Health

1
Health Safety in the Irish Waste IndustryAn
Industry Perspective
2
Introduction

• Oliver Callan MIOSH, RSP, IRCA (International
  Registered Certified Auditor)
• Group Health Safety Manager Greenstar Ltd.
• Twenty years involvement in Health Safety
  starting in General Electric.
• Recent assignments, Intel, Xerox, Royal College
  of Surgeons, AIBP.

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A High Risk Industry

• The Irish Waste Management Industry
• High Risk
• Fragmented
• (Approx 400 waste permits in Ireland)
• Entrepreneurial
• Hump Dump
• Health Safety Low Priority

4
A High Risk Industry

• One of the most challenging industries to work in
• Data from both the US the UK also confirm the
  hazardous nature of the industry.
• In the years 2001- 02 there were 10 confirmed
  fatalities in the UK.

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A Hazardous Environment

• There are currently around 162,500 people
  employed in the Waste Management industry in the
  UK. ( UK HSE)
• ESA (Environmental Services Association) UK
• Member Fatalities
• 2004, 3
• 2003, 0
• 2002, 6
• 2001, 4

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Accident Incident Rates

• Accident Incident Rate (per 100,000 employees)
  Based on Reportable Accidents to the relevant
  authorities in Ireland (HSA) and the UK (HSE)
• Reportable Accident definition an accident
  resulting in an absence from work for more than
  three days not counting the day of the accident.

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Irish HS Statistics 2004

• 2004 Fatalities (all activities) 50
• From the Statistics available for 2004, 2
  fatalities could be directly related to the Waste
  Industry.
• The victim was standing in a recycling shed when
  a loading shovel reversed over him.
• The victim was pulling curtain across lorry when
  a bale clamp truck on the drivers side began
  moving three bale high load. The two top bales
  fell on top of the victim.

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Irish HS Statistics 2004

• Related Fatalities
• Victim fell from a pallet attached to the forks
  of a tractor a few feet from the ground.
• Victim working inside a confined space.
• The basket the victim was using fell of the
  blades of the forktruck.
• Victim was loading branches into a shredder
  whilst removing the grab from the shredder it
  appears that the grab suddenly came free from the
  shredder pinning him against the cab of his
  lorry.
• The victim was struck by a reversing truck on a
  construction site.

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Health Safety Prosecutions

• HSA V Feelystone Supplies (April 2004), The
  company was prosecuted and fined 20,000
  following the death of an employee. The company
  should have had better procedures in place and
  the employee was not experienced or trained for
  the Task.
• DPP for the HSA V Murphy Waste Disposal Limited
  McCaul-Murphy Waste Services (Jan 2005), The
  prosecution arose following the death of a waste
  picker when she was struck by and excavator. The
  defending companies were fined a total of
  80,000.
• Fines of 1m were imposed on Smurfit News Print
  following two accidents. In one accident a worker
  lost his leg and in the other a worker had skin
  torn off his hand.

10
2005 Safety Health Welfare at Work Act

• Replaces the 1989 Safety Health Welfare at
  Work Act.
• Puts much more onus on Companies and Senior
  Managers to manage Health Safety in the Work
  Place
• Enforcement, Prosecutions not just against
  corporate Bodies but against individuals where it
  is proven that there was wanton disregard for
  Safety or connivance of those individuals.
• Failure to comply with the provisions of the 2005
  Act carries the potential of a prison term even
  on conviction in the district court and a maximum
  fine of up to 3m on indictment.

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DUTIES OF EMPLOYERS

• Section 8 General DutiesEmployers are
  required, in so far as is reasonably practicable,
  to perform the duties listed below, so as ensure
  the safety, health and welfare at work of
  employees. Reasonably practicable is defined
  in the Bill as meaning that an employer has
  exercised all due care by putting in place the
  necessary protective and preventative measures,
  having identified the hazards and assessed the
  risks to safety and health likely to result in
  accidents or injury to health at the place of
  work and where the putting in place of any
  further measures is grossly disproportionate,
  having regard to the unusual, unforeseeable and
  exceptional nature of any circumstances or
  occurrence that may result in an accident at work
  or injury to health at that place of work

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DUTIES OF EMPLOYERS

• Duty Have We
• 1. Put in place measures to ensure the safety,
  health and welfare of employees?
• 2. Managed and conducted work activities so as
  to ensure safety, health and welfare at work?
• 3. Managed and conducted work activities in
  such a way as to prevent improper conduct or
  behaviour likely to put employees at risk?
• 4. Designed, provided and maintained a place
  of work that is safe and without risk to health?
• 5. Designed, provided and maintained a safe
  means of access and egress from the workplace?
• 6. Designed, provided and maintained plant and
  machinery and other articles that are safe and
  without risk to health?
• 7. Ensured safety and the prevention of risk
  to health of employees relating to the use of
  any article or substance or because of exposure
  to noise, vibration, ionising or other radiation?
• 8. Provided systems of work that are planned,
  organised and revised to be safe and without
  risk to health
• 9. Made arrangements for and provided welfare
  facilities?

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DUTIES OF EMPLOYERS

• Duty Have We
• 10. Provided information, training and
  instruction?
• 11. Determined and implemented the safety,
  health and welfare measures necessary for the
  protection of employees, as shown to be
  necessary following hazard identification and
  risk assessment?
• 12. Ensured that the measures put in place take
  account of changing circumstances and the
  general principles of prevention?
• 13. Provided suitable protective clothing and
  equipment, where risks cannot be eliminated or
  adequately controlled?
• 14. Prepared and revised adequate plans and
  procedures and measures to be taken in the
  event of an emergency or serious and imminent
  danger?
• 15. Reported any fatal or more than three days
  absence accidents or dangerous occurrences to
  the HSA?
• 16. The services of a competent person/s to
  ensure the safety, health and welfare at work of
  employees?
• 17. Complied with the obligation to ensure the
  safety, health and welfare of any fixed term or
  temporary employee?
• 18 Ensured the safety measures do not involve
  cost to employees?

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Information

• Duty Have we
• Given information in a form, manner and language
  reasonably likely to be understood by the
  employee?Included in the information details
  ofa) hazards and the risks identified by the
  risk assessment?
• b) protective and preventative measures taken in
  respect of each place of work and each
  specific task to be performed?
• c) names of persons designated for emergency
  duties and as safety representatives?
• Ensured that competent persons and safety
  representatives have access to the information
  necessary to perform their functions, including
  information on
• a) accidents and dangerous occurrences? b)
  protective and preventive measures?
• Given information to fixed-term or temporary
  employees on potential risks, health
  surveillance, special qualifications or skills
  required and any increased specific risks which
  the work may involve?
• Specified to the temporary employment business
  (the agency) providing the temporary employee the
  qualifications necessary for the work and the
  specific features of the work?

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Instruction Training Supervision

• Duty Have we
• Given instruction and training in a form, manner
  and language that is reasonably likely to be
  understood by the employee?
• Given employees time off work, without loss of
  pay, for health and safety training, including
  particular information and instructions on the
  specific tasks to be performed by the employee?
• Taken account of the employees capabilities in
  relation to health and safety, in relation to the
  specific task assigned to him/her?
• Protected a class or classes of sensitive
  employees and/or any employee or group of
  employees from dangers that specifically affect
  them?

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Instruction Training Supervision

• Duty Have we
• In relation to training, taken account of new or
  changed risks?
• Provided training ona) recruitment?
• b) the transfer of an employee or change of task
  assigned to employee?
• c) the introduction of new work equipment,
  systems of work or changes in equipment or
  systems?
• d) the introduction of new technology?
• Provided employees of another employer, working
  in our place of work, with instructions on risks
  at the place of work?
• Ensured that fixed term or temporary employees
  have, having regard to their qualifications,
  received training in the work to be carried out?

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Emergencies and Serious and Imminent Dangers

• Have we
• Prepared plans and procedures to be followed in
  the event of emergencies or serious and imminent
  dangers?
• Are the plans and procedures adequate?
• Provided first aid, fire-fighting and evacuation
  procedures for employees and other individuals
  appropriate to the place of work, taking account
  of the size of the place and the nature of the
  work being carried out?
• Arranged contacts with emergency services, in
  particular with regard to first aid, emergency
  medical care, fire-fighting and rescue work?
• Designated employees who are required to
  implement the plans, measures and procedures, for
  the purposes of implementing the procedures?
• Ensured that the designated employees have
  received adequate training and that the equipment
  available to them is adequate, taking account of
  the size and specific hazards of the workplace?

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Duties to Persons other than Employees

• Duty Have We
• Are we managing and conducting our business
  (undertaking) so as to ensure, in so far as is
  reasonably practicable, that as work is carried
  out, individuals at the place of work, who are
  not employees, are not exposed to risks to their
  safety, health and welfare?

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Hazard Identification Risk Assessment

• Duty Have We
• Identified the hazards of the workplace and
  assessed the risks presented by those hazards and
  are we in possession of a risk assessment of the
  risks to employees, including the risks to single
  employees or groups of employees who may be
  exposed to unusual or other risks?                
          
• When carrying out risk assessments of the work
  being carried out at the place of work, have we
  taken account of duties imposed by relevant
  statutory provisions? (to properly answer this
  question we need to ask ourselves what are the
  relevant statutory provisions)
• Have we in place a system which ensures we will
  review our risk assessments at least annually and
  at other times if there are significant
  Changes?                      
• Following the review of the risk assessment,
  have we actually amended the risk assessment?  In
  relation to the most recent risk assessment, have
  we taken steps to implement and ensure the
  implementation of improvements considered
  necessary?                 

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People

• Issues
• Lack of Safety Awareness Culture
• Health Safety Not always Number One priority
• Inconsistencies in disciplinary follow up
• Action Plan
• Ownership from Directors, General Managers,
  Supervisors Operators.
• Strong empowered Safety Committees
• Regular scheduled Toolbox Talks
• Performance Measurement - Safety as part of
  KPIs
• Cohesive Company Disciplinary Policies

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Health Safety First

• Health and Safety should be at the centre of the
  agenda for all modern companies for legal,
  moral and commercial reasons.
• It should be at the centre of our agenda.
• We should regard Health Safety as a value and
  be committed to an Incident Injury free
  environment.
• We should aim for not just a world class
  performance but a world beating performance.

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Conclusion

• No Illusions that we face a major challenge to
  effect a culture change within the Industry
• We are working with the IWMA to effect this
  change within the waste management industry in
  general
• We are embarking on a long term strategy
• Plan involves
• top down commitment
• buy in from Senior management
• upskilling of site safety personnel (HS
  Education)
• Inculcation of HS culture into the Waste
  Management Industry