HSE construction chief: 'Ignorance' putting lives at risk (1 Viewer)

TEESSIDE SCAFFOLDER

Well-known member
Joined
Dec 20, 2010
Messages
9,220
Reaction score
1
Location
TEESSIDE
HSE construction chief: 'Ignorance' putting lives at risk

7 November, 2012 | By Chris Berkin




Exclusive: The Health and Safety Executive chief inspector of construction Philip White has warned that “ignorance” is putting lives at risk in smaller firms.


The warnings come during a week in which three workers were killed in separate incidents on construction sites in the South-east.


Mr White revealed that he was working on developing a revised package in the Construction Design and Management regulations to take to the HSE board for consultation next year.

The current regulations “broadly work” he said, “but there are some areas of concern that lead to perhaps bureaucracy and a disproportionate approach”.

“Can we bring more clarity to the regulations, in terms of what needs actually doing?” he added.

Current CDM regulations aim to ensure staff are equipped to manage risks, but industry figures say small firms often can’t afford suitably qualified, full-time staff.

In August, the HSE board recommended axeing 13 regulations to make the system simpler.

Mr White named smaller sites as a strategic priority, and said the HSE was “targeting inspections” towards them.

Asbestos and the refurbishment sector, which is dominated by small firms, were also named as priority areas.

The emphasis on smaller firms marks a step-change from earlier policy. “[Previously] we thought ‘let’s get things right at the top end and it’ll trickle down’,” Mr White said. “That hasn’t happened to the extent that we had hoped.”

Mr White said that 10 years ago the majority of injuries took place on sites where work took longer than 30 days to complete, while now the position is reversed.

Last week one man died and two other site workers were injured on a St James’ Langham Square development in Putney, while on the same day in Tottenham a man died after being injured on a site where subcontractor Prodem was carrying out work for Galliford Try.


“It’s wrong to label a particular sector - it’s often a minority that gives the whole sector a bad name”

Brian Berry, Federation of Master Builders

Over the weekend a contractor died at the Tunbridge Wells branch of Marks and Spencer.

Mr White said that while standards had improved among smaller firms, they had been outpaced by larger, structural contractors.

Though he thought there was “a bit of corner-cutting” stemming from the recession, he said he “wouldn’t necessarily say it’s down to austerity; I would say it’s down to ignorance.”

Mr White warned of “a hardcore element of people who are deliberately flouting the law, putting people at risk”.

He added that there had been “a fairly substantial culture change” on the structural side, with large contractors now “putting into the pot” to provide briefings and resources to smaller companies.

Several initiatives are being undertaken by the HSE to target small firms, such as the Health and Safety Toolbox, as part of what HSE calls “a radical revamp” aimed at simplifying access to official advice.


“People know that they can remain in blissful ignorance because it has no consequences”

Rudi Klein, SEC Group chief executive

However, WB Simpson & Sons health and safety manager Terry Clare said that bid pricing, not education, was the deciding factor.

“Small firms aren’t ignorant of the health and safety laws,” he said. “They just choose to ignore them because of expediency and cost.

“That’s how they get the job – because they’re the cheapest. And [health and safety] is a big cost.”

Commenting on UKCG’s recent health and safety reforms, Wates chief operating officer Dave Smith warned that small firms were the “biggest killers” and the “biggest barriers” to progress.

“Ultimately, we’re only as good as our supply chain being consistent, and us being consistent to our supply chain,” he added.

“The biggest killers still are the local builders who are not supervised by anybody.”

The largest single cause of death and major injury remains falls from heights, with construction operatives most at risk.

Around half of all fatal accidents continue to occur in the refurbishment, maintenance and repair sector, which attracts smaller and less experienced contractors, as well as what the HSE calls the “vast proportion” of the £10bn informal construction economy.

Of the 49 construction fatalities between March 2011 and March 2012, 23 were self-employed.

Major injuries fell in the last year, while overall non-fatal injuries in construction jumped 7 per cent from 7,120 in 2010/11 to 7,621 in 2011/12.

Specialist Engineering Contractor’s Group chief executive Rudi Klein agreed there was a new urgency after last week’s site deaths.

“There will always be a level of ignorance – people know that they can remain in blissful ignorance because it has no consequences,” he said.

Mr Klein said the problem was amplified by the focus on price in procurement. “It’s lowest price always, that’s the way it is,” he said.

“That includes public sector procurers, lead contractors, subcontractors – they’re just not interested in their ability to discharge their health and safety responsibilities.”

He called for a US-style licensing system aimed at “keeping out people who frankly can’t look after their own employees” and said that the gravity of the situation almost called for another construction health and safety summit.

Federation of Master Builders chief executive Brian Berry said it is “wrong to label a particular sector”.

He added: “It’s often a minority that gives the whole sector a bad name. The vast majority are very stringent in terms of health and safety.

“There’s obviously a need to make sure we get information out to that sector, but the biggest danger is the informal economy, which is growing because of the current economic situation – they don’t have to demonstrate competence in any particular area.”

In 2011 firms with fewer than 14 workers were responsible for 33 per cent of the value of construction work, according to the Office for National Statistics, down from 34 per cent in 2001.

During the decade the proportion of fatal accidents involving small contractors has rarely dipped below 60 per cent, although it has improved slightly since the 2000/01 peak of almost 80 per cent.

Meanwhile, the value of work by firms with more than 1,200 employees jumped from 12 per cent in 2001 to 20 per cent in 2008.

Mr White said he thought major contractors were now “not too concerned about what the law says”, and instead concentrated on “doing the right thing, achieving high standards”.

He said the HSE was moving away from site work with major contractors and towards strategic engagement and “meeting and challenging them at a higher level”.

Weightmans LLP partner in commercial insurance Tracy Smyth told CN the firm had seen a lot of small company claims after 2007, particularly in scaffolding, which declined in 2010 as businesses went under.

She added larger sites “invariably have better procedures” and that small sites had “regrettably little awareness of the need to control the activities of all contractors”.

Mr White also said he thought it was “very frustrating” when health and safety went over the top, and though he warned against complacency, added that ministers were also frustrated “when you get stuff done in the name of health and safety that doesn’t give any value”.

Commenting on the HSE’s Toolbox initiative, employment minister Mark Hoban said that small and low-risk businesses “should be focusing their time on growing and becoming a success, not having to waste precious time and money on unnecessary bureaucracy”.

A Department for Work and Pensions spokesperson told CN that small construction firms had to navigate “baffling health and safety rules” in the past, and said the department was focused on “cutting unnecessary red tape”.

But Mr Klein said it was “extremely unhelpful” when ministers railed against health and safety “because it makes it seem as if all red tape is absolutely bad; that’s a stupid assertion – there’s bad red tape and good red tape”.



Fees for Intervention

The HSE has recently come under fire about its new Fees for Intervention scheme, whereby firms are charged £142 per hour for HSE investigations.

UK Contractors Group director Steven Ratcliffe blasted the reforms, telling CN the government had “wildly ignored” the its recommendations.

“We didn’t like the idea in the first place – we’ll be monitoring very carefully how those fees are operated in practice,” he added.

Mr White responded by praising the work of the UKCG, telling CN he was “very supportive” of their recently launched health and safety overhaul.

He added that “no recommendations were ignored” and that he was aware of Mr Ratcliffe’s concerns. He said the HSE had involved UKCG in drafting internal guidance for inspectors.

“It’s absolutely important if we want to keep pushing the industry forward,” he said. “At the top end, they can take a lead – I would hope others will pick up the challenge being set down by UKCG.”

After a month of the new system, Mr White said there had been “mixed feedback”, but that the HSE was “quietly pleased” despite some administrative “teething issues”.

There had been some examples of companies wanting inspectors off site as quickly as possible, to “stop ratcheting up the costs”, he added.

When asked about concerns that the new system would give inspectors a financial incentive to conduct investigations, Mr White said it was “understandable people are anxious out there” but insisted HSE priorities were not changing.

He said there were “no targets” for claiming fees and that the new scheme meant compliant firms had nothing to fear.
 
Not sure I agree with all of that Teeside although a lot does make sense but the comment it's the smaller firms that are the biggest killers and the biggest stumbling block to progress just doesn't ring true in my experience.
 
Top Bottom