HSE safety inspections uncover dangerous working conditions
11:32 - 29/11/2010
HSE safety inspections uncover danger...
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) recently visited nearly 450 companies across West Yorkshire as part of an intensive two-week inspection initiative. The visits have resulted in over 70 firms being issued with orders to improve safety.
HSE inspectors, in conjunction with local authority officers, visited firms in Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees and Wakefield as part of the initiative to improve safety standards. The region has a high rate of work-related accidents and ill-health, with 2,635 workplace injuries, 23 deaths and 18,000 work-related illnesses recorded last year.
Eight of the firms were served with Prohibition Notices, meaning that dangerous activities had to cease immediately and work was not allowed to continue until corrective action had been taken. A further 63 sites were issued with Improvement Notices, which provide businesses with a prescribed timescale within which safety failings must be corrected or at least improved. If the companies in question fail to take action, they will face further enforcement action.
The inspections also resulted in one Kirklees-based company being investigated further with the possibility that they may eventually be prosecuted by the HSE for the serious safety failings uncovered at their premises.
Throughout the intensive two-week inspection process, HSE inspectors identified numerous hazards, such as the failure to store flammable liquids safely, missing or inadequate guards around machines and uncontrolled exposure to potentially harmful fumes from welding.
HSE Principal Inspector, David Green, said: “It’s encouraging that the majority of businesses we visited did appear to be doing all the right things to protect their workers. However, despite making companies in the target areas aware, in advance, that we were carrying out inspections we did still find a significant number of unsafe working practices that put employees at risk of illness or injury.
“We always prefer to offer guidance and advice to businesses to help them operate within the law but we will take enforcement action when we find the health and safety of employees are being put at risk.”
Darren Emery, Business Development Director at First Response Training, says: “Initiatives such as this highlight the fact that many companies are still failing to fully comply with health and safety legislation and are putting the safety of their workers at risk. They also show that you can never afford to get lazy and complacent.
“We offer a wide range of health and safety training for all industry sectors which can help you to ensure that your company avoids enforcement action, prosecutions and court fines. Our extensive health and safety training course portfolio includes the Essentials of Health and Safety, Managing and Supervising Safely, Risk Assessment training and the IOSH-accredited courses IOSH Working Safely, IOSH Managing Safely and IOSH Managing Safely in Construction.
"We also offer more specialist health and safety courses, such as COSHH Awareness, Statutory Fire Training, Infection Control and Asbestos Awareness.”
"For more information about any of the training that we offer, please call us today on freephone 0800 310 2300."
HSE inspectors, in conjunction with local authority officers, visited firms in Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees and Wakefield as part of the initiative to improve safety standards. The region has a high rate of work-related accidents and ill-health, with 2,635 workplace injuries, 23 deaths and 18,000 work-related illnesses recorded last year.
Eight of the firms were served with Prohibition Notices, meaning that dangerous activities had to cease immediately and work was not allowed to continue until corrective action had been taken. A further 63 sites were issued with Improvement Notices, which provide businesses with a prescribed timescale within which safety failings must be corrected or at least improved. If the companies in question fail to take action, they will face further enforcement action.
The inspections also resulted in one Kirklees-based company being investigated further with the possibility that they may eventually be prosecuted by the HSE for the serious safety failings uncovered at their premises.
Throughout the intensive two-week inspection process, HSE inspectors identified numerous hazards, such as the failure to store flammable liquids safely, missing or inadequate guards around machines and uncontrolled exposure to potentially harmful fumes from welding.
HSE Principal Inspector, David Green, said: “It’s encouraging that the majority of businesses we visited did appear to be doing all the right things to protect their workers. However, despite making companies in the target areas aware, in advance, that we were carrying out inspections we did still find a significant number of unsafe working practices that put employees at risk of illness or injury.
“We always prefer to offer guidance and advice to businesses to help them operate within the law but we will take enforcement action when we find the health and safety of employees are being put at risk.”
Darren Emery, Business Development Director at First Response Training, says: “Initiatives such as this highlight the fact that many companies are still failing to fully comply with health and safety legislation and are putting the safety of their workers at risk. They also show that you can never afford to get lazy and complacent.
“We offer a wide range of health and safety training for all industry sectors which can help you to ensure that your company avoids enforcement action, prosecutions and court fines. Our extensive health and safety training course portfolio includes the Essentials of Health and Safety, Managing and Supervising Safely, Risk Assessment training and the IOSH-accredited courses IOSH Working Safely, IOSH Managing Safely and IOSH Managing Safely in Construction.
"We also offer more specialist health and safety courses, such as COSHH Awareness, Statutory Fire Training, Infection Control and Asbestos Awareness.”
"For more information about any of the training that we offer, please call us today on freephone 0800 310 2300."
Make your selections below and enter your postcode (if applicable). This will provide you with information about a course in a location convenient to you
