Heinz Forced to Take Their Empty Can-Tapping Advert Off The Air Amid Health And Safety Row
Watchdogs have banned a TV commercial for Heinz Baked Beans on health and safety grounds.
The advert showed youngsters and adults tapping out the complex rhythms of a song on empty cans.
Heinz fell foul of the Advertising Standards Authority because it failed to show the top of the can being taped up to cover any sharp edges.
As a result there was a danger that children could cut their fingers if they tried to copy the ad without adult supervision, it claimed.
To Continue Reading on the Daily Mail Website, Click HERE
Overview of The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
This overview highlights the key themes of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) to help organisations understand the new legal framework in the EU. It explains the similarities with the existing UK Data Protection Act 1998 (DPA), and describes some of the new and different requirements.
When we started drafting this overview, the GDPR was on track to apply in the UK from May 25 2018 and organisations would have to comply with it from that date. The ICO had started to produce a set of guidance on GDPR, and this overview was to be the first substantive part of that. The result of the 23 June 2016 referendum on membership of the EU now means that the Government needs to consider the impact on the GDPR.
To Continue Reading on the SHPonline Website, Click HERE
Why Construction Workers Need to Be Wary of Weil’s Disease
Weil’s disease, caused by Leptospira bacteria, and spread by rodents, is debilitating or even fatal in 10% of cases. Darren Williamson, Product & Procurement Manager for Arco, explains the dangers of the bacteria within construction and how workers can combat the infection using specially formulated hand wipes and solutions.
Those who come into contact with sewers, waterways and flood zones or derelict areas can find themselves at risk of contracting Leptospirosis, which can develop into the more serious form of the infection: Weil’s disease. Rodents carry the bacterium and can spread it to humans who come into contact with these contaminated settings. Construction workers are at a high risk of infection, particularly if they are located within these potentially contaminated environments.
To Continue Reading on the SHPonline Website, Click HERE
Mythbusting: You Can’t Reduce Severity
Over the years I have met several training delegates and auditees who told me a similar story: “Our safety department won’t let us reduce the severity rating on risk assessments”.
These people worked in a host of different industries: Construction, rail, manufacturing and the public sector. They were using risk assessment methodologies that required them to score severity and likelihood.
It happened again recently and I decided it is time to call out the industry on this issue.
I urge readers to think about their own stance: Is it sometimes possible to reduce severity of harm as well as or instead of reducing the likelihood of harm occurring?
To Continue Reading on the SHPonline Website, Click HERE
A Tram Tragedy: Why We Need A Knowledgeable Media
On the day Donald Trump won the presidential election in the United States, an early morning tram left the tracks in Croydon, south of London and crashed. The incident tragically resulted in the loss of seven lives and caused injuries to more than 50 people.
Alongside the wall-to-wall post-election coverage, the tram incident was relegated to the ‘in other news’ slot. On the day following, there was more media coverage and one particular phrase on a BBC breakfast bulletin got my attention. The report gave the story so far and said there was a possibility that the driver had blacked out, the story continued with the reporter quoting a source as saying that it was: ‘too early to speculate on a single cause for the accident’.
To Continue Reading on the SHPonline Website, Click HERE
Director Given Suspended Sentence After Fatal Fall
A company director has been given a suspended prison sentence after a mechanic died when he fell through a roof light.
Terry Lewis, 64, was a retired mechanic working with his friend Leigh Bakewell on the roof of a building at Radnor Park Industrial Estate in Congleton in June 2013.
They were cleaning roof lights when Mr Lewis fell approximately 7 metres through a roof light to the workshop floor below and subsequently died.
Warrington Crown Court heard that an HSE investigation found that neither the roof or the roof lights were able to support the weight of a person.
To Continue Reading on the SHPonline Website, Click HERE
Construction: Innovation In Dust Suppression Solutions
In the last 25 years there have been huge changes in health and safety, practically, in legislation and in attitudes. Neil Richardson, Director at Garic looks at how advancements in technology has changed dust suppression solutions.
The HSE estimates that more than 500 construction workers are dying from exposure to silica dust every year so the control of hazardous dust emissions is becoming ever more regulated – and rightly so.
Regularly breathing in any type of dust can cause life changing lung diseases, so managing and controlling exposure to airborne substances is a major responsibility for the industry. Yet many companies still overlook the dangers, often making decisions on whether they need to implement a dust control strategy based on common misunderstandings. These range from the dust being too fine to be a problem, especially if workers are only exposed for short periods, to wet weather which it is assumed will do the damping down ‘naturally’.
To Continue Reading on the SHPonline Website, Click HERE
Extreme Weather Safety Guidelines Demanded By Unions
The construction union UCATT is calling for extreme weather health and safety guidelines to be introduced for construction workers. They are also demanding that housing sites be closed down when temperatures fall below freezing.
In a statement, the union explained that the National House Building Council (NHBC) has set rules for mortar not to be used below 2 degrees C.
UCATT are calling for similar recommendations to protect workers.
To Continue Reading on the SHPonline Website, Click HERE