Connect Issue 14
15 December 2008
Welcome to the latest issue of Connect
Hello and welcome to Connect.
Channel 4’s recent documentary The Fun Police sparked a lot of
comment, both from members and journalists. Despite the ‘ribbing’
the profession received at the hands of the programme-makers, many
columnists chose to review the film positively.
One journalist from The Sunday Times wrote that there are far
more deserving candidates for TV’s ridicule than those who try and
prevent workplace deaths and injuries. Describing the
programme-makers as exploiting “a great big open goal”, the article
condemned those who wave accusing fingers and “guffaw at health and
safety workers”.
The film received a fair amount of cynicism from IOSH members,
with one saying it was “about the best programme we could get in
today’s climate”. Others felt it was “entirely as expected” and
“just perpetuated the myth that safety officers are dull
bureaucrats”. You can read more feedback on the programme in this
month’s Quote
Me.
Also featured in this issue is Marianne McDougall from the
UK’s Houses of Parliament. Marianne tells us what it’s like working
in one of the most famous buildings in the world.
With Christmas round the corner, we talk to Abby Miller
from the Home Retail Group about her work to make sure presents are
delivered on time and in the safest way possible.
As well as industry news, we’ve the latest on IOSH 09 and how
you can save money by booking now.
I hope you enjoy this issue of Connect. If you have any
comments, or want to be featured in one of our articles,
please drop me a line.
Shaun Gibbons
e-Editor, IOSH
Spotlight: Elves 'n' safety
If, like most of us, you’re leaving your
Christmas shopping until the last minute (even though you promised
yourself you wouldn’t after last year) then spare a thought for the
army of ‘Santa’s little helpers’ whose job it is to keep the shops
fully stocked in what’s one of the peak times of the year for
accidents in the retail sector.
Ask Abby Miller, Health and Safety Manager for the Home Retail
Group, which includes Argos and Homebase, what’s at the top of her
Christmas list and she’ll no doubt tell you: “fewer accidents.”
“In the past few years, we’ve employed
temporary workers from eastern Europe over the Christmas period to
help with the increased workload,” explains Abby. “Now though,
we’ve seen them return home because of the difficult financial
climate here in the UK, and that has meant using agency workers
from this country.
“Because there’s been a shift in terms of
workforce – the old one moves out and a new one moves in – there
are bound to be issues, and one of them is that we’ve seen an
increase in the number of workplace accidents.”
With more than 53,000 workers employed by the Group, Abby and
her team of 12 have their work cut out making sure that people at
the high street stores as well as the distribution centres are
suitably trained.
Not surprisingly, manual handling is one of the top issues for
Abby, although thanks to new techniques being taught, the Group has
seen a 50 per cent cut in manual handling accidents in its stores
and a 76 per cent reduction in the distribution depot where the new
training was first introduced.
“Up until a while ago manual handling was a
major concern across the workforce, but the new techniques - for
example, to put one foot forward and to keep the object close to
your body – has been revolutionary. In fact, so much so that manual
handling is no longer the number one risk – it’s been overtaken by
workers being struck by falling objects.”
The Group has launched an awareness campaign to highlight the
dangers of falling stock, with leaflets and posters being
distributed to help get the message across. It’s the stores rather
than the distribution centres where falling stock is usually an
issue, so the team is currently looking at different ways to store
stock.
As well as the “hectic” Christmas holiday period, Abby has other
busy times of the year, namely Easter and the catalogue launches
for Argos.
“We do see spikes in our accident figures
during these periods. If you take Argos as an example, once the new
catalogue is published all the stock has to be cleared from our 735
stores and replaced by the new stock.
“Logistically, it’s a busy time so more
accidents tend to happen and these periods impact on our time, in
terms of training and risk assessments.”
Despite the increase in accidents during the festive period for
the workforce, Abby says that accidents to shoppers in Argos stores
are minimal.
“The customer accident rates in our stores, I
would think, have to be among the lowest compared with other shops.
Nine times out of ten, Argos customers don’t need to browse because
they’ve seen what they want in the catalogue so they spend less
time in the store.”
Another important focus for Abby and her team is their delivery
drivers, who are not only trained in driver safety, but also in
dynamic risk assessment, particularly for those who make home
deliveries.
“We work closely with our third parties
and they've trained their drivers and given them the tools
necessary to make individual assessments. For example, if a driver
gets to a house that has a steep driveway, it may be necessary for
them to say ‘no, this driveway is unsafe’ and make other
arrangements. You have to empower people to make a decision and be
pragmatic.”
The relationship between the unions, workers and senior
management, believes Abby, is the key ingredient to making sure
safety always stays at the top of the agenda.
“The directors here are very health and
safety-focused and they recognise and see accidents as the impact
they have on individuals. And we employ worker ‘champions’ across
our stores and distribution centres so that people can go and see
them with a specific issue. This not only makes for good
communication, but also for a continued relationship between all
the different parties.”
Factfile
- Abby has been an IOSH member for more than 20 years and belongs
to the London Metropolitan Branch and the IOSH Retail and
Distribution Group
- Home Retail Group incorporates both Argos and Homebase which
demerged in 2007 from GUS
- Abby is chair of the British Retail Consortium Risk and Safety
Policy Action Group
Links
Spotlight: safe as Houses
A week is a long time in politics. The
Houses of Parliament has just seen the Queen’s formal opening
ceremony for the new session, a police search and fallout from the
investigation into Tory frontbencher Damian Green. There aren’t
many IOSH members who can safely say that their workplace is in the
news every day.
We talked to Marianne McDougall, Head of Occupational Health,
Safety and Welfare at Parliament, in the week of the State Opening.
Preparing for this event, a landmark occasion in the year, and the
return of the Lords and MPs after recess, is always a busy time for
the team.
“Getting ready for this time of year can be
very hectic. During recess we still have people working here – plus
some of the million or so visitors we get every year. But when the
Lords and MPs come back the amount of people working on the site
rises to thousands.”
“We all find the ceremonies, such as the
State Opening and the Lord Chancellor’s breakfast, really exciting
events to get involved with as well as watching.”
The Parliament building is still searched by the Yeomen of the
Guard each November, just before the State Opening, to make sure no
latter-day Fawkes is concealed in the cellars, but this is a
picturesque custom rather than a serious anti-terrorist
precaution!
About 2,000 people are employed at the Parliament, but other
passholders, including contractors and the press, can take the
total number working on the Estate much higher.
“Providing safety to the Houses of Parliament
is like being in a team that’s assigned to manage the risks of a
small town, as we have so many services and utilities.”
The Parliament Estate isn’t just somewhere to work – there are
social clubs, bars, restaurants and cafes. Some officers and staff
of the Houses have apartments on the site.
“Two things make this role so interesting and
diverse – the heritage aspect and the reason why the building is
here in the first place. The UK Parliament has a long history and
is an iconic building – it’s a world heritage site as well as being
home to our government. We have to make sure that our risk
management strategy takes this into account. It can sometimes be a
difficult balancing act with the constraints we face.”
Despite working in such an iconic building, Marianne and her
colleagues tackle the same issues as any health and safety
team.
“There isn’t a standard day as plenty of
different things crop up, alongside the more common issues. For
example, we have lots of people using computers, lifting things or
working from height. We provide catering services to thousands of
people each day so there are the risks related to that sort of work
too, on top of major building and maintenance projects.”
The Palace of Westminster contains 1,100 rooms, 100 staircases
and 4.8 km of corridors. Parts of the Houses of Parliament
date back almost a thousand years.
“There are obviously constraints on what we
can do to the fabric of the building. Any changes or updates that
we want to make have to be considered from this angle, which can
take extra time, particularly during the planning stage.”
The site has a conservation architect and this help is
“invaluable” in making sure that the building is modernised as much
as possible.
“Considerable thought has gone into the
location of fire escapes, alarms and fire fighting
equipment.”
The majority of the buildings are accessible to people with
disabilities. There are lifts and ramps so that people can move
around the building easily, and there are induction loops in the
committee rooms and chambers.
Marianne and the occupational health, safety and welfare team
are currently working with senior managers in both Houses on a
‘revitalising’ project which incorporates National Director for
Health and Work Professor Dame Carol Black’s recently published
wellbeing agenda. The team is also updating in-house policies and
guidance notes so that they are less wordy and easier to
understand.
“I’m a big advocate of plain English and
we’re rewriting our key documents with a view to getting them
Crystal-marked for clarity. I think that it’s so important that all
professionals stop using jargon and communicate clearly and
unambiguously.”
“Since working at the Parliament I must admit
that I’ve changed my outlook on Parliament’s role. From graduating
as a scientist I was totally ignorant of much of our country’s
history, but now I find it fascinating. During our ‘Learning at
work’ week earlier this year, I discovered that the Houses of
Parliament employs so many dedicated and interesting people who do
amazing jobs and talk about them with enthusiasm. It’s a stunning
place to work.”
Factfile:
- Marianne has been a member of IOSH since 1991
- She is a Chartered member and belongs to the IOSH Public
Services Group
- The Palace of Westminster was largely rebuilt in the mid 1800s
after a fire destroyed the old buildings
- Because the Palace of Westminster is a royal palace, commoners
aren’t “allowed” to die there. Bodies are taken to nearby St
Thomas’s Hospital where deaths are certified
-
60 second interview
Mark Trodd, Health, Safety and Security Advisor for the Tate
Gallery, talks to Connect
What’s one of the most memorable experiences you’ve had in your
health and safety career?
Risk assessing challenging exhibitions - particularly ones that
don’t fit into the normal mould!
What issues can you see coming up in your sector?
Galleries and museums have become more popular, so we're looking
at innovative ways of keeping the public safe
Would you like to see any legal changes in your sector?
There should be more legislation that’s slanted towards visitor
care and the public environment. At the moment it’s very much
geared towards the industrial sector so it’s sometimes hard for the
enforcing authority making a judgment. I think it’s about getting
more expertise for everyone
What approach to your job sets you aside from the perceived
public image of health and safety people being bureaucratic
busybodies?
We have to have a more pragmatic approach and try to base it on
real life situations. We mostly deal with adults but we can only go
so far in protecting them as they have responsibility for
themselves
What’s it like working with precocious artists?
It's enjoyable and sometimes enlightening to have the
opportunity to work within a visitor-orientated organisation and
consult and liaise with a diverse range of people spreading the
safety message
Do you want to be considered for a 60 Second Interview? Contact
the e-Editor. .
Quote me
IOSH gets its message across...
This week we focus on the Channel 4 Cutting Edge documentary
called The Fun Police, screened on Thursday 4 December.
Channel 4 ‘The Fun Police’
IOSH immediate past president Ray Hurst appeared on the Channel
4 programme The Fun Police to highlight how, through sponsoring the
World Conker Championships, health and safety professionals are
busting the myth that playing conkers is banned. He said:
“We want to destroy the killjoy image. We, as safety
professionals, are prepared to have fun. It’s going be an enormous
event and typical of what I call quirky, British
sportsmanship.”
As expected, the programme provoked a lot of discussion among
IOSH members with some feeling it was “about the best programme we
could get in today’s climate”. Other members felt it was “entirely
as expected” and some pointed out it “just perpetuated the myth
that safety officers are dull bureaucrats”.
However, many commentators took a more sympathetic line than
that of the programme itself.
AA Gill, in his Sunday Times column, said:
“We trust that our tea is unadulterated, our electrics are
earthed, the boiler has a flue and the lift was checked last week.
All that is down to health and safety. If you’re in the business of
making documentaries about the lives of ordinary people, then there
are far more deserving candidates for the box’s mighty ire and
odium than these boring but valiant public servants who’re so
easily and thoughtlessly teased.”
Nick Bradshaw, reviewing the programme on Teletext, said he had
a “new TV hero” and that Ed Friend’s response to a certain
newspaper columnist’s comparison of the profession to the Stasi
“made Littlejohn sound like an ill-informed buffoon.”
David Belcher, in the Glasgow Herald, said the programme
convinced him "we need more Ed Friends, not fewer.”
Patricia Wynn Davies from The Daily Telegraphsaid the work of
health and safety officers was “quite heartbreaking” and that
“their intentions are quite noble.” She added:
“Perhaps it’s worth considering too, whether they are any more
to blame for our risk-obsessed culture than insurers and an
increasingly litigious public?”
Meanwhile, Robert Hanks in The Independent said: “This being TV,
it strikes me as entirely possible that in pointing out danger on
every hand, Ed was only doing what he had been asked to do."
“It would have been nice if, at some point, the film had paused
to give us a few hard facts: how many people are killed at work
every year? How has that number changed in recent years? How many
health and safety inspectors are there? And perhaps it could have
given a little more consideration to what causes the excesses of
'health and safety culture'. It’s not, by and large, a nanny state
trying to swaddle us all in red tape, but the fear of litigation;
not trying to avoid accidents, but trying to avoid being blamed for
them.”
Edinburgh Evening News/The Scotsman
Andrew Sharman, Chairman of the Edinburgh Branch and an IOSH
Trustee, wrote to the Edinburgh Evening News and The Scotsman about
his branch’s recent debate at Holyrood. He said:
“An extraordinary thing happened in Edinburgh last week - a
panel of speakers from the Scottish Parliament, the Institute of
Directors, the HSE and the legal profession agreed on something.
And the topic was health and safety.
"It's important to shout about success in health and safety to
balance out all the negative stories of health and safety
killjoys.”
Yorkshire Branch
Judith Hackitt, Chair of the HSE, spoke at the Yorkshire
Branch’s annual seminar. She said:
“One of the saddest things about where we find ourselves this
century is that bureaucracy has proliferated in the name of health
and safety, or rather elf 'n' safety. We need to draw a clear
distinction between that which is real health and safety – stopping
people getting killed, injured or made ill by work – and the
jobsworths who shamelessly use health and safety as an excuse.
“You know that the subject we all care about is not about
banning conkers. You may all be familiar with the fuss over the
Ripon Cathedral pancake race and how the story was gleefully seized
on by the press. I hope you know that was not real health and
safety because we’re not in the business of stopping things but
actually enabling them to be done more safely and
efficiently. This ranges from finding better ways to help
emergency services to perform risk assessments and anticipate
problems before they find themselves in life or death situations so
that they can quickly adopt the right measures, to enabling small
firms to comply with legal requirements in a simple, proportionate
manner."
Rail industry conference
Theresa Villiers MP, Conservative Shadow Secretary of State for
Transport, said that accident investigations in the rail industry
needed to be speeded up to encourage a greater shift from car to
train. She said:
“We don’t want to undermine the quality of investigations, but
the fact the Potters Bar relatives are still waiting, six years
after the accident, to find out answers doesn’t help the long and
difficult process of recovering from their loss.”
Liberal Democrat Shadow Secretary of State for Transport, Norman
Baker MP, added:
“We have to make rail more attractive and the closure of the
rail for engineering purposes does not help. Every time the railway
is closed and diversions or substitute buses put on, it puts people
off rail travel and they make the decision to take their car
instead. We need to get to a 24/7 rail system while not
compromising safety.”
Ian Prosser, the director of rail safety at the Office of Rail
Regulation, told delegates:
"We still killed 15 track workers and there have already been a
number this year. We are heading in the right direction but we must
do better. I firmly believe in the concept of zero accidents being
achievable, starting with fatalities and then moving down the
accident chain.”