IOSH

IOSH is the Chartered body for health and safety professionals. With more than 44,000 members in over 120 countries, we’re the world’s largest professional health and safety organisation. We set standards, and support, develop and connect our members with...

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Violence at work and online bullying

“We aim to provide a working environment in which all employees feel comfortable and where everyone is treated with respect and dignity.” This core value – taken from IOSH’s own HR policy on bullying and harassment – is likely to be a familiar to employers and employees the world over.

Yet new figures have revealed that 350,000 adults of working age in employment experienced work-related violence – including threats and physical assault – in the UK in 2015/16.

The findings, released by the UK’s Health and Safety Executive in the past week, also state there was an estimated 698,000 incidents of violence at work over that period – comprising 329,000 assaults and 369,000 threats.

While the number of assaults was broadly similar to the last few years the number of threats recorded, however, was significantly higher – with the HSE surmising that this was due to the inclusion of work-related online threats for the first time.

The ILO defines workplace violence as “any action, incident or behaviour that departs from reasonable conduct in which a person is assaulted, threatened, harmed or injured in the course of, or as a direct result of his or her work” (ILO Workplace stress: A collective challenge, 2016).

This definition is far from being a static concept. New forms of work, the impact of technology and changing working conditions all mean work-related violence as a concept is evolving. It’s been recently named as ‘adverse social behaviour’, that comprises exposure to verbal abuse, unwanted sexual attention, humiliating behaviour, threats or physical violence, sexual harassment and bullying/harassment.

As Eurofound mentions in its last report (Eurofound (2016) Sixth European Working Conditions Survey – Overview report, Publications Office of the European Union, Luxembourg), exposure to such behaviours might have a serious harmful effect on health and wellbeing and can also trigger early exit from the workforce.

When trying to best capture the picture between working conditions and the impact on workers and companies, it’s particularly useful to use the Sixth European Working Conditions Survey 2015’s data visualisation.

The second chart is even more illustrative as it presents a reality that shows how the tolerance at workplaces may differ when we compare different countries. This scenario is of course shaped by how regulation and soft law on this particular issue is embraced within workplaces, but it also alerts on an important cultural and social aspect.

Looking to future trends, there’s still limited evidence about how this emergent issue will impact at work due to:

The changing world of work, including the impact of technology – there’s currently a lack of research and monitoring of cyberbullying in workplaces

The diversity aspect – when exploring the gender dimensions of violence in the world of work focusing on those groups most affected such as LGBT, migrant workers, workers living with disabilities or vulnerable workers

The lack of international leadership on the issue of violence in the world of work.

Online bullying

A recent study published by the Trades Union Congress (TUC) showed workplace stress to be at record levels in the UK, with bullying and harassment among the top concerns cited. Loughborough University also published its own research earlier this year which stated work colleagues are less likely to intervene in workplace bullying if it takes place online. The UK’s Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) has developed its own guidance on social media and bullying. It advises employers ensure their bullying and disciplinary policies are up-to-date, and to also check emails and social networking sites if an employee reports instances of cyber bullying. This, however, should only be done with the full knowledge of those employees being watched. In its guides for employers and employees about workplace bullying and harassment, Acas says it is “in every employer’s interests to promote a safe, healthy and fair environment in which people can work”. Failure to prevent bullying and harassing behaviour, Acas says, can result in poor employee relations, low morale, inefficiency and potentially the loss of staff.

At-risk occupations

The HSE report was based on findings from the 2015/16 Crime Survey for England and Wales (CSEW), which interviewed 34,000 adults selected at random from households in England and Wales. It revealed the risk of work-related violence remained similar to previous years, with an estimated 1.4% of working adults the victims of one or more violent incidents at work. People employed in protective service occupations, such as police officers, faced by far the highest risk of assaults and threats while working, at 9.2% – eight times the average risk. Health and associate care professionals and health and social care specialists had higher than average risk at 2.5% and 6.1% respectively, with these professions having consistently had higher than average risk rates in recent years.

IOSH has previously called for “urgent action” to tackle the increase in attacks on prison officers in England and Wales.

Mental health

The past week has also seen the Institute of Directors (IoD) publish the results of a survey into employee mental wellbeing.

Their headline finding showed that while 54% of IoD members have been approached by staff suffering mental ill health, just 14% have a formal mental health policy in place.

The study also found that fewer than one in five offer line management training.

The report, which contained a foreword by HRH The Duke of Cambridge, suggested new ways of assisting companies whatever their size in tackling the issue.

It called on the UK Government to trial-run training schemes to help small businesses develop mental health policies, and for large companies to think about ensuring a non-executive board member is responsible for ensuring mental health awareness and training is integrated across operations.

Workplace violence is a known stressor and can contribute to mental ill health. It is therefore vital that business take proactive steps to manage and mitigate risks around violence and aggression, including bullying and harassment.

IOSH’s OH Toolkit provides free resources to help you tackle occupational health problems.

By Ivan Williams, Research and Development Adviser, IOSH, and Bryan Henesey, Media Officer, IOSH

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No Time to Lose campaign’s 100th pledge signatory could be you…

More than 90 forward-thinking businesses around the world have signed up to IOSH’s No Time to Lose campaign pledge to demonstrate their commitment to managing carcinogenic exposures at work. Could your company be the 100th signatory?

To mark this significant milestone, IOSH will promote the 100th pledge signatory through its major communications channels including the IOSH and No Time to Lose websites, IOSH Magazine, and Connect – IOSH’s e-newsletter.

Each pledge signatory also receives an IOSH certificate showcasing its commitment.

It’s estimated that cancer caused by work claims 666,000 lives a year worldwide – that’s one death every 47 seconds. In Britain alone, around 8,000 deaths a year are caused by exposure to carcinogens at work. To tackle this significant issue we’re encouraging as many businesses as possible to sign up to our pledge.

Join leading businesses such as Jaguar Land Rover, Laing O’Rourke, and Hong Kong’s leading rail operator MTR who have already signed up – please see our list of pledge signatories. Thanks to the efforts of these exceptional businesses, nearly half a million employees are aware of work-related carcinogens.

The pledge takes the form of a six–point action plan. You can use it to reflect either what you’re already doing to identify and manage workplace carcinogenic exposures, or what you plan to do.

The six points are:

1.    Assess whether work activities that form part of the business have the potential to cause occupational cancer

2.    Develop and deliver a prevention strategy that reflects the risks of developing occupational cancer in the workplace

3.    Ensure senior managers understand relevant occupational cancer risks and manage them proactively as a significant health issue

4.    Engage employees and ensure they use the preventive measures in place properly and consistently, and check that preventive measures are working

5.    Demand the same standards of your supply chain as you do yourself

6.    Include protective measures against occupational cancer risk in a public reporting format, such as the annual report

For details on how to sign up to the No Time to Lose campaign pledge, visit the website. If you have any questions, please email [email protected].  

Shelley Frost, IOSH Executive Director – Policy

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Reducing the occupational cancer burden across Europe

Every six months the Presidency of the Council of Europe is passed between the member states, so each one has a small window to promote their own ideas and values, and to try to effect change in an area of interest to them. The current Presidency, January to June 2017, is with Malta.

Working together to promote sensible management of occupational safety and health (OSH) across Europe is of huge importance to IOSH, as we have members located in 27 of the 28 members states (all bar Latvia, if you’re after an IOSH themed pub quiz question), and we actively seek openings to share good practice.

With that in mind, IOSH saw an opportunity to promote our No Time to Lose campaign on preventing occupational cancers at the Joint Action on cancer control in Europe, which convened in Malta last week, to coincide with the Presidency.

The No Time to Lose campaign was highlighted to European Health Experts in Malta

Very briefly, joint actions are where there is a coordinated attempt across nation states to deploy resources to achieve an objective. In the case of this conference, it was a three-year investigation by experts from 25 countries and 126 organisations to improve the quality of cancer care across the EU.

Attending a conference with experts in cancer care was a great success for us, with delegates appreciating the focus on occupational cancers, and that the NTTL leaflets had been translated into 24 European languages.

There were Health Ministers, or Departmental representatives, present from most of the 25 contributing countries, many of whom were excited, and perhaps a little surprised, to be handed a leaflet in their mother tongue.

We were also able to showcase the extended range of guides we have produced in Slovenian and Bulgarian. In these cases, IOSH worked with local safety organisations to convert and adapt the English NTTL guides to reflect the situation in those countries, something we wish to do more of.

Our campaign highlights prevention as key. Focus on eliminating or minimising the risk first, and we eliminate or minimise the need to deal with the terrible after-effects. This message was well received and was mirrored in a number of the speeches.

The No Time to Lose campaign aims to get the causes of occupational cancer better understood and help businesses take action.

As our campaign points out, an estimated 666,000 people die from work-related cancers each year, including some 100,000 in Europe alone. This is clearly a global problem, requiring global action, so the more countries that tackle occupational exposures, the greater the chances of reducing these terrible, yet so very avoidable, workplace deaths.

If you would like to see NTTL promoted in your country, or would like to know more about this campaign, please let us know on [email protected].

Andrew Baldwin, Public Affairs Adviser, IOSH

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7 ways to help your employees return to work after cancer

Work is good for health and keeping people in work is good for business – this includes those living with cancer. There’s plenty of guidance on how to help people who are ill stay in work or return to work, including IOSH’s own guide ‘A healthy return’. While the processes and good practice approaches required for successful rehabilitation would appear to be consistent for all types of ill health, when it comes to specific health and safety issues, there’s little direct evidence to support this assumption when it comes to cancer.

IOSH recently published the ‘Return to work after cancer: occupational safety and health considerations’ report to understand the implications of returning to work after cancer. Here are a few ways that we’ve identified to help make the return easier for employees and employers.

Tailor your approach to the individual – this could include introducing a phased return to work or implementing flexible working. Make sure that you have developed a written plan for the return.

Keep in constant communication throughout - meet formally and informally, keep key people involved throughout, including managers, HR, occupational health and OSH practitioners.

Introduce a return-to-work policy, if you don’t already have one – make sure it covers all illnesses including cancer, and be sure to involve OSH practitioners in the development of the policy.

Risk assess work tasks – think about this while employees are going through treatment as well as when they return to work. All assessments should take into consideration individual needs and risks, and be reviewed regularly.

Try to reduce further risks – take all elements into consideration including the commute, meetings with clients and work tasks. Try to reduce or eliminate the possibility of risk, particularly around fatigue and infection

Keep key people up-to-date – share information with HR, line managers and OSH practitioners and consider training if necessary.

Identify barriers to returning - would the role stop someone coming back? What symptoms need to be considered? Think about physical, as well as psychological, barriers.

You can download the full report on the IOSH website if you’d like to know more.

I also recently hosted a webinar around the health and safety implications of returning to work after cancer and treatment. You can watch a recording here.

Kate Field Head of Information and Intelligence, IOSH

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Today is #WorldCancerDay! Join us to show that #WeCanICan make a difference in the global fight against #cancer. http://thndr.me/Q0eDAl

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Britain puts the spotlight on cancer

We were pleased to exhibit our No Time to Lose campaign at the Britain Against Cancer Conference 2016 at Central Hall, Westminster, in London this week (Tuesday 6 December).  

The conference was an opportunity for NHS professionals, patients, third sector organisations, policy experts, carers, and commercial organisations to get together and ensure that cancer stays high on the agenda for the top decision-makers in the country.

Ensuring that cancer stays high on the agenda for the top decision-makers in the country

We believe that a fundamental change is needed in how well the country manages occupational health and the importance of a strong multi-disciplinary approach.  We have long advocated for health needs to be managed more systematically, in the same way that safety is, to help prevent work related ill-health and life-threatening diseases such as cancer.  

In Britain alone, it is estimated that around 8,000 people die from occupational cancers annually. These cancers are caused by exposure to harmful substances such as asbestos and silica dust, to diesel fumes and solar radiation.

Occupational cancers are all preventable, therefore it was particularly interesting to hear Simon Stevens, Chief Executive of NHS England speak on the government’s prevention agenda.

Our No Time to Lose campaign is an initiative which aims to raise awareness of cancer caused by work and provide businesses with free practical resources to help prevent exposure to harmful substances. We exhibited the campaign at the conference and it was fantastic to see so many delegates interested in getting involved and taking away the free resources.

Judith McNulty Green talking about our No Time to Lose campaign

I personally found the presentation by Kate Corney, a patient representative living with cancer very powerful. It brought home to me the importance of occupational safety and health professionals as part of a multi-disciplinary team, to manage health issues at work. It also highlighted the need for IOSH’s guidance on managing occupational health for our members and the wider community, for example our Healthy return – Good practice guide to rehabilitating people at work and Occupational health management in the workplace guide.

There is still so much to do and opportunities to take. We need to ensure that our messages are heard in the right places, such as in the consultation on Improving Working Lives – the Work, Health and Disability Green Paper, and consider how we can work better with other professionals in the area of occupational health management in the workplace.

An important time to be involved in health debates going forward!

Judith McNulty Green, Technical Information Manager, IOSH.

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Changing working conditions in Europe: Moving towards better work

IOSH attended a presentation on Thursday 17 November of the Sixth European Working Conditions Survey (EWCS) by Eurofound, the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions at a conference jointly organised by Eurofound and the European Parliament’s Committee on Employment and Social Affairs (EMPL).

We were interested to gather information on key aspects of the quality of work from a health, wellbeing and welfare perspective, and to gain a better understanding of actual and future structural drivers of change affecting the workforce.

Working conditions and job quality are a high priority on the European policy agenda. Previous research studies show consistently that job quality has a critical role in shaping the society we live in. It has a direct effect on, for example, workers’ health and well-being, work-life balance and length of working life. Good job quality has been shown to increase productivity and provide an important contribution to wider social objectives such as gender equality. In short, better job quality translates into better living and working conditions for all.

The pan-European survey covers more than 43,000 face-to-face interviews with workers in 35 European countries. The survey’s main objectives are to:

measure working conditions across Europe using a common methodology

analyse relationships between different aspects of working conditions

identify groups at risk and issues of concern, as well as areas of progress

monitor trends over time

contribute to policy development, particularly on quality of work and employment issues.

The research devised seven job quality indices, representing different dimensions of job quality, selected on the basis of their proven impact (positive or negative) on the health and wellbeing of workers. These were:

physical environment

work intensity

working time quality

social environment

skills and discretion

prospects

earnings.

Discussions at the conference tackled key topics such as gender inequality, work intensity, the ageing workforce and other changes in the world of work.

Conversations specific to OSH highlighted the following areas for improvement:

unclear boundaries in working conditions accentuate workplace risks

the need to continue exploring working time quality and its links to health and wellbeing

the inclusion of diversity in risk assessments.

Research on the physical environment has demonstrated that the exposure of men and women to physical risks differs markedly, depending on sector and occupation.

Comparing survey data over the last decade reveals that exposure to noise has decreased in the EU28 significantly, while exposure to chemical and infectious products has increased.

Other points of interest

This data-compiling exercise is not limited to Europe. Some countries outside Europe (US, South Korea, China and to a lesser extent some Latin American countries) are developing surveys using the EWCS framework. Cooperation with the International Labour Organization will continue in this field. In 2017, the first comparative analysis building on the results of these surveys will be carried out, which will be a fascinating and potentially valuable resource.

Dr Brendan Burchell (Cambridge University), a member of the advisory committee, says that the report is written in a way that will facilitate wider use. International comparisons like these tend to encourage “competition” between countries.

The interactive data visualisation tool in the survey may be seen by employers as a means of benchmarking the quality of their working environments.

Links

Sixth European Working Conditions Survey – Overview report

Sixth European Working Conditions Survey – Overview report: Executive summary 

Sixth European Working Conditions Survey - Data visualisation

Ivan Williams -  Research and Development Adviser

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Promoting a sustainable working life

We’re pleased to support the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work’s (EU-OSHA) campaign, ‘Healthy workplaces for all ages’.

The initiative aims to promote sustainable work and healthy ageing throughout people’s working lives, provide employers and employees with information and tools to help manage the occupational safety and health of an ageing workforce, and facilitate the exchange of good practice in this area.

Many countries have ageing workforces, with retirement ages rising and working lives becoming longer. EU-OSHA estimates that, by 2030, workers aged 55 to 64 will make up 30 percent or more of the population in many European countries.

More and more organisations are recognising the many benefits of sustainable workplace practices, promoting the longevity and wellbeing of their workforces. These organisations understand that an investment in the safety and health of their employees is good for the individual, helps their business succeed, and benefits society as a whole.

An ageing workforce, however, can raise employment challenges and opportunities. For example, longer working lives may result in longer exposure to risks, more chronic health problems and specific needs, and greater vulnerability to certain safety and health hazards.

To tackle the issue, employers can deliver proactive age management, as outlined in Age Action Alliance’s employer toolkit, including better designed work and workplace adjustment; training, retraining and redeployment; flexible working; and phased retirement.

Occupational safety and health (OSH) professionals can support the management of an older workforce through diversity-sensitive risk assessment and also help dispel myths and unhelpful stereotypes. 

This week is European Week for Safety and Health at Work. Hundreds of events will be taking place across Europe to promote sustainable working lives. You can get involved by downloading the free ‘Healthy workplaces for all ages’ campaign resources to help raise awareness in your workplace.

IOSH has also produced materials on the topic, including the free Occupational health management in the workplace guide, which was published last week. The guide aims to provide OSH professionals with the thinking and knowledge to assess whether their employers or clients are managing health risks sufficiently. Some of our branches have held, or are due to hold, events on the subject and I was delighted to share our campaign resources recently with our East Anglia Branch.

We’d like to hear about the activities you organise during European Week for Safety and Health at Work. Please let us know by emailing [email protected].

Judith McNulty-Green, Policy Adviser, IOSH

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What is wellbeing?

‘Wellbeing’ is everywhere you look at the moment, but what is it?

There are a number of definitions of ‘wellbeing’ within the context of personal and working lives. What’s more, not all countries use the term ‘wellbeing’. For example, in mainland Europe, ‘workplace health promotion’ is often used, while other parts of the world use the term ‘wellness’.

The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development defines workplace wellbeing as ‘creating an environment to promote a state of contentment which allows an employee to flourish and achieve their full potential for the benefit of themselves and their organisation’. With this definition, workplace wellbeing activities can be viewed as value-added activities that promote awareness of individual physical and mental health to foster greater engagement and satisfaction at work.

It’s important to remember that workplace wellbeing initiatives are not a replacement for the effective identification and control of physical and mental health risks that arise from work. Physical and mental health issues caused by work are still on the increase and take a huge toll on the individuals affected, the businesses employing them and society as a whole. Businesses must focus on, and invest in, addressing these risks before supporting broader workplace wellbeing activities.

IOSH is launching a new guide ‘Occupational health management in the workplace’ on 19 October 2016, during Great Britain Health and Wellbeing Week. ‘Occupational health management in the workplace’ examines why health has, for a long time, been the Cinderella to safety, before providing guidance on understanding health risks in the workplace. It also provides guidelines on what businesses need to consider and do, and when they need to get expert help.

The second part of the guide examines the aspects businesses need to consider when providing occupational health services. These services are important to effective health management, and yet navigating the complexities of providing them can be daunting, not to mention expensive. The guide takes you through some of the main issues to think about, whether you’re providing the services in-house, or using an occupational health service provider.

You’ll be able to download your free copy of the guide from Wednesday 19 October. Keep an eye on our website, as well as our Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn channels. 

Kate Field, Head of Information and Intelligence, IOSH

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Mental health at work – we need to talk, train and act

For this year’s World Mental Health Day I’m delighted to support today’s launch of the UK’s ‘National employee mental health survey’ report, which urges more employers to talk, train and take action. IOSH is pleased to join Business in the Community and CIPD, The Institute of Leadership and Management, MIND and The Work Foundation, as well as industry leaders and other supporters.

These survey findings reinforce the themes from IOSH’s ‘Promoting mental health and work’ parliamentary events, where we highlighted good practice and the many benefits for employees and organisations of managing mental health well, publicising IOSH’s free guides and tools to policy-makers and employers.

Our guidance and tools provide either operational or strategic corporate guidance on a range of health and safety issues

Beginning at the starting point that ‘good work’ is good for health and wellbeing and that all work should be safe, healthy and supportive, we stress the need for better designed and managed work through improved education, training and awareness. We provide examples, showcasing some of the many employers reaping considerable gains from promoting mental health at work and share findings from research linking positive feelings about work with higher productivity, profitability and customer and worker loyalty.

As well as our collaboration with Healthy Working Lives Scotland on the ‘Train 2015’ initiative, IOSH is now funding research into return-to-work following common mental disorders, due to report in 2017. More recently, I was pleased to be involved in this year’s ‘Mental health awareness week’ and, as part the Health in construction leadership group, IOSH is now supporting the development of the Mates in Mind scheme to promote positive mental health in the sector.

So, I’m really grateful to those IOSH members who promoted this survey, helping capture the voices of nearly 20,000 people employed in the UK. The report paints a concerning picture, highlighting a mismatch between employees’ experience and leaders’ perceptions. For example, 60 per cent of board members and senior managers believe their organisations support people with mental health problems – but 50 per cent of employees wouldn’t discuss their mental health with their line manager and only around 25 per cent of employees with poor mental health approached someone at work for support the last time they experienced it.

The study also highlights the problem that line managers may be dealing with issues they have little knowledge of. It found that while 76 per cent of line managers believe employee wellbeing is part of their responsibility, just 22 per cent have received training on mental health at work. Worryingly, 80 per cent say that they face barriers to supporting team members with mental health problems and 63 per cent say they feel obliged to put corporate interests before the wellbeing of colleagues – every day, often or sometimes.

The report urges more employers: to ‘talk’, taking the employer’s pledge and breaking the silence around mental health; to ‘train’, investing in basic mental health literacy and first aid training in mental health; and to take action, asking all staff about their experiences and closing any gaps between what’s committed to and what’s experienced.

Supporting the report, Dame Carol Black underlines the importance of more widely available mental health training for managers, early intervention and visible senior leadership. As health and safety professionals, IOSH members work across all sectors and sizes of organisations and have a valuable role to play in helping employers to manage mental health at work. So, I’d like to echo the important points made by Dame Carol and her comment about those respondents who’ve generously shared their experiences, including IOSH members, which is “We owe it to them to listen and to act now.”

Richard Jones, Head of Policy and Public Affairs

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Triggers and signs of mental ill health

Despite all the good work that’s being done to normalise conversations around mental health, stigma does still exist, which makes it hard for people to feel that they can talk openly about their mental wellbeing, particularly in the workplace. It’s vital that more is done to encourage discussions about mental health, between colleagues and also between staff and their managers. To help tackle the stigma, Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) England is calling on everyone to ‘Take 10 Together’ and have a 10-minute conversation with a friend, family member, or colleague to start a conversation about mental health and find out more about Mental Health First Aid.

We all have mental health just as we have physical health, but it can seem more difficult to spot the signs of mental ill health. Here, MHFA England has put together some common triggers and signs of mental ill health to look out for in the workplace.

Triggers

People often undergo significant life changes without developing a mental health issue. But significant changes in someone’s work or personal life, including happy events, can prove stressful and challenging to adapt to.

Here are just some of the sorts of circumstances which might trigger mental ill health:  

Personal life changes:

Bereavement

Divorce or relationship breakdown

Having children

Health scares or physical illness

Changes at work:  

Starting a new job

Coping with an increased workload or a promotion

Poor relationships with colleagues or managers

Redundancy, or fear of redundancy.

Signs to spot

Recognising a mental health issue is the first step in accessing the support needed to recover. Some signs of common mental health issues include:

Physical

Frequent headaches or stomach upsets

Suffering from frequent minor illnesses

Difficulty sleeping or constant tiredness

Being run down

Lack of care over appearance

Sudden weight loss or gain.

Emotional and behavioural

Irritability, aggression or tearfulness

Being withdrawn, not participating in conversations or social activities

Increased arguments or conflict with others

Erratic or socially unacceptable behaviour

Loss of humour

Indecision, inability to concentrate

Increased consumption of caffeine, alcohol, cigarettes and/or sedatives

Being louder or more exuberant than usual

Loss of confidence

Difficulty remembering things.

At work

Look out for these signs in the workplace that an employee may need support with their mental health:

Increased errors, missing deadlines or forgetting tasks

Taking on too much work and volunteering for every new project

Working too many hours – first in, last out, emailing out of hours or while on holiday

An employee who is normally punctual frequently arriving late

Increased sickness absence

Becoming fixated with fair treatment and quick to use grievance procedures.

 For more guidance around how to approach and respond to a colleague who may be experiencing a mental health issue download the free Line Managers’ Resource at mhfaengland.org/workplace/line-managers-resource

To find out how employers can support the wellbeing of their staff and demonstrate their commitment to World Mental Health Day, visit mhfaengland.org and download the free MHFA England Take 10 Together toolkit.

Natasha Gordon, Mental Health Project Manager – Wellcome Trust

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What employers can do to better protect pregnant and new mothers at work

A recent UK parliamentary report has called for more protection to be given to pregnant women and new mothers at work following a “shocking” increase in discrimination over the past 10 years.

The new report, by the House of Commons Women and Equalities Committee, showed the number of expectant and new mothers forced to leave their job because of concerns about the safety of their child or pregnancy discrimination has doubled over the past decade to 54,000.

Pregnancy is not an illness. Therefore, women should not be signed off sick simply because they are pregnant.

The report also highlights more than one in 10 of pregnant women and new mothers reported being dismissed, singled out for compulsory redundancy or forced out of their job by poor treatment, according to research by the former Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC).

According to Committee chairwoman Maria Miller, there are now record numbers of women in work in the UK. In an interview with the Express following the publication of the report, she said: “The economy will suffer unless employers modernise their workplace practices to ensure effective support and protection for expectant and new mums.”

IOSH is committed to providing guidance and good practice to ensure businesses can confidently invest in a culture of care to its workers. In turn, this will make businesses more profitable and resilient.

In Great Britain, around 440,000 women each year continue to work during their pregnancy and approximately two-thirds return to work soon after giving birth. Pregnancy is not an illness. Therefore, women should not be signed off sick simply because they are pregnant.

In workplaces, some risks can affect the health and safety of new and expectant mothers and that of their child. Working conditions which are usually considered to be acceptable may no longer be suitable during pregnancy and/or for breastfeeding or may need to be reviewed.

Here is some information and resources available for employers:

The HSE provides some useful information on what you must consider if you have any new or expectant mothers in your workplace. It will help employers and employees understand what their responsibilities are and what they need to do to comply with the law. The site also contains FAQs on risk assessments, specific risks and a brief guide to health and safety.

Download an example risk assessment checksheet from Sheffield Occupational Health Advisory Service. The checklist includes movements and postures, manual handling, work equipment and extremes of cold and heat.

A factsheet including gender issues in risk assessments from the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work.

Advice from the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) on managing attendance and employee turnover.

Guidance for employers and occupational health practitioners on using fit notes (statements of fitness for work).

For more information on pregnancy in the workplace, please visit our occupational health toolkit, which has additional information not only for employers but for employees.

Kate Field, IOSH Head of Information and Intelligence.

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Celebrating the outstanding achievements of our volunteers

We want to recognise the efforts and achievements of our volunteers in promoting occupational safety and health.

The Excellence in Communication Award is open to IOSH members who have shown tremendous efforts through their networks in communicating, supporting and engaging with other members throughout the year.   

And this year’s award is now open.

To help, here are some hints and tips to consider when submitting your application.

When submitting your entry, make sure you explain not only the process behind your initiative but the benefits that come from it.

Think about whether or not your project can be used by other Branches and Groups. Try not to make your project niche – demonstrate that others can use it too.

Your project, initiative or tool doesn’t necessarily have to be applicable to just IOSH members. It can be aimed at all in the occupational safety and health profession.

Avoid jargon and acronyms.

How collaborative was your project? Tell us who you worked with to achieve results. How did your idea come about and how did you do it?

Finally, and perhaps most importantly of all, read the judging criteria and refer back to it throughout your application.

You can find out more about the Excellence in Communication Award on our website including an entry form, more on the judging criteria and the benefits of winning. The closing date is 25 September 2016.

The very best of luck.

Matt Rockley, Head of Networks and Julie Farmer, Groups Manager.

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The road to improving work-related travel

Every day there are nearly 3,400 road deaths around the world. With the 120th anniversary of the UK’s first road death being commemorated today (Wednesday 17 August), Dr David Gold CMIOSH highlights the issue of work-related road safety.

Road safety is a critical occupational health and safety issue.

The World Health Organization reports that 30 per cent of all road crashes are work-related.

Different cultures, laws, customs and infrastructure can make every trip by road a risk – and being safer on the road isn’t just about being a safer driver.

For people travelling the world for work, there are additional road safety considerations that should be taken into account.

There are two critical steps in mitigating road safety risks: think safety and know the roads.

Think safety

 Emerging markets, remote locations, travel fatigue and unfamiliarity with local road rules and driving culture can increase the risk of work-related road crashes.

Taking the time therefore to become familiar with the roads in the destination country is critical to pre-judging the level of road safety risk.

As well as the roadworthiness of vehicles and the physical condition of the roads, key road safety risk factors that need to be considered also include speed, drink-driving, use of motorcycle helmets, seat-belts and child restraints, and increasingly, distraction.

While many countries are taking steps to adopt and enforce legislation relating to these risk factors, business travellers need to be extra cautious and aware of these risks when travelling abroad.

Companies should also consider carefully whether it is appropriate that they allow their mobile workers to drive themselves in certain destinations around the world.

Know the roads 

Travelling by road in a foreign country takes forward planning.

Things taken for granted in the home country, like traffic signs and road conditions, may be completely different overseas.

Sometimes the safest option is not to drive at all.

If the rules of the road, highway conditions or local language are unknown, it may be better to arrange transportation with a trusted and vetted provider.

The key is to understand the risks, get the facts, and take steps to protect the traveller’s safety.

Planning can help mitigate and prepare for road safety issues that may be encountered.

Preparing to be road-safe when abroad is not just for drivers and passengers.

Mobile workers should take the time to become familiar with the roads as pedestrians, and to stay alert and avoid walking near or on roads after dark.

Checklist

Before setting off on a work-related journey, it is worth considering:

The departure time and traffic conditions at that time, for example in peak hours

journey duration and the need to plan for rest breaks

terrain (for example, single-lane or mountainous terrain) and the effect on driving speed and arrival time

climate, which may require planning for additional vehicle safety features, such as wheel chains if there is ice or snow on the road

visibility – how weather or pollution can affect visibility, and the need for a motorcyclist to wear a reflective vest to improve visibility to others

route selection – whether the route being planned is safe, what risks the traveller may be exposed to and whether it is safe to travel alone

communication coverage – how easy or hard it is to contact others in case of a crash or vehicle breakdown. Who else has been informed of the journey and what arrangements have been made for them to check in with the traveller?

emergency support – are there road traffic authorities along the planned route? Is it possible to access a hospital if required?

driver services – in high-risk countries can driver services be made available or can the worker be collected by a colleague?

ground transportation services – a list of recommended safe ground transportation services should be developed and be provided to travellers.

Dr David Gold is a chartered member of IOSH and senior consultant to the International SOS Foundation.

The information contained within this blog is published in ‘Managing the safety, health and security of mobile workers: an occupational safety and health practitioner’s guide’, compiled by Dr Gold and IOSH staff. It was released by IOSH and the International SOS Foundation earlier this year. The guidance on road safety was sourced from and supplied by the Global Road Safety Partnership (www.grsproadsafety.org).

The guide is one of a collection of free-to-access IOSH publications that can be downloaded at www.iosh.co.uk/resources

RoadPeace, the UK-based charity for road crash victims, is raising awareness of road safety by holding National Road Victim Month throughout August. Visit www.roadpeace.org for more details.

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Staying sun-safe at sporting events

If you’ve turned on the TV or radio, or scrolled through your phone or tablet newsfeed over the last week, you may have caught Team GB in action at the Rio Olympics.

Whether you’ve been following the rugby sevens, road cycling and rowing, or are looking forward to seeing the world’s best track and field athletes perform over the coming days, it is likely those competing outdoors will have factored sun exposure into their preparations.

The same goes for those working at sporting events. Referees and other officials need to consider protection from the sun, while those who work in and around the stadium or event should not be forgotten either.

This includes anyone who works on the ground during the week, particularly those working on the pitch. Stewards and even those undertaking other roles such as selling programmes may be overlooked as they only work for a short period on match or event days.

Then there are the spectators themselves, who can forget about everything else apart from what they have come watch. As secretary of the Rugby League Ground Safety Officers Association (RLGSOA) in the UK, I’ve seen, for example, spectators present themselves at the first-aid point feeling faint and realising that they are suffering heat stroke.

Lessons from summer rugby

Since 1996, rugby league has been played throughout the summer months. This brings with it a risk that may seem trivial compared with the more recognisable risk of injuries that accompany our intense and physical game, but the sun can be more damaging than we may realise.

Skin cancer is referenced in the Rugby Football League’s (RFL) Medical Standards and Community Game First Aid Standards. 

Within the Medical Standards, it states that medical staff should ensure players and coaching staff are aware of the increased risk of skin cancer from spending long periods of time in the sun.

Players and coaching staff should be advised to use an effective sunscreen, and where appropriate wear clothes and hats that provide protection. Medical staff should consider adding skin cancer screening to their annual screening programme.

The Community Game First Aid Standards also say that first-aiders should reinforce messages about using sunscreen to all players, and in particular to juniors.

Tiny changes in our behaviour on and off the pitch can be the difference between safety and risk.

For example, during one game at The Willows, the former home of Salford City Reds (now Salford Red Devils), a steward fainted and had to be treated by St John Ambulance staff.

It was a hot and sunny afternoon and he was feeling the effects of the sun. It didn’t help that this was the third match he had worked on that weekend.

Measures to take

For clubs and venues, it is really about making spectators aware of the potential problem. For those employed, such as the stewards, it is also about making sure that they are aware, and that they dress appropriately and use sunscreens.

But management should also ensure that stewards are rotated so that they get an opportunity to work in shaded areas as well as sunny areas, and also have drinks available.

The RLGSOA recognises that players, ground staff, stewards, officials and spectators could all be at risk of health problems from exposure to the sun. That is why it has signed up as a supporter of IOSH’s No Time to Lose campaign.

The association is not an employer but its membership is made up of representatives from each of the 39 professional and semi-professional rugby league clubs in the UK.

Details of the campaign are on the agenda for the association’s regular meetings and relevant campaign documentation is issued at the meetings. Members are able to take information back to their own clubs to use as they feel appropriate.

John’s top-five tips for sun safety at sporting events

Apply a broad spectrum sunscreen and re-apply as necessary

Wear light, loose fitting, long-sleeved clothing

Wear a hat, preferably wide-brimmed

Wear sunglasses with proper UV protection

Drink plenty – keep hydrated but avoid alcohol.

John Holden CFIOSH

John Holden is a chartered fellow and former president of IOSH. He is also a past chair of the IOSH Sports Grounds and Events Group and is currently secretary of the Rugby League Ground Safety Officers Association (RLGSOA).

The RLGSOA is among more than 150 organisations across the world to have pledged support to IOSH’s No Time to Lose occupational cancer campaign. For more information, including free-to-download resources, visit www.notimetolose.org.uk. The latest campaign information can also be found on Twitter by following @_NTTL.

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5 tips to get you back on track with your CPD

Taking part in Continuing Professional Development (CPD) not only helps create a structured career path and safeguard your professional status, it also helps you send a strong message to employers, clients and colleagues that you mean business when it comes to keeping your skills up-to-date in an ever-evolving world of work.

If you haven’t updated your CPD record in a while and want some tips on how to get back on track, here are five tips to get you started…

1. Take the plunge and put aside 40 minutes in your calendar at the end of each quarter. There is a plethora of apps out there for both iPhone and Android phones. Failing that, use your Outlook calendar or even a Post-it note. Whatever you use, put time aside and stick to it.

2. Sign into MyIOSH, click the MyCPD link at the top-left hand side of the screen and update your Development Plan for the next three to six months. If you haven’t yet set your plan up, consider some of the following:

What are my current main duties and responsibilities?

What knowledge, skills and experience do I need to demonstrate?

Do I need formal training?

Do I need to update any of my current knowledge or skills?

What are my career objectives?

3. Make every effort to upload the previous three months’ CPD activities that you’ve completed. You need to aim for a minimum of six activities per year, which works out at an activity every two months. You can always add more if you want to. You can break down a large project or training course into smaller activities, for example: modules, sections or elements, and spread the activities over a three- or six-month period.

4. Reflect on those activities by describing:

What the activity was

Why you carried out the activity

What you felt you gained or learned from carrying out the activity

How you intend to apply that knowledge in the future.

5. Remember, whatever stage you’re at with your CPD, whether you’ve started and come to a stop or in fact not started at all, help is always at hand.

Download our step-by-step CPD guidance document

We hold a free open webinar once a month for anyone who’d like to know more about the process. These provide a short presentation followed by a demo of how to use the relevant microsites. There’s also an opportunity to have questions answered. To book your place, please contact our bookings team either by email or by phoning [phone]. Here are dates for 2016.

Please remember, the IOSH Membership Team is here to help with whatever aspect of CPD you’re struggling with. Give us a call on [phone] or drop us an email. Emma Carter, IOSH Membership Manager