There is “considerable variation” in health and safety performance within the waste management industry and local authorities, the Environmental Services Association (ESA) has warned.
And, Stephen Freeland, policy advisor at the ESA told letsrecycle.com today that it is “disappointing” that ESA member companies within the waste sector as a whole are being equated to the poorer performers.
Comparison of ESA’s injury rate with the rest of the waste industry (Graph: ESA)
He explained that this inclusion of better with poorer performers, is because the current system of recording data of incidents does not recognise the improvements made by some organisations and companies in the sector. ESA has included a chart (right) which it shows the RIDDOR rate of ESA member companies compared to the rest of the waste industry.
Report
The points come in a health and safety report just published by the ESA which called for the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to produce more detailed data on health and safety performance, which should include disaggregating the private and public sector.
ESA raised concerns that while the health and safety standards of its members has improved, this level of injury reduction is not being matched by others in the industry.
In explanation, ESA said since the launch of its Accident Reduction Charter in 2004 (which commits ESA to year-on-year 10% injury reduction targets), ESA members have reduced injuries by over 85%.
And, ESA claims one of the main shortcomings of the HSE’s dataset is that it provides an indication of the health and safety performance for the industry as a whole and offers “little insight” into how one part compares against another.
Mr Freeland said that breaking down the statistics on performance within the waste sector would allow HSE to target key areas where more needs to be done.
‘Sobering’
Speaking in the wake of publication of the report, Mr Freeland said: “HSE’s injury statistics for the waste industry continue to make for rather sobering reading. What is perhaps less obvious from analysis of these statistics is the wide variation that exists within the waste industry, with some elements clearly performing better than others.
“ESA Members have achieved a significant reduction in injuries over recent years and our injury rate now stands at 577 (per 100,000 employees) which is three times lower than the injury rate reported by HSE for the waste industry as a whole (1801).
Stephen Freeland
ESA
“ESA Members have achieved a significant reduction in injuries over recent years and our injury rate now stands at 577 (per 100,000 employees) which is three times lower than the injury rate reported by HSE for the waste industry as a whole (1801).”
Mr Freeland said the report aims to highlight the contrasting performance, and offer a number of recommendations to ensure that everyone in the industry is working to the same high standards.
HSE’s statistics reveal fatalities in the industry to be around 15 times higher than the all-UK industry average, with 39 worker fatalities recorded since 2012.
According to the report, collection of materials at the kerbside is one of the most high risk aspects of waste industry activities. And, its data reveals that such activities account for nearly half of all injuries, with slips, trips and falls and manual handling injuries accounting for most injuries.
Recommendations
To drive health and safety performance upwards, ESA has called for effective and balanced procurement, which “properly considers and prioritises health and safety performance”.
This would include the publication of KPIs (key performance indicators) for health and safety, for contracts carried out both in-house by councils, and outsourced to waste management firms.
The Association also stressed that it is “vitally important” that representatives from all parts of the sector are engaged with WISH – the Waste Industry Safety and Health Forum. This includes local authorities, which the report notes, “exert considerable influence over the provision of waste collection services”.
And, ESA has recommended that HSE extends its National Lead Inspector (NLI) Initiative to include a broader range of organisations and should share its findings more widely.
According to ESA, the programme targets inspections at some of the UK’s largest waste management companies, including some of ESA’s Members. This involves more in-depth inspection, targeting key areas of risk within the company.
Safety awards: (December 2017) left, Sue Deane, divisional SHEQ coach at Biffa, and right, Paul Stokes, head of SHEQ at FCC, receiving their awards from Mike Robinson, chief executive, British Safety Council
There is no similar HSE programme of work directly involving the inspection of waste activities delivered by local authorities or by SMEs, ESA claims.
The Association has warned that without improvement “the industry could struggle to shrug off negative stereotypes: that it is dangerous and dirty work”.
Initiatives
ESA has taken the opportunity to praise work undertaken by its members to improve safety.
FCC Environment and Biffa were among 56 organisations worldwide to be awarded in 2017 the Sword of Honour from the British Safety Council, ESA reports.
And, the Association also highlighted initiatives by Viridor, Veolia, Cory Riverside Energy and Biffa.
Related links
ESA report
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Source: letsrecycle.com General
