Am I Providing a Safe Working Environment for my Staff?


By Peter Arkwright


Health and Safety is a very in depth and complicated subject, the aim of this article is to highlight a few of the legal issues a business owner should consider if they want to improve working conditions.

1. By law every business that employs 5 or more employees, including part time staff, must display an up to date Health and Safety policy. An up to date policy must be signed and dated annually.

2. By law every business that employs 5 or more employees, including part time staff must carry out and record their risk assessments.

Other considerations to consider when looking to improve working conditions:

1. Temperature – The temperature should be comfortable all year round

2. Computer users – Should use a suitable ergonomic chair, a footrest, a wrist support mouse pad and work in a well ventilated well lit (by diffuser lighting) office. Computer users should also be given free annual eye tests.

3. Toilets - Toilets and running water should be provided and be easily accessible for your staff. Toilets should be cleaned and stocked regularly.

4. Lone workers – If you have a cleaner who works out of hours alone, you must provide some means of a safety system, this can be done easily by a call from a mobile at set times. The cleaner should also be fully aware of all the Health and Safety issues within the building this should also include the chemicals they are using and what to do in the event of an accident, especially as most cleaners work alone.

5. PPE – Make sure you provide your workforce with the proper protective equipment, not the cheapest. Too often unsuitable PPE is obtained for the workforce; this usually results in employees not using the equipment as they see it as a hindrance.

6. Rest – Make sure all your staff take a break, accidents are more likely to happen when staff are tired or not concentrating. This is very important for workers operating heavy plant and machinery or using hazardous substances.

7. Slips & Trips – If you have any external concrete steps they should be covered with non slip paint for wet conditions. If there are any trailing leads they should be covered. Signs are usually only seen after you have tripped over something.

8. Do you have a fire alarm? How often is it tested?

9. Heavy lifting – Provision should be taken so workers are not expected to lift heavy equipment.

10. Accident procedures and reporting – Accidents happen it is an avoidable part of our lives, however it is how we deal with them and learn from them, even ‘near misses’ that make us all more aware of our surroundings.

11. Do people visit your workplace? If yes, they should be fully aware of the dangers within your workplace.

This article has just touched the surface of a complicated often misleading subject. In my last job I was responsible for the Health and Safety of over 300 people most working with heavy plant and machinery. It took me a long time to improve working conditions and change ethos’s my advice to anyone who would like to improve working conditions is prioritise what you would like to do and implement it in order. Everyone dislikes change so look to implement systems and changes in a steady fashion. The workforce should be aware it can be very difficult for the owners of a company to make or introduce improvements if there are financial constraints of the company.


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