Sending email...Health & Safety
Have you considered Health and Safety?
Having an effective Health & Safety policy is good business practice.
It makes you more aware of your working environment and methods, and so encourages better use of resources and reduces the likelihood of injury to yourself, your employees or other persons, and damage to property.
The law gives you a responsibility to take care not to cause injury or damage. Breaching that responsibility leaves you exposed to having to pay compensation and, in some circumstances, at risk of a civil or criminal prosecution, and even a prison sentence.
The first and most important step is to recognise and minimise the risks you face as a part of your work. The main issues you need to consider include:
- Who do you or your employees come into contact with and how could your activities cause them injury or damage to their property?
- Is everyone suitably trained for each activity they carry out?
- Are you using the right equipment for the job, and is it properly maintained?
- Are the correct personal protective items available and being used correctly?
- Are all hazardous materials, chemicals, gases and liquids stored safely, used correctly and disposed of in the right way when no longer required?
- Can any activity be done in a safer way?
- Should you be employing specialists for certain tasks?
- Is there someone available who has a first aid qualification?
- Does everyone know how to get help in an emergency? Having the address, postcode and grid reference of the site will assist the emergency services to reach you quickly.
It is best to have a written health and safety policy and to communicate it to your employees. In fact, if you employ five or more people, it’s a legal requirement.
Cornish Mutual is able to provide general guidance on health and safety matters. We can also put you in contact with specialist health and safety consultants. Please contact us if you require further information.
The Health & Safety Executive in partnership with the Cornwall and Devon Growers’ Group have released a document on health and safety standards for those who employ and manage fieldworkers. Health & Safety standards for fieldworkers can be downloaded here.
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