Health and Safety

What are the objectives of the Health and Safety at Work Act (1974)?

• Securing the health, safety and welfare of persons at work
• Controlling the keeping and use of explosive or highly flammable or otherwise dangerous substances, and usually preventing the unlawful acquisition, ownership and use of such substances.
• Protecting persons, other than persons at work, against risks to health or safety arising out of or in joining with the activities of persons at work

What are the duties of employers towards substances used at work?

The duties employers use towards substances used at work are;

• Perform such testing and examination as may be necessary to ensure safety
• Take such steps as are necessary to secure that persons supplied with the substance are provided with adequate information about the any risks to health or safety to which the inherent properties of the substance may give rise, about the results of any relevant tests which have been carried out on or in connection with the substance and about any conditions necessary to ensure that the substance will be safe and without risks to health at all such times as are mentioned in paragraph (a) above and when the substance disposed of; and
• Ensure that the substance will be safe and without dangers to health at all times when it is being processed, handled, used, stored or transported by a person at work or in work grounds
• Take such steps as are necessary to secure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that persons are provided with all such revisions of information as are necessary by reason of its becoming known that anything gives rise to a serious risk to health or safety.

What are the objectives of the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations?

·         You can prevent or reduce workers exposure to hazardous substances by:

·         deciding how to prevent harm to health (risk assessment^[1])

·         Planning for emergencies.

·         keeping all control measures in good working order

·         making sure they are used

·         providing monitoring and health surveillance in appropriate cases

·         Planning for emergencies.

·         providing information, instruction and training for employees and others

·         providing control measures to reduce harm to health

What industries does the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations cover?

• ·         Printing
• ·         Paper
• ·         Textiles
• ·         Rubber
• ·         Retail
• ·         Catering
• ·         Welding
• ·         Engineering
• ·         Hairdressing

What is a substance hazardous to health as defined by the COSHH?

COSHH covers substances that are hazardous to health, these include;

Products containing chemicals, fumes, dusts, vapours, mists, Nanotechnology, Gases and asphyxiating gases and Biological agents (germs). Germs that cause diseases^[1] such as leptospirosis or legionnaires disease and germs used in laboratories.

Dusty or fume-laden air can cause lung diseases, e.g. in welders, quarry workers or woodworkers. Metalworking fluids can grow bacteria and fungi which cause dermatitis and asthma. Flowers, bulbs, fruit and vegetables can cause dermatitis. Wet working, e.g. catering and cleaning, can cause dermatitis. Prolonged contact with wet cement in construction can lead to chemical burns and/or dermatitis. Benzene in crude oil can cause leukaemia.

What advice does COSHH give to protect yourself when working with hazardous materials?

What are the aims of the Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992?

·         Analyse workstations to assess and reduce risks

·         Provide eye and eyesight tests on request, and special spectacles if needed

·         Make sure controls are in place

·         Provide information and training

·         Review the assessment when the user or DSE changes

What problems are associated with display screen equipment?

 Some workers may experience fatigue, eye strain, upper limb complications and backache from overdoing or improper use of DSE (Display Screen Equipment). These problems can also be experienced from poorly designed workstations or work environments. The causes may not always be obvious and can be due to a combination of factors.

What advice do they give to make working with display screen equipment more comfortable?

·         Make sure individual characters on the screen are sharp, in focus and don’t flicker or       move. If they do, the DSE may need servicing or adjustment.

·         Adjust the brightness and contrast controls on the screen to suit lighting conditions in the room.

·         When setting up software, choose text that is large enough to read easily on screen when sitting in a normal comfortable working position.

·         Select colours that are easy on the eye (avoid red text on a blue background, or vice versa).

·         Make sure the screen surface is clean.

Put knowledge into practice:

Complete a risk assessment for the following activities that have taken place:

Working in the dark room

On location shooting

Editing images on the computer