In a site-safety crackdown, HSE inspectors have started carrying out inspections of construction sites where they are focusing on the health risks of moving and handling materials on site. The HSE campaign ‘Work Right Construction. Your health. Your future’ is supporting the inspections initiative which started on 4th September, to raise awareness of the risks when moving and handling materials on site and provide advice for employers and workers.
Moving and handling heavy or bulky objects on construction sites is needlessly harming the health of tens of thousands of workers every year. Working in construction is a physically demanding job and many construction workers’ health is suffering due to pain in muscles, bones, joints and nerves that affect every aspect of their lives and in many cases their ability to work and earn a living. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is warning construction workers that the long-term impact on their health can leave them struggling to stand, walk, or sit down.
The law requires employers to control the risks of ill health of their workers, which includes pain in muscles, bones, joints and nerves that can develop over time, known as musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). However, in the most recent period an estimated 42,000 people in the construction industry suffered from a work-related musculoskeletal disorder, which can cause years of agonising aches and pains. This amounts to 53% of all ill health in the construction sector.
If moving and lifting is managed properly, a physical job on a building site should not disrupt every part of workers’ lives.
Before work starts, moving and handling risks should be considered and prevented where possible at the design stage. Once on site, employers should talk to workers about controlling existing risks and make sure appropriate measures are in place, such as the right training, aids and equipment.
Find out more about the HSE’s ‘Work Right Construction. Your health. Your future’ campaign here: Manual Handling – Work Right to keep Britain safe
