September 3, 2003—UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) inspectors will be out in force visiting construction sites across Great Britain during September, checking on falls-from-height risks. This follows a similar blitz held in June and is part of the second phase of “Don’t Fall For It,” a Europe-wide campaign aimed at reducing falls from height in construction.
According to HSE, 33 construction workers died in 2002-03, and many thousands more suffered a serious injury as a result of a fall from height in the workplace. Falls from height are the most common cause of fatal injury and the second most common cause of major injury to employees.
HSE inspectors will be looking to see an improvement in how the industry is managing work done at height, compared to the results of the first blitz held in June. During the blitz in June, HSE inspectors said they saw many examples of people using innovative and safe forms of access methods and equipment, however they still had to serve enforcement notices at one third of the 1446 construction sites visited.
During the construction blitz, inspectors will be focusing on making sure that where work at height is taking place or planned a proper assessment of the risks has been carried out and the hierarchy of controls have been considered. For instance, inspectors will be looking to see that:
- Work at height has been eliminated where possible;
- Where elimination is not possible, the correct equipment has been selected;
- Work platforms have been installed with adequate access;
- If using mobile elevated work platforms (MEWPs), they are used correctly;
- If using tower scaffolds, they are correctly erected with edge protection and toeboards as necessary;
- Ladders or step ladders are only being used for short duration work, that they are the correct type for that work and are secured to prevent slipping;
- If using safety harnesses, they have suitable anchorages and adequate fall distances and are inspected; and
- All work at height equipment, including ladders and step-ladders, have been inspected, examined and maintained as necessary.
In addition, inspectors will look to ensure that only competent contractors are used for work at height and that all jobs have been properly planned and thought through.
The national construction falls from height blitz will be taking place over two weeks, beginning September 8, 2003. In London, the blitz is being extended across other industries with HSE inspectors looking at fall-from-height risks at workplaces including industrial estates, airports, hospitals, schools, window cleaning operations, and factories, as well as construction.
