A catering equipment cleaning company has been fined after one of their workers sadly died after falling into hot water. Inadequate workplace health and safety has been cited by the HSE as the reason for the fine.
The worker at Pan Glo (UK), Lancashire was apparently standing on the lid of a covered hot water tank when it gave way. The worker was rescued by an employee but sadly died from his injuries a week later.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that the company had failed to carry out proper risk assessments. Additionally they had not developed ‘written systems of work’ for maintenance to the tank.
Workplace health and safety
Without proper workplace health and safety, employees had no way of knowing when access to areas was restricted. Subsequently, employees were not aware of the dangers or expectations in high-risk areas. Essentially, due to the lack of understanding about whether it was acceptable to walk or stand on top of the lids, the employee had no concept of the danger they were in.
The HSE has stated that employees previously routinely accessed the areas in this way, placing them at significant risk. This subsequently led to the fatal accident. The company was fined £200,000 for what the HSE has branded a ‘tragic incident that could have easily been prevented had the company acted to identify and managed the risks involved’.
And the HSE is right, these kinds of accidents are entirely avoidable with proper health and safety controls and measures.
Preventing harm through proper workplace compliance
Getting on top of workplace compliance can seem like a daunting task. That’s why companies like ours exist. We make workplace health and safety compliance our core business, so that other businesses can focus on theirs.
To be legally compliant, organisations need to perform regular health and safety risk assessments. This can help to reduce workplace harm and eliminate costly fines. And it’s not just about eliminating risk completely, it can be about controlling risk to provide a safe framework for employees to adhere to.
At Safety First Group we offer thorough health and safety risk assessments by qualified technicians. Our health and safety risk assessments help demonstrate how compliant your business is. Workplace health and safety assessments include identifying where risks exist and what measures you can take to avoid or eliminate them. However, sometimes risks cannot be eliminated completely, and it’s these additional risks that need to be properly assessed for severity and harm to your employees.
Where we identify risk, we then highlight areas of concern as well as advise on measures that can be taken to address the risk. We can also help schedule future risk assessments so that you can stay on top of your compliance needs before they get to a dangerous level!
Want to know how to get started?
We can do a full health and safety audit on your premises with a view to implementing:
- Health and safety policies
- Risk Assessment (s)
- Regular health and safety audits to ensure compliance
- Create and provide health and safety framework documents to ensure ongoing compliance with HSE regulation
You can contact us here, or call for a no obligation chat on 0845 004 2133 to get started with your workforce compliance.
Original article here
