The dangers of asbestos are a subject we've covered time and again here on the Label Source blog, but we're continuing to see story after story about people who don't take those dangers seriously enough, and about the consequences that this attitude can lead to.
The latest such story was publish only today by the Worcester News.
Story and photograph from www.worcesternews.co.uk
Back in October 2013, Christopher Whitehead Language College in Worcester hired two 18-year-old workers to remove an asbestos roof from a small lean-to building on the school grounds. The pair accomplished this by knocking the asbestos down from atop the building before double-bagging the material and disposing of it.
If you've ever heard the line about how 'asbestos is perfectly safe as long as it isn't disturbed'*, you'll spot the problem with this method right away. By knocking the asbestos roof down, the two workers at Christopher Whitehead School no doubt released a great number of asbestos fibres into the air and risked inhaling them. While asbestos exposure causes no instantaneous harm, more than 4 thousand people die every year in the UK from slow-acting asbestos-related conditions such as mesothelioma. And while the work was carried out during the October half-term holiday, this doesn't necessarily mean that the two workmen were the only people at risk here, as this story from the British Lung Foundation illustrates.
So here we are, saying it again: asbestos fibres are deadly and every measure should be taken in order to keep them from being released into the air and potentially breathed in. Knocking apart an asbestos roof is very dangerous; indeed, this was recognised in a complaint about the work at Christopher Whitehead School by public service union Unison. This complaint was upheld by the Health and Safety Executive, who reprimanded the school for poor health and safety practices.
Click here for more information on how to deal with asbestos safely, or visit our Asbestos Signs & Labels department to browse our full range of asbestos safety products.
*From the HSE's web page on asbestos: "As long as asbestos is in good condition and is not disturbed there is negligible risk. However, if it is disturbed or damaged, it can become a danger to health, because asbestos fibres are released into the air and people may breathe them in."
If your business is based in the Republic of Ireland and you need high-quality asset tags produced to your own unique specifications, we at Label Source can help. We frequently supply bespoke asset tags to clients in Ireland, and no matter what you require, we are confident that our experienced design team are capable of providing a suitable solution.
We offer the following options for customers ordering asset tags from the Label Source website:
- Materials: aluminium foil, self-adhesive polyester, self-adhesive vinyl, tamper-evident polyester, tamper-proof destructible vinyl
- Numbering Systems: code 128 bar codes, code 39 bar codes, interleaved 2 of 5 bar codes, numbering only, no numbers/bar codes
- Custom text, specified by yourself
- A wide variety of sizes and colours
Our asset tags are supplied in rolls of 500 labels per pack. Delivery charges for the Republic of Ireland are as follows:
- Order Value £20-£49.99 // Delivery Cost £17.85
- Order Value £50-£99.99 // Delivery Cost £20.95
- Order Value £100-£249.99 // Delivery Cost £24.40
- Order Value £250-£499.99 // Delivery Cost £31.30
- Order Value £500-£999.99 // Delivery Cost £39
Click here to browse our full range of asset tagging products, or visit our Asset Tag Builder if you'd like to customise your tags yourself.
There was worrying news from the HSE (Health & Safety Executive) this week: workplace fatalities are becoming more common in the United Kingdom, with 2015/16 seeing a slight increase in deaths compared to 2014/15.
According to provisional figures, there have been 144 workplace fatalities in the UK over the past 12 months - that's 2 more than the 2014/15 total of 142 (source). Not a huge difference, you may think, but it's shocking to learn that the annual number of fatal accidents has gone up at all; with safety practices now better (and regulations stricter) than ever, we really ought to be seeing a sizeable decrease in workplace deaths from one year to the next.
Chris Green, a partner at a law firm based in Liverpool, responded to the HSE's latest figures with the following statement (originally published on www.liverpoolecho.co.uk):
"One death in the workplace is too many and employers must do more to ensure the safety of their staff when on the job. Initiatives such as visible boardroom involvement and leadership of safety culture programmes have been shown to reduce accidents at a time when the costs of not doing enough to ensure safety are higher than ever before."
It is somewhat depressing to have to revisit this lesson so soon after Health & Safety Week, but this news demonstrates that the theme for H&S Week 2016 - 'Inspiring excellence in health & safety' - is one that a lot of UK businesses could stand to think about. "Employers must do more", said Mr Green, and unless we as a country want to see that annual death toll continue to rise, we all need to ask ourselves if there's more we could be doing in our own offices, warehouses, and work sites. Have you identified all potential risks that your employees face? What are you doing to address those risks and prevent the worst from happening?
For more health and safety commentary and insight, be sure to follow Label Source on Twitter or Facebook.
We sell a wide range of tags, labels and signs here at Label Source, all of which have certain applications around the workplace. But what if you want to create a notice of your own? What if you've printed out some important information on A4 paper, and now you need a way of displaying it prominently around your premises?
Actually, we can help with situations like this as well. Our clear plastic document pockets are perfect for notices and documents that need to be clearly exhibited in the workplace; the pockets come in a variety of different sizes (A3, A4, A5 and A7) and orientations (portrait/landscape), giving you an easy way to convey printed information to your colleagues.
Our best-selling document pockets come with self-adhesive backing that allows the user to simply attach the pocket (and the document therein) to the appropriate surface with zero hassle or fuss. However, if our self-adhesive document pockets aren't suitable for your needs, we offer a variety of other attachement methods, including:
To browse our document pocket range and place your order online, please click here.
One ever-popular health and safety issue on social media concerns the dangerous practices that people continue to engage in when working at height.
Incredulous bystanders, armed with their mobile phones, are able to photograph the latest misuse of ladders or steps as workers foolishly attempt to defy the laws of gravity.
Inadequately prepared, these 'cowboy builders' often improvise means of reaching areas well outside their reach. They have supreme confidence in their abilities, which - they seem to believe - include everything from the balance and the dexterity of a trained gymnast to the strength of a strongman and the analytical capabilties of a mathematician. The ladder structures often balance precariously, sometimes aided by assistants who have to support the structure with brute strength while the ladder user is fully extended from the topmost rung.
However, health and safety statistics reveal that falls from height continue to be the most common type of fatal accident, accounting for 29% of all UK workplace deaths in 2014-15. Also, it is a major contributor to loss of working days due to recovery from injuries sustained through falling. Regrettably, these figures remain stubbornly high, showing no indication of decreasing.
So, as the bystanders capture the action, they have every reason to fear the worst, as things are likely to have a sad ending - if not today, then in the future, as luck and extremely good fortune cannot go on forever.
All photos from @davidgcant on Twitter. Be sure to follow @LabelSourceUK if you're a Twitter user yourself!
