Looking after people that you care about and keeping them safe and healthy is something we all do everyday of our lives. Whether you’re a mother with a small child, a youth club worker, a factory supervisor or a company director, we all assess risk and try to prevent harm coming to those we are responsible for. In the workplace there are many hazards and it’s important that we recognise them and put measures in place to either eliminate or significantly reduce them.
The vast majority of businesses both large and small understand these basic principles and are proactive in trying to manage them but sometimes with the best will in the world, when life is hectic and the pressure’s on, it’s difficult to see beyond the next meeting, appointment or audit.
That’s probably the time when a Health & Safety professional can really help in identifying clearly and effectively what you need to do to look after the people you work with and also comply with legislation and maintain best practice.
Health & Safety has come a long way in the last 80 years or so. It isn’t so long ago that little boys were sent up chimneys to sweep them and steelworkers built skyscrapers and climbed the steels with no harness or fall arrest systems in place. Fortunately those days are over and the regulations we have in place now are there to protect us all, and help us to manage our responsibilities.
Smart Health & Safety policy is proven to reduce accidents and occupational illness, increase productivity, significantly reduce the potential for company fines and imprisonment and leads to a measurable increase in staff morale.
I’ve been managing people and resources for over 25 years now but that was preceded by a number of years of grafting at the ‘coal face’ so I have a deep understanding of both perspectives. I’ve worked in retail, warehousing/logistics and construction and firmly believe that the way forward for any quality business is communication, training, inclusion and the ability to embrace and value the diversity of the workforce.
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