Accidents at work costly for companies
Accidents at work are worryingly common, especially those that involve height. The Work at Height regulations which came into force in April 2005 was put into place in an attempt to reduce the single biggest cause of workplace death. Many work accidents involve falling off roofs, ladders or building edges. However, it seems that due to a high number of work accident claims, these regulations are not always adhered too.
Recently, a firm has been ordered to pay £4,000 in fines after an accident in which an employee sustained injuries. J Guest pleaded guilty after one of his employees who was laying bricks at first-floor height fell from an edge that was unprotected. As a result, the employee was left with a broken wrist, ankle and pelvis. In addition to the fine, the company is to pay nearly £2,000 in costs.
The Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE’s) principle construction inspector Martin Overstall stated that the risks of working at the site were “evident.” Overstall said the specific circumstances of the incident were unknown as it should have been reported to the HSE earlier. He also went on the say how companies should follow the correct regulations: “Proper planning for such work and taking necessary precautions to prevent falls are often simple and there is ample free guidance readily available to help companies take the right action.”
Meanwhile, the Health and Safety Executives are also urging another company to provide full safety equipment to employees working at height. The Hampshire Company Profile Construction & Interiors Ltd based in Alresford pleaded guilty at Basingstoke’s Magistrates Court and was fined £234, plus an extra £200 costs and a victim surcharge of £15, for breaching regulation 9 (2) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005.
On 29th August 2007, an employee fell three and a half metres through a fragile roof and consequently suffered a broken collarbone, a fractured skull in three places and fractured ribs. The worker who was applying self-adhesive flashboard to a chimney whilst standing on two crawling boards that the company had provided, fell as the crawling boards were an insufficient platform to work on, and in addition, there were no coverings or guard rails, which if had been installed, would have prevented the labourer from falling off the roof.
HSE inspector Joanna Woodcock stated: “This type of accident is unfortunately very common in the construction industry and totally preventable. In this case the injuries were not life threatening but this is often only a matter of chance.”
Woodcock continued: "I urge companies to take heed and put in place measure which prevent their workers falling through fragile roof sheets. If Profile Construction and Interiors Ltd had taken this simple first step a lot of pain and suffering could have been avoided. HSE is keen to offer guidance and a good starting point is our website, which contains comprehensive information on safe working at heights.”
In order to educate both employers are employees alike, the HSE often run workshops, such as a Ladder Exchange initiative, which tries to reduce the number of injuries occurring due to falls. A damaged ladder can be traded in for a discount off a new replacement.
Statistics issued by the Health and Safety Executive displayed that 228 workers lost their lives as a result of accidents or incidents at work in 2007-2008.
Updated on 9/10/2008