Monthly Archives: September 2017

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Top Health and Safety FAILS

Top Health and Safety FAILS

Author: Beth Meakin

So, it seems like some of us don’t take Health and Safety as seriously as others. There are some workers, whether they are in the construction industry or an office role, who completely ignore the rules and regulations put in place for their safety. According to the OSHA, around 4,850 people are killed on the job each year in the US, which works out more than 93 workers a week! A lot of these could have been avoided with appropriate health and safety training and compliance.

Ladders

Ladders should be safe and the correct height for the task in hand. We recommended you also have another person hold the ladder steady – don’t improvise like these guys!

Confined Space

When entering confined spaces, it’s important that workers have adequate training and the correct equipment is used. Remember this next time you find yourself lifting your buddy out a manhole by his pants!

Protective Wear

Protective wear or personal protective equipment (PPE) is crucial for anyone working in a hazardous environment. Using (highly flammable) paper as a mask, or an air-restricting plastic water bottle for head protection is definitely not recommended.

 Flammables

Flammable liquids and materials should be kept away from all sources of ignition. It’s common sense really, but these guys are clearly lacking in that area! What are they thinking?

Electricity

Whether it’s computer leads in an office or wiring on a construction site, electrics are present in nearly every workplace. The risk of fatalities is significantly increased with the presence of electricity, so working safely should be a main priority. Water + electricity = disaster.

 Vehicle Safety

Unsafe loads on vehicles cause thousands of accidents and damage to goods every year, costing people and businesses millions. Secure all loads safely and appropriately within your vehicle, and if you ever think about carrying flammable liquid on the back on your scooter.

 

Ergonomics, Eye Protection, Hand Protection, Head Protection, Protective Clothing, Respiratory Issues

The Importance of Personal Safety Equipment in the Workplace

The Importance of Personal Safety Equipment in the Workplace

Personal safety equipment is important for both the safety of employees as well as the company. Hard hats, safety gloves, and other devices can make a huge impact on your personal well-being.

But what are some of the most commonly used safety equipment? How exactly does it go about keeping you safe? Read on to learn more about the history of PPE and discover the important role personal protective equipment has played in the workplace.

 

The history of workplace PPE

While the history of personal protective equipment dates back beyond modern times, it wasn’t until 1970 that the US Government passed the Occupational Safety and Health Act. From that day, it put forth a new era where the entire US workforce would become protected from job-related injuries, illness, and even death.

After OSHA became established in 1971, the new agency set forth on a unique mission. To create a thorough program which would meet the legislative intent of the Occupational Safety and Health Act. After creating the program, they then went on to define the appropriate list of PPE for every job description a company could have. Since then, OSHA has continued to make extravagant advances in workplace safety and safety equipment.

Personal protective equipment

Even though laws have passed requiring the use of personal safety equipment, accidents still occur every year. But what are the most commonly used PPE that can keep skilled laborers safe while on the job?

Head protection

Most common on constructions sites, it’s easy to identify day laborers and skilled laborers by the hard hats they wear at work. Design to protect your head from falling objects such as equipment or materials. Protective head wear has protected workers for years from objects that would otherwise impact or penetrate them.

While some hard hats cover only your head, they can become quite intricate. Options are available offering extra protections with face shields, earmuffs, and more. For optimal protection, it’s important to wear head protection that is well-fitted and fits snugly on your head.

Eye and face protection

As important as head protection, laborers should take precautionary measures to keep their eye and face safe too. Products such as full-face shields protect your face from flying debris. Eye protection like safety goggles are necessary for skilled laborers who work with metal, wood, and hot temperatures.

Hand and skin protection

Important in just about every line of skilled labor or day labor, hand and skin protection can literally save the skin on your hands. Typically required by all jobs in the construction industry, it’s important to have adequate PPE such as gloves to avoid skin injury. Use hand and skin protection that help you avoid occupational hazards. Good skin protection would include rubber gloves, cut-resistant gloves, and heat-resistant gloves.

Respiratory protection

If you work on a site where toxic substances are present, it’s important to wear proper respiratory protection. You’ll want to keep vital organs like your lungs in good working order. Remember, just because you can’t see something doesn’t mean it can’t hurt you. PPE like respirators are not only designed to protect you from paint spray and dust, but they can also protect you from other danger. These can include substances such as pesticides, fumes, and other hazardous contaminants.

While those in the workforce may not be able to escape dangerous conditions all the time, you can do your best to protect yourself. Doing so, you’ll be able to take part in the workforce longer, get out alive, and remain healthy.

Author bio:

Ron Robbins is an online marketing specialist at Leadhub based in San Antonio Texas. He actively represents companies such as Dooley Tackaberry who provide quality personal protective equipment for those in the gas and oil industry.

Back Safety, Ergonomics, Eye Protection, First Aid Safety, Hand Protection, Head Protection, Hearing Protection, Respiratory Issues

How to be Safe in The Trade Industry – A Professional Guide

Working in trade is tough and each job comes with its own challenges and tasks that make it unique. From plumbers to builders you have to be skilled, qualified but most importantly, safe. Safety in the workplace has become a huge part of a day to day trade now and each profession is different. Lucky for you, we have teamed up with TradesmenTricks.com to provide a guide on safety for some of the top trades in the industry.

 Plumber

There are many aspects of being a plumber which can cause danger which will need equipment to prevent hazardous materials damaging items of clothing or even skin.

Full overalls or protective clothing is required, with minimal points that can be caught by obstructions as this can cause an issue if caught on nails for example. When working with possible electrical currents, non-conductive clothing should be worn for the safety of the plumber. The eyes should also be protected from sparks, drips, and dust, and leather or latex gloves are a necessity to guard against any injury to the hands or contact with hazardous or unpleasant materials.

Electrician

Electricians are tasked with a whole host of jobs and tasks including fitting, repairing and inspections just to name a few. Often working in confined spaces and will handle dangerous products which can cause electric shocks! So, remaining safe with PPE is vital.

Electricians should be equipped with rubber insulating gloves, with liner gloves used inside to diminish discomfort and leather protective gloves optionally worn over the top to protect against cuts, scratches, and punctures. Gloves should fit well and maintain flexibility to allow for dexterous handling of smaller items.

Plasterer

From walls and ceilings appliance to overseeing larger projects on construction site, plasterers are working with equipment which can cause damage to clothing and risk to the tradesmen’s health and well-being. With risks of developing problems such as rhinitis which can be solved by using a face mask to avoid breathing in harmful air containing dust.

Dust can also cause damage to the eyes so an eye mask or goggles and the perfect protective item to prevent danger, along with a hard hat being used at all times.

Plasterers can also be exposed to chemicals through skin contact, so full-body coverings are recommended, as are thick gloves to prevent injuring or irritating the hands.

Carpenter

Carpenters are in need of major protection as coming in contact with wood is dangerous. Producing sawdust, wood chipping and splinters are just a few minor risks. With working with power tools which can cause harm to the worker which will need protecting against also.

Anyone working extensively with wood needs to protect both their eyes and their ears. On-site carpentry involves lots of cutting and shaping, so safety glasses should be used to prevent sawdust invading the eyes, and proper hearing protectors must guard against the constant noise created by power tools.

Power tools are also a danger but can’t be avoided for the job, we recommend making sure that the surface you work on is clear and no obstructions are around which could lead to dangerous complications.

Post provided by  Oliver at  TradesmenTricks

General Safety Issues, Hand Protection

Office Hygiene – What’s Hiding On Your Desk?

Office Hygiene – What’s Hiding On Your Desk?

Where does your mind goes when you hear the words bacteria ridden? Does it go to toilet seats? The mushy tomato in the fridge? The sweaty gym shorts under the bed? The dog’s toy that he someone keeps managing to get out of the bin?

Well, have you ever thought about your office desk?

I bet you’re looking at it right now. Notebooks scattered around. Half a bag of crisps. A pen in between your teeth.

A recent study carried out by The Cleaning Services Group, has claimed that the average office desk is 400 times dirtier than the average toilet seat.

The Average Worker

According to the study, 8 in 10 people in the UK work in offices. Those 8 in 10 people spend an average of 8 hours a day, 5 days a week. In their offices.

If we spend so much of our time in the office then how come we treat it so badly? Even our toilet seat at home is cleaner than our office?

Is it because our office it isn’t our home? Do we care a bit less?

It isn’t our job to clean the office? It isn’t our responsibility.

I’m sorry to break it to you, but when it comes to office hygiene we’re all responsible.

Can I really get sick from a dirty desk?

We all know that if someone comes in with the cold, there is a very good chance everyone else will get sick too.

Sure, the risk of getting the cold or flu increases, but what about everyone’s least favourite friend, the norovirus? Also known as the stomach bug?

Or even worse you could get Hep A&B or Influenza!

You might think it’s not a big deal to come into work with a little cold, you can struggle through your shift, and at worse take a day or two off work. But if you’re taking a day off work then who is picking up your work?

Productivity decreases as people are stretched with workloads or when feeling under the weather, and stress increases. Â

And what about absenteeism?

In one year in the UK 131 million days were lost due to sickness, costing the economy £29 BILLION.

Bad office hygiene can make you sick, make others sick, and decrease productivity, as well as causing unnecessary stress.

And to think, most of it is avoidable with some common sense, and by promoting a healthy and hygienic office environment.

The facts behind the germs

A huge  80% of infections are spread through contaminated surfaces, rather than through coughing and sneezing as most people believe.

It is the surfaces that people touch most, where the germs are lurking in their thousands if not millions!  The office phone, the buttons on the microwave, the printer, and don’t forget the door handles.

Unfortunately for us, bacteria and viruses can survive on hard surfaces for up to 72 hours.

Plenty of time to spread through the entire office.

An appalling statistic has been established that 32% of office workers don’t wash their hands after visiting the toilet! And these are the hands that come in contact with more than 10 million bacteria per day!

So you can imagine how easy it is for germs to spread.

The most commonly touched surfaces in the workspace is your Desk.

The average office desk has more than 10 million bacteria hiding on it.

Your keyboard containing 3, 295 bacteria per square inch and the mouse adding an extra 1676 per square inch.

To contrast this, the average toilet seat only has 49 bacteria microbes per square inch!

And would you eat your lunch of a toilet seat? No, that’s disgusting! Yet 2 in 3 office workers eat at their bacteria ridden desks, and 1 in 5 don’t even wipe it down before doing so.

One person carrying a virus will infect 50% of all equipment and employees in their vicinity in just FOUR HOURS!

Who is responsible?

You are! Everyone in the office is responsible to ensure their is a healthy and hygienic working environment.

Management is responsible to communicate the facts with the staff to involve the staff to take accountability.

The management should also provide solutions such as bins, soap, cleaning stations, and ensure cleaning regimes take place.

Staff should take responsibility for their personal hygiene and their work station. Be proactive by preventing the spread of bacteria by using bins and washing hands. Staff should also take accountability and call in sick to work if sick with a spreadable illness.

About Safety Training Scotland

Since Safety Training Scotland was founded in 2013, it has delivered courses to over 2000 successful delegates. At Safety Training we’re passionate about changing the negative perception of health and safety training. Our highest priority is not just to inform, but also to engage and inspire. We are transforming the safety training industry and putting an end to “death by powerpoint”.

General Safety Issues

The Economic and Health Implications of Workplace Stress

The Economic and Health Implications of Workplace Stress

 

Did you know that about four in ten working adults, or 44% employees, said in response to a survey that their current job affected their overall health? In addition, more than four in ten people also mentioned that their job had a major impact on their family and social life, their weight issues, eating patterns and sleeping habits. This was found in a survey of working adults in the US, conducted jointly by Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, National Public Radio (NPR) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Work-related stress among employees is known to have an adverse effect on their health, the well-being of their family as well as economic implications for the business and the nation as well.

Stress Impacts the Health of an Employee

  • Psychological Disorders – Depression and burnout, as a result of work-related stress, can have a negative impact on the health of a worker and can even affect personal relationships.  “It’s not just your body that is affected by stress, your relationships and overall life satisfaction are also significantly impacted,” says an expert at Nature’s Wellness.

 

  • Alcohol and Substance Abuse – The onset of depression, due to workplace stress, has also been known to act as a trigger for alcohol and substance abuse in an individual. Working erratic shift timings, putting in excessively long working hours, taking up more than one job and constant job insecurity are some of the main reasons that drive people towards becoming heavy drinkers and using drugs for the perceived ‘stress-relieving’ effects, which any physician will tell you is a false notion.

 

  • Chronic Diseases  –  Constant levels of stress, be it because of an inability to strike a perfect work-life balance or any other reason, can have long-term health complications, such as type 2 diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular diseases.

 

How Workplace Stress Affects the Bottom Line

  • Economic Costs of Workplace Stress –  In the United States, an estimated one million workers are absent every day from work due to stress, according to survey findings published by The American Institute of Stress (AIS). The AIS goes on to report that this last-minute absenteeism tends to cost companies, on an average, around $602 per worker each year, which in the case of large companies could even reach $3.5 million annually.

 

  • Loss in Productivity –  It is interesting to note that loss in productivity is not only due to absenteeism but also occurs in the case of what is known as “presenteeism” or a situation where workers are reporting to work but are not working at their optimum levels because of stress-induced medical conditions like depression.

 

  • Workplace Injury –  Whether it is an individual’s inability to handle stress or the prevalence of stressful working conditions, it could lead to low levels of concentration and result in workplace injuries. In fact, in 2014 alone, there were more than 3 million work-related injuries and more than 4,800 occupational fatalities, costing the US exchequer a sum of $50 billion, according to Glorian Sorensen, Professor of Social and Behavioral Sciences at Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health.

 

The AIS survey findings cited above estimate that the US economy loses over $300 billion annually on account of absenteeism, reduced productivity, workplace accidents, healthcare costs and workers’ compensation. It, therefore, becomes important for employees experiencing work stress and the company they are working for to work in tandem and find ways to lower stress through identifying the causes and working on solutions. This in turn would have a positive impact on the well-being of the employees and the financial health of the business.