of work

Cover image: Alamy

February 2020

ioshmagazine.com

THE RISK OF FATIGUE Drivers who are excessively tired pose as much of a risk as those who are drink driving

Official magazine of

The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) is the world’s leading professional body for people responsible for safety and health in the workplace.

Published by Redactive Publishing Ltd Level 5, 78 Chamber Street, London E1 8BL +44 (0) 20 7880 6200 Acting editor

A

s we approach our 75th anniversary in April, we’re seeing increased commitment to improving safety and health at work in emerging economies.

This wave of interest relies on the good work and daily dedication of members.

Kellie Mundell Senior designer Joe McAllister Sub editor Rhiannon White Advertising Display sales +44 (0) 20 7880 7613 ioshdisplay@redactive.co.uk Recruitment sales +44 (0) 20 7880 7662 ioshjobs@redactive.co.uk Advertisement production Rachel Young +44 (0) 20 7880 6209 rachel.young@redactive.co.uk Publishing director Aaron Nicholls

Redactive aims to provide authoritative and accurate information at all times. Its publications are, however, for guidance only and are not an official information source. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical or otherwise, without the prior written consent of the publisher and editor.

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ISSN 2396-7447

© IOSH 2020

IOSH Magazine is printed by ISO 14001 certified printers and despatched in oxo-degradable polywrap. Printed by Warners Midlands plc, The Maltings, Manor Lane, Bourne, PE10 9PH

Our landmark first conference in West Africa has launched a momentous year in IOSH’s history. The conference in Lagos, Nigeria, was an incredible event. We hosted more than 800 occupational safety and health (OSH) professionals and VIPs, including government ministers and senior business executives.

From April this year IOSH will celebrate the ‘Pioneers of Progress’ who have guided the OSH profession on its journey over the past 75 years. And this is an increasingly global story.

The level of media interest our conference generated in West Africa was remarkable and showed the region’s appetite for better work and a focus on enabling that through great partnerships. This is something which is often taken for granted in other parts of the world.

In Nigeria and Ghana, we’re working with governments and agencies who are adopting new national and state-level strategies to evaluate risks, educate, engage and enforce more effectively. They’re choosing to partner with IOSH and our members in the region who already exemplify good professional practice and are championing safety and health at work.

IOSH vice-president Kayode Fowode and IOSH’s national co-ordinating committee for Nigeria, for instance, have dedicated much time and effort over recent years to advancing our profession in that part of the world. Their involvement in our Nigeria conference played fundamental roles in driving its success.

The event represented an excellent way of supporting our emerging network of OSH professionals in Nigeria. It also demonstrated that we are pushing at an open door, answering a desire for change and improvement. By riding the wave of interest and commitment generated at our conference in Lagos, there are real opportunities now

for IOSH members and OSH professionals to be change-makers.

I joined the event via video from New York and in May I will attend our next West African conference in Ghana, in person, building on the memorandum of collaboration we signed last year with its Ministry of Employment and Labour Relations. Then I will travel to the SAIOSH Conference in South Africa. This will sustain momentum in Africa.

IOSH members and OSH professionals, wherever they are in the world, are united by a common purpose: to prevent harm and ill health. They all enable challenging, complex and potentially hazardous ventures to take place safely, which helps us all to move forward. Think about how you champion change and improvement. Are you influencing to improve?

This magazine is also on a journey of change, development and transformation.

The issue you’re reading now is the final one in its current format.

Just like IOSH and the OSH profession, IOSH Magazine will, from the next edition, take on a new shape and renewed purpose to better serve your needs. It will deliver richer content that links more clearly to IOSH’s strategy, share more news of progress and development, and offer in-depth features that help you on your professional journey.

Look out for greater detail in the introduction to the March/April relaunch edition of our magazine.

Andrew Sharman IOSH president

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Contents February 2020 In focus

p4 pXX

HSE to establish new XXX building safety regulator XXX UK government announces string of measures to raise building standards, including extending the combustible cladding ban

4

5

6

p5

teen’s electric shock XXX

DB Cargo in court again £700,000 fine for fatal cylinder blast

XXX

DB Cargo fined £1.7m over pXX

UK regulator to oversee new measures to improve building safety Fedex fined over vehicle segregation failings

pXX

XXX

4

News

Boss forged dead worker’s signature Water sector’s ‘refreshing’ mental health progress

7

Supervisor’s order led to fatal concrete slab collapse, court hears

Just 1 in 5 monitors asthma, says HSE

The freight operator has been prosecuted XXX again after a child suffered 40% burns when he was shocked by an overhead cable

5

pXX p24 XXX

Breaking new ground

XXX

Major construction projects like Tideway, Hinkley Point C and Crossrail are raising the bar on occupational health

p24

Behavioural insights Applying behavioural science to nudge decisions for improved safety outcomes

10

IOSH News 10 Health and safety bodies urge UK government to be ‘far more ambitious’ IOSH Board Committees’ recruitment complete Tributes to IOSH’s first chief executive Corporate governance explores the link with improved OSH performance

13

11

A significant step forward for IOSH in Nigeria Conference: inspiring through good practice Discussing essential guidance on fire safety New Year’s Honours recognises health, safety and wellbeing champions

12 No Time to Lose launches in Nigeria NTTL asbestos discussed at East Midlands branch NTTL supports World Cancer Day 13 Sun safety recommendations made IOSH training courses First cohort to complete apprenticeship

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30 COVER STORY

Features 18 Turning the tide

Major construction projects like Tideway can help raise the bar for management of occupational health risks

24 Manufacturing choice

We consider the latest behavioural science thinking for nudging OSH behaviours

30 A steer on road safety

What can organisations do to ensure their employees out on the road are safe?

36 Mobile data

18

After two decades, telematics has come a long way in reducing risks of driver distraction

41 Keeping record

OSH professionals will need to be mindful of the financial and legal costs of non-compliance

45 A hidden epidemic

Preserving and promoting the protection of the UK’s hearing becomes a primary focus

Regulars 7

41

45

Column

Michael Edwards Grad IOSH

15 Events 16 Reviews

Safety Science Research and Wellbeing at Work

51 Lexicon

W is for WYLFIWYF

52 Off duty

Hannah McIntosh, Operations H&S advisor and aerial hoop enthusiast

54 Recruitment

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News

For the latest IOSH news and views, visit ioshmagazine.co.uk

HSE to oversee new measures to improve building safety The government has announced that a new building safety regulator will be established and has proposed to accelerate the removal of combustible cladding from buildings countrywide.

Intended to raise building safety and performance standards, including overseeing a new, more stringent regime for higher-risk buildings, housing secretary Robert Jenrick announced the immediate establishment of a new Building Safety Regulator within the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). He also announced a proposal to extend the existing combustible cladding ban and accelerate its removal from buildings across the country.

“Building owners are responsible for ensuring their buildings are safe and where there is no clear plan for remediation, the government will work with local authorities to support them in their enforcement options,” said Jenrick.

Speaking in the House of Commons, the minister also made clear that from next month he will begin naming building owners where remediation has not started

The new regulator’s remit is to improve building safety standards

to remove unsafe Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) cladding from their buildings.

Jenrick confirmed the government will consult on extending the ban on combustible materials to buildings below 18 m and we will seek views on how risks are assessed within existing buildings to inform future policy.

With a strong track record of working with industry and other regulators to improve safety, the HSE said it will draw on experience and the capabilities of other regulators to implement the regime. Former HSE chair Dame Judith Hackitt will chair a Board to oversee the transition.

Current HSE chair Martin Temple said he was “proud” the

government had asked the HSE to establish the new regulator, describing it as “in good hands”, and while IOSH welcomed the commitment to accelerate building safety improvements, it called for “visible and tangible action” to be taken.

“While it’s positive to hear the new government declare it won’t tolerate the slow pace of improvement to building safety in the UK, which IOSH and others have raised concern over, we now need to see visible and tangible action, with these announcements just the start of an extensive and active deliveryprogramme,” said Richard Jones, head of policy and regulatory engagement at IOSH. “Working with the HSE will be reassuring for many, given it’s a world-class regulator that secures near universal praise nationally. It has successful experience of co-regulation, as well as of operating permissioning and safety-case regimes and enforcing the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations, so should be ideally placed for such a role.”

But Jones warned how vital it is that it’s properly resourced for taking on this substantial additional responsibility.

To read the full story: bit.ly/36wKWjM

Delivery firm fined £533k after reversing forklift struck worker Parcel giant Fedex UK has landed a £533,000 fine after an employee was seriously injured when he was hit by a forklift truck.

In the early morning of 2 November 2017, the worker was walking across the depot at Burntwood Business Park, near Cannock in Staffordshire, when he was struck by the reversing vehicle. He was pinned to the ground and his colleagues had to use a pallet truck to free him. He suffered serious fractures to his arm and soft tissue injuries to his legs and was off work for several months.

Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigators found there was inadequate segregation between forklift trucks and pedestrians within the workplace. A risk assessment had been carried out but had not identified the importance of achieving robust segregation in an area where frequent forklift truck movements took place.

At Cannock Magistrates’ Court, Fedex UK admitted breaching s 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act and, as well as the fine, was ordered to pay costs of £10,033.

“Those in control of work have a responsibility to provide safe methods of working and a safe working environment,” warned HSE inspector Wendy Campbell.

“Collisions between vehicles and pedestrians can be avoided if the workplace layout is properly planned, effectively segregated and suitable systems of work are introduced.

“If physical barriers and a suitable system of work had been in place, the injuries sustained by this employee could have been prevented,” she added.

Images: Alamy

A Fedex UK employee was off work for months after being forced to the ground by a reversing forklift.

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News

In Short

France Télécom bosses jailed The ex-boss of France Télécom and two former executives have been found guilty of “moral harassment” over a restructuring policy linked to suicides among employees. Didier Lombard (pictured), Louis-Pierre Wenès and Olivier Barberot were all handed suspended sentences.

The company, since renamed Orange, was fined €75,000 ($83,000; £64,000). The court in Paris examined 39 cases of employees, 19 of whom had taken their own lives and 12 who had attempted to, following a major restructuring of the company that affected thousands of employees.

DB Cargo hit with another multi-million pound fine The UK’s largest freight operator has been prosecuted after a boy suffered 40% burns from an overhead power line.

Wolverhampton Magistrates’ Court was told that the boy and two 13-year-old friends entered Bescot Yard freight terminal in Walsall on 1 June 2017 after they climbed through a hole in a fence next to adjacent playing fields.

Two of the three boys climbed on top of a train, and while standing on the roof, one suffered a devastating electric shock from the 25,000-volt overhead power lines. He sustained 40% burns and life-changing injuries. The second child sustained burns to his hand and a

bit.ly/2tD4u8E

Man fell 40 ft at nightclub The manager of Quartz nightclub in Cannock, where a man plunged 40 ft to his death when he fell over a “low level” barrier, has been prosecuted. Electrician Ryan Shenton stumbled over the 2.6 ft-high barrier while in a “considerable state of intoxication”, Stafford Crown Court was told. Investigators said there was a “poor safety culture” at the premises, where customers routinely exited the club through a door on the second floor onto a car park overlooking Cannock Shopping Centre below. bit.ly/30O7L1a

Images: PA/HSE

Cherry exporter fined Tasmanian cherry exporter Reid Fruits has been ordered to pay $250,000 over the 2015 death of a worker at one of its orchards.

Retbe Chide Negga, 50, was crushed under the wheels of a tractor’s trailer while loading tubs of cherries onto the vehicle. bit.ly/2RfbGkv

Youths were regularly spotted climbing on the trains

broken arm; the third was physically unharmed.

An investigation by the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) revealed that DB Cargo was aware members of the public were often gaining unauthorised access to the site, with 35 incidents documented from July 2012 to June 2017. On 28 May 2017, a few days prior to the incident, DB Cargo recorded that several youths had been spotted clambering over locomotives.

The rail freight firm pleaded guilty of one count of failing to ensure, so far as reasonably practicable, that persons not in its employment, who may have been affected, were not exposed to risks to their health and safety, namely by failing to take reasonably practicable measures to prevent trespassers from entering the yard, in contravention of s 3(1) and s 33(1)(a) of the Health and Safety at Work Act. In early January, DB Cargo was fined £1.2m, with £27,873 costs.

“Our thoughts remain with the victims who suffered such terrible injuries, and their family and friends who have also been deeply affected,” said Ian Prosser, HM Chief Inspector of Railways.

“We welcome the sentence which shows the seriousness with which the court has taken this case, and we expect the rail industry to make sure their sites are secure and minimise To read the full story: the chances of a repeat bit.ly/38Tb2iD of this incident.”

Canister co in court over fatal cylinder blast A division of Pressure Technologies has been fined £700,000 after a 64-year-old worker was killed when shrapnel ejected from testing equipment.

Chesterfield Special Cylinders, a manufacturer of high-pressure gas cylinders, was found guilty of safety breaches following an investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

The court was told that on 10 June 2015, John Townsend, 64, was leak testing eight 1,500- litre cylinders, by applying compressed air inside to create pressure, at the company’s Sheffield site. While in the process of venting the air

through the test manifold, it catastrophically failed and killed him.

The investigation revealed that prior to installing the fittings, 1.5 litres of a mineral oil-based corrosion inhibitor had been placed into each of the cylinders. The incident occurred because the inhibitor contaminated the leak test manifold during venting of cylinders and was subjected to enough pressure inside the manifold to ignite and cause the test equipment to fail.

At Sheffield Crown Court, Chesterfield Special Cylinders was found guilty of breaching s 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act. The company was

fined £700,000 with full costs of £169,498. The penalty must be paid in instalments by January 2023.

After the hearing, HSE inspector Eddy Tarn said: “This was a tragic and wholly avoidable incident, caused by the failure of the company to identify any additional risks that arise when work processes are adapted.”

According to local newspaper reports, Pressure Technologies’ chief executive, Chris Walters, said after the hearing: “Chesterfield Special Cylinders and Pressure Technologies Group respect the decision of the jury and the sentencing. We deeply regret the events that resulted in the death of our colleague.”

To read the full story: bit.ly/2U6yJiW

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The contracts manager of a roofing firm has been jailed for forging health and safety documents after a worker fell to his death.

On 24 September 2015, Kenneth Drake was working on the roof of an ironmongers in Rochdale when he fell through a fragile roof light. He sustained fatal head injuries.

An investigation by Greater Manchester Police and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found there had been fundamental breaches of duty on the part of those who organised the work to the roof.

These were Drake’s employers, Roofing Consultants Ltd, and a second company that was also involved in the work, High Ridge Roofing Solutions.

Netting should have been provided, but Roofing Consultants’ contracts manager Mark Bray insisted it was not needed. Experts in the field assessed the site after Drake’s

fall and advised that netting was necessary.

Another expert in the field stated that it was not difficult to net and if it had been installed, it would have caught Drake.

Experts told investigators that netting would have cost about £1,250 to safely install.

Manchester Crown Square Crown Court was told that, following the incident, Bray copied Drake’s signature on a risk assessment document to make it appear as if he had agreed to procedures on the £55,000 project.

Earlier this week, at Manchester Crown Square Crown Court, 48-year-old Mark Bray was sentenced to serve two years in prison after admitting failing to take reasonable care of other persons, pursuant to s 7 of the Health and Safety at Work Act, contrary to s 33(1)(a).

He also pleaded guilty to perverting the course of justice while Roofing Consultants Ltd

Water sector’s ‘refreshing’ results in tackling mental health Almost three-quarters of companies in the water sector routinely monitor their workforce’s wellbeing, according to a new report. The benchmarking against the Thriving at Work standards for mental health provision report, published last month by Thames Water (ubm.io/2RzPGQd), is the second benchmarking exercise to be undertaken against the report standards, produced by Lord Dennis Stevenson and Paul Farmer CBE, chief executive of Mind.

The independent review, published in 2017, found that poor mental health costs employers up to £42bn a year with an annual cost to the UK economy of £99bn.

The review set out a framework for all UK employers,

regardless of their size or industry, to improve workplace mental health. Through evidence and best practice, the review sets out six mental health core standards for employers.

There are also several enhanced standards for larger

Contracts manager Bray was found guilty

was fined £100,000 plus £30,000 in costs after pleading guilty to breaching s 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act. High Ridge Roofing Solutions Ltd was found guilty of breaching reg 15(2) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015.

The company was fined £12,000 and ordered to pay £33,000 costs.

To read the full story: bit.ly/38KnrF8

employers to lead the way in mental health provision.

In July 2019, the first utilities sector benchmarking exercise was undertaken against the Thriving at Work standards. The aim of the benchmarking survey was to assess mental health provision across the water industry.

The survey found that 73% of the firms surveyed said that they already produce, implement and communicate a mental health at work plan, while all the 15 companies have ongoing mental health awareness among employees and promote effective people management through line managers and supervisors.

More than 86% said that their organisation encourages open conversations about mental health and provides support when employees are struggling.

To read the full story: bit.ly/2O3o19b

In Short Worker killed on first day in job A vehicle recovery and repair company has been fined £20,000 after a new worker suffered fatal crush injuries during maintenance work, only hours after he had started his new job. Birmingham Magistrates’ Court heard that on 24 November 2014, Albert Road Recovery and Repair employee John Glenn, 56, was fatally injured when a rigid vehicle fell suddenly from an inadequate axle support prop at its premises in Coventry. bit.ly/2TKZSI7

Music trial for silent electric buses Transport for London (TfL) has announced a trial that involves playing an artificial sound through speakers on the front of the new generation hybrid and electric buses. The buses are so quiet that TfL fears cyclists and pedestrians – particularly blind or partially sighted people – will be at risk if they cannot hear them coming. However, Unite the Union has warned the trial’s spaceshiplike noise sounds nothing like a bus so won’t improve safety. bit.ly/38wpNrn

Chippy fined £75k over spilled oil A fish and chip shop in Skipton has been prosecuted after three staff members were burned by hot oil when they changed the fat during business hours.

The court was told that the fact employees believed this was acceptable, when it was contrary to Bizzie Lizzie’s risk assessment and procedure, showed a lack of proper training, supervision and compliance with procedures in the defendant’s business. bit.ly/2sKgCUR

Images: Preston City Council/HSE, Alamy

Boss who forged dead worker’s signature jailed for two years

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Column

Michael Edwards Grad IOSH OSH content developer, IOSH

Just one in five monitors asthma risk, says HSE Lack of health surveillance means increased risk of occupational asthma Only 19% of the organisations potentially exposing employees to asthmagens have health surveillance, according to Health and Safety Executive (HSE) research.

RR1139: Uptake and quality of health surveillance for occupational asthma in the woodworking, baking and motor vehicle repair sectors (bit.ly/2ulvh9k) presents research into the levels of uptake and quality of health surveillance for occupational asthma in three industry sectors at increased risk of occupational asthma: woodworking; baking; and motor vehicle repair.

Telephone interviews were held with employers from 457 organisations, of which 67% reported carrying out risk assessments. Risk of exposures

that might cause occupational asthma (in the view of the dutyholder) was reported in 42 motor vehicle repair enterprises (27%), 78 woodworking workplaces (52%) and 95 bakeries (62%).

Equivalent statistics for the specific industry sectors under consideration were 14% for the woodworking sector, 17% for the motor vehicle repair sector and 24% for the bakery sector.

The research further revealed that some dutyholders who were not providing health surveillance thought that they had no obligation to because they were very small organisations or regarded the cost as a burden.

To read the full story: bit.ly/2NZmcKj

Demolition specialist in the dock after labourer killed A 33-year-old Lithuanian worker has been killed at a London construction site after a reinforced concrete slab collapsed following an order from his supervisor to remove the props supporting it.

Southwark Crown Court was told that on 14 April 2014, 33-year-old labourer Dainius Rupsys from Lithuania was working with an excavator operator at the site on Grosvenor Square in London, as part of the operation to demolish the existing building before 31 residential flats could be built.

Rupsys had been burning through reinforcing steel bars with an oxy-propane lance to assist the excavator operator’s efforts to remove part of the re-enforced concrete slab.

Another worker had alerted the supervisor that their work had made the structure unsafe and the demolition was halted.

The 360 excavator collapsed

However, the supervisor then ordered the removal of props supporting the remaining slab and less than ten minutes later it collapsed.

Rupsys, the 360 excavator and its operator in the cab all fell with the slab. Rupsys suffered severe head injuries and died at the scene.

His employer, McGee Group, was fined £500,000 plus £66,236 costs.

To read the full story: bit.ly/37uyDFL

When you talk to most people about occupational safety and health (OSH), they will probably start talking about trip hazards, falls from height or mechanical hazards. Rarely will their thought be of work-related disease or ill health.

According to the International Labour Organization, work-related diseases caused more than 1.9 million deaths a year in 2017, which was up on previous years.

Hazardous substances alone caused almost double the amount of deaths than safety-related events.

So why are there so many work-related deaths worldwide from hazardous substances?

This all comes down to risk perception. Humans tend to concentrate on things that they can see, hear, touch and smell. Something that does not immediately hurt them tends to be ignored.

Most non-OSH professionals will assess risks subconsciously. Risk perception links the likelihood of a hazardous event occurring with the severity of the event, but are most people’s perception of risk biased? Do they fear high-severity, but rare events more than low severity, more frequent events? Also, are events that expose many people at once to Encouraging suppliers risk perceived as more dangerous than events in to agree to train their which people are killed in workers on hazardous small numbers every day? substance health effects Take the UK for as part of their contract example. In 2017/18, there could have a major effect were ten-times fewer on improving perception deaths from fire than from lung cancer caused by working with asbestos. The Grenfell disaster accounted for almost a third of the deaths caused by fire and had unprecedented media coverage worldwide. High-profile OSH events such as Grenfell cause most people to focus their attention on that safety topic. Most media coverage will concentrate on these high-severity safety hazards, as they have an immediate effect on groups of people.

Did the deaths caused by asbestos get the same media coverage? It could be argued that they didn’t.

So why doesn’t asbestos get the same risk perception as say, fire?

To most people, asbestos is practically invisible.

As it is usually contained in walls, ceiling tiles and pipe insulation, it is very difficult to identify without proper labelling and training. Damage to this material can be easily ignored in the workplace, especially in less visited areas.

Lung cancer is the most serious disease that can be caused by asbestos exposure. It can take years to develop any symptoms. This makes it difficult to work out where a worker was originally exposed to asbestos. It is therefore easy for an organisation to not treat health effects as a priority.

So what can we do as OSH professionals? Let’s get our organisations to look at their supply chains.

As well as providing a service, are their suppliers managing the risks to their workers’ health? I suggest they look at IOSH’s No Time to Lose campaign (notimetolose.org.uk).

Encouraging suppliers to agree to train their workers on hazardous substance health effects as part of their contract could have a major effect on improving perception. This will also help form part of the organisation’s sustainability agenda.

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Legal

This sponsored content has been provided by Cedrec Information Systems, available at cedrec.com

Appeal against decision for noise-induced hearing loss allowed The appellant factory operator, Alcoa Manufacturing (GB) Ltd, appealed against a decision upholding the respondent’s claim for damages for noise-induced hearing loss.

The respondent had worked at the factory between 1963 and 1976 and claimed that his injuries were caused by the appellant’s negligence in failing to carry out a noise survey to ensure he was not exposed to unsafe levels of noise.

The respondent asked the trial judge to draw inference from previous case law against the appellant, based on the fact that no noise surveys had been produced. The judge did not do so, and accepted that documents relating to the noise survey might have been lost instead of never carried out, and found that expert engineering evidence did not support the case that the respondent had been subject to wrongful levels of noise. He dismissed the claim.

On appeal, the judge held the appellant was under a duty to conduct noise surveys from 1970 onwards. He held that the

previous judge should have drawn inference from previous case law and that a good interpretation of the respondent’s evidence would have involved accepting that he was exposed to noise throughout the working day without formal protection or warning.

The judge held the expert evidence was unable to disprove that the working environment could have been the cause of his hearing loss, and allowed the appeal by the respondent.

When Alcoa Manufacturing (GB) Ltd appealed this decision, it was considered when a common-law duty to carry out noise surveys arose. There was no statutory duty to carry out noise surveys until the Noise at Work Regulations 1989 came into force, but Ministry of Labour guidance pre-dating the regulations gave rise to common-law duty to

carry out a noise survey in certain circumstances. A common-law duty to carry out and act upon a noise survey arose in 1973 or 1974.

The judge concluded that the previous judge’s decision to remit the case for assessment of damages for the entire period the respondent worked at the factory, should be amended to provide that damages should be assessed from 1973 or 1974 to 1976.

It was also found that there was no sufficient basis available to overturn the finding of the fact made by the original judge that there was no breach of duty on the part of the appellant, because noise surveys might have been lost.

It was concluded that the first judge was entitled to accept the engineering evidence and avoid resorting to inferences from case law, even if they might otherwise have been drawn.

“In future cases where it is relevant to determine whether a noise survey has been undertaken in the past it would be helpful if both parties addressed that in pre-trial questions about the existence of documents or in the evidence at trial.

This would help to avoid a situation where the trial judge is left to deal with the factual finding about whether a noise survey was carried out on the basis only of submissions about lists of documents”.

The appeal was allowed.

EU adopts conclusions on a new OSH strategy The European Council has adopted conclusions for a new EU strategic framework on occupational health and safety at work for 2021-2027. It recognises the results achieved during the current strategy, and suggests a focus on the changing world of work and in particular on psychological risks, workrelated accidents and diseases and the inclusion of disabled and older workers. The European Trade Union Confederation is hoping the strategy’s renewal is prioritised to avoid the repeat of a two-year delay experienced by the current strategy. cedr.ec/6kl

HSE publishes new licence application forms for explosive activities The review of the HSE’s approach to explosive licensing recommended that the HSE review its administrative process for granting a licence.

As part of this review, the HSE have updated existing licence application forms and also introduced new forms in order to reflect the range of explosive activities requiring a licence.

These forms will help improve the delivery of applications to ensure that necessary supporting information for licences is available at the start of the process. cedr.ec/6ka

Substances banned under REACH in 2020

Compliance requirements for nanoforms

Two REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals) restrictions came into force in January 2020: for BPA in thermal paper and D4, D5 in wash-off cosmetics. The restrictions aim to protect human health and the environment from the risks posed by chemicals and substances. Restrictions may limit or ban the manufacture, use or placing on the market of a substance. These specific restrictions limit the concentration of the substances that can be placed in products. cedr.ec/6kb

From 1 January 2020, companies that manufacture or import nanoforms have specific reporting obligations to comply with. The new requirements apply to all new and existing nanoform registrations under REACH and require the manufacturer or importer to submit specific information on: ● the characterisation of nanoforms; ● chemical safety assessment; ● registration information requirements; and ● downstream user obligations. cedr.ec/6kc

Image: iStock, Alamy

Legislation, guidance and consultation

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Legal

£260,000 fine for Sir Robert McAlpine following fall from height The construction company Sir Robert McAlpine Ltd was fined £260,000 and ordered to pay £38,229 in costs after a worker sustained multiple injuries in a fall from height.

On 28 April 2016, Mark Smith was working at a site in Keighley attaching straps to a water tank prior to its relocation for maintenance painting work when he fell 4.8 m through an unprotected opening.

Smith spent nine days in hospital and sustained fractures to his leg, ankle, knee, eye socket and nose, as well as facial cuts, concussion and injuries to his ribs. He has been unable to return to work since the accident due to the psychological effect he suffered from the incident.

The HSE investigation discovered that the opening Smith fell through had no fixed edge protection.

HSE inspector Paul Thompson commented: “Falls from height often result in life-changing or fatal injuries.

The Building (Amendment) Wales Regulations 2019 On 13 January 2020 the Building Regulations 2010 were amended to introduce new requirements for the external spread of fire and prohibit the use of combustible materials in the external walls of certain buildings over 18 m in height.

Materials used in the external walls of those buildings must achieve European Classification A2-s1, d0 or A1.

These amendments bring the requirements for buildings in Wales in line with those for England. cedr.ec/6kd

In most cases, these incidents are needless and could be prevented by properly planning the work to ensure that effective preventative and protective measures are in place such as edge protection or barriers built to the correct standard.

This incident could have easily been prevented if the company had undertaken a thorough risk assessment and installed adequate edge protection around the opening to prevent falls.”

At Leeds Magistrates’ Court, the company pleaded guilty to breaching s 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act, reg 3(1) of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations and reg 13(1) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015.

Unfortunately tragic incidents like this do not appear to be becoming less frequent.

Falls from height remain the largest cause of workplace fatalities in Great Britain. In

the 2018/19 period, HSE statistics show that 40 deaths occurred in the workplace due to injuries sustained from a fall from height – an increase from 35 fatalities the previous year.

The construction sector also

remains the most dangerous sector for employees, with 20% of the workplace fatalities that occurred in 2018/19 occurring in construction.

More promising however, is that this is the lowest figure on record, yet still more work remains to be done to reduce workplace fatalities across not only the construction sector, but workplaces across the board.

Revised workplace exposure limits published

Proposed Fire Safety and Building Safety Bills

HSE focuses inspections on metal fabrication

The HSE have approved a new and revised edition of EH40/2005 on workplace exposure limits. This revision follows amendments made to Directive 2004/37/EC on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to carcinogens or mutagens at work. These amendments set new occupational exposure limit values for a number of recently categorised carcinogens and mutagens, and includes new binding limits for exposure including for hardwood dusts, refractory ceramic fibres and respirable crystalline silica. cedr.ec/6lc

Announced during the Queen’s Speech during the opening of parliament, the Fire Safety Bill seeks to implement the relevant legislative recommendations from phase one of the public inquiry into Grenfell. It will clarify the scope of the Fire Safety Order including external building walls, cladding and fire doors for domestic multioccupancy premises. The Building Safety Bill aims to establish recommendations made in the Hackitt review and put in place an enhanced safety framework for high-rise residential buildings. cedr.ec/6kg

Following the reclassification of welding fumes as a group one carcinogenic in February 2019, the HSE announced enforced control measures for those undertaking welding operations. As part of this, between January and March this year, the HSE is targeting inspections at sites that undertake metal fabrications, with a particular focus on the control of exposure to welding fume and metal working fluids.

Metal working fluids pose risks of occupational asthma, hypersensitivity pneumonitis and dermatitis. cedr.ec/6kh

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IOSH News Health and safety bodies urge UK government to be ‘far more ambitious’

The new Employment Bill announced during the Queen’s Speech sets out a plan to improve workers’ rights and to promote fairness in the workplace, while a new single enforcement body will be established to offer greater protections to workers.

However, while the Bill commits to maintaining high standards, improving fairness in the workplace and protecting those in low-paid work and the ‘gig economy’, IOSH says it needs to be “far more ambitious”, as it is lacking in key

IOSH Board Committees’ recruitment complete A key part of IOSH’s drive to strengthen its governance and accountability has been completed, following the review of our Board Committee structure.

We have now successfully recruited all committee positions, introducing new talent and a range of different perspectives.

Our four Board Committees support the IOSH Board of Trustees in fulfilling their roles and responsibilities to the institution.

IOSH’s four Board Committees are: ● Finance and Investment; ● Performance and Development; ● Audit and Risk; and ● Policy and Standards.

Tony Bough CFIOSH, vice-chair of the Board of

Trustees, said: “This new committee structure (bit.ly/2NBulVd) has been designed to reflect best governance practice and helps us to continue the modernisation of our organisation as part of IOSH’s WORK 2022 strategy.

“The way our committees work now ensures more independence and accountability and more focused responsibilities. We were pleased to be able to recruit excellent new committee members to fill vacancies and look forward to their valuable contributions.”

Find out more about our Board Committees, their remits, how they support our strategy, our charitable objects and the ways we serve members at bit.ly/30Eyz3X

Corporate Governance explores the link with improved OSH performance

Tributes to IOSH’s first chief executive Tributes have been paid to John Barrell OBE, IOSH’s first chief executive, who passed away in January aged 83.

John started with IOSH in 1978 as company secretary. He was awarded an OBE in 1996, and after retiring from his role as chief executive served as an honorary vice-president at IOSH until the time of his death.

Read the tributes, including from IOSH’s current CEO Bev Messinger, at bit.ly/30IAoNb

IOSH’s new Corporate Governance masterclass is now open to people wishing to learn more about how effective governance can improve occupational safety and health performance in the workplace.

Corporate Governance helps delegates understand how to evaluate strategic strengths and weaknesses in corporate OSH governance and is a stepping stone to IOSH’s Leading Safely course.

For more information and to register your interest, visit bit.ly/2NuU299

Corporate Governance

Images: Getty

Responding to the Queen’s Speech in December 2019, IOSH and other health and safety bodies, including the British Safety Council, the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, are urging the UK government to ensure long-term commitment and real action on health and safety that delivers a successful and sustainable future for all.

areas relating to occupational health service reforms and rights to request health-related workplace modifications.

Richard Jones, IOSH head of policy and regulatory engagement, said: “IOSH’s focus at this time of great national change is twofold: ensuring no erosion of health and safety standards; and building a safer, healthier, more sustainable future for all.

Not only must we maintain standards, but we must also energetically drive continual improvement in them.

“To ensure the UK is fit for the future, the new Employment Bill needs far more ambition than is currently proposed – covering occupational health service reforms and subsidies and rights to request health-based modifications and to be able to ‘switch off’ from work.

“Good work is good for individuals, businesses and the economy, and good health and safety is fundamental to this.”

Working with other professional organisations, IOSH is committed to keeping a close watch on the new UK government’s legislative agenda and its implications relating to workers’ rights, including the Employment Bill, Building Safety Bill, Fire Safety Bill, Environment Bill and the Health Service Safety Investigations Bill.

We will continue to discuss these with our partners and defend the high standards, rights and protections our workplaces need.

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IOSH News

A significant step forward for IOSH in Nigeria IOSH has reached a momentous landmark with its first conference in West Africa, organised in partnership with the Federal Government of Nigeria and the Lagos State Safety Commission.

Shaping the Future of Occupational Safety and Health in Africa (see December issue), held in Lagos on 22 January, was a significant development for IOSH. It underlined the institution’s role as a global organisation and the international demand for its expertise and influence. IOSH’s strategy is aligned with the Federal Government of Nigeria’s workplan, in which safety and health training is seen as a priority.

The event was oversubscribed, and bookings had to be stopped two weeks early.

In the end, more than 800 delegates attended, receiving presentations from key business leaders and taking part in workshops and panel discussions designed to build safety and health competencies and capabilities in Nigeria.

High-level representatives from the Federal Republic of Nigeria addressed the conference. Speakers included IOSH chief executive Bev Messinger, IOSH vicepresident Kayode Fowode, IOSH West Africa consultant Funmi Adegbola, the director general of the Lagos State Safety

Commission, Mr Lanre Mojola, as well as the representatives of the Nigerian Insurers Association and the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria.

At the conference, IOSH launched both its NCFE IOSH Level 3 Certificate in Safety and Health for Business qualification and its No Time to Lose campaign on occupational cancer across West Africa. Bev Messinger said: “We are delighted to be building on the important memorandum of collaboration we signed in 2019 with the Lagos State Safety Commission to support the development of strong workplace safety cultures promoted by businesses and government agencies.”

Alan Stevens, head of strategic engagement at IOSH, was confident that the institution’s commitment would make a major contribution, and provide support for the growing network of safety and health professionals in Nigeria.

“We respect and admire the vision and determination of Hon. Hakeem Dickson and the Lagos State Safety Commission and we are determined to give support in every way we possibly can to ensure that the vision becomes a reality.”

IOSH is also set to visit Ghana later this year to develop links and build a new network there.

A full house at IOSH’s first conference in West Africa

Conference focus: inspiring through good practice IOSH Ireland South branch’s annual conference takes place on Wednesday, 12 February with a focus on good practice in health, safety and wellbeing at work.

Entitled ‘Start a ripple, create a wave’, the event will highlight work being carried out across the region that has positively influenced workers. Speakers from the Health and Safety Executive, Northumbria University, the Health and Safety Authority and others will provide insights that delegates will be able to take back to their own workplaces.

The event takes place at Cork International Hotel, Cork Airport Business Park, County Cork T12 H516.

Discussing essential guidance on fire safety in the workplace Ways in which organisations can deal with a fire emergency and provide assistance during an incident will be explored at an event on 25 March in Horsham, West Sussex.

The ‘Fire safety in the workplace’ event, organised by the IOSH South Downs Branch and the IOSH Fire Risk Management Group, will provide delegates with information on topics such as dealing with individuals with disabilities during fire emergencies, the risks of fire alarm complacency and the critical role that OSH professionals must play in resolving fire safety issues.

Delegates will also hear personal experiences of those who have lived through a major event, offering valuable skills to take away and apply in the workplace.

The event will close with a Q&A session.

To book your place, visit bit.ly/2QPOxoi

New Year’s Honours recognises achievements in safety, health and wellbeing The New Year’s Honours List for 2020 has recognised the achievements of safety and health professionals across the UK, including: ● Julie Rose Farrow, project and policy adviser, Civil Nuclear Security and Safety, Department for Business,

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Energy and Industrial Strategy, for services to diversity and inclusion (Essex).

Stephen Paul Groom, deputy head, physical and personnel security at the Department for International Development, for services to staff safety (Greater London).

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Susan Elizabeth Johnson, lately head of safety, security and business resilience at the Ministry of Defence, for services to defence (Greater London).

Christopher David Brereton, chief environmental health officer, Welsh government, for services to environmental

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and public health in Wales (South Glamorgan).

Susannah Virginia O’Neill, bus driver and safety co-ordinator, for services to public transport and to the community in Northern Ireland (Belfast).

Colin Simpson Todd, fire safety consultant, for services to fire safety (Surrey).

The full New Year’s Honours list is available here: bit.ly/2uLo1Ux

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IOSH News

No Time to Lose launches in Nigeria

NTTL asbestos discussed at East Midlands branch

IOSH’s No Time to Lose (NTTL) campaign was launched at the ‘Shaping the Future of Occupational Safety and Health in Africa’ conference, marking its introduction to West Africa.

The campaign, which has just entered its sixth year, was presented by IOSH vice-president Kayode Fowode to an audience of more than 800, including VIPs in Lagos on 22 January.

The launch focused on two main occupational cancer challenges in West Africa - asbestos and diesel engine exhaust emissions.

Globally, at least 742,000 lives are lost to work-related cancer a year, of which some 46,500 are in Africa, with asbestos being one of the key contributing factors.

The collaborative work between IOSH and the Lagos State Safety Commission is designed to address the negative social and economic impacts of poor safety and health at work. For example, as a proportion of GDP, the average cost of work-related injuries and ill health in Nigeria is 4.38%. That’s higher than the global average, 3.94%.

The presentation gave business leaders the latest information on the risks of asbestos and diesel exhaust emissions specifically in Nigeria and helped raise awareness about what they could do to prevent occupational cancer.

Presenting the campaign launch, IOSH vice-president Kayode Fowode said: “We

IOSH vice-president Kayode Fowode

are pleased to hear that Nigerian organisations, the Environment and Safety Management Institute and Gokada Rides Limited, have already signed up as supporters. We look forward to receiving backing from many more organisations in Africa for our No Time to Lose campaign.”

No Time to Lose currently has the backing of more than 365 organisations worldwide and over 130 leading businesses have pledged to act.

The publicity for the launch was so successful that the campaign gained the backing of five organisations prior to the launch itself. New supporters of NTTL include the Lagos State Safety Commission, Gokada Rides Ltd, Kevron Consulting Ltd, Hybrid Group and MTC Enterprise Development Ltd.

On 6 February No Time to Lose ambassador and past president of IOSH John Lacey gave a presentation on the asbestos phase of the NTTL campaign at the IOSH East Midlands branch event in Lincoln.

The meeting focused on the risks of asbestos in Britain, highlighting the extent of its distribution and potential contribution to the development of occupational cancer. The presentation explained various prevention measures that should be followed.

The risk of developing occupational cancer as a result of being exposed to asbestos is so high that its use has been banned in 66 countries, including the UK and all countries in the European Union.

Despite its ban in the UK, asbestos can still be found in domestic and commercial buildings, industrial plant and equipment.

Those attending the meeting learned that in Britain alone, around 20 tradespeople die a week from cancer caused by exposure to asbestos.

Raising awareness across the UK has proven vital in the prevention of exposure to asbestos, as an opinion survey commissioned by IOSH found that a third of tradespeople don’t check the asbestos register before starting work on a new site. It also found that 15% of trades people were not even aware that such a register exists.

Presenting the event, John Lacey said: “Whether you’re an employer or employee, industry body or policy-maker, safety and health professional or occupational hygienist, we all have a part to play if we want to call time on work-caused cancers.

We can beat occupational cancer if we work together to control the exposure risks.”

To find an event near you or to learn more about No Time to Lose, visit: notimetolose.org.uk

For more information, visit: notimetolose.org.uk

NTTL supports World Cancer Day IOSH supported World Cancer Day on 4 February by increasing the efforts of its No Time to Lose (NTTL) campaign, which celebrates its sixth year of advocacy and raising awareness worldwide.

While cancer is a word many of us are familiar with hearing, occupational cancer has been comparatively overlooked.

No Time to Lose has campaigned to raise awareness of occupational cancer among business leaders as well as employees, using research to show the extent of the risks and producing practical resources to manage and reduce the risk of cancer caused by work.

Since the campaign launched in 2014, around 118,000 resources have been

downloaded from the website, 23,000 campaign packs have been distributed to businesses and occupational safety and health professionals, and campaign messages published by the media have reached an audience of more than 83 million worldwide.

More than 365 organisations from 40 countries are supporting the campaign and

have agreed to raise awareness of occupational cancer, 130 leading businesses have signed up to the pledge to manage carcinogens in the workplace, and NTTL ambassadors have presented the campaign at more than 250 events worldwide to around 18,000 delegates.

To find out more about how NTTL supported World Cancer Day, visit: notimetolose.org.uk/ world-cancer-day

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IOSH News

Sun safety recommendations to better protect at-risk workers

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Actively managing sun exposure and providing nudging messages via text message are two ways in which organisations can better protect outdoor workers from harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation, research by Heriot-Watt University suggests.

A new paper published in IOSH’s journal, Policy and Practice in Health and Safety, follows on from an IOSH-funded study published last year (bit. ly/2QZ2Jvh) led by Heriot-Watt, which found almost half of outdoor workers on the construction sites they investigated had insufficient vitamin D during the winter.

However, the team found during the summer that the desire to get a suntan remained

high among workers, with many being exposed to high UV radiation, increasing their risk of developing non-melanoma skin cancer. Sun safety remains a low priority on construction sites and awareness of current sun-safe measures is low.

The paper provides a summary of the evidence for practitioners and outlines some of the key recommendations for workplaces to consider in order to better protect outdoor workers, including: ● workplace health promotion initiatives to ‘nudge’ workers towards healthier dietary choices, including dietary supplements in winter, to boost serum vitamin D levels in their workers; ● a risk-based approach adopted by employers to

manage exposure to solar UV proactively, in which risk management measures should be prescribed and the use of these measures enforced; providing health surveillance to detect skin cancers among outdoor workers because of the likely high UV exposure and the consequent increased risk of skin cancer; and nudging messages, which can be delivered via text messages or location-driven phone apps to help a workforce stay safe in the sun.

Mary Ogungbeje, IOSH research manager, said: “The findings highlight that there’s still work to do in promoting good sun safety behaviour in the workplace. Both workers and employers have a part to play in reducing the risks of excessive UV exposure. We encourage workers and employers to be more aware of occupational cancer and take positive steps to reduce the risks.”

The study team included researchers from Heriot-Watt University, the University of Edinburgh and the Institute of Occupational Medicine.

For resources and guidance on the risks of solar radiation, visit notimetolose.org; or read the paper at bit.ly/3a5rvl2

IOSH tailored training courses enhancing safety globally A new video explains how IOSH-tailored training courses can be taken and delivered by anyone, anywhere in the world. A range of tailored courses has already been developed, including those designed for specialist industry sectors such as logistics, events management and patient care.

Watch the video to learn more: bit.ly/2SeaUVE

Write for the Future Leaders Community Members of IOSH’s Future Leaders Community are contributing articles about what inspired them to work in occupational safety and health and their experiences of the profession.

Visit the website to learn more about how you can submit an article: bit.ly/34IkPVW

Six new IOSH Fellows Six IOSH members became Chartered Fellows during the November and December round of interviews.

These were: ● Stuart Jones ● Vitalis Ndeda ● James Pomeroy ● Stephen Taylor-Davies ● Alan Crawford ● Andrew Morris In addition, 81 members attained CMIOSH status.

More at: bit.ly/2NS4k49

First cohort due to complete apprenticeship

Images: Shutterstock

Following the development of the Level 3 SHE technician apprenticeship by a ‘trailblazer’ group of employers, the first cohort of learners is about to complete its training.

The apprenticeship, approved by the Institute for Apprenticeships & Technical Education, was designed over an 18-month development consultation with IOSH to ensure learners gain “robust” training, covering the relevant knowledge, skills and behaviours required for Technical Membership of IOSH. IOSH acts as the Secretariat for the scheme.

Ahead of the course gaining 60 apprentices by April, IOSH spoke to Leon Axisa, SHE technician apprentice, who said: “The course has taken me from my day-to-day as a health and safety co-ordinator in the automotive industry.

I would really recommend the SHE apprenticeship, because of the level of support I receive from my tutors, as well as the knowledge and the tools you are provided with to get you to where you need to be. It’s all there, it’s all in front of you.”

The SHE apprenticeship typically lasts for two years, offering prospective learners

up to £5,000 in funding.

“Speaking as someone who’s been in the industry for a long time, the SHE apprenticeship scheme is an excellent way of learning health and safety because it has both practical and theory content,” Prity Lad-Patel, SHE technician apprenticeship tutor, added. “It engages learners by showing them what is out there and then puts it into practice.”

To see how the apprentices are getting on, see: bit.ly/2QXhZJ4 To find out more about the SHE apprenticeship scheme, visit: instituteforapprenticeships.org

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IOSH CPD courses Improve your skills Enhance the profession Better Behavioural Safety – How to Apply Behavioural Choose the right Science to Improve Performance AVAILABLE ONLINE course for you Board Masterclass for OSH Professionals CDM – Understanding the Regulations Change Management Coaching for Safety NEW Designing with Health and Safety in Mind NEW Engaging to Prevent NEW Everyday Safety for the Front Line NEW Evidence Gathering & Analysis for Investigators NEW Fire Safety Risk Assessment Principles and Practice From Accidents to Zero NEW Human Factors in Incident Investigation NEW Legionella Management Management Skills for the OSH Professional Modern CoSHH Management Modern Day Slavery NEW Noise Measurement and Management Best Practice Workshop Resilience and Wellbeing for the Modern Leader NEW Re-thinking Risk – Systems Thinking for the OSH Practitioner NEW Risk Assessments – Avoiding the Pitfalls NEW

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Events For IOSH group and branch events visit www.iosh.com February 25

Hilton East Midlands Airport, Derby BOHS/ILEVE member rate: £150 exc VAT; non-member rate: £210 exc VAT British Occupational Hygiene Society (BOHS) and Institute of Local Exhaust Ventilation (ILEVE) are holding their 5th joint event for those with an active involvement in the local exhaust ventilation (LEV) industry. Speakers include Adrian Parris (Sellafield) who will discuss welding fume control selector tools, and Chris Steel (Health and Safety Executive) who will present on noise control for LEV systems. bit.ly/33kFiQW

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and current thinking, and overcome the health and safety challenge of innovating and regulating this growing area of new technology. bit.ly/2FVLipg

Local Exhaust Ventilation (LEV) – Extracting the Best Practices 2020

19-21 Safety & Health Expo 1

IET Austin Court, Birmingham Early-bird rate: £495 exc VAT Hosted by the Health and Safety Executive, this conference will look at how decarbonisation can happen in the UK, and the importance of the future of the gas system to achieve this. Keynote speakers will share knowledge, insight

June 9

Bristol, UK Early-bird member: £530 exc VAT; Early-bird non-member: £730 exc VAT The conference will bring together researchers, practitioners and regulators from around the world to discuss the latest issues affecting those working in occupational hygiene, and the prevention of occupational ill-health and disease. bit.ly/2qoGZhL

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August 9-12 Aposho 35 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Registration required Malaysia will host the 35th conference and annual general meeting for the Asia Pacific Occupational Safety and Health Organisation (Aposho) in Kuala Lumpur in 2020. Vision Zero and mental health will be on the agenda. bit.ly/2sIEHeB

RoSPA Scotland Conference 2020 Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh Early-bird member: £125 exc VAT; Early-bird non-member: £145 exc VAT This conference for the health and safety community in Scotland offers an opportunity to discuss key issues facing professionals, as well as a range of updates, case studies and interactive sessions. bit.ly/2X1Nt2c

28-30 The Health and Safety Event 2020 NEC, Birmingham Free Featuring a range of seminars, practical workshops and an exhibition hall, this three-day event attracts more than 16,000 workplace professionals with its CPD-accredited conference programme and workshops. It is colocated with the Fire Safety Event, the Facilities Event and the Security Event. bit.ly/2XbYttZ

IOSH National Safety and Health Conference Solihull, Birmingham IOSH member: £95 exc VAT; Non-member £115 exc VAT Now in its 45th year, this public sector event is led by four IOSH networking groups: education, environmental and waste management, health and social care, and public services. The programme will include the ageing workforce, collaborative working, return to work following illness or injury, agile working, a legal update and a session by the HSE. bit.ly/32kaQF2

20-23 Occupational Hygiene 2020

10-11 Health and Wellbeing at Work

25-26 Future of Gas III: part of the safety excellence in energy series

South Wales Safety Groups Alliance Annual Conference and Exhibition Cardiff Football Stadium Delegate fee £60 exc VAT The programme will focus on sharing good practice and includes a keynote address from Jeremy Bevan (policy manager, HSE) on proportionate health and safety. Other sessions will concentrate on occupational cancer with talks on process safety and preventing respiratory disease; musculoskeletal disorders with information about Toyota’s experience of reducing it through design; and stress, with a talk on mental health first aid – its importance and implementation. bit.ly/32k7Dpc

March NEC, Birmingham From £45 The conference will profile national developments, service innovations, best practice and the latest research.

Presentations will consider the state of positive psychology coaching and its value to organisations, and autistic women in the workplace as part of the neurodiversity programme.

The legal programme will consider GDPR from an employment law perspective, whistle-blowing and public interest, and staff surveillance. bit.ly/2MgmcVS

ExCel London Free Educational seminars will take place alongside an exhibition of hundreds of safety product suppliers. ubm.io/33fu6oF

April

RoSPA Fleet & Road Safety Event 2020 Leicester Conferences, Leicester Early-bird member: £125 exc VAT; Early-bird non-member: £145 exc VAT The RoSPA Road Safety Event will return in 2020 to cover a range of fleet and road safety topics, plus case studies and practical advice from road safety experts, including Transport for London’s Pauline Reeves and Professor Gary Burnett from the University of Nottingham. bit.ly/2OZmS43

May

October 4-7

XXII World Congress on Safety and Health at Work 2020 Toronto, Canada Early-bird professional pass: CA$850 The congress opens its doors every three years and it’s Canada’s turn to host the international gathering of global prevention leaders. The event will focus on preventing ill health and injury in the connected age, and presentations will look at innovations in addressing long-standing safety and health challenges; implications of the changing world of work for OSH practitioners; and advancing a culture of prevention. bit.ly/34V7VV6

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Reviews Safety Science Research: evolution, challenges and new directions Jean-Christophe Le Coze CRC Press (www.crcpress.com) £29.59 paperback

Safety Science Research is a collection of studies drawing on the work of more than 25 authors.

These include contributions from professors, doctors and lecturers who specialise in fields such as sociology, organisational behaviour, psychology and risk management. The material is broad and covers safety at work as well as industry sectors that include transport and engineering.

Jean-Christophe Le Coze, a safety scientist at INERIS, the French national institute for industrial environment and risks, explains in the introduction that the book’s title was inspired by his experience of meeting up with researchers at various safety conferences and workshops. This led him to create his own forum so that researchers could meet to share and debate ideas. The fruits of these extensive discussions are shared in this book, which is what makes the content so illuminating.

Each research topic (21 in total) is well presented and given its own chapter. After an introduction, each topic is broken down into sub-categories.

This approach helps the reader to quickly find the research that is of most interest to them.

Most of the content is original research, which

Wellbeing at Work: how to design, implement and evaluate an effective strategy Ian Hesketh and Cary Cooper KoganPage (bit.ly/3avnAhx) £19.99 paperback

This book isn’t perfect. From a safety excellence perspective, we know that culture is king and that line management drives it. Therefore, seeing culture described as an “intriguing topic” raises an eyebrow, as does a tone that seems to assume Human Resources own and drive wellbeing rather than help line management to do so.

To justify these comments it’s worth noting that many UK companies have world-class safety cultures but few have excellent wellbeing cultures.

There are, I’d argue, some directly transferable lessons yet to be fully embraced.

So while the importance of transformational and empowering leadership is considered, its utterly vital role in setting the tone is perhaps, in this case, underplayed.

These minor (but important) quibbles aside, this really is an excellent book. The introduction sets the scene in a user-friendly way and six excellent chapters follow. These each come with their own introduction, summary, reference list and ‘key takeaways’. They cover ‘why wellbeing?’, getting started, promotion, problems and pitfalls, monitoring and evaluating and tools and legislation.

The writing is concise, clear and largely jargonfree if a little dry in places. For example, it’s difficult to imagine a Gladwell or a Syed writing the line “we hope you have found this chapter both informative and insightful” but it avoids

Here are all the books we’ve reviewed to date ioshmagazine.com/type/reviews

covers the latest in safety thinking. It also includes historical studies and covers significant accidents and disasters - with emphasis on safety, not health.

The first part of the book focuses on safety research in the 1980s and 1990s, which Le Coze characterises as a ‘golden age’.

He then argues why it is important to build research that is more relevant to the modern workplace and modern attitudes towards safety.

In the chapter on ‘Coping with globalisation: robust regulation and safety in high-risk industries’, for example, he explores the argument that globalisation has reconfigured the landscape and operating constraints of high-risk systems.

The second part, Safety Research 2020 visions, is based on reflections by some of the pioneers in safety research from the 1980s onwards. In this section, he considers the ‘positive safety’ concept. Positive safety applies the logic of trying to understand effective and safe task execution, the opposing view of using failure (accidents) to measure safety.

The in-depth analysis provided by a rich multidisciplinary group of contributors introduces new concepts that extend beyond the typical safety book. Although I suspect this book to be of most interest to academics, I believe that engineers and organisational decision makers will find enough in here to justify the purchase.

SIMON TOSELAND CMIOSH

the trap so many experienced writers fall into of frequently referencing their own earlier work. In the chapter that covers positivity, Martin Seligman (the American who is the leading name in positive psychology) is referenced more often than Cooper himself – despite Cooper’s own prolific output.

Diagrams are simple and illustrative and case studies are to the point and well selected.

Particularly apparent in the chapters on problems and pitfalls, monitoring and evaluating and tools and legislation, it’s clear that the authors know the subject of wellbeing from an academic and practical perspective and understand the need to make the business case for it.

They consider the frequent use of elite sportspeople for inspiration and point out that while our appetite for listening to their daring deeds seems limitless, the practical relevance of the ‘lessons’ can vary.

Books like Steve Peters’ Chimp Paradox also get a mention and further illustrate that the authors are aware that the vast majority of their audience reads books they bought in Waterstones rather than academic tomes.

The book covers material in a systematic, clear and concise way but it still has lots of memorable gems. The one that stuck with me most, as the authors drew upon leadership, was this quote from Maya Angelou: “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”

Culture may be rather more than intriguing but that is, I think, as good a definition of it as there is.

An excellent book.

TIM MARSH CFIOSH, CHARTERED PSYCHOLOGIST

16 FEBRUARY 2020

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Construction health

Turning the tide IOSH-funded research shows how major construction projects like Tideway can improve the management of occupational health risks and help ‘raise the bar’ across the wider sector Words: NICK WARBURTON

18 FEBRUARY 2020

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Construction health

Left The 25 km tunnel being built below London by Tideway aims to stop sewage overflowing into the River Thames

O

ccupational hygienists are relative newcomers to the UK construction sector. Unlike in oil and gas, minerals extraction and manufacturing, where the use of experts to provide advice and monitor occupational health exposures has been a feature for decades, the placement of occupational hygienists has historically been limited to only a few high-profile construction projects: the London 2012 Olympic Park build, and later, London Crossrail.

However, it was Tideway – the company building the 25 km tunnel below London to stop sewage overflows into the River Thames – that was the first to procure occupational hygienists for the entirety of the seven-year project.

From its inception in mid-2016, the £4.38bn ‘super sewer’ development was also the first to be the focus of a longitudinal study by Loughborough University, a three-year IOSH-funded initiative, which evaluated occupational health management in real time.

Generating valuable data to inform decision makers so that missteps are not repeated in future projects, the research sought also to identify good practice that could be shared and adopted across industry, most significantly in small- to medium-sized enterprises where the majority of the workforce is employed.

To track developments and report back, the researchers were embedded into each of the construction teams working for the main works contractors who were tasked with building the three tunnel sections in separate joint ventures.

In July last year, three members of the Loughborough team and Jennie Armstrong, Tideway’s head of occupational health, safety and wellbeing, outlined some of their key findings in the ‘Raising the bar for occupational health management in construction’ research paper, which was published in the Institution of Civil Engineers’ journal Civil Engineering (bit.ly/2ZJIUuF).

Drawing on practical examples from Tideway to demonstrate how interventions can ‘raise the industry bar’, the paper’s conclusions included a call for a

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Construction health

more consistent approach to occupational health management and health surveillance, with a commitment to better training and improved portability of occupational health data.

Health parity One of the most effective ways to achieve better consistency in the management of occupational health risks is to encourage and support line managers and supervisors to take ownership of this. This also means that OSH professionals, who have traditionally supported their reporting lines to ensure safety has been effectively incorporated into project management, need to apply the same principles to health.

As the research shows, however, this rarely happens consistently, in part because OSH professionals don’t always have the ‘health’ expertise to offer the support needed. A key observation in the paper is that, if line managers are to accept ownership for health risks, they need ‘knowledgeable’ OSH professionals to support them, backed up by specialists such as occupational hygienists and occupational health nurses.

“The challenge is that we need to understand occupational health better and transfer some of that knowledge to other professionals,” says Professor Alistair Gibb, who heads up Loughborough University’s research team on OSH in construction. “[We need to transfer that knowledge] to the ordinary rank and file, supervisors and managers in the same way over the past 20 years we have transferred some of the safety knowledge, which was previously limited to the safety professionals. Now most managers in bigger companies and on larger projects do understand the key safety principles.”

This is what Tideway (and some other large construction projects) has sought to do with health.

Consequently, managers, workers and any others involved in assessing and managing health risks can take this new skillset with them to their next project, helping to disseminate the knowledge consistently throughout the wider sector.

On Tideway, occupational hygienists were brought in at the project’s inception to identify and eliminate many of the health risks before the construction phase kicked off. This involved planning well ahead to anticipate any risks that the workforce would need to manage in later stages. “When the occupational hygienists were looking at some of the activities that were coming up, they put

If line managers are to accept ownership for health risks, they need ‘knowledgeable’ OSH professionals to support them

Jennie Armstrong, Tideway’s head of occupational health, safety and wellbeing

Below Construction of two new nuclear reactors in an attempt to reduce carbon emissions in the UK is well underway at Hinkley Point C

together essential standards, which identified some of the hazards that the workers would encounter,” says Armstrong. “[These standards also state] what the minimum expectations are [for managing them] and some good practice examples of what they should consider [as control measures].”

As Kelvin Williams, senior occupational hygienist at Hinkley Point C, explains, a similar approach has been applied at the new nuclear power development in Somerset in south-west England. Williams is one of three occupational hygienists currently employed to work on the complex infrastructure project, which is due to be completed in 2025. Using a health risk assessment approach adapted from other industries, the hygienists work with the project’s tier 1 contractor to identify and control future health risks. “We split work down into discrete employee groups – steel fixers, concrete finishers, welders, for example,” he says.

“We break it down into what we call ‘similarly exposed groups’. Then we use a pre-populated menu to identify what exposures those groups are going to get, such as noise, vibration and fumes. When we know that, we risk-rate each of those exposures and plan control measures and occupational hygiene support.”

Armstrong emphasises the importance of using occupational hygienists (where possible) in the early design stages to eliminate risks. However, she adds that projects shouldn’t rely too much on them. The reality is that occupational hygienists won’t be able to attend every design meeting, so a more practical solution is to focus efforts on upskilling designers. This was an additional priority for Tideway’s hygienists in the early stages of the project.

Gibb, however, also adds a word of caution. He points out that designers also have to consider safety risks and, although he welcomes encouraging designers to find ways to design out occupational health risks, this shouldn’t get in the way of preventing potentially catastrophic events.

“It’s that almost intangible difference but a difference we do need to recognise,” he says. “I’ve long been in favour of not chastising or castigating architects and design engineers because they don’t understand health and safety but rather help them do what they can to make good design decisions.”

Knowledge transfer At Tideway, the early involvement of hygienists has enabled their role to evolve: now that the project has moved from design to build work, they are able to step back and get involved where their specialist skills are most required.

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Construction health

“Their main role now is working with our managers on a [one-to-one] coaching programme and offering support rather than doing a lot of the traditional hygiene work that they would have done,” says Armstrong.

She adds this includes giving managers the confidence to deal with certain hazards.

“In the phase we are going into now, a lot of the work is around assurance. There are lots of things that managers can do visually… They haven’t got to use a qualified hygienist at that point.”

Tideway has invested heavily in the reporting of health hazards with both lagging and leading health-specific measures included in its health and safety performance index. There is also its RightWay assessment, which is similar to a maturity index.

Tideway uses it to benchmark its contractors against each other, to look at certain health topics and measure how they are performing as well as encourage continual improvement.

“Major projects are getting used to doing that but to get senior management buy-in, they need the visibility of the data to understand where the focus is,” says Armstrong.

“Sometimes if you compare health with safety, you instinctively see safety as the more significant risk. At the moment, we are taking health and giving it its own special focus to ensure that it doesn’t get lost behind the key safety risks.”

Armstrong adds: “It doesn’t have to be overcomplicated, but one of our key activities is doing health inspections. If they don’t get measured, you might find the safety ones become a priority over health.”

Tideway’s development and use of an Occupational Health Index tool for assessing health risk management (see ‘Tideway: On the tools’, IOSH Magazine, February 2018: bit.ly/2QHhWzE) has been pivotal in raising the awareness of health risk exposures among the entire project’s workforce. The tool’s scores are used to identify where additional interventions are needed.

Although the occupational hygienists originally used the tool to assess the risks and establish a baseline for good practice, site managers have since taken over responsibility for carrying out inspections. This is another area where the occupational hygienist provides a supporting role, which includes running specially designed training around occupational health and how to undertake a health-specific site inspection.

Gibb has been impressed by how Tideway has dealt with measurement and performance metrics for health.

However, he has advice for others looking to apply health metrics: “We need to keep reviewing them, considering them, interpreting them maturely and making sure we

Knowledge boost To increase managers’ and workers’ knowledge of the health risks, Tideway took a number of practical steps, including: ● Occupational hygienists were engaged by all the main works contractors as a requirement of the Works Information and have worked to improve the workforce’s understanding of health risks and how to manage them. ● ‘Essential standards’ have been produced for the main hazards, which describe what they are and the required control measures.

These cover activities which commonly present low, medium and high risk, together with guidance on when specialist advice is required.

●

●

●

●

Training sessions for project managers, engineers, supervisors and others who contribute to risk assessments with a focus on practical control measures.

Occupational hygienists provide one-to-one coaching, for example, to provide feedback on risk assessment and method statements or to guide assessors through an inspection.

Job-specific training and targeted toolbox talks have been delivered at the point of work, for example, discussing the impact of wood dust for carpenters.

A card-based training game was developed to teach workers about typical noise levels.

don’t just get a tick-box exercise, where people say, ‘Yes, we’ve done that’ but then stop moving forward.”

Developing skills

Kelvin Williams, senior occupational hygienist at Hinkley Point C

At the moment, we are taking health and giving it its own special focus to ensure that it doesn’t get lost behind the key safety risks

For the wider construction industry where resources may not stretch to employing an occupational hygienist, redressing the balance between safety and health in management training is important, to ensure both are properly recognised and understood.

IOSH and the British Occupational Hygiene Society already provide short courses, including IOSH’s SHE for Construction Site Managers and SHE for Construction Workers (bit.ly/2RQqLry). The latter’s certificate in controlling health risks in construction (CCHRC), was developed in response to the growing demand for training site supervisors and managers (and designers).

According to Williams, Hinkley Point will become an accredited provider of the Construction Industry Training Board-approved course on its site this year. “[What the course does is explain] where the main hazards are, how you look at the risks and control them,” he says. “It really helps them understand occupational hygiene principles and also determine when to refer to the hygienists.”

More training is also needed for front-line workers so they are upskilled to identify health risks. Often health hazards are underestimated due to the low visibility of their impact. Unlike safety, where injuries are clearly visible immediately following an incident, the long latency of many health conditions means the damage only becomes apparent months or even years later. Also, some health risks, such as respirable dust are not easy for workers to assess, unlike the risks posed by work at height or workplace transport.

“We’re delivering a one-day occupational health awareness course for all managers and supervisors and everyone will go through it,” says Williams.

This is supplemented by a range of more detailed awareness courses covering specific issues such as dust, hand-arm vibration and noise.

He adds: “There are only three hygienists on-site, so we also produce technical briefings for managers and

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Construction health

health and safety staff covering a range of health topics, for example, ‘diesel engine exhaust emissions – should I be worried?’ We tell them what the basic issues are and we always put a checklist in there: ‘Have you got this?

Are you seeing that? Is anybody experiencing this? If so, call the hygienist.’”

Tideway has also taken a number of practical steps to enhance not only managers but also workers’ knowledge of the health risks (see ‘Knowledge boost’, left).

As Armstrong explains, this includes its use of Loughborough University’s LUSKInS wearable interactive training tools, to simulate dermatitis, hand-arm vibration syndrome and back pain “to bring some of the health risks to life”, so that workers can experience the longer-term impact of health conditions.

Health records One of the other key lessons that the researchers drew from Tideway is the need for a process to manage health data, so that a worker who has health surveillance with multiple employers as well as several occupational health providers over their career can access it.

“Construction has been wrestling for years with the challenge of health surveillance,” says Wendy Jones, one of the Loughborough University researchers who was embedded in the Tideway project.

“There is a primary issue in that many workers don’t get any surveillance because they work for small companies that don’t organise it, or because they are self-employed or work through agencies. But even when they do have it, [the surveillance] is rarely joined up.”

In practical terms, this means that a worker who has a hearing test on a large-scale project like Tideway or Crossrail won’t be able to see whether their hearing has changed since that test after they move to the next project, she says.

“It’s just too difficult for anyone to get hold of the records from the previous occupational health provider; the construction sector is so fragmented and many contracts are transient.”

A new proposal called People’s Health (see box, below), which is being developed by B&CE as a replacement for the Constructing Better Health initiative, promises to overhaul the current system, joining up records and enabling the construction industry to collect more accurate data on work-related ill health.

Not only will it enable individual workers to ‘join up the dots’, but also “it will make it really clear to employers what they need to be doing,” says Jones.

“It will encourage them to focus on the key health checks which relate to work hazards, rather than getting

Above Loughborough University’s research on Tideway aims to generate data that can be used to inform decision makers so as not to repeat the same mistakes in the future

side-tracked by things which are nice to have but are not work-related or essential.”

Reflecting on the research findings, Gibb notes that the challenge for occupational health remains with the harder-to-reach businesses. “The difficulty is on a small project with an individual contractor where you don’t have that same multi-organisational buy-in,” he says.

The difficulty is compounded by the fact that, unlike larger projects, where real inroads have been made to drive up safety performance, many smaller projects have not replicated these same improvements.

“It would be foolish for people to go [to a small business] and say, ‘Don’t worry about falls from height, you’ve really got to concentrate on hand-arm vibration’ if the scaffolding was a complete mess,” he says.

He argues that perhaps this is an area where IOSH can have an influential role through its members, disseminating good practice through the supply chain and promoting its occupational health campaigns.

“If silicosis is the next big respiratory-related disorder after asbestos, my experience would suggest that we must focus on the smaller projects, where there is a much less stringent use of water suppression, extraction and the correct personal protective equipment [where it is necessary] than there is on the biggest projects.” ●

People’s Health Developed by B&CE and piloted in late 2019, People’s Health recommends three-yearly health checks for all construction workers.

The model lets workers manage their own health records through a smartphone application, which will also be shared with their occupational health service providers should they give their consent.

Under the new system, health surveillance will need to be carried out for noise, dust, skin

and hard-arm vibration syndrome where a risk assessment shows it is required and, where necessary, workplace adjustments will be recommended to accommodate the worker’s health conditions.

Jennie Armstrong, head of occupational health, safety and wellbeing at Tideway, believes it will be a game-changer for the industry.

“For a lot of individuals, they’ve had the

health checks before, but often it can be cheaper and easier to get them to do the surveillance again,” she says. “Then for us, we don’t have the knowledge of what their past exposures have been like, what their last record was to see if it has changed, whether it has improved or got worse. “[People’s Health] will probably free up a lot more resource so it can be spent on prevention rather than doing more health checks.”

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Behavioural safety

24 FEBRUARY 2020

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Behavioural safety

g n i r u t c a f u n a M

choice

We consider the latest behavioural science thinking for nudging OSH behaviours Words: PETER WEBB AND EVA KOLKER

FEBRUARY 2020 25

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Behavioural safety

I

magine you go out shopping for a belt and find one you like for £12. Somebody you trust tells you that you could buy exactly the same belt from a shop five minutes’ walk away for £7. Would you go and buy the cheaper belt? Now imagine you are out shopping for a TV and find one you like for £499. Somebody you trust tells you that you could buy exactly the same TV from a shop five minutes’ walk away for £494. Would you go and buy the cheaper TV? Behavioural economists have conducted experiments and found that, overwhelmingly, people would go and buy the cheaper belt, but not the cheaper TV. And yet, the two questions address an identical choice: would you walk five minutes to save £5?

Research has shown that humans are really good at making relative judgements based on the context we are in. In the above example, saving £5 on a £12 purchase is a relatively large saving compared with saving £5 on £499. Using relative judgements is a good rule of thumb as it helps us make decisions quickly. Yet, when we compare our quick, relative judgements against each other, they don’t always make sense. The result is that the context of our decisions ends up mattering a great deal. And we are often not aware of how these mental shortcuts make us act differently in different situations.

Heuristics, or shortcuts in our decision-making, get us through our lives without having to laboriously think through every decision. Mostly, they help us make decisions which are to our benefit. But sometimes they result in systematic biases that can lead us away from what we actually mean to do. How can these insights about how humans behave – known as behavioural insights - be applied to help people stay safe at work?

Policy unicorns An article in the July 2018 issue of IOSH Magazine (bit.ly/39VLjqP) explained how behavioural economists and psychologists have explored and characterised these

Two behavioural science frameworks The EAST framework focuses on four simple principles to encourage a behaviour. Make it: Easy – design for safety with defaults, make the safe behaviour the easy one; Attractive – attract attention, frame safety messages appropriately; Social – show that other people perform the safe behaviour; and Timely – prompt people when they are likely to be receptive.

The TESTS framework manages implementation of a behavioural insights intervention: Target – define the problem; Explore – map relevant behaviours; Solution – design the intervention using EAST; Trial – design and launch trial, evaluate, learn and adapt; and Scale – increase adoption of effective interventions.

Eva Kolker Senior adviser at the Behavioural Insights Team

biases and how they have used their understanding of them to influence public policy outcomes. It is nearly a decade since the UK government became the first in the world to set up the Behavioural Insights Team (BIT), a department within the UK civil service dedicated to applying behavioural science to public policy issues. In 2014, BIT was turned into a social purpose company – co-owned by the Cabinet Office, the innovation charity Nesta and employees – to serve a wider range of public sector partners. In recent years, there’s also been a flourishing of in-house behavioural insights teams within Whitehall and public sector bodies, in other

Opening image: Getty Images

Three myths of behavioural insights for safety Widespread communications campaigns are needed to change behaviour Thousands of Kenyans die in road traffic accidents each year, many in public transport minibuses. Researchers wanted to test the effectiveness of a radio safety campaign on safe driving by comparing insurance claims in regions where the radio campaign had run and places it had not. The evaluation found no evidence of reduced insurance claims where the campaign had aired. Another initiative did make a difference to insurance claims: putting stickers inside the minibuses which encouraged passengers to speak up against bad driving. The study found that the stickers reduced insurance claims by 25–33% and were associated with lower average speeds. The stickers were a timely reminder for passengers to speak up in case drivers were driving recklessly. The most effective stickers were ones which included the collective action phrase “Together we can”.

People act unsafely because they don’t know the risks A typical reaction to unsafe behaviour is to think of it as an awareness problem: if people only knew the risks, they would not behave unsafely. However, informing people about risks may not be the most effective way to change behaviour. A study in UK motorway service station toilets found that a risk-focused message, “Washing hands with soap avoids 47% of disease”, increased hand washing by 7.6% for men and 6.5% for women. They tested this against a sociallyfocused message “Is the person next to you washing with soap?” They found the socially-focused message was more effective: it increased hand washing by 12.1% and 10.9% respectively. Referring to monitoring and social norms had a bigger impact than just informing people about risks.

Managers and supervisors don’t need nudging It’s a common complaint from managers and supervisors that, despite good intentions, they never seem to find as much time as they would like to be out in the workplace. Emails and paperwork always seem to get in the way.

In petrochemical plants, the required workplace PPE consists of flame retardant overalls, boots, helmets and safety glasses.

One group of managers in such a facility surmised that the hassle of getting changed into plant PPE, though small, was a barrier to getting out from behind their desks and into the field. They made a rule for themselves that everybody would get changed into their overalls and boots as soon as they arrived at work in the morning. Though not evaluated quantitatively, a qualitative assessment indicated that the removal of that small amount of friction had indeed increased the number of field visits.

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Behavioural safety

Behavioural insights need to be built into the HSE management system for them to be sustained countries, and within private sector enterprises.

We might not be aware of it, but as a result of this work, we are being nudged to save energy by getting feedback on our consumption, we are being defaulted into joining company pension plans, we are paying our taxes earlier and, by consuming less sugar in drinks, we are less of a burden on health services.

To borrow a phrase from business, a policy ‘unicorn’ is one that has had an impact of more than £1bn.

Each of these behavioural interventions has grown into a policy unicorn. There are many more smaller but nevertheless significant examples in healthcare, welfare and education, where nudges have influenced outcomes that are beneficial for individuals, government and society as a whole.

Behavioural scientists talk about creating choice architecture, which will nudge people towards target behaviours. As OSH professionals, we have a huge opportunity to apply the same skills to create choice architecture in workplaces that will nudge people towards safer behaviours.

East is east If you want to encourage a behaviour, make it easy, attractive, social and timely (EAST). Although there is published guidance on applying behavioural insights to public policy, including BIT’s EAST framework (bit. ly/2FAlcI0), until now there has been little published on how to do this for workplace health and safety.

Peter Webb was, until recently, regional HSE director for a petrochemical company. The firm had achieved some impressive improvements in its OSH performance, but the performance had levelled off.

In 2017 he proposed behavioural insights as a way to get off the plateau and help the company towards its Zero Harm goal. Training was given to key personnel using BIT’s EAST and TESTS frameworks (see box on p 27) and the sites were tasked with finding target safety behaviours and implementing appropriate nudges. But there were two learnings necessary to take it further: ● behavioural insights need to be built into the HSE management system for them to be sustained; and ● there was a need for guidance on how to apply EAST in a workplace health and safety setting.

The company considered four options (see box, right) for building behavioural insights into its management system, and concluded that its Behaviour Based Safety (BBS) system was the most suitable platform. One difference in the behavioural science approach is its focus on rigorous testing of new initiatives to measure if they actually change

Peter Webb Director of Beyond Risk Ltd

behaviour. In organisational settings, where projects may be influencing both individual and group behaviour, it is even more important to understand the context of the behaviour and to test if projects have their desired effect. BBS programmes are amenable to this when they collect and analyse information on specific behaviours.

The company engaged BIT to support two pilots, which are currently underway, and to write new guidance, EAST for Health and Safety: Applying behavioural insights to make workplaces safer (bit.ly/2N4a9Lx).

Some early results from the pilots are: ● frontline people find nudging concepts to be a useful way to refresh a BBS programme; ● OSH teams are moving beyond writing procedures to thinking about how they can make it easier for staff to follow through on what the procedures say; and ● management is considering how they can use incident and near-miss data to more effectively target behavioural interventions (and measure their impact).

Possibly the most important and difficult stage of the TESTS intervention framework is identifying a suitable behaviour to target. It requires bringing together competence in behavioural insights, OHS management and workforce perspective on how the work is actually done. But once we learn a little about how fundamental behavioural insights are to human behaviour, not only does it inspire us to find innovative solutions to OHS behavioural challenges, it also sheds new light on why things we tried in the past did or did not achieve the results we expected.

While behavioural insights are now widely used in public policy and private sector settings, there are more opportunities for applying behavioural science to improve safety outcomes. Alongside new applications to individual behaviour, we hope to see more research focused on group behaviours, as well as the relationship between individual and group behaviours.

We are working with organisations to apply behavioural insights including testing new ways to improve health and safety, gender diversity and workforce performance. We look forward to working with more organisations interested in this approach. ●

Options for how to build behavioural insights into a health and safety management system Management system element

Success factor Used frequently to build competence

Possibility to evaluate the results

Creation of organisational expertise

Embed behavioural insights into a behaviour-based safety programme

++

++

++

Behavioural insights to define risk controls required by risk assessment

++

+

+

Use behavioural insights to inform the design of incident investigation corrective actions

+

+

+

Define behavioural insights as a core competence for key personnel

--

--

+

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Driver fatigue

A steer on road safety Words: JOCELYN DORRELL

Image: Getty Images

Drivers who are excessively tired pose as much of a risk as those who are drink driving, argue campaigners. So what can organisations do to ensure their employees out on the road are safe?

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Driver fatigue

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Driver fatigue

We think part of the reason is that people are distracted by technology, but fatigue is an issue that’s in the mix too – it’s just that it’s difficult to isolate fatigue as a cause.”

Employers are in a position to make decisions that will mitigate the risk of driver fatigue resulting in an accident. Karen McDonnell, occupational health and safety policy adviser at the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), says training and culture are important “to give employees the opportunity to make the right choices when they’re driving”.

Tony Greenidge, IAM RoadSmart’s business development director, agrees: “Drivers are very often employed to do a job – making deliveries or whatever the business is; they’re not employed for the quality of their driving. So companies need to focus on safer driving.”

Technology can also reduce risks if used correctly and sensitively. More broadly, some campaigners believe that large organisations making contracts dependent on tight driver safety policies may provide the strong mechanism for change that’s needed.

T

he link between fatigue and an elevated risk of accidents is a long-established one. But with no definitive test for measuring how excessive tiredness is affecting driver behaviour, identifying fatigue as a key factor behind road accidents is problematic. Drivers are unlikely to admit that they were tired while behind the wheel, and, in the case of driver fatalities, of course there is no way of finding out how the driver was feeling immediately before the incident.

Managing the risk of fatigue among employees who drive for work is also challenging. Although companies that recognise the risk posed by fatigue will have clear rules on driving hours as part of their driver risk management programmes, changing working patterns – portfolio careers (where individuals have several part-time jobs), the gig economy and an ageing population with caring responsibilities – mean that employers often have less control over the demands on workers. Experts believe there’s anecdotal evidence that these factors have influenced road accident statistics and a failure to significantly cut the number of incidents.

“We’ve got safer vehicles than ever, and we’ve invested in new roads, and yet we’re still seeing a flatlining in the number of road deaths,” notes Neil Greig, policy and research director at road safety charity IAM RoadSmart. “In the 1970s, 80s and 90s there were tremendous improvements, but there’s been no real change in the past seven or eight years.

Why consider fatigue?

Neil Greig, policy and research director at road safety charity IAM RoadSmart

According to research cited by the road safety charity Brake, one in six crashes resulting in death or injury on major roads is fatigue-related (bit.ly/35Cmi1r); while the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) now puts the figure at one in five. Forty per cent of fatigue-related crashes involve commercial vehicle drivers, who are often in the largest vehicles on the road and have the potential to cause the most harm (bit.ly/2PFPkrl).

The HSE defines fatigue as the “decline in mental and/or physical performance that results from prolonged exertion, sleep loss and/or disruption of the internal clock”. Fatigue causes slower reactions, a diminished ability to process information, reduced awareness and attention, poor coordination and a tendency to underestimate risk. Some road safety campaigners argue that excessively tired drivers are as dangerous as those under the influence of alcohol.

Sleep-related crashes are most common on motorways and dual carriageways (long, monotonous roads) and typically involve a vehicle running off the road or crashing into the one in front. They often happen at high speed because the driver doesn’t brake.

There are multiple causes of fatigue: stress, types of medication, a lack of or disturbed/irregular sleep, and driving for long periods. Darker nights and cold weather can contribute to feelings of fatigue, according to RoSPA. Although employers are in a position to control some of these, they cannot control all. However, clear policies

The development of in-car tech provides one of the newest ways to manage the fatigue risk.

In-vehicle technology known as DDDR – driver distraction and drowsiness recognition – can detect signs of fatigue, for example by monitoring eye movement and ‘nodding head’, and alert the driver if it detects signs of fatigue. Other systems monitor heart rate or steering and braking activity.

As ever, the effectiveness of such technology depends on how it’s used.

“If the driver isn’t alerted that they are showing signs of fatigue and they think, ‘I’ll just carry on driving then [without taking a break]’, that negates the benefits,” says Neil Greig. “But if used properly, it’s a useful option.”

Karen McDonnell agrees, cautioning that it’s early days but “the technology will advance”.

One issue technology can’t resolve is the tension between job demands – needing to get somewhere by a certain time, for example, or needing to make just one more delivery – and the extra time needed to take rest breaks. Tony Greenidge stresses that there should be “no comeback on the individual if they take a break because they are alerted to signs of fatigue.”

Image: iStock

Using technology to mitigate the risks

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Driver fatigue

and effective training for fleet vehicle drivers and for grey-fleet drivers (those who drive their own vehicles for work and are paid mileage) can mitigate the risks.

Legal position

Changing behaviour Managing risk effectively is the starting point, suggests McDonnell: “You begin with risk assessment and safer journey planning, and make sure all the ‘traditional’ measures are in place.”

There are things that drivers can do – and employers can stipulate that they must do – to reduce feelings of fatigue while on the road. After two hours, driving performance deteriorates, and the longer you drive, the more rest you need to recover, so commercial drivers are especially susceptible.

“There is some scientific basis to the widely publicised advice to stop and take a break at least every two hours,” says Greig. “But the break needs to be a minimum of 20 minutes to be effective.”

Some sources advise drinking a caffeinated drink and resting while the caffeine takes effect. But Greig sounds a note of caution about energy drinks, which can produce a ‘cliff-edge effect’ where the individual experiences a short-term boost in alertness followed by a slump.

An effective driver risk management programme is essential. “There are those companies that know all about the risk of fatigue and have rules in place, such as don’t drive home after a late meeting, or after a certain number of hours driving, stay in a hotel,” notes Greig. “But there are still those companies that will expect all of their car-based sales people to be at a meeting in Manchester at 9am on a Wednesday, irrespective of the hours they’ve been on the road.”

Providing information to drivers on the risks and control measures is crucial, as driver behaviour is key. Using fear tactics around prosecution to persuade budget holders to invest in training is a fairly empty threat, given that corporate manslaughter legislation has not been used to prosecute for road deaths, and road accidents don’t often result in enforcement action under general health and safety legislation. Greenidge prefers to focus on the benefits of promoting driver wellbeing and the cost savings associated with reducing collisions.

After all, he reflects, “It seems bizarre that some financial directors would rather set aside £100,000 to cover the cost of road accidents than spend £10,000 on driver training!”

1 in 6 crashes resulting in death or injury on major roads is fatigue-related

Lifting the lid Fatigue is a “very difficult subject to broach”, acknowledges Greenidge, “because if you lift the lid, ask the question, and find that you do have an issue with fatigue, you then have to do something. So

Karen McDonnell, occupational health and safety policy adviser at RoSPA

40% of fatigue-related crashes involve commercial vehicle drivers, who are often in the largest vehicles

The general duties laid down in the Health and Safety at Work Act and the Management Regs to ensure the health and safety of employees (and others) as far as practicable and to assess and control risks apply to driving as they do to any other work activity.

Drivers of goods and passenger vehicles are subject to EU and UK Drivers’ Hours Rules and must record their hours of work and maintain log books. The rules vary according to the vehicle. For example, coach and lorry drivers must comply with strict EU regulations which limit driving time to nine hours per day and require a 45-minute break after 4.5 hours. Others, for example van drivers, must instead comply with domestic rules, which allow 10 hours’ driving a day and require a 30-minute break after 5.5 hours’ driving.

lots of firms sweep it under the carpet.”

Added to this, there can be a reluctance to talk about fatigue because the root cause may stem from an individual’s home life – a new baby, caring responsibilities – a medical condition, such as sleep apnoea (which disrupts the quality of sleep causing fatigue and increasing the likelihood of ‘micro-sleeps’ behind the wheel).

“Employers need to create the conditions in which workers feel able to have a conversation with you about what’s happening outside work,” suggests McDonnell.

“Employees often don’t know how to approach their employers with problems like insomnia, relationship difficulties or the pressure of caring responsibilities.

Fatigue is under-recognised. We’ve got all the building blocks – the drivers’ hours regulations and so on – but what’s more difficult is developing the ‘soft’ skills to enable these conversations to happen.”

Greig stresses the importance of consultation in developing policies which reflect that road safety is everyone’s responsibility.

“Employers need to negotiate and develop their policy with the staff association or trade union so they can say, ‘We will make sure we don’t put you under pressure, but you have responsibilities too.’ In this way you can create a good policy and get staff to sign it, to confirm their agreement and understanding.”

For Greenidge, an “education” approach is the way forward. Fatigue is difficult to talk about and difficult to tackle, he acknowledges.

“But organisations can put in place robust driver risk management, and in this way demonstrate that they have taken steps to mitigate the risks. It doesn’t mean an organisation will never have an accident – you can’t always get tangible results; it’s more subtle than that – but by training drivers you give them the opportunity to make the right decisions.”

On a positive note, both Greig and Greenidge point to encouraging signs that large organisations may help to push road safety up the corporate agenda by bringing pressure to bear on contractors to include road safety in their policies; Highways England is one organisation leading the way.

And we know from the construction industry that applying pressure through the supply chain can be a hugely effective way of raising standards. ●

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Road safety

Mobile data

Since its introduction nearly two decades ago, telematics – the combination of telecommunications and infomatics – has come a long way in reducing the risks of driver distraction Words: DR LISA DORN

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Road safety

Image: iStock

I

t is well known that there are links between crashes and excessive speed; speed cameras are used to detect drivers driving too fast and instead of receiving points on their licence, many police forces offer driver education workshops drivers are offered education workshops from police forces.

Driver distraction, however, is a major factor for crash involvement, but is more difficult to detect. There are no widespread educational interventions to improve this high-risk driver behaviour.

Systematic reviews and meta-analyses have reached the conclusion that skills-based driver training shows no evidence for effectiveness in reducing road traffic injuries or crashes for problem, experienced, learner and new drivers. Research suggests that drivers are involved in crashes for reasons that are not always related to lack of skills. Instead, drivers determine their own task demands to a large extent, based on their motives and emotion. For example, driving at excessive speeds due to aggression leads to higher task demands and increases crash risk. At-risk driver behaviour is determined by perceptions, motivation and emotion rather than lack

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Behaviour change techniques address the erroneous beliefs that drivers use to justify the risk of driver distraction of driving skills. For example, when drivers are motivated to reach their destination on time and believe factors outside their control prevent them from doing so, increased levels of stress and poor coping choices can lead to crashes.

A growing problem One major behavioural factor leading to an increased risk of crash involvement is using a mobile phone while driving. A case-control study of naturalistic driving recorded data from 3,500 instrumented car drivers over a three-year period and recorded 905 distractionrelated crashes (bit.ly/30AUWqZ). The findings show that different distractors were associated with different levels of risk. Interacting with touch screens increased the risk of a crash approximately five-fold whereas having a hand-held mobile phone conversation was associated with an approximately four-fold increase in crash involvement. Driver distraction is a major factor in crash involvement and behaviour change techniques (BCTs) are required to address the erroneous beliefs that drivers use to justify the risk.

Mobile phone use while driving is difficult to detect using conventional road-policing methods. A Norfolkbased company has trialled a system consisting of an antenna, which picks up various mobile signal standards coupled with an LED display. When the antenna detects a radio signal, the LED display sign further down the road lights up with an image reminding drivers that they should not be using their phones while driving. However, this system is costly to install, has potential accuracy problems and is not able to detect whether the phone is being used legitimately for satellite navigation, for example.

A more fruitful and less costly method of detecting phone use while driving is with the use of a smartphone-based telematics app to collate and share data in real time. Smartphone-based telematics use a combination of data generated via the smartphone and its telecommunications alongside risk statistics and algorithmic processing. The data is processed via a cloud computer platform to generate and provide targeted feedback to the driver via an app. The feedback offers supporting positive education to improve driver safety. Such telematics-based apps are often available via insurance companies.

Dr Lisa Dorn is an associate professor of driver behaviour and director of the Driving Research Group

engagement levels, with the phone using real-time sensor data and measuring how much a driver physically interacts with their phone as well as the call state throughout a journey. This approach allows a measure of contextual risk-taking that an individual undertakes each journey. It also allows feedback to the driver via an app immediately after every journey. However, it cannot be guaranteed that the driver will check their score on the app or on the portal.

One method to ensure that drivers are aware of their scores is to offer drivers in the lowest-scoring decile a 12-week telephone coaching intervention called FloowCoach. Delivered on behalf of major insurers in the UK and the US, the coaching is a collaborative solution-focused, results-orientated approach that aims to challenge the perceptions that can lead to at-risk driver behaviours using BCTs. BCTs are the active ingredients incorporated into behavioural interventions and are effective in changing problem behaviour. According to research, telephone-based coaching has been found to be comparable to face-to-face coaching.

In studies using a combination of data from telematics and coaching, positive results on improved safety have been reported across several studies.

For FloowCoach, qualified and experienced coaches address the perceptions and motives behind using a phone while driving, and coaching helps drivers to reduce the risk of distracted driving by setting goals to improve distraction scores.

More than 2,000 high-risk drivers have taken part in FloowCoach, and the latest research shows that for every 100 drivers in the lowest-scoring decile who have completed this programme, 13 accidents are avoided compared to a control group. Graduates also tend to continue to improve incrementally after the programme and rarely revert to previous score levels.

These findings suggest that longer-term behavioural changes using telematics and coaching can be achieved in collaboration with insurance companies.

This innovative approach to improving the risks of distracted driving could be widely deployed and lead to a significant reduction in the numbers of distracted drivers being killed and seriously injured around the world. ● For a list of references, see bit.ly/2FrJ1Sx

Image: Getty Images

Road safety

Lead indicators The Floow is a UK-based data analytics company which recently developed an innovative method of processing data captured via the app to calculate a scalar risk metric for drivers using their mobile phone. A ‘distraction’ score is generated after each journey to indicate active

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Executive education

This sponsored content has been provided by Cedep, for more information visit: bit.ly/36zJGMH

Using Safety To Boost Productivity and Sustainable Business You wouldn’t think that someone who loves high-risk adventure sports like free-flying, rock climbing, sea kayaking and swimming with sharks would be one of the most respected global figures in Occupational Health & Safety. But this zest for life is what seems to compel Andrew Sharman to excel, and inspire hundreds of thousands of people around the world to be leaders of change in their organizations.

Andrew Sharman’s achievements are impressive.

His articles and books on safety leadership, organizational culture, behaviour and well-being reach more than 100,000 readers globally each month.

He also holds several key positions in the industry, among them are President of the IOSH and CEO of the international culture and leadership consultancy, RMS. And just one of his 8 best-selling books, From Accidents To Zero, has sold over 11,000 copies and is used by business managers and safety practitioners in more than 50 countries as a blue-print for leadership and safety in their organizations.

Andrew Sharman Programme Director of Safety Culture & Leadership at CEDEP

So what does Andrew Sharman say is the key to being a fantastic manager who drives a highly productive, happy and inspired team?

Creating a ‘culture of care’ in your workplace.

Leaders who demonstrate commitment to their team’s well-being inspire greater motivation, so their teams produce better work, and faster. In other words, paying attention to your employees health and safety makes you not only a better manager, but also an inspiring leader who boosts your organization’s productivity.

Therefore, investing in creating a strong, sustainable leadership and safety programme that focuses on the people and developing an inherent culture of care in your workplace is one of the most valuable commitments your company can make.

How to create a ‘culture of care’ in your workplace Supportive leadership, good management, effective engagement and safe processes at all levels are key components for building a culture where the health and safety of work is valued, protected and enhanced.

To achieve this, managers need to know; strategies

“How to motivate people, influence behaviour, and be an inspiring leader who drives a successful business through health and safety.”

of influence and communication; understand how human factors contribute to workplace risk (and how to manage them); how to effectively lead change, how to focus on human performance and well-being, and how to appreciate psychosocial risk elements and stress management.

There are many safety challenges in today’s complex business world, so building and sustaining a core value of safety and respect for workers health and well-being is a vital foundation for all organizations.

Learn from world class faculty As well as being highly sought-after speaker and educator for corporations and NGOs in all industries, academic institutions, Fortune 500 companies and at global professional development conferences, Andrew Sherman is also the Director of the Leadership and Safety Culture Programme at CEDEP, just outside of Paris.

In CEDEP’s Leadership & Safety programme, participants will do a deep dive into psychology, philosophy and thought leadership skills. This will enable them to shape their organization’s Safety Culture, positively influence their teams, and give them a practical plan to bring the strategies to life with an instant impact in their workplace.

“What could be more important than taking care of the most valuable asset in your business? The people who work in it.”

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Programmes are conducted in France, internationally upon request, and available in company specific programme format.

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Data privacy

Keeping record An overhaul of the UK’s data protection and privacy laws raises serious questions for OSH professionals, who will need to be mindful of the financial and legal costs of non-compliance Words: STEVE WILKINSON

Image: iStock

I

n the 21st century, data has the potential to be an OSH professional’s most important asset so long as it is obtained, recorded and used legally.

Failure to do so, however, could lead to prosecution and fines ranging from 2-4% of a company’s global annual turnover.

Representing this radical shake-up in UK data protection and privacy laws are the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the Data Protection Act 2018 (DPA18) and the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations 2003 (PECR). All bring new levels of ‘safety’ protection for OSH professionals to comply with.

Although data provides OSH professionals with a wealth of important material, under the DPA18, any personal information kept on file that covers

employees and customers must be adequate, relevant and not excessive. Inadequate records can lead to problems when managers have to deal with absence levels, staff turnover, sickness, lateness and discipline.

As well as grasping the implications of the GDPR and the DPA18, OSH professionals also need to carefully consider PECR and the Computer Misuse Act. So what can OSH professionals do to avoid any costly legal and financial pitfalls further down the road?

Risk-based approach The OSH professional may act as a ‘data controller’, which means they are obliged to quantify the risk to the data subject’s rights and freedoms from processing their personal data. Risk assessments covering a plethora of safety issues will contain personal data

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Data privacy

Breaches of the DPA 18 and the GDPR can range from 2-4% of the company global annual turnover

For example, this could apply to a group of municipal authorities that are each setting up a similar closed circuit television (CCTV) system. Each one could carry out a single DPIA that covers how the processing is undertaken by the separate controllers. Alternatively, a railway operator (single controller) could cover video surveillance in all its train stations with one DPIA. This may also be applicable to similar processing operations that are implemented by various data controllers. In such cases, a reference DPIA should be shared or made publicly accessible, measures described in it must be implemented, and a justification for conducting one must be provided.

Big Brother is watching and must comply with the GDPR, DPA18 and PECR. Another issue to consider is the lawfulness of processing personal data (see ‘What is personal data?’ box, below) and what the assessment’s legal justification is.

Before processing personal data, this sensitive information must be freely given and consent received from the data subject (see box, p 43).

When data controllers ask for consent, they have a duty under the GDPR to assess whether it will meet all the requirements to obtain valid consent.

If obtained incorrectly, the data subject’s control becomes an invalid basis for processing, meaning the activity is unlawful. This is similar for where the OSH professional is acting as a processor, as the GDPR imposes direct compliance obligations on both controllers and processors, and both controllers and processors will face direct enforcement and serious penalties if they do not comply with the new EU data protection law.

The regulation brings in new accountability and transparency requirements. In particular, you must now inform those concerned upfront about your lawful basis for processing their personal data. OSH professionals (data controllers, or even those acting as a processor) need to explain clearly what they will do with the data subject’s consent, and whether they will do anything else on a different lawful basis. If the OSH professional knows that they will need to retain the data after consent is withdrawn for a particular purpose under another lawful basis, they need to tell the data subject at the outset. The process must also be documented in a data privacy impact assessment (DPIA).

The GDPR does not require a DPIA to be carried out for every processing operation, which may result in risks for the rights and freedoms of natural persons.

Under Article 35(1), it is only mandatory where processing is “likely to result in a high risk to the rights and freedoms of natural persons”.

A DPIA describes the processing operation, assesses its necessity and proportionality and helps manage the risks to the rights and freedoms of natural persons resulting from the processing of personal data. It also determines the measures to address them. DPIAs are important tools for accountability, as they help controllers comply with GDPR requirements and demonstrate that appropriate measures have been taken to ensure compliance.

They also take into account new situations that could lead to high risks, which affect the rights and freedoms of natural persons. There is no need to carry one out in cases where similar technology has been used previously to collect similar data for the same purposes.

A DPIA can also be useful for assessing the impact of CCTV on data protection. The legality of CCTV use generally falls under the PECR although OSH professionals should also be aware of the Computer Misuse Act. The amount of data generated by the recording, combined with analysing tools and techniques, increases the risks of secondary use (whether related or not to the purpose originally assigned to the system) and the risks of misuse.

The potential risk of misuse grows in proportion to the amount of space monitored by the cameras as well as the number of individuals captured in the recording. Article 35(3)(c) of the GDPR requires that a DPIA is carried out when a publicly accessible area is heavily monitored on a large-scale. Also, Article 37(1) (b) requires processors to designate a data protection officer, if the processing operation entails regular and systematic monitoring of data subjects.

OSH professionals should be careful about what information is gathered and the data subject’s rights. If their organisation receives a data subject access request, information held on the data subject must be identified and returned to them within one month. Otherwise, if the time period elapses and no information is provided, the data subject is entitled under Article 82 of the GDPR for rights to compensation and does not have to commence court proceedings to apply for it. Other defined rights for the data subject include right of rectification (Article 16), the right to erasure (Article 17), and the right to the restriction of processing (Article 18). They can also insist that all data transfers are completed with suitable safeguards in place.

If the organisation or OSH professional uses a cloud IT service which stores and/or processes sensitive information (including personal data) anywhere outside of the UK, they must consider if it is being transferred internationally. If OSH professionals transfer data by fax or computer, under Article 32 they must ensure they have implemented technical and organisational

What is personal data?

This term applies to any information that relates to an identified or identifiable natural person (‘data subject’). They can be identified, directly or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identifier such as a name, an

identification number, location data or an online identifier, or to one or more factors specific to the physical, physiological, genetic, mental, economic, cultural or social identity of that natural person.

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Data privacy

To consent or not to consent?

Consent gives data subjects control over whether or not personal data that relates to them can be processed. There can only be an appropriate lawful basis if the data subject is offered control, which means the data subject has been offered a genuine choice with regard to accepting or declining the terms offered or declining them without detriment.

data processor implements data protection by design, but there isn’t in complying with data protection by default. As the organisation is required to demonstrate how it has considered this, it makes sense to ‘re-wire’ data processing operations so they comply with GDPR. A health record must be kept for all employees under health surveillance. Health records, or a copy, should be kept in a suitable form for at least 40 years from the date of last entry because often there is a long period between exposure and onset of ill health.

A data privacy requirement is attached to the storage of records to ensure the data is held securely and not accessed by inappropriate parties. A ‘DPIA Lite’ should be considered to glean any long-term risk to the data subject in relation to storing personal data.

The data subject access request (DSAR) gives the individual in question the right to obtain a copy of their personal data as well as any other supplementary information. It helps individuals, who are entitled to their own personal data, and not information relating to other people, to understand how and why their data is being used. Therefore, it is important that OSH professionals establish whether the information requested falls within the definition of personal data held by them. An individual can make a data subject access request verbally or in writing; the OSH professional must comply within one month of receipt of the request or (if later) within one month of receipt of: ● any requested information to clarify the request; ● and any information requested to confirm the requester’s identity.

measures to ensure a level of security appropriate to the risk.

When assessing this, OSH professionals must be aware of any accidental or unlawful destruction, loss, alteration, unauthorised disclosure of, or access to personal data transmitted, stored or otherwise processed. Paper records need a secure mechanism for transfer, which would include verification that the information is being sent to the correct address and via a secure courier.

Image: iStock

Privacy by design One of the most important features of the GDPR is compliance with Article 25 – the principle of data protection by design and by default (DPDD), which means that compliance shouldn’t be an afterthought.

It should be treated as core to planning and implementing any new product or service.

It requires that personal data protection is part of the DNA of all products, services and information society services so that it is lawful under the GDPR. The OSH professional must ensure that, during the planning phase of processing activities and the implementation phase of any new product or service, data protection principles and appropriate technical and organisational safeguards are fully applied.

For those companies and organisations with a high-risk appetite, re-booting their thinking on data protection along the lines of DPDD will require technical and organisational changes and a shift in culture. For companies and organisations that are naturally risk-averse, following the DPDD principles will help to enhance organisational reputation and not simply be an exercise in GDPR compliance.

There’s wriggle room in how a data controller and

Steve Wilkinson CMIOSH is a consultant data privacy subject matter expert

Responsibility for complying with a subject access request lies with the OSH professional. Failure to supply the requested information within the required timeline entitles the data subject to apply an Article 82 request. This indicates that any person who has suffered material or non-material damage due to an infringement of the GDPR, has the right to receive compensation from the controller or processer for the damage inflicted.

Both private and public sector companies have started to insert data privacy requirements in their tendering processes. This is evident in (PPN) 09/14 (25 May 2016), which suggests the steps that the government is taking to further reduce levels of cyber security risk in its supply chain.

In light of these changes in data privacy, OSH professionals would be well advised to consider their responsibilities carefully and ensure they have the correct tools and have had the required training to meet the data privacy requirements. ●

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Noise

A hidden epidemic Preserving and promoting the protection of the UK’s hearing health is a primary focus for a newly formed group of specialists Words: CLARE FORSHAW

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Noise

H

70%

21%

of staff in music venues were exposed to noise levels above the daily recommended limit

of the UK population (15.6 million) will suffer from hearing loss by 2035, it is estimated

Many young people are now entering the workplace with pre-existing hearing loss from a youth spent using earphones

Image: Getty Images

earing health damage from exposure to excessive noise is an invisible, irreversible, largely untreatable yet wholly preventable set of conditions that continues to plague the UK workforce. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) estimates that more than one million workers in the UK are exposed to noise above the lower legal action value of 80dB (A) and therefore at risk of hearing damage.

But many experts have put the risk to hearing health at much lower exposures of around 70dB(A), suggesting that significantly higher numbers could be at risk.

Hearing loss is probably the most common outcome from noise exposure and has a significant eect on communication leading to exclusion and disadvantages in education, employment, social care and public life.

Noisy workplaces also cause a safety risk as workers can’t hear what is going on around them, including audible warning alerts.

In addition to workplace exposures to loud noise, many young people are now entering the workplace with pre-existing hearing loss from a youth spent using earphones (the iPod generation). In 2013, the European Committee for Electrical Standardisation set a new standard for personal music players, including smartphones, which must have a sound limit of 85dB(A). The user can choose to override this limit and increase the sound level to 100dB(A). If so, the user must be warned about the risks of listening at high volumes for every 20 hours of listening time.

At the other end of the generational gap, an increasingly ageing working population means that

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Noise

more people will be at work with accrued lifetime hearing impairment. And it’s not just about hearing loss – exposure to noise at work and existing hearing loss are closely linked to tinnitus, depression, risk of dementia, higher risk of increased blood pressure and other stress-related responses.

Live a quieter life

Clare Forshaw is founder and director of the UKHCA

Collaboration is key The UKHCA is keen to work with other industry associations, companies or groups to help raise awareness, educate and help put best practice into place in all aspects of hearing conservation, noise reduction and through application of innovative technology and techniques. It recently produced some FAQs and guidance for a construction project via the ‘At work’ special interest group, and it is also working with a large infrastructure project to provide outreach to local schools on what noise is and how to reduce its impact, as part of the Education stream.

As part of its work to influence the music and entertainment sector, the UKHCA is collaborating with the Institute of Acoustics and the UK Acoustics Network and with key music industry bodies to deliver Hear for

Tomorrow on 8 April 2020 at the Royal College of Music. The event aims to raise awareness of the effect of music on hearing health through sharing the latest research and solutions. The meeting will cover the scale of the problem, what we now know, and what can be done. World-leading specialists will deliver the cutting-edge knowledge to help inform decision-makers and influencers on wellbeing and health issues for amateur players, professional musicians, casual listeners and festival-goers. The UKHCA also plans to develop some evidenced position papers on key topics of contention in the world of hearing conservation, for example on health surveillance, hearing protection quality and audibility.

Find out more about the UKHCA at www.hearingconservation.org.uk

support the network’s pillars of interest and key areas of influence to affect hearing conservation, are: Education for young people: this group will focus on providing education and influence for the younger generation who are critical for the future of hearing conservation. The aim will be to help them to have a healthier relationship with sound, through awareness raising and education, highlighting the risks of prolonged listening to music on personal devices, and generally placing more value on their hearing as a precious commodity.

At work: there still remains a significant risk of exposure to high levels of noise at many workplaces.

This group will provide a much-needed improved focus on reduction of noise at source and a move away from solely relying on hearing protection, which has been shown to fail and leaves many workers vulnerable to hearing health damage.

Lifestyle: the modern world can be very noisy and adds to our total noise dose over our lives. This group will explore ways to live a quieter life with a greater awareness of those risky hobbies and lifestyle choices in order to protect future hearing health, wellbeing and prevent other hearing-related health problems.

Music and entertainment: an intriguing area that is difficult to solve with the usual reduction at source and control techniques, as sound is created for intention not as a by-product. Yet hearing health harm is a significant problem for those involved in this sector and can lead to a life of misery – early retirement from a lifelong passion is a harsh reality for many.

Turn the noise down Current UK noise risk at work management programmes are not working, as evidenced by insurance liability claims (£400m in 2014), costs to the NHS (around £500m a year) and the estimated total cost to the UK economy of around £5bn-7bn a year. There is also the additional cultural and social damage to the affected individuals. Typical hearing damage claim settlements are around £5,000-8,000, while the HSE estimates that the true cost for each claim is often an additional £7,000-29,000.

These figures are particularly disturbing given that noise induced hearing loss at work is virtually 100% preventable. ●

Image: iStock

The UK Hearing Conservation Association (UKHCA) was officially set up in early 2019 by a number of founding members, which range from audiologists, acoustic engineers, music professionals, hearing protection manufacturers and suppliers, occupational hygienists, health and safety professionals and other professional bodies and charitable associations – all with the common passion of preserving and promoting the protection of the UK’s hearing health. The UKHCA was proud to see three of its founding members recognised for innovation and education in noise and hearing with EAVE, HearAngel and the LOCHER project among the winners and highly commended at the John Connell Awards in October 2019.

The UKHCA has also been invited by the World Health Organization to be a founding member of its World Hearing Forum and ‘Make Listening Safe’ working group. As a global network of stakeholders, the World Hearing Forum looks to promote and support the prevention of deafness and hearing loss through collaboration and multi-stakeholder action. The working group aims to reduce the risk of hearing loss posed by unsafe listening through global standards, public health campaigns and a regulatory framework for control of recreational sound exposure. The UKHCA is proud to contribute its expertise to these initiatives and collaborate with others to bring about change.

The UKHCA has created four main special interest groups in order to channel the expertise of its members and in order to identify, create and share best practice for these key areas where the need for hearing conservation is most important. These groups, which

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23/01/2020 13 13:38 38 29/01/2020 10:07

Lexicon is for

Recap our A to Z of core safety and health terms ioshmagazine.com/type/lexicon

WYLFIWYF Words: BRIDGET LEATHLEY

I

n the days when most computers had black screens with green text, the term ‘What You See Is What You Get’ (WYSIWYG, pronounced whizzy-wig) referred to new computers that were being developed by companies like Apple and Xerox, where documents appeared on the screen as they would be printed. Younger readers will take this for granted but before WYSIWYG, word processing was almost a programming job. For example, to print ‘Hello World’ your screen might show ‘\begin\bfHello \itWorld \end’.

The term WYSIWYG wasn’t new, and had been used for some time to mean ‘I may not be perfect, but I am what I seem to be, so take it or leave it’ and this use outlived the computing term in popular parlance.

In 2009, three academics working in Sweden revised the phrase for a new purpose. Jonas Lundberg, Carl Rollenhagen and Erik Hollnagel titled their Safety Science paper ‘What-You-LookFor-Is-What-You-Find – The consequences of underlying accident models in eight accident investigation manuals’ and introduced us to WYLFIWYF (bit.ly/2DTIg3D).

The argument made by Lundberg and his two colleagues is not simply that you will find what you are looking for, but that the model of accident causation you use will have an impact on what you find in an investigation. This suggests a bias that goes beyond the cognitive bias types that we considered in Clear your head (see IOSH Magazine, February 2018: bit.ly/2E2f21a).

Lundberg et al point out, “It is simply not possible to begin an investigation with a completely open mind.” In the 2008 publication, Remaining Sensitive to the Possibility of Failure, Hollnagel’s chapter titled ‘Investigation as an Impediment to Learning’ (bit.ly/35JVe0s) notes, “A root cause analysis implies that accidents can be explained by finding the root – or real – causes”.

Similarly, if you apply Herbert William Heinrich’s domino model, as discussed in Industrial

Models assume that one failure inevitably leads to another, whereas in reality there are many factors to consider

Accident Prevention: a scientific approach (4th edition), you will look for, and therefore identify, social factors like the environment, the inherent faults of people such as impatience, and unsafe acts. If you use James Reason’s Swiss cheese model from his book Managing the Risks of Organizational Accidents, you will still look for, and find unsafe acts, but you will also find organisational factors such as poor planning, and workplace factors (such as time pressure), and failed defences (such as a failure of supervision or inspection).

What then can be done to avoid this type of bias? The authors conclude that most models of accident causation are too linear, and too tightly coupled. Models assume that one failure inevitably leads to another, whereas in reality there are many factors to consider, and much variability as to whether a single action results in a good or a bad outcome.

Although the authors admit that, “there is no objectively true description of an accident”, they, perhaps not surprisingly, point to Hollnagel’s own accident model as a solution. The functional resonance accident model was covered in F is for FRAM (see IOSH Magazine, September 2018: bit.ly/2rXnei7). FRAM defines six parameters for each function (input, output, time, control, preconditions, and resources) and recognises that each parameter can vary. This explains why an operator action, which can occur day after day without incident, suddenly becomes the ‘cause’ of an accident when other parameters change coincidentally.

FRAM might be too complicated for many organisations, but WYLFIWYF is a reminder for us to take a look at our own incident reporting procedures. Are they written down in a manual that everyone can read, so the criteria for reporting, investigation and drawing conclusions are in the open? Does the process make an assumption about causes, for example, always attempting to find a management root cause, or always looking for an operator error to blame?

Even if you don’t have a written process, you are likely to have accident and near-miss reporting forms. Look at the fields on your forms; even the way these are labelled can be a source of bias.

As Hollnagel points out: “There are never any simple ‘truths’ to be found, hence no simple way of learning from experience. Any lesson learned is limited by the assumptions on which the investigation is based.” ●

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Off duty

Read about other safety professionals’ pastimes ioshmagazine.com/type/duty

Hannah McIntosh

Tech IOSH

Operations H&S advisor

I

It makes you challenge what you think you are capable of; it’s about getting those skills back

’m not great when it comes to going to the gym. I find it fairly repetitive and tedious, so I’ve always done classes to keep fit. A couple of years ago, the teacher who took most of the classes went on maternity leave so someone suggested we try going to an aerial studio.

The first thing I tried was aerial silks, where you use two lengths of fabric that are rigged from the ceiling. I quite enjoyed it, but then tried aerial hoop and that was a lot more fun!

Aerial hoop is a circus activity that involves performing acrobatic moves on a steel hoop suspended from a beam clamp. As well as being really enjoyable, it’s a great way to stay fit. At first I thought it was a fairly niche activity, but there are lots of studios around and two in the city where I live. But aerial hoop isn’t widely known about, so you have to seek studios out.

There are various aerial fitness activities. With silks, you can end up getting tied up in a knot, which hurts! With aerial hoop, obviously you can’t get tangled up in the same way, but you can end up getting yourself stuck in a particular position, which can be uncomfortable and result in obscure bruises.

Hoop relies on strength and flexibility. When you first start doing it, it can be quite tiring. The first challenge is to learn to pull yourself into the hoop, which involves inverting and hooking your legs onto the hoop. You’re taught that when you grip the hoop, you must always have your thumb wrapped around it – rather than alongside your fingers – as that creates a stronger hold.

I do one class a week and also practise inbetween classes at open sessions. I do go on my own, but sometimes you need someone to ‘spot’

you on the ground when you’re practising a move, just in case you tip and fall out of the hoop. Even at the open sessions, there are instructors to rig up and so on. Instructors have completed aerial rigging courses – being an oil and gas safety professional, one of my first questions on attending the first class was about the certification of the equipment and the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment regime!

When people find out that I do aerial hoop in my spare time it’s often met with a fairly surprised “Really?”. I can’t help bringing my day job into my hobby – if someone needs to install equipment we foot the ladder. Obviously we don’t have PPE when we’re doing aerial hoop, but if you look at the hierarchy of control, we rely more on collective protective measures, such as crash mats – which won’t stop you falling, but will hopefully stop you being injured. Before my first session I had to fill in a form about injuries and other issues that might affect my ability to take part, and at the start of each session the instructor asks if anyone has sustained a recent injury that they might need to keep an eye on.

At work we talk a lot about hazard identification and the need to be aware of our surroundings and the people around you. It’s the same with aerial hoop. You can’t zone out: you have to be completely focused on what you’re doing.

Aerial hoop is good exercise but one of the great things about it is that you don’t feel like you’re exercising. I enjoy the progression too. When you learn a new move, at first you think, “I can’t do that – it’s impossible!” Then a few weeks later you try it again, something clicks and you see your progress. I also enjoy working in a group and putting together a routine. At the studio we put on a couple of showcases each year.

I would recommend anyone who’s interested to give it a go. When suggesting it to people I know, they’ll often say, “Oh, but I’m not flexible” or “I’m not strong”, but that’s why you go! All you need is to be comfortable with heights and being upside down, and be willing to try something new.

Watching instructors when I first started reminded me of being on a climbing frame as a child – hooking your legs and hanging upside down. It makes you challenge what you think you are capable of; it’s about getting those skills back.

As a health and safety adviser, you can be creative in your work and enjoy it, but it’s not about play. Aerial hoop gives you the freedom to play. You can slowly retrain your body and your mind – and you realise what’s achievable. It’s the same at work. We all come to work with our own values and preconceptions about how tasks can and should be carried out. Through discussion and continued assessment we can challenge ourselves to consider a different point of view – and still work with the health and safety of the team at the forefront of our minds. ●

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Recruitment

To advertise your vacancy, contact iosh-recruitment@redactive.co.uk

Ask a recruiter In such a competitive market, how do we attract the best candidates?

Due to the skills shortage within the OSH industry, many employers can find it difficult to attract the right level of talent. Take the construction sector for example – an experienced CDM consultant looking for a new role in a major city would have a wide number of options to choose from, with most job adverts quoting similar salaries and requirements.

So, the question is, how do you make yourself stand out as the best option for OSH professionals looking to move jobs?

First of all, marketing is key. It doesn’t matter whether you are a multinational or a small business with only a few employees, you have to make a splash across numerous social media platforms. Make sure people can find out about your company not just on LinkedIn and Glassdoor, but also via Twitter, Facebook and even Instagram, especially when trying to capture the attention of more junior hires.

Using marketing to convey interesting projects you’re working on, recent business successes, corporate social initiatives, team outings as well as blogs written by your employees will give potential hires a better concept of your company culture and values. These values and the feeling of being part of something have become much more important to people job searching than simply moving for slightly more money.

Finding experienced OSH professionals across a number of sectors is difficult, especially at the more junior end. There is still more to be done at school and university level to inspire more people into a career in safety. One solution is looking into other areas where people can transfer their skill sets into a safety career. In safety recruitment we have always found that people from the Armed Forces, and Fire and Police services have the personality and skills gained

from their careers ready to transition into OSH very effectively, and are an excellent option if you are happy to invest in some additional training.

Once you find the right candidates, the way that you interview them is also vital.

Whilst you are interviewing candidates to ascertain their technical suitability and personal fit for your role, you also need to remember that interviewing has become more of a two-way process over the past five years as we have moved into more of a candidate-led market in health and safety. Whilst the candidate needs to sell themselves to you, you also need to sell your company and team to them, demonstrating why joining your business will be beneficial to their career progression and professional aspirations etc.

If you’re finding it difficult to attract the right staff then ask the experts.

Dominic Jacques is head of health and safety recruitment at Mattinson Partnership.

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To advertise your vacancy, contact iosh-recruitment@redactive.co.uk

Recruitment

Health & Safety Manager Falmouth, Cornwall DŝŶŝŵƵŵ ƋƵĂůŝĮĐĂƟŽŶ E K^, >ĞǀĞů ϲ ŝƉůŽŵĂ ǁŝƚŚ Ăƚ ůĞĂƐƚ ϱ LJĞĂƌƐ ĞdžƉĞƌŝĞŶĐĞ ŝŶ Ă ƐŚŝƉďƵŝůĚŝŶŐ͕ ƐŚŝƉ ƌĞƉĂŝƌ Žƌ ƌĞůĂƚĞĚ ĞŶŐŝŶĞĞƌŝŶŐ Žƌ ĐŽŶƐƚƌƵĐƟŽŶ ĞŶǀŝƌŽŶŵĞŶƚ͘ tĞ ĂƌĞ ƐĞĞŬŝŶŐ ƐŽŵĞŽŶĞ ǁŝƚŚ ĞdžĐĞůůĞŶƚ ŝŶƚĞƌƉĞƌƐŽŶĂů ƐŬŝůůƐ ǁŚŽ ĐĂŶ ĂĐƟǀĞůLJ ĞŶŐĂŐĞ ǁŝƚŚ ŵĂŶĂŐĞŵĞŶƚ ĂŶĚ ƚŚĞ ǁŽƌŬ ĨŽƌĐĞ͕ ĂŶĚ ĞīĞĐƚ ƌĞĂů ŝŵƉƌŽǀĞŵĞŶƚ ŝŶŝƟĂƟǀĞƐ͘ dŚĞ ŬĞLJ ƚĂƐŬ ŝƐ ŝŵƉůĞŵĞŶƟŶŐ Ă ,^Θ ĐƵůƚƵƌĞ ƚŚĂƚ ŝƐ ƐŝƚĞ ǁŝĚĞ͘ dŚĞ DĂŶĂŐĞƌ ǁŝůů ĂĚŽƉƚ Ă ƌĞŵŝƚ ƐƉĂŶŶŝŶŐ ĨƌŽŵ ĂĐĐŝĚĞŶƚ ŝŶǀĞƐƟŐĂƟŽŶ ĂŶĚ ůĞŐŝƐůĂƟǀĞ ĐŽŵƉůŝĂŶĐĞ ƚŚƌŽƵŐŚ ƚŽ ƚƌĂŝŶŝŶŐ ĂŶĚ ĂƵĚŝƚƐ ĂƐ ǁĞůů ĂƐ ĐŽͲŽƌĚŝŶĂƟŶŐ ŝŶƐƉĞĐƟŽŶƐ ;ďŽƚŚ ŝŶƚĞƌŶĂůůLJ ĂŶĚ ŵĂŶĂŐŝŶŐ ĞdžƚĞƌŶĂů ďŽĚŝĞƐͬ ŝŶƚĞƌĞƐƚĞĚ ƚŚŝƌĚ ƉĂƌƟĞƐͿ͘ ŽƌƉŽƌĂƚĞ WŽůŝĐLJ ŵĂŬŝŶŐ ĂŶĚ ƐĂĨĞƚLJ ƐƚĂŶĚĂƌĚƐ ŝŵƉůĞŵĞŶƚĂƟŽŶ ǁŝůů ďĞ ĂŶ ŝŶƚĞŐƌĂů ƉĂƌƚ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ũŽď͘ zŽƵ ǁŝůů ŽǀĞƌƐĞĞ ƚŚĞ ŐĞŶĞƌĂů ,ĞĂůƚŚ Θ ^ĂĨĞƚLJ ĨŽƌ ƚŚĞ ŐƌŽƵƉ͕ ƉƌŽǀŝĚŝŶŐ ĞdžƉĞƌƚ ĂĚǀŝĐĞ ŽŶ ĐŽŵƉĂŶLJ ŚĞĂůƚŚ͕ ƐĂĨĞƚLJ ĂŶĚ ĞŶǀŝƌŽŶŵĞŶƚĂů ŝƐƐƵĞƐ͕ ůŝĂŝƐŝŶŐ ǁŝƚŚ ĚĞƉĂƌƚŵĞŶƚƐ ͬ ƉƌŽũĞĐƚƐ ĂĐƌŽƐƐ Ăůů ƐŝƚĞƐ ƚŽ ĚĞůŝǀĞƌ ĮƌƐƚ ĐůĂƐƐ ƐƚĂŶĚĂƌĚƐ ƚŽ ĞŵƉůŽLJĞĞƐ͕ ĐƵƐƚŽŵĞƌƐ ĂŶĚ ĐŽŶƚƌĂĐƚŽƌƐ͕ ĂŶĚ ĂůƐŽ ƚĂŬŝŶŐ ƌĞƐƉŽŶƐŝďŝůŝƚLJ ĨŽƌ ĞŶǀŝƌŽŶŵĞŶƚĂů ŵĂŶĂŐĞŵĞŶƚ ĂŶĚ ƐƚĂŶĚĂƌĚƐ ŵĂŝŶƚĂŝŶĞĚ ŽŶ ƐŝƚĞ͘ zŽƵ ǁŝůů ĚĞǀĞůŽƉ ĂŶĚ ŝŵƉůĞŵĞŶƚ Ă ďĞŚĂǀŝŽƵƌĂů ƐĂĨĞƚLJ ĨƌĂŵĞ ǁŽƌŬ͕ ĂƐƐŝƐƚ ĂŶĚ ĂĚǀŝƐĞ ǁŝƚŚ ƌŝƐŬ ĂƐƐĞƐƐŵĞŶƚƐ ĂƉƉůŝĐĂďůĞ ƚŽ ƚŚĞ ŵĂŶƵĨĂĐƚƵƌŝŶŐ ĞŶǀŝƌŽŶŵĞŶƚ ǁŝƚŚ Ă ŚŝŐŚ ĨŽĐƵƐ ŽŶ ƌŽŽƚ ĐĂƵƐĞ ĂŶĂůLJƐŝƐ ĂŶĚ ƉƌĞǀĞŶƚĂƟǀĞ ŵĞƚŚŽĚƐ͘ tĞ ŽīĞƌ Ă ĐŽŵƉĞƟƟǀĞ ƌĞŵƵŶĞƌĂƟŽŶ ƉĂĐŬĂŐĞ ĂŶĚ ƚŚĞ ŽƉƉŽƌƚƵŶŝƚLJ ƚŽ ƌĞƐŝĚĞ ŝŶ ŽŶĞ ŽĨ ƚŚĞ ŵŽƐƚ ĂƩƌĂĐƟǀĞ ĂƌĞĂƐ ǁŝƚŚŝŶ ƚŚĞ ^ŽƵƚŚ tĞƐƚ ŽĨ ŶŐůĂŶĚ͘ WůĞĂƐĞ ƐĞŶĚ s ĂŶĚ ŽǀĞƌŝŶŐ >ĞƩĞƌ ;Žƌ ƚŽ ƌĞƋƵĞƐƚ ĨƵƌƚŚĞƌ ŝŶĨŽƌŵĂƟŽŶͿ ƚŽ dŚĞ WĞƌƐŽŶŶĞů ĞƉĂƌƚŵĞŶƚ͕ WĞŶĚĞŶŶŝƐ ^ŚŝƉLJĂƌĚ͕ dŚĞ ŽĐŬƐ͕ &ĂůŵŽƵƚŚ͕ ŽƌŶǁĂůů͕ dZϭϭ ϰEZ Žƌ ǀŝĂ ĞŵĂŝů ƚŽ ƉĞƌƐŽŶŶĞůΛƉĞŶĚĞŶŶŝƐ͘ĐŽŵ͘ ǁǁǁ͘ƉĞŶĚĞŶŶŝƐ͘ĐŽŵ WĞŶĚĞŶŶŝƐ ŝƐ ĂŶ ĞƋƵĂů ŽƉƉŽƌƚƵŶŝƟĞƐ ĞŵƉůŽLJĞƌ

HEALTH, SAFETY & ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGER Norbar Torque Tools Ltd., the world leading torque tool manufacturer is looking to recruit a responsible individual who will offer expert knowledge and skills to generate and promote a positive health and safety and environmental culture and play a key role in helping control occupational health.

Responsible to the Managing Director you will uphold the corporate safety programme including risk assessments, health surveillance, accident and near miss reporting, working within codes of practice and HSE guidance. You will also manage our environmental system as the responsible person liaising with the relevant local and government agencies. In addition you will be responsible for the energy management systems, collection and investigating energy data and usage.

We are looking for a suitably qualified person ideally with the NEBOSH diploma or equivalent. A number of years working in a similar role is essential. Experience of ISO14001 and experience in Energy Management ISO-50001:2018 would be a distinct advantage.

This is a full time role but we would consider applications from candidates who could work circa 30 hours or above.

In return we can offer a competitive salary depending upon experience.

Norbar also offers a non-guaranteed profit related bonus contributory pension scheme, life assurance, an award winning restaurant plus other lifestyle benefits.

Closing date for applications: 21 February 2020 We reserve the right to interview and appoint before the closing date.

For more details and to complete an Application Form, please visit www.norbar.com and follow the link to our Current Opportunities.

Strictly No Agencies.

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CALENDAR OF Recruitment

EVENTS 2020

JANUARY 30th - Speaking at Panel discussion on “Future Leaders” with the IOSH West of Scotland Branch, Hampden Park Stadium

To advertise your vacancy, contact iosh-recruitment@redactive.co.uk

APRIL 28th - 30th - Attending and hosting – Professional Development Theatre at The Health and Safety Event, NEC, Birmingham D

HOSTE

MAY

FEBRUARY 6th - Hosting in conjunction with Gateway HSW Consultants – Wellbeing Round Table, Birmingham HOSTED

11th - Attending Workshop “How H&S disadvantages women workers” - WOSHMAT

MARCH 26th - Attending and sponsoring – IIRSM Conference

19th - 21st - Attending the Safety and Health Expo, London

JUNE 4th - Attending and Sponsoring RoSPA Awards, Birmingham

JULY 14th - Speaking at IOSH Manchester and North West branch “Creating a strong personal brand”

56 FEBRUARY 2020

For information on any events please contact 0121 454 5000 or www.hserecruitment.co.uk Untitled-4 1 IOSH Feb20 Recr.indd 56

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Recruitment

To advertise your vacancy, contact iosh-recruitment@redactive.co.uk

Featured Job

Head of HSEQ | Essex | £Competitive We’re pleased to have been retained exclusively by a dynamic and growing property management organisation to appoint a new Head of HSEQ. This is a newly created role that reports direct to the Board. It’s a fantastic opportunity for the right person to develop their career at a strategic level role, with an organisation who has a proactive and forward-thinking approach to business, who wants to develop the same approach across their HSEQ function.

As Head of HSEQ, you’ll take a leading and influential role in establishing clear business standards for HSEQ, developing a strategy that ensures these standards are successfully adopted and embedded throughout the organisation. You’ll maintain oversight of ongoing compliance and performance levels, establishing frameworks and driving engagement with senior stakeholders.

To be successful, you’ll need proven leadership experience along with previous accountability for developing and implementing strategy. Strong communication, influencing and stakeholder management skills are vital, and you’ll need to demonstrate a collaborative approach to ensure shared goals are met. CMIOSH status along with the NEBOSH Diploma (or equivalent) is required, ideally with a related degree.

FOR A CONFIDENTIAL DISCUSSION CONTACT LIAM TIDDY LIAM.TIDDY@SHIRLEYPARSONS.COM 01296 611302 REF: LT 14602

Liam Tiddy Head of Executive Search at Shirley Parsons UK

PERMANENT

JOB OF THE MONTH

CONTRACT

EHS Manager

HSSE Business Partner

H&S Manager

Swindon £Competitive

Manchester / North UK £35,000

Hampshire £300 per day / 2 days per week

A global manufacturing organisation is seeking an experienced EHS Manager to continue to drive HSE standards forward across the site.

As well as promoting a positive EHS culture, you’ll be providing day to day, hands on advice. Prior experience in a chemical/pharma manufacturing environment is required.

We’re working with a leading logistics company to recruit an Assistant HSSE Business Partner to drive and deliver their behavioural safety change programme throughout the North of the UK. Previous road or rail experience is needed along with the NEBOSH Certificate and flexibility to travel.

A care home provider is looking for an interim H&S Manager to work 2 days per week for the next 12 months. You’ll be developing and maintaining ISO 18001 and ISO 45001 standards, reviewing policies and carrying out a gap analysis. A background in property is ideal along with holding the NEBOSH Certificate.

To apply, please quote RB 14572

To apply, please quote MR 13654

To apply, please quote SD 14570

Visit www.shirleyparsons.com for our latest vacancies GLOBAL LEADERS IN HSEQ RECRUITMENT 01296 611 300 | @ShirleyParsons

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THE UK’S FLAGSHIP EVENT FOR HEALTH & SAFETY 450+ Exhibitiors

16,000+ Attendees

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REGISTER FOR YOUR FREE TICKET OFFICIAL MEDIA PARTNER:

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