Construction workers ‘dicing with death’ taking safety shortcuts
Nearly half of construction workers admit taking safety shortcuts while working at height to ensure they get a job done on time – despite it being the leading cause of fatal injuries at work, new research reveals.
Around a fifth say they haven’t received any training on how to work at height safely while one in seven believe their bosses or those contracting them would want them to ignore safety issues to ensure they can complete a task.
The findings have been published by the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) as it calls for more awareness of the dangers of working at height and how to prevent harm.
Last year, 35 people died after falling from height at work in the UK, while many more are likely to have sustained serious injuries, with some of them serious and life-changing.
Read more on the HSM website.
Stress Awareness Week 2025: Time to act on work-related stress
As Stress Awareness Week 2025 begins, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is reminding employers that work-related stress is one of the leading causes of ill health at work – and that preventing it is a legal duty, not just a ‘nice-to-have’.
In 2023/24, HSE statistics show that 776,000 workers reported suffering from work-related stress, depression or anxiety. This accounted for nearly half of all self-reported work-related ill health and led to an estimated 16.4 million working days lost over the same period.
Failing to manage stress effectively can also result in reduced productivity and higher staff turnover.
More advice on the HSE website.
Ashington company fined after worker seriously injured after getting entangled in machining tool
A company has been fined after an employee became entangled in a horizontal borer while carrying out cleaning operations.Newcastle Magistrates’ Court heard how, on 30 November 2023, while cleaning swarf from a horizontal borer, an employee became entangled around the rotating tool piece, which had been left running.
An investigation by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found the company failed to ensure appropriate guarding was in place on the machine, and that no safe system of work existed for its operation. Furthermore, a lack of effective auditing of daily check sheets meant a removed trip probe went unnoticed.
The employee sustained significant injuries to his legs and ankles, multiple broken ribs, and a collapsed lung on the left-hand side, requiring skin grafts as well as the partial amputation of two toes.
For more on the incident visit the Northumberland Gazette website.
Social housing management firm fined for failing to protect workers
An East Midlands social housing provider has been fined £32,000 after multiple workers were diagnosed with vibration related ill-health conditions such as Hand-Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS).
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) launched an investigation after it received more than ten reports of vibration related ill-health in a short period of time. The workers affected had until recently been employed by Nottingham City Homes Limited, an arms-length management organisation that managed social housing on behalf of Nottingham City Council between 2005 and 2023.
The HSE investigation found a large number of the company’s employees were exposed to vibration in their day to day work. These included bricklayers, joiners, electricians, plasterers, caretakers and others – while their work was varied, all included extensive use of power tools, ranging from drills and impact drivers to vibrating plates and road breakers, over an extended period of time. Despite this, and the dangers exposure can cause, the company had not properly assessed or controlled worker’s exposure to vibration.
Learn more on the HSE website.
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