20th November 2017
HSE Latest ‘Health’ Campaign
What’s Happening?
The latest campaign from the HSE is branded ‘Go Home Healthy’. What does this mean and what should you expect if an Inspector turns up at your site?
In recent years it has become evident that HSE’s focus has shifted on protecting the health of employees rather than focussing on traditional safety risks such a machinery or vehicles etc. Whilst Inspectors are obviously still going to raise issues if they spot safety concerns at your site, the main focus for at least the next three years is going to be specifically on health risks.
What Do I Need to Know?
HSE statistics indicate that millions of working days are lost and thousands of workers are losing their lives due to work related conditions, with the example of lung diseases alone being responsible for the death of over 12,000 workers.
In light of this, the HSE has launched a new campaign focussed on helping employers send their staff home healthy.
Based on the statistics, there are three key areas responsible for the most lost working days and deaths. The campaign will therefore cover the following issues:-
- Work related lung diseases
- Musculoskeletal disorders
- Stress
The campaign makes it clear that employers have a duty to protect the health of their workers, and so inspectors will be taking steps to ensure that businesses are compliant.
From recent first-hand experience at several Lighthouse clients, if the HSE do visit your site – be prepared for them taking a great interest in how you control such issues as noise, asbestos, dust, fumes, manual handling activities and stress!
If you have any questions or concerns don’t hesitate to contact our team on the advice line 0845 4591724.
