kerry davies Posted August 4, 2014 Share Posted August 4, 2014 A wish on a 40th birthday There is something paradoxical about the Mythbusters Challenge Panel completing its 300th case so close to the date on which we celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Health and Safety at Work Act coming into force. Many people have already noted the importance and significance of HSWA and its remarkable resilience. It remains fit for purpose today, despite the massive changes which have taken place in the world of work, proving its applicability and adaptability to any workplace. Great Britain has arguably the best health and safety system in the world. Of course, we all want to prevent even more deaths and serious injuries every year but many other parts of the world have death and injury rates many times higher than ours and are increasingly eager to learn about what makes our system so effective. Why then do we also have such a problem with ‘elf ’n’ safety’? Since April 2012 our Myth Buster panel has dealt with 300 cases – that’s two or three every single week. All of these are cases where people have been told that can’t do something or can’t have something because of "health and safety" – most often because lazy and unhelpful people simply can’t be bothered to do what is being asked of them. If I could wave a magic wand in this week of the 40th anniversary of HSWA it would be to get everyone of those jobsworths out there to stop and take notice of what real health and safety is all about. I’d also ask the press who are happy to write up tales that serve only to trivialise health and safety or confuse the issues, to sometimes take a step back and investigate what is really at the bottom of some of the things labelled ‘elf and safety’ by contributors to their stories. The Act and the system it put in place has saved literally thousands of lives in all sorts of workplaces over the last 40 years. So, my wish for the Act’s 40th birthday would be that critics stop maligning a very smart, world class system and that jobsworths find a new excuse for their unhelpfulness. Better still, try being helpful instead – it doesn’t cost anything and you just might find that life is a bit more pleasant when you let people get on with their lives rather than getting in their way.Judith Hackett. The Gaffer of HSE. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ynot Posted August 4, 2014 Share Posted August 4, 2014 Abso-blooming-lutely!!! I have always maintained, when dealing with such jobsworths as she mentions, that FAR too much rubbish is spouted in the name of Elf 'n' Safety (guv) and quite often end up pointing the ne'er do wells at the HSE pages for some modicum of common sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gareth Posted August 4, 2014 Share Posted August 4, 2014 That blog is one of the best things I've read recently. Very wise words, from someone whose attitude towards H&S should be something for all the jobsworths, lazy sods and hi-viz warriors in the technical entertainment business to read, absorb and remember the next time they feel the urge to flatly refuse a perfectly reasonable request on sham "health and safety" grounds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vinntec Posted August 4, 2014 Share Posted August 4, 2014 At a theatre we were hiring not so long ago (not one in this locality), the resident tech insisted that the tallescope could not be moved with a person on it, how ever many people were on the ground to make sure it was safe. The outriggers had to be properly fitted before going back up and taken off when moving it. This meant that the lighting designer, muggins who is getting on a bit, had to climb up and down hundreds of times. My legs and arms were literally aching - plus focusing had to be rushed due to the extra time this practice added (and each time I came down I took longer as I was getting really tired...). Obviously this led to a desire to stretch to reach as many lanterns as possible from each position. So each "elf and safety" requirement made the job more dangerous and a focus which should have taken about 3 hours took nearly 6, which is a big deal when you are hiring a space! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
top-cat Posted August 4, 2014 Share Posted August 4, 2014 How do you confuse a "health and safety advisor" ? Ask them "why not?" http://www.blue-room.org.uk/public/style_emoticons/default/smile.gif Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roderick Posted August 4, 2014 Share Posted August 4, 2014 How do you confuse a "health and safety advisor" ? Ask them "why not?" http://www.blue-room.org.uk/public/style_emoticons/default/smile.gifObviously a mix-up between a jobsworth and a real advisor.The difference is that a H&S Advisor will always be able to explain why you should, or should not, do something.It is the jobsworth, or the nimby "who knows better 'cause he's done it for XX years" who won't be able to answer that question.Sadly the latter is still too prevalent in our industry and supported by the nimbies as they are a justification for their ineptness. NOTE: I usually have a different term for 'nimby' but that wouldn't pass the language nanny... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
top-cat Posted August 4, 2014 Share Posted August 4, 2014 How do you confuse a "health and safety advisor" ? Ask them "why not?" http://www.blue-room.org.uk/public/style_emoticons/default/smile.gifObviously a mix-up between a jobsworth and a real advisor.The difference is that a H&S Advisor will always be able to explain why you should, or should not, do something.It is the jobsworth, or the nimby "who knows better 'cause he's done it for XX years" who won't be able to answer that question.Sadly the latter is still too prevalent in our industry and supported by the nimbies as they are a justification for their ineptness. NOTE: I usually have a different term for 'nimby' but that wouldn't pass the language nanny... As you say, the proper ones who can actually "advise" still seem to be in the minority. On the most part they seem to be vastly inexperienced self important individuals with a hi vis jacket and a clipboard. The key phrase being "I don't know how to do your job, but you're doing it wrong". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigclive Posted August 5, 2014 Share Posted August 5, 2014 Health and safety has made a significant contribution to the construction industry, but it's also the reason I stopped doing work in construction despite it being a significant part of my income. It just got too nasty and political. It became a system for unskilled people to boss around skilled people with no need to justify blanket rules that made even the simplest job into a chore. And if I have to name one company that was instrumental in me leaving the construction side of things it's Carillion. Their implementation of health and safety was just malicious little jobsworths with an axe to grind. In the end I simply couldn't face the harassment of working on their sites any more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Ripley Posted August 5, 2014 Share Posted August 5, 2014 the resident tech insisted that the tallescope could not be moved with a person on it, how ever many people were on the ground to make sure it was safe. The outriggers had to be properly fitted before going back up and taken off when moving it. The resident tech is completely correct, although going a little far if he took the outriggers off when moving. Regardless of past practice the Tallescope is not designed to be moved with someone aloft. It does say so on them (big yellow sticker) Additionally the HSE will be looking for rescue plans in case of an emergency with someone in the basket of the Talle by the end of the year. This in effect means that you will need to upgrade your Tallescope with the Moving/Rescue kit to have it compliant. This was agreed with the ABTT etc. The guidance to Working at Height is ABTT COP11 which is on the website along with COP12 which updates the Tallescope section. The upside is that when it's fitted you will (after suitable training) be able to move your new improved Talle with a person in the basket! David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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