Monthly Archives: July 2020

Where the first-aid assessment identifies a need for people to be available for rendering first aid, the employer should ensure that they are provided in sufficient numbers and at appropriate locations to enable first aid to be administered without delay should the occasion arise. Where 25 or more people are employed, even in low-hazard environments, at least one such person should be provided. How many first-aiders are needed? The findings of the first-aid needs assessment will help the employer decide how many first-aiders are required.

When the assessment of first-aid requirements has been completed, the employer should provide the materials, equipment and facilities needed to make sure that the level of cover identified as necessary will be available to employees at all relevant times. This will include ensuring that first-aid equipment, suitably marked and easily accessible, is available in all places where working conditions require it.

Noise at work can cause hearing damage that is permanent and disabling. This can be hearing loss that is gradual because of exposure to noise over time, but also damage caused by sudden, extremely loud noises. The damage is disabling as it can stop people being able to understand speech, keep up with conversations or use the telephone. Hearing loss is not the only problem. People may develop tinnitus (ringing, whistling, buzzing or humming in the ears), a distressing condition which can lead to disturbed sleep. Safety issues: Noise at work can interfere with communications and make warnings harder to hear.

Hearing protection should be issued to employees: where extra protection is needed above what has been achieved using noise control; as a short-term measure while other methods of controlling noise are being developed. You should not use hearing protection as an alternative to controlling noise by technical and organisational means. Providing hearing protectors and managing their use.

This section gives advice about general personal protective equipment (PPE), which may be required to protect against injury. Hard hats: On almost all sites there is a risk of injury from falling materials. Minimise these risks by providing suitable barriers and toe boards at the edge of work platforms to prevent materials from falling. Deal with the remaining risks by providing suitable head protection.

There is a risk of drowning when people work beside or above water or have to pass near or across it on their way to or from their workplace. People can also drown in other liquids such as slurries in lagoons, foodstuffs in open vats in food processing works and solutions of chemicals in factories. If people have to work over or in the vicinity of water, there must be a safe system of work, and they must be properly trained.

Not knowing the dangers of confined spaces has led to the deaths of many workers. Often those killed include not only those working in the confined space but also those who try to rescue them but who are not properly equipped to carry out the task safely. Inadequate planning and insufficient knowledge are a major cause of accidents in confined spaces. Accidents are caused by a combination of factors arising from a lack of safety awareness, inadequate supervision and a lack of training. It is therefore essential that work in such spaces is only undertaken by skilled and trained people. If work in a confined space cannot be avoided, it will often be safer to bring in a specialist for the job.

Electrical equipment is used on virtually every site. Everyone is familiar with it, but unlike most other hazards, which can be seen, felt or heard, there is no advance warning of danger from electricity, and electricity can kill. Electrical systems and equipment must be properly selected, installed, used and maintained. Hazards arise through faulty installations, lack of maintenance and abuse of equipment.

Any hazardous substances that are going to be used, or processes which may produce hazardous materials, should be identified. The risks from work that might affect site workers or members of the public should then be assessed. Designers should eliminate hazardous materials from their designs. Where this is not possible, they should specify the least hazardous products which perform satisfactorily.

Demolition, dismantling and structural alteration are high-risk activities whose safe execution is complex and technical and where expertise is vital. They require careful planning and execution by contractors who are competent in the full range of demolition techniques. During demolition and dismantling, workers are injured in falls from edges and through openings and fragile surfaces. Workers and passers-by can be injured by the premature and uncontrolled collapse of structures or parts of structures and by flying debris.