HSE targets Building Sites

A month long inspection in the construction industry has revealed that 40% of sites examined by the HSE are failing to protect their workers, and that 1 in 5 sites were in such a poor condition that formal enforcement was required.

The most common failing was a lack of safety when working at height, whilst 35% of notices were due to issues such as asbestos, noise and vibration and exposure to harmful dusts.

Steve Murphy the secretary of the construction workers’ union said “”These findings are simply appalling. Time after time employers are putting workers in danger. The HSE inspections only touch a tiny fraction of construction sites and most construction workers never see an HSE inspector unless a major accident has occurred.

The HSE Chief of Construction Phillip White echoes the message of the construction workers’ union adding, “The inability to properly plan working at height continues to be a major issue, despite well-known safety measures being straightforward to implement. It is just not acceptable that Inspectors had to order work to stop immediately on over 200 occasions because of dangerous practices.”

“We also find health is often overlooked as its implications are not immediately visible, however the effects of uncontrolled exposure to deadly dusts such as asbestos and silica can be irreversible. We urge industry to ensure the most basic of measures such as use of protective equipment and dust suppression methods are put in place to help protect the future health of workers.”

Working with hundreds of construction companies, Citation has built up a wealth of experience in providing specific Health & Safety advice for building sites.