If you are attending, please come to see us on stand I3 and say hello!

As a show offer we will be giving a 50% discount for those buying HSE Passport during the expo.*

Hope to see you there!

Guy Schrecker

*For individual purchases only, but we will be happy to discuss bulk purchase discounts too!

HSE passport gives a unique ID card that the holder can use as evidence to their having successfully completed Health, Safety and Environmental training. The card was initially aimed at the temp and contractor market but many employed workers are now being issued with the card. In fact any worker that regularly works away from their main company site will benefit from the service.

 This includes:  Agency Workers, Cleaners, Contractors, Freelancers, IT support, Remote/Lone Workers, Security Guard, Site Technicians, Supply Teachers, Temporary Drivers, Temps.

 The card will have a picture of the worker, a unique number and a web address that can be used to validate the details.

In the modern world no business can risk ignoring its workplace health and safety obligations. Every business in the UK is affected by a wide range of health and safety regulations, all of which impose duties and obligations on the business owners, managers, employees and contractors carrying out assignments in the workplace.

Complying with these requirements is extremely time consuming, and in the case of contractors or temporary workers it is extremely difficult to justify effective health and safety training when the assignment may only last a few days.

Contractors may work through their own company, an umbrella company, may be employed or self-employed. Whatever the trading arrangement the client has a responsibility to ensure that all workers on their site can evidence that they have had adequate Health, Safety and Environmental training.

We constantly see stories that seek to confirm Health & Safety policy is concocted by seemingly mad practitioners who are totally at odds with reality.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has now published the top 10 health and safety myths and they say “it’s hard to tell where some of these ridiculous and baffling myths originate, but they all have one crucial thing in common – they are not required by health and safety law”:

1)      children being banned from playing conkers unless they are wearing goggles

2)      office workers being banned from putting up Christmas decoration

3)      trapeze artists being ordered to wear hard hats

4)      pin the tail of the donkey games being deemed a health and safety risk

5)      candy floss on a stick being banned in case people  trip and impale themselves

6)      schoolchildren being ordered to wear clip on ties in case they are choked by traditional neckwear

7)      park benches must be replaced because thay are three inches to low

8)      flip flops being banned from the workplace

9)      graduates ordered not to throw their mortar boards in the air

10)   hanging baskets being banned in case people bump their heads on them

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is asking the public to report ‘health and safety’ advice that is wrong or just plain daft to the Myth Busting Challenge Panel [which can be found on the HSE website].

After the panel (that has representatives from businesses, public safety, trade unions and the insurance industry) has investigated a complaint the HSE will publish it findings on its website.

If you supply Cleaners, Van drivers, Security guards, IT systems support, Pickers and packers, Computer programmers or Temporary admin assistants or have a requirement to use any supplied by a recruitment agency, HSE Passport is the fast, simple and cost effective solution to your training requirements.

Fixing 2 carbon fibre planks to my feet and throwing myself off the top of the mountain does not seem a suitable activity for a H&S professional, however I am reminded of the ‘risk compensation factor’, a theory that arose with the introduction of seatbelts.

What confused the ‘experts’ was that when front seat belts were made compulsory injuries increased for car occupants and later when rear belts were made compulsory accident rates increased and more pedestrians were injured!

The existence of this balancing behavior does not mean an intervention does not work; the effect could be less than, equal to, or even more than the true efficacy of the intervention, depending on how well the perceived efficacy matches actual efficacy – and this will differ from individual to individual. It is likely to be least when an intervention is imperceptible and greatest when an intervention is intrusive or conspicuous.

In essence each human being is prepared to accept a certain level of risk throughout their lives. For me this means that (as an advanced driver) I stick to the speed limits, don’t talk on the phone when driving and even around my house (to the absolute distraction of my wife) ensure there is a safety led environment. Hence when I go skiing I may ‘balance’ my normal low risk behaviour with something that is far more dangerous as I have plenty of ‘risk’ left in my risk bank.

This theory then could suggest that proper H&S training in the workplace will inevitably educate workers to move some of their risk taking to out of work activities, reducing the incidence of injury and hence legal claims for the employer.

In practice many do not receive enough, if any training. This may
be for a number of reasons, not least:

• lack of central control

• an assumption that it is the agency’s responsibility to supply
trained workers

• resource limitations

• time factors

If your company uses agency workers and one gets injured whilst
on your premises, you may be liable to prosecution.

There is a simple and cost free solution – HSE Passport

HSE Passport is a simple and
cost effective solution to ensure that all contract and
temporary staff are able to evidence an understanding of health,
safety and environmental matters, as soon as they arrive on site
.

This ensures all parties can be confident that the liability for
training has been captured, before the worker commences their
assignment, reducing the risk of accident and injury.

Three simple steps to compliance -

1) Make it a company policy that EVERY agency or temporary worker
can evidence competence in health, safety and environmental
training BEFORE they arrive on site.

2) Communicate this new policy to internal (HR and H&S
departments etc.) and external partners (temp agencies, facility
management companies etc.) giving a month’s notice to enable all
parties to comply.

3) Monitor and enforce.

Simple as 1-2-3!

HSE Passport will be on hand to give
advice and guidance to all parties throughout the process.

Contact HSE Passport for further information or to arrange a
meeting

0845 055 7058

[info@hsepassport.com]

[http://www.hsepassport-blog.com]

[http://www.hsepassport.com]

Or call me directly on: 07825 872181

Guy Schrecker

General Manager

Last week I attended a breakfast meeting organised by the IIRSM with [among others] Professor Ragnar E Löfstedt.

Employment Minister Chris Grayling commissioned an independent health and safety review in March 2011 and appointed Professor Löfstedt – Director of the King’s Centre for Risk Management at King’s College, London – to chair it.

Within the report, Professor Löfstedt has made recommendations aimed at reducing the burden of unnecessary regulation on businesses, but most importantly, maintaining Britain’s health and safety performance, which is among the best in the world. The Government has accepted his recommendations.

As I see it, there were three main messages highlighted at the meeting.

1)      There has been much made by the UK Government in its response to Professor Löfstedt report and how, as a result, they will be ‘taking a chain saw to current legislation’. Well, according to the Professor, “the report overwhelmingly supports Health and Safety legislation as it is in the UK and the law needs little change”. As this is a government sponsored report and they have accepted all its 26 recommendations, little will change.

2)      Debate continues surrounding the estimated  100,000 people who are ‘Self-Employed’ and not subject to H&S regulation. The Professor made it very clear that it is only people who work from home and on their own – such as website designers, freelance authors etc. – who will be in this category. For all other self-employed people nothing changes.

3)      The majority of our health and safety regulations comes from… the EU. So, if health and safety is to see the deregulation that the current Government wants it to, it will have to change the mind-set of the other countries within the EU, this seems unlikely.

Much has been made for de-regulation in respect of Health and Safety legalisation but nothing is set to change in the foreseeable future. My concern is that companies may have taken their eye off the ball and, in the event of an injury in the workplace, they may run the risk of prosecution.

It’s also worth highlighting that in 2009/2010 there were 141 fatalities in the work place and in 2010/2011there was a worrying increase to 171.

Let’s make it our mission to keep health and safety compliance at the top of all our agendas and keep the UK as the front runner of best practice approaches to health and safety.

Guy Schrecker
General Manager
HSE Passport

M: 07825 872181
T: 0845 055 7058

info@hsepassport.com

Guy Schrecker of HSE Passport commented on the HSE’s new advice for risk assessment in ‘low risk’ environments: “It is worth remembering that doing a risk assessment on its own is not enough, the HSE also advise:

Everyone who works for you needs to know how to work safely and without risks to health. You must provide clear instructions, information and adequate training for your employees.

Don’t forget contractors and self-employed people who may be working for you and make sure everyone has information on:

• hazards and risks they may face;
• measures in place to deal with those hazards and risks;
• how to follow any emergency procedures.

More information on the HSE’s advice about training can be found here:

http://www.hse.gov.uk/simple-health-safety/provide.htm

HSE Passport is a simple, cost effective and robust service that helps you capture your liability in respect of basic H&S Training.

–

Guy Schrecker
General Manager, HSE Passport

M:  07825 872181
T:  0845 055 7058
E:  info@hsepassport.com

Web: www.hsepassport.com   Blog:  www.hsepassport-blog.com

It has now been confirmed that the charges will be introduced from April 2012, however the charges will only be applied as and when the HSE inspector identifies something wrong during a visit.

The “Fee for Intervention” will be charged at the rate of £124 per hour of the inspector’s time.

When will the charges apply?

According to the HSE, the charges will apply when:

“In the inspector’s opinion, there is a material breach of law requiring a formal regulatory intervention through a letter, e-mail, instant visit report, notice or prosecution.”

It would be wrong to assume that this charge will only apply when a letter, email or report is produced. If an HSE inspector identifies a problem, the hourly rate will apply from the start of the visit during which the problem is identified and continues to accumulate until the problem has been resolved.

To provide guidance for duty holders, the exact nature of the work to be covered by a fee has been broken down into straightforward cost measures known as “cost recoverable activities”:

• Assessment of safety cases and design notifications submitted under any of the provisions of SCR05
• Inspection work associated with offshore installations and with activities on or in connection with such installations
• Investigation of incidents
• Enforcement

What is the reason for introducing a charging system?

• It is seen as an incentive for business to meet obligations
• It is reasonable that duty holders who operate in material breach of the law should bear the costs rather than the taxpayer.
• It will provide a level playing field for those whom do not comply with the law

The good news is that only high-risk organisations are likely to be visited by an HSE inspector or if the HSE have good reason to believe that there has been a breach of the law. If no problems are found, the costs do not apply.

Monitoring health and safety within your organisation will result in it being fully compliant with the law, giving employees or anyone else no valid reason to lodge a complaint to the HSE.  Intervention fees from the HSE can be costly for any organisation, avoid these by ensuring all your temporary workers, agency staff and freelancers receive appropriate health and safety training prior to them arriving on site.

HSE Passport is a simple and cost effective safety passport scheme that provides temporary workers with a recognised health and safety card at their expense. This means that you can concentrate on the work in hand and not worry about the implications of when an inspector calls without incurring any extra training costs within your organisation!

For further information about HSE Passport please contact me below, or post any comments to this article in the box at the end of this article:

Guy Schrecker
General Manager
HSE Passport
M: 07825 872181
T: 0845 055 7058
info@hsepassport.com