It seems odd that the UK, one of the major economies of the world and with record numbers of students entering university, should be suffering from a shortage of skilled workers. But that’s exactly where we are. And it’s getting worse. The UK Commission for Employment and Skills ‘Employer Skills Survey 2017’ highlighted the following: in 2017, 20% of establishments … Read More
Contractor Management – A Compelling Imperative for Change
Everyone understands the benefits of using contractors in a business: More flexibility as expertise can be provided when and where needed Easier to scale the workforce up or down as the business requires Enables the business to react quickly to new projects Business can “plug and play” workers into projects (i.e. there is no training required to get people up … Read More
The Power Utilities Death Spiral and What it Means for Health and Safety
Normally business investments are made in a climate of growth with some level of stability and predictability. But, what happens when a sector is faced with massive change and an existing business model that is trending towards zero, e.g. “the utility death spiral”? That was the topic of a recent research report by Banyard Solutions, “UK Utilities: Yes, Investment is … Read More
Taking Action to Prevent Exposure to Asbestos
In our review of UK health and safety in 2018 we highlighted the increased profile that mental health has seen in the workplace and the importance to both the employee and the business of good employee mental health. On the flip side, little has fundamentally changed in the treatment of asbestos in our public buildings. Darren Payne of Rhodor the … Read More
Health and Safety Year in Review 2018
Whatever industry you work in, 2018 was a year like no other. This was primarily because of Brexit and the uncertainty across all sectors about how it will impact trading and business conditions. That said, there are other things that made 2018 unique including the increasing impact technology is having on workplace health and safety and the noticeable shift in … Read More
Merry Christmas – Be Safe!
The week before Christmas sees most of us winding down with a spirit of goodwill in the office and, hopefully, an extra spring in our step. Of course, many will be ramping up not down and we send our thanks to all those who will be working hard over the Christmas period. This marks the end of the second year … Read More
Overview of Health and Safety in the Water Industry
This is the first in a series of posts arising from research into health and safety in the UK water industry. It’s a high level overview of the issues. Future posts will explore these further and present potential solutions. The water industry in the UK is well-established so it’s not surprising that most companies in it have well-established health and … Read More
Some Clarity on UK Health & Safety Stats vs Other Countries
“The UK consistently has one of the lowest standardised rates of fatal injury across the EU, lower than other large economies and the EU average.” That’s a quote from the 2018 Health and Safety at Work Summary Statistics for Great Britain report published by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and discussed last month in our post What To Make … Read More
Is It Time to Consign Paper Permit to Work to the Bin?
This is a transcript of the webinar of the same title and highlights some of the deficiencies with paper-based permit to work processes and introduces the advantages of e-permits in overcoming these deficiencies. Note that as an accurate transcript the language is conversational and not perfect written English. Transcript starts >> Thank you very much indeed for joining the webinar … Read More
What To Make of the 2018 HSE Statistics?
You’re all aware that taking a break at work is likely to cause cancer, right? Or, stated more accurately, those who take breaks at work have a higher incidence of cancer than those who don’t. An indisputable fact? Or, an indisputable statistic? It may even be a contrived example used to illustrate that it’s the context, the narrative, that tells … Read More
How the Growing Self-Employment Trend Reduces the Claim “Burden” on Insurers
In a previous article, we explored the findings of a report that concluded that the UK insurance industry will face a reduced financial burden in the future. This reduced financial burden was due to the anticipated increase in the use of automation technologies, coupled with the growing trend for self-employment and the attendant reduction in the number of claims made … Read More
How the Changing Face of Employment and H&S May Change Business Insurance
The insurance industry and the health and safety industry are inextricably linked. After all, if you have employees based in the UK, you need employers’ liability insurance. If one of your employees suffers a workplace injury, any subsequent claim is likely to go through that insurance. Whether your insurers pay out or not, you may see an increase in your … Read More
