Corporate Social Responsibility - compliance solutions
In Brief
December 2024
According to International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates, nearly three million people worldwide die of work-related accidents and diseases every year. Another 395 million workers sustain non-fatal injuries, particularly in hazardous industrial sectors such as agriculture and construction. Even more alarming, the Poll data suggests that globally, 49% of all cases of workplace harm go unreported:
Munira Wilson, Liberal Democrat Spokesperson (Education, Children & Families) requested that leave be given to bring in a Bill to require the Chief Inspector of Drinking Water to issue guidance to water companies on poly and perfluorinated alkyl substances in drinking water; and for connected purposes:
www.theyworkforyou.com. The Bill was read for the First time on 5 November, and will be read a Second time on Friday 24 January 2025, and be printed (Bill 120).
Answer by Stephen Timms, The Minister of State, Department for Work and Pensions, to a question by Iain Duncan Smith, Conservative, on what assessment Government has made of the potential merits of applying a weight of evidence approach when making decisions on the mandatory (a) classification and (b) labelling of chemicals:
The International Association of Drilling Contractors (IADC,) the group behind a drive to improve mental health in the North Sea, has praised the response after 35 organisations working in the UK Continental Shelf sign up to its Mental Health and Well-being Charter:
Kent-based plastics manufacturer FloPlast Limited has been fined £400,000 plus £5,567 costs after an employee was seriously injured by a forklift truck on 4 July 2023. The company pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974:
The fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution, including in the marine environment (INC-5), has begun in Busan, Republic of Korea. The session, which ends on 1 December, aims to finalise and approve the text of the instrument:
The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) is calling for Government action to tackle “the scourge” of work-related ill health as new figures reveal that 1.7 million people were suffering from poor health caused by work last year, leading to 29.6 million lost working days:
Energy from Waste (EfW) company Bio Dynamic (UK) Limited of Nottingham has been fined £304,500 plus £229,988 in costs after two workers suffered ‘life changing’ injuries when a metal tank exploded at the company’s anaerobic digestion (AD) plant on 20 September 2017. The company pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) and Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974; to breaching regulation 38(2) of the Environmental Permitting (England & Wales) Regulations 2016 (EPR), and s.33(1)(c) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990 (EPA):
The fatal injury rate in the waste industry is 3.65 per 100,000 workers, which is 9.1 times the all industry rate, according to the latest Health & Safety Executive (HSE) statistics for 2023/24. There were four fatal injuries to workers in the waste industry in 2023/24, and one fatal injury to a member of the public. According to the Annual Population Survey in 2023, the waste sector accounts for around 0.3% of the workforce in Great Britain:
Ginsters’ parent company, Samworth Brothers of Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire, has been fined £1.28mn plus £24,106 in costs following a fatal accident at The Cornwall Bakery in Callington, Cornwall. An employee on his first lone shift was crushed by a reversing lorry on 2 December 2021. There were 25 fatalities at work involving pedestrians in 2023/24:
October 2024
Based on quantitative and qualitative analysis of almost 900 responses from EHS professionals, the 2024 Health & Safety Report from RS in association with Health and Safety Matters is now available for free download, providing a definitive snapshot of health and safety across the UK and Ireland:
Craig Wiggins, chief executive of trade body Step Change in Safety, says “uncertainty” is a major concern for offshore safety, alongside “the great retirement” that stands to impact offshore workers in the high-risk environment of the North Sea:
The Lithium-ion Battery Safety Bill moves to the next step of the UK’s House of Lords by entering the Committee Stage. Since 2020, lithium-ion battery fires linked to the charging of e-bikes and e-scooters have contributed to 13 deaths in the UK, with many other people seriously injured or hospitalised:
Lithium-ion Battery Safety Bill [HL] - Parliamentary Bills - UK Parliament. See also: www.msn.com & www.britsafe.org
Hand-Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS) regulation and legislation differ in the US and UK. Tim Turney from monitoring solutions supplier Casella explains why, and the implications:
Overworking is a significant psychosocial hazard with serious health implications such as increased risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke, fatigue, stress, poor mental health, sleep disturbances, and even death. IOSH's Genis Fernandes considers these impacts and how to address the issue:
iosh.com. See also Ruth Wilkinson, IOSH Head of Policy and Public Affairs, responding to the publication of the UK Employment Rights Bill: iosh.com
Delays in fixing damaged or corroded fire safety equipment in the North Sea is causing huge concern. Industry figures have called for operators to stop using “fail fix” safety equipment test processes on offshore deluge systems:
ESG Consultant Keith Hole asks “Has safety changed too much?” as he reflects on a changing profession:
The “NEBOSH Online Conference: Creating… great health and safety practice” takes place on 20 November 2024, providing aspiring and practising health and safety professionals with a free day of educational content to support their professional development. Registration is open now:
On World Mental Health Day (10 October), the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) warned employers that they risk losing valued team members if they fail to manage their workers’ stress levels in the workplace. Around half of work-related ill health is down to stress, depression or anxiety with each person suffering taking an average of 19.6 days off work:
August 2024
Solicitor Beverley Sunderland asks what’s the reality of Labour’s promised sweeping changes to employment law?:
Scotland’s Just Transition Commission, an independent advisory body, has released a briefing paper on securing an orderly and just transition when Grangemouth, Scotland’s only oil refinery, closes in 2025 and is switched to being an import station for finished fuels:
Recycling company Veolia ES (UK) Limited of London, pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 after a demolition operative died and another was seriously injured while decommissioning a North Sea gas rig at an onshore facility in Great Yarmouth in October 2019. The company was fined £3,000,000 plus £60,000 in costs:
Circular waste management offers the potential for a net gain of more than USD 100 billion per year by 2050. To achieve this, a comprehensive framework is needed that integrates waste prevention, followed by reduction, reuse and recycling as priority measures:
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) are urging offshore oil and gas companies to take a closer look at human factors with regard to safety critical tasks:
A direct link has been established between early (childhood) exposure to air pollution and bronchitic symptoms in adults without previous lung problems:
In related news, expanding London’s Ultra Low Emissions Zone (ULEZ) last August contributed to “dramatically lower” pollutant emissions across the UK capital in 2023:
The Office for the Internal Market (OIM), part of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), which independently advises the UK government, launched a study of regulatory restrictions on single-use plastics, on 29 July. A short online survey, which can be found on the single-use plastics project page, will run until 16 September 2024:
In a new white paper, ‘An EPR of Everything, Starting with Batteries’, the Chartered Institute of Waste Management (CIWM) has called for extended producer responsibility (EPR) for batteries (and products containing batteries) and a targeted deposit return scheme (DRS):
www.circularonline.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/CIWM-373-Batteries-Report-Document-Final-upload-compressed.pdf & www.circularonline.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/CIWM-Battery-Report-FINAL-20240718-upload.pdf
The UK’s Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 remains fit for purpose but needs updating to reflect modern working practices, say the majority of respondents to an IOSH online poll. 31 July marked half a century since the Act received Royal Assent. It has been widely credited with helping to reduce the number of fatalities in UK workplaces – from 651 in the year it was published to 138 last year:
To commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, industry publication ‘Safety & Health Practitioner’ (SHP) in association with the National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health (NEBOSH), has commissioned short essays from a range of people from the profession, each reflecting on the Act’s impact and its future role:
July 2024
Ruth Wilkinson, IOSH’s Head of Policy and Public Affairs, says with a new government in place it is time for a greater focus on protecting people at work:
The Dräger Safety and Health at Work Report 2024, an annual study exploring attitudes to safety and health topics in UK workplaces, has found that more than nine in ten workers believe that the Health & Safety at Work etc. Act should be overhauled, fifty years after it was introduced.
The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) has published the latest statistics on deaths resulting from work-related accidents in 2023/24 that were reportable under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR): www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/assets/docs/fatalinjuries.pdf The report reveals that 50 workers died due to a fall from height in 2023/24 in Great Britain – an increase of 22% from 2022/23, which saw 41 deaths. These are the highest fatality numbers in the last 17 years:
www.hsmsearch.com/Height-industry-workplace-deaths-increase
Military explosives manufacturer Chemring Countermeasures Ltd., of Romsey, Hampshire, has pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and been fined £670,000 plus £12,835 costs after an employee was killed and another seriously injured in an explosion at its factory in August 2018:
An article by Dr Karen McDonnell, Head of Global Relations at the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), on how vehicle-related deaths and injuries are preventable if employers take the right steps to assess the risks and implement the right control measures:
The not-for-profit International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) has released its Global Safety Report 2024 which examines the primary causes of major injuries and fatalities during the operation of powered access machinery, including Mobile Elevated Work Platforms (MEWPs), Mast Climbing Working Platforms (MCWPs), and Construction Hoists (CH):
A ‘Safety & Health Practitioner’ (SHP) webinar on neurodiversity ‘You, me, and diversity – working better together – Are you bringing out the best in your entire workforce?’, which took place on 10 July, is now available on demand:
There is currently no law in the UK on maximum working temperatures. The TUC is calling for a change in the law so that employers must attempt to reduce temperatures above 24°C, plus an absolute maximum indoor working temperature of 30°C or 27°C for strenuous jobs: www.personneltoday.com/hr/maximum-working-temperature-uk-law-tuc. In the USA, the White House has unveiled a long-awaited proposal to establish the nation’s first-ever federal workplace standard for extreme heat:
June 2024
Data collected by the business insurer QBE suggests that batteries powering electric vehicles were involved in almost three fires a day in 2023, compared to under two fires a day in 2022. The findings show that 29% of lithium-ion fires involved e-bikes, but fires increased also for e-scooters, e-cars, e-trucks, and e-buses:
www.shponline.co.uk. A free e-book ‘Lithium-Ion batteries. A guide to the fire risk that isn’t going away but can be managed’ is available for download: www.shponline.co.uk/downloads/lithium-ion-batteries-guide-to-fire-risk-firechief-2024
RIDDOR guidance has been improved, providing more direct links on types of reportable incidents; who should and should not report under RIDDOR; clarity on ‘work-related’ accidents; when an occupational disease is not reportable; ‘over-7-day’ absences:
Free tickets are now available for the Environmental Services & Solutions (ESS) Expo to be held at the Birmingham NEC from 11-12 September. The Expo will showcase cutting-edge technologies and strategies in net-zero, decarbonisation, resource management, circular economy, water scarcity and management, biodiversity conservation, environmental emergency response and emissions control:
Aberdeen-based MRS Training & Rescue has issued a free downloadable White Paper on working in confined spaces following Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) findings that 15 people die per year while working in such spaces in the UK. The Paper covers current legislation, responsibilities of CEOs, HR, managers and supervisors, and risk assessments:
In a report published on 5 June, ‘The Case for a National Chemicals Agency’, the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) urges the next UK government to establish a dedicated chemicals agency. It states the UK’s current system for chemicals regulation and management is inefficient, poor value for money and lacks long-term planning. Download:
Openreach Limited has pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2 (1) of the Health and Safety at work etc. Act 1974 and was fined £1.34 million plus costs of £15,858.35 after an engineer drowned in the River Aber in Abergwyngregyn whilst trying to repair a telephone line. There had been no safe system of work in place for work on or near water, and no training, information or instruction for the team of workers.
The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) has launched a manifesto, ‘Safer, healthier, happier’, calling for the next government to prioritise improving occupational health services in order to rebuild the economy and reduce NHS waiting lists. Download:
The lifting of the cap on civil sanctions that can be imposed by the Environment Agency (EA) on companies in breach provides a meaningful alternative to prosecution. Could this be an attractive approach for the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to follow?
‘The control of legionella bacteria in evaporative cooling systems’ (HSG274: Part 1), has been updated. It includes clearer advice on testing of pH and biocide levels. Free downloads:
Middlesbrough-based Esken Renewables, which generates biofuel from renewable waste, has pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 7(1) of the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) Regulations 2002, fined £160,000 plus over £5,000 in costs. The HSE brought the case over long-term risks to staff of excessive exposure to wood dust:
Nearly three quarters (74%) of employers offer more health and wellbeing support now than they did two years ago. However, it is not always effectively targeted, meaning that quiet quitting, high staff turnover, hybrid working, presenteeism, absence rates and early retirement are still threats to businesses:
The HSE has published its strategic approach to Artificial Intelligence (AI). The use of AI comes within the scope of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, and so the principles of health and safety law need to be taken into account:
May 2024
Global advisory, broking and solutions company WTW’s 2024 Global Directors and Officers Survey Report identified health and safety as the top risk category in 2024 as measured across more than 50 countries:
Global Directors’ and Officers’ Survey Report 2024 - WTW (wtwco.com)
Following this year’s World Day for Safety and Health at Work on 28 April 2024, which was based around the impacts of climate change on occupational safety and health, the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) and the UN Global Compact Network UK have united to call for corporate action:
iosh.com/news-and-opinion/protecting-workers-from-the-impacts-of-climate-change
Hull-based Niche Fused Magnesia Limited, a manufacturer of magnesium oxide, has pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and fined £366,500 plus costs of £7,325.82 after a worker suffered fatal crush injuries in 2018:
Company fined £360k after trapped worker loses life (shponline.co.uk)
The US Environmental Protection Agency has announced that it will ban most uses of methylene chloride which has been linked to dozens of deaths. All consumer use will be prohibited within a year, and most commercial and industrial use will be phased out within the next two years. There will be stronger worker safety protections for the remaining “critical” uses:
SHP’s bi-annual legislation update webinar on Wednesday 29 May (11.00 a.m. BST) will cover the latest Health and Safety guidance and forthcoming consultations including 50 years of the Health and Safety at Work Act; an update on Martyn’s Law; and changes around flexible working:
www.shponline.co.uk/resources/webinar-health-and-safety-legislation-update
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has issued an improvement notice to Diamond Offshore Drilling for failing “to provide comprehensible instructions” ahead of the collapse of equipment on the GreatWhite drilling rig West of Shetland during a storm of 1 February this year:
A report by hygiene and workwear products provider RS Safety Solutions reveals that 82% of health and safety officials agree current female PPE is unsuitable for women due to sizing and fit issues:
Health and safety officials: suitable woman PPE hard to find (foodmanufacture.co.uk)
In a related article, the British Safety Industry Federation (BSIF) discusses the responsibilities of buyers of PPE and safety equipment and explains how incorporating the Registered Safety Supplier (RSS) scheme into procurement processes can help: Are you meeting your responsibilities as a buyer of PPE and safety equipment?(shponline.co.uk)
Having identified that thermites, and thermite containing articles, meeting the criteria for being classified for transport in Great Britain and the ADR area as Class 1 dangerous goods (as explosive substances and articles) are currently being transported either as non-dangerous goods or as Class 4.1 dangerous goods (flammable solids), the HSE has issued a new safety notice:
Praxis42‘s Head of Fire Safety Rob Sherman analyses the main concerns of having an Electrical Vehicle (EV) fleet, and how to minimise risk:
www.shponline.co.uk/prevention-and-protection/ev-fleet-are-electric-cars-safe
The HSE has issued Guidance on its regulatory approach to Artificial Intelligence (AI), including regulating the use of AI where it impacts on health and safety in workplaces; regulating the use of AI in design, manufacture and supply of workplace machinery, equipment and products; and where AI impacts on HSE’s role to protect people and places, including building safety, chemicals and pesticides regulation:
HSE’s regulatory approach to Artificial Intelligence (AI) – News - HSE
April 2024
Britain is becoming a toxic chemical dumping ground – yet another ‘benefit’ of Brexit, says George Monbiot:
Stateside Foods Limited of Bolton, one of the UK’s largest producers of supermarket pizzas, has been fined £800,000 after two workers suffered serious injuries in 2020 when limbs became trapped in unguarded machinery. The company pleaded guilty to breaching Section 2 (1) and 3 (1), of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act:
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has published the second Post Implementation Review (PIR) of RIDDOR, with a view to expanding it to include areas where HSE regulatory intervention can add value. There are five recommendations, and work is already underway on the first two regarding guidance and online reporting:
After a detailed period of development, the much-anticipated Asbestos Network Technical Working Group (ANTWG) guidance on Personal Monitoring (PM) has been published and is available from the ACAD Technical Reference Library
AN-TWG-Appendix-01_23-Personal-Sampling-Employee-Health-and-Exposure-Records-FINAL.pdf
America’s Environmental Protection Agency has announced a comprehensive ban on chrysotile asbestos, the only type of asbestos currently used in or imported to the country. The aim is to reduce cancer deaths and prevent cases of lung, ovarian, colorectal, laryngeal and other cancers:
For the second time in four years Hertfordshire-based Materials Movement Limited has caused the death of an employee. Most recently, it pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 15(2) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 after a fatal crush injury at a site in Brampton, Cambridgeshire:
The HSE has served an improvement notice on offshore drilling service company Valaris after an 85kg sheet of Perspex was dropped on one the company’s rigs in an uncontrolled manner which had the potential to result in a serious personal injury or a fatality:
The magazine ‘Private Eye’ no. 1620 29 March-11 April 2024 [no link available] has highlighted the lack of action within the Asbestos industry on making it safer for female Analysts to use decontamination units. Several have reported intimidation, assaults, and worse, as was highlighted in this 2021 article following the Faculty of Asbestos Assessment and Management (FAAM) Conference:
The HSE Recruitment Network’s ‘The 2024 HSE Remuneration Report’ delves into the average salaries, bonus expectations, and the most valued employee benefits across various HSE roles. It reveals a clear correlation between years of experience and salary levels across different HSE roles, and that a distinct gender disparity exists within the profession:
The HSE has warned Stork Technical Services Ltd. of Aberdeen after an inspection on the Shell-operated Nelson platform that respiratory equipment worn by their painters was compromised by their facial hair. The paint used contained xylene, ethylbenzene and 4-methylpentan-2-one (also known as methyl isobutyl ketone), all of which are hazardous to human health if inhaled:
March 2024
INEOS Chemicals Grangemouth Limited has been fined £400,000 after an employee’s leg was severely burned after he fell into a sump containing a caustic solution in November 2019. The company pleaded guilty to an offence under Section 2(1) and Section 33(1)(a) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974:
More than 50 percent of all US medical supplies are sterilised by ethylene oxide, and there are significant health risks now coming to light:
Registration is now open for Health and Safety Matters Live Coventry 2024, a free-to-attend conference taking place on 27 June 2024. It will be co-located with a NEBOSH Alumni conference:
A look at the hazards associated with offshore decommissioning:
The UK’s House of Lords environment and climate change committee is to examine the impact of methane on climate change, the benefits of delivering reduction targets and the UK’s progress on its commitments. It seeks evidence up to 15 April from the waste and waste management sector, along with agriculture and fossil fuels:
Dame Carol Black, the UK government’s new Occupational Health Tsar, will head up a Taskforce producing a voluntary occupational health framework for businesses. Just 28% of employers provide some form of occupational health, with large employers (89%) nearly three times more likely than Small-Medium Enterprises (SMEs) (28%) to do so:
A safety-critical maintenance backlog has become a major issue for the offshore oil and gas industry, with some individual platforms having tens of thousands of outstanding hours post-Covid. The HSE warns of the risk of major accidents:
The UK’s Chancellor Jeremy Hunt’s spring budget included a rise in the standard rate of landfill tax by 21% (from £103.70 a tonne to £126.15). The lower rate will rise from £3.30 to £4.05. This will take effect from 1 April 2025 and will raise around £50m a year for the Treasury:
Scrap metal recycling company F.J. Church and Sons Ltd of Rainham, Essex, has been fined £200,000 after an employee’s right arm was severed in June 2021 when it was caught in a catalytic converter sampling machine:
The winners of the SHE Awards 2024 and the British Safety Industry Federation (BSIF) Award will be announced at a gala ceremony hosted by comedian Dara Ó Briain at the Vox in Resorts World, NEC Birmingham on 1 May. The 2023 event was a sell-out, and 2024 tickets are selling very fast:
Four out of five of the world’s workforce are estimated to lack access to basic occupational safety and health services. A two-year study part funded by the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) will seek to gain a better understanding of the scope, reach and effectiveness of OSH around the world:
February 2024
The UK’s regression from EU environmental standards are on such a scale that environmental legislation in Britain is facing death by a thousand cuts:
The government has rejected - on the grounds it already has sufficient legal powers to enforce higher standards of air quality under the Environment Act 2021 - a private member’s bill calling for a new Clean Air Act. The government’s claim has been disputed by, amongst many others, the Building Engineering Services Association (BESA):
The HSE has issued an improvement notice to the Chinese state-backed operator CNOOC over its inspection routines for process equipment on the North Sea Buzzard platform:
UK workplaces are facing “a perfect storm” when it comes to wellbeing at work, with sickness absence barely improved since the pandemic, according to the Britain’s Healthiest Workplace survey by Vitality and the Financial Times. Employers lost the equivalent of 50 days of work per employee last year because of poor physical and mental health:
Liquidated waste firm Ward Recycling Limited has been found guilty of breaching Section 1 of the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007, Section 2(1) and Section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. The company was fined £2.1mn after an agency worker was killed by a loading shovel in January 2020:
An article by fire safety experts SOCOTEC on how to safely use and store lithium-ion batteries in the workplace:
Peterborough-based Electrostatic Magic Limited has pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 7(1) of the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 and Article 67 of the REACH regulation after a worker died from multiple organ failure, chemical pneumonitis and cutaneous burns from exposure to dichloromethane, hydrofluoric acid and methanol:
Tickets are now available for the WEEE Conference 2024 to be held on 21 March at the Royal College of Physicians NW1 4LE, which will focus on the latest breakthroughs in the recovery, reuse, recycling, and treatment of waste electrical and electronic equipment:
A retired draughtsman who had worked at the former Engelhard precious metal factory in Cinderford and subsequently at GlaxoSmithKline, died from malignant epithelial mesothelioma, the effect of asbestos exposure, in January this year:
The HSE has put Petrofac on notice after it found poor COSHH risk assessments left offshore workers on the North Sea Kittiwake platform at risk of exposure to hazardous fumes, in particular welding fumes - a known human carcinogen:
January 2024
A New Year reminder that the HSE provides an extensive collection of free updates on a vast range of topics (from Asbestos to Workplace Transport) and industries (from Agriculture to Woodworking) via an eBulletin:
An estimated 4% of the world’s annual GDP is lost to workplace accidents and diseases. This cost the global economy c. £4 trillion in 2021; and in the UK, the annual cost is around £30 billion. A new tool, which can be used on a site with 40 employees, provides calculators to help put a cost and value on safety performance at business or even site level:
A new study by non-profit organisation the Alliance to End Plastic Waste highlights potential pathways to significantly increase waste collection and plastic recycling rates globally. The Plastic Waste Management Framework has policy levers and actions that can be used to develop national action plans for advancing waste management systems.
Lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery fires are on the rise. Firechief Global have provided an eight-step action plan on how to mitigate the risk:
The National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health (NEBOSH) has published a new guide for individuals undertaking auditing to determine whether appropriate health and safety management systems are in place and that suitable risk control systems and workplace precautions are being implemented. The NEBOSH Quick Reference Guide to Auditing for Health and Safety is available from:
Plastics recycling is vital to fight the deluge of plastic waste and plastic pollution. While mechanical recycling has been around for decades, chemical recycling is the new kid in town. But do they compete or cooperate?
There were 29 fatalities in the UK in 2022/23 caused by contact with moving vehicles or machinery. HSE guidance can be found at:
More than 100,000 people in the UK could be at risk of developing long Covid in the coming weeks as infections and hospitalisations are rising sharply during the winter months:
Alex Spencer, COO chief operating officer of energy industry-owned not-for-profit standards and training organisation OPITO examines why safety, skills and sustainability are all key for future energy workers:
A reminder that entry is now open for The Safety & Health Excellence Awards. Free to enter, the deadline is 16 February 2024. The winners will be announced at a gala awards ceremony at the NEC Birmingham on 1 May 2024:
December 2023
The HSE has reminded employers that temperatures in indoor workplaces are covered by the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992. The Approved Code of Practice suggests the minimum ‘reasonable’ temperature should normally be at least 16 degrees Celsius, or at least 13 degrees Celsius for work involving rigorous physical effort:
Staffordshire-based lift maintenance company Lift Monitoring Systems Ltd has been fined £200,000 after an employee died while working on a goods lift at a factory run by Muller Yogurt and Desserts:
Comprehensive analysis ranking 38 member states of the OECD according to the environmental impact of their waste management has been published:
sensoneo.com/global-waste-index/.
The UK comes 18th. The report also draws attention to the fact that high recycling rates for plastic waste are misleading as the number is taken from the volume of waste that arrives at the recycling plants, but not everything is recycled through material recovery.
A look at how the European waste industry is preparing for the challenge of recycling millions of discarded e-vehicle batteries, and the revision of the EU Battery Directive:
The British Occupational Hygiene Society (BOHS) is launching a new series of occupational hygiene qualifications as part of a significant overhaul of pathways into the profession:
Cider manufacturers H Weston and Sons Ltd of Ledbury has pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 3(1) of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and Section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and fined £1.4 million plus £26,756.50 in costs after a driver was killed by a horizontal security barrier:
The HSE has issued an Improvement Notice to Apache North Sea Ltd after finding nearly 26,000 hours of safety-critical maintenance work left outstanding across seven Apache North Sea platforms:
On 30 November 2023, Directive (EU) 2023/2668 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 November 2023 amending Directive 2009/148/EC on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to asbestos at work was published in the Official Journal of the EU:
The HSEs annual statistics on work-related ill health and workplace injuries report that of the 1.8 million UK workers suffering from work-related ill health, 875,000 said they had suffered stress, depression or anxiety; 473,000 were suffering from a work-related musculoskeletal disorder; there has been 2,268 mesothelioma deaths due to past asbestos exposures; and 135 workers killed in work-related accidents.
Entry is now open for The Safety & Health Excellence Awards. Free to enter, the deadline is 16 February 2024. The winners will be announced at a gala awards ceremony at the NEC Birmingham on 1 May 2024:
she-awards.com/award-categories
November 2023
A report from Advance Market Analytics shows strong growth in the Environmental Health and Safety Market between 2022 and 2027. The report covers EHS Software:
The Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) explain why the King’s Speech failed to include societal wellbeing legislation that would deliver decent living and working conditions. They highlight seven key measures - ‘The Secret Seven Go Missing’:
A landmark scientific article, ‘Work-related causes of mental health conditions and interventions for their improvement in workplaces’, presents sound epidemiological evidence based on large-scale international cohort studies that adverse working conditions contribute to an increased risk of onset of depressive disorders:
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has issued a warning to Stena Drilling of Aberdeen relating to potential risks of legionella bacteria exposure on its Stena Don installation:
www.energyvoice.com HSE guidance on Legionella and legionnaires' disease is here: www.hse.gov.uk
KPMG has released its 2023 Net Zero Readiness Report. It concludes that governments and industry are hamstrung by significant barriers to delivering transformative change on net zero, including global public debt, domestic tensions, increased opposition to decarbonisation plans, and the need to guarantee energy supply:
Electric vehicles (EVs) may reduce emissions, but the lithium-ion batteries on which they run pose a unique sustainability challenge. Here are five innovators working on making them more sustainable:
An Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) report on Preventing Fire and/or Explosion Injury from Small and Wearable Lithium Battery Powered Devices:
On 25 October ACAS launched a consultation on a draft Code of Practice on handling flexible working requests, which is intended to sit alongside the Workers (Predictable Terms and Conditions) Act 2023. The consultation ends on www.acas.org.uk. ACAS has also launched a “Flex at Work” toolkit which includes guidance, resources and training to support the implementation of the Act: www.acas.org.uk/flexible-working
A survey by the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) has revealed that more than two-thirds of neurodiverse workers have not told their current employer about their condition. It is estimated that as many as one in seven people are neurodiverse, with conditions including ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder), autism, dyslexia and dyspraxia:
iosh.com/news/two-thirds-of-workers-won-t-disclose-neurodiversity-to-bosses. IOSH webinars on neurodiversity are free to view on YouTube: iosh.com/health-and-safety-professionals/improve-your-knowledge/events/webinars/webinar-recordings/#neurodiversity
October 2023
If you are a ‘Responsible Person’ on whom duties are imposed under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, find out what new responsibilities you have as the result of amendments made to the Fire Safety Order by Section 156 of the Building Safety Act 2022. These new requirements came into force on 1 October 2023:
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) has opened entries to its flagship Health and Safety Awards. Award categories include: Industry Sector Award, Achievement Award, Fleet Safety Award and Leisure Safety Award:
Bin Busy Recycling Limited, of Erith, Kent, has pleaded guilty to breaches of Regulation 9(3) of the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 and Regulation 5(1) of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 after a worker was fatally crushed in July 2019:
According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), there were an estimated 1 million serious injuries and fatalities (SIFs) in 1999 and 2.78 million in 2017. It is a global problem overly represented in agriculture, construction, forestry, fishing/hunting, manufacturing, mining, and transportation/warehousing. Dr. Dom Cooper investigates:
From 6 April 2024, it will become law for all businesses, charities and public sector organisations in Wales to sort their waste for recycling. It also applies to all waste and recycling collectors and processors who manage household-like waste from workplaces:
Workplace recycling | GOV.WALES
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has issued its second warning in six months to the offshore oil and gas sector in the wake of the investigation into an incident involving 50-year-old Jason Thomas. The worker went missing from the Valaris 121, 100 miles off Aberdeen, during a rig move in January. It is believed he fell through a hole in the deck arising from a dislodged grating:
Crediton Dairy Ltd, of Crediton, admitted two charges under the 2012 Control of Asbestos Regulations and the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 relating to the storage, distribution and spread of asbestos, and has been fined £300,000 plus £3,215.25 in costs and statutory surcharge:
On 3 October 2023, the European Parliament plenary session formally adopted at first reading a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2009/148/EC on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to asbestos at work. 78% of occupational cancers recognised in EU member states are related to asbestos exposure, killing more than 70,000 people a year in Europe:
Research by the Chartered Institute of Personal Development (CIPD) has led to calls for more supportive working cultures to reduce employee absence - which is at the highest rate in more than a decade. UK employees were absent an average of 7.8 days over the past year, compared to the pre-pandemic rate of 5.8 days:
On 6 September 2023, at Loughborough Magistrates’ Court, Valencia Waste Management Limited, formerly known as Viridor Waste Management Limited, was prosecuted for two fatalities. In relation to the first, it admitted breaching section 3(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act and was fined £1 million. In terms of the second, it pleaded guilty to breaching section 2(1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act and was fined £2 million:
A webinar organised by the OECD/UNEP Global PFC Group will share examples of approaches to measure per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) environmental releases, as well as on the collection of information on toxic releases and the development of pollution prevention measures. 12 October at 13:00-14:00 CEST:
meetoecd1.zoom.us
August 2023
Louise Hosking, Executive Director at the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH), says a strong collaboration between the health and safety and environmental health sectors could create safer, cleaner and healthier environments for the benefit of all:
HSE guidance on working with electric and hybrid vehicles (E&HVs):
Electric and hybrid vehicles (hse.gov.uk)
BP Exploration Operating Company Limited has been found guilty of breaching the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 after a worker died when he fell about 22m into the sea through an open grating on the Unity installation, about 112 miles (180km) north-east of Aberdeen, on 4 September 2014. The company has been fined £650,000:
www.bbc.co.uk & www.scottishlegal.com
How plastics are poisoning us: They both release & attract toxic chemicals, and appear everywhere from human placentas to chasms thirty-six thousand feet beneath the sea:
A total of 135 workers died in work-related accidents in Great Britain in 2022/23, according to the HSE’s latest data. The figure is an increase of 12 on the 123 workers who sustained fatal injuries in 2021/22:
Nick Wilson, Director of Health & Safety Services at WorkNest, attributes the latest figures on work-related fatalities in Great Britain to a combination of factors, including a culture of complacency and poor leadership:
This HSE alert aimed at wind farms and off shore platforms is worth reading if you have industrial polymer floor grating systems:
An HR alert from law firm Taylor Wessing on employees’ entitlements during heatwaves:
In the survey Gender Disparity in HSE, collated by HSE recruitment Network, which canvassed 200 health and safety professionals about gender imbalance in the sector, 71% said there was an issue. Download the report:
info.executivenetworkgroup.com/genderdisparity-hse
IOSH have called for action to improve & enforce laws around human trafficking. Download their free report “Tackling #modern #slavery together: the roles of governments, employers, professionals and the public’
July 2023
6th July marked the 35th anniversary of the 1988 Piper Alpha production platform explosion in the North Sea 120 miles NE of Aberdeen in which 167 men died. Subsequent legislation sounded the death knell of ex-side trawler standby vessels close to rigs. By 1992 these had been almost entirely replaced by ex stern trawlers, and these in turn have been superseded by purpose-built Standby Safety Vessels:
Health and Safety Executive (HSE) documents have exposed a series of concerning safety failures on 15 North Sea platforms, with operators receiving warnings. A freedom of information request has unveiled 28 inspection letters sent by HSE to North Sea firms since October:
oilandgaspeople.com
A “devastating” flat fire that killed a woman and two young children in Cambridge in June was started by an e-bike that had been left charging:
There is significant fire and explosion risk associated with lithium-ion batteries. TÜV SÜD provide safety guidance for their use in commercial and industrial environments:
The independent UK Covid-19 Inquiry has launched a listening exercise, ‘Every Story Matters’, which seeks individual’s stories about experience of the pandemic. The stories will be submitted to each relevant investigation as evidence:
Just launched, the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) Global Safety Report 2023, covering 2012 - 2022 data, analyses the main causes of serious injuries and fatalities occurring when using powered access machines to conduct temporary work at height:
Optimising Offshore Renewables Projects, is a new guide from Black & Veatch to help organisations reduce risk and ensure successful outcomes for offshore wind and marine energy projects.
HSE inspectors have begun a targeted inspection initiative focusing on manufacturing businesses where materials that contain respirable crystalline silica are used. This will include brick and tile manufacturers and foundries:
Should occupational mental health and wellbeing form part of the role of OSH professionals? That’s one of the questions posed in the 2023 Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) member survey which all members are urged to complete:
A summary of key points made by Alison Margary, British Occupational Hygiene Society (BOHS) Past President, at the Safety & Health Expo in May this year, on why she feels women’s workplace health is neglected:
According to the HSE, an estimated 2 million tonnes of Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment recycling (WEEE) items are discarded by householders and companies in the UK every year. This article explores why recycling it is so important:
CSR Performance is totally focused on assisting companies and corporations to meet their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) targets. It does this by providing software solutions which assist the management of CSR issues at all levels within the organisation and which measure CSR performance against targets for defined indicators.
With over 20 years experience to call upon, it has long been recognised by our customers and ourselves that our software products are used and are capable of use to manage much more than the daily operations of health, safety, quality and environment. Changes and extensions to our core product modules and to the investigation, performance and reporting tools and techniques that they use and support, now make a routine contribution to the management of Corporate Social Responsibility, CSR, in its widest sense and to the measurement and reporting of CSR performance.
We therefore thought it was time for a change, with a fresh look at our company and product focus and direction. We will shortly be making several announcements regarding new products and services which are natural additions to our existing, CamHealth® software product range.
CSR Performance Ltd provides systems solutions for CSR. Our services involve the provision of systems for planning, delivery and measurement. We provide analyses of workflow, provision of information, management of operations, measurement of performance and management of corrective actions.
The company is independently owned and operated from the UK. with offices in North America and S.E Asia.
Useful Links
Accountability
www.accountability.org
CSR Europe
www.csreurope.org
CSR Network
www.csrnetwork.com
EA (UK)
www.environment-agency.gov.uk
EPA (USA)
www.epa.gov
EU - CSR
ec.europa.eu/
employment_social
EU - Environment
ec.europa.eu/environment
EU - SHaW
osha.europa.eu/en
GRI
www.globalreporting.org
HSE (UK)
www.hse.gov.uk
OSHA (USA)
www.osha.gov
Responsible Care
www.responsiblecare.org
