Construction firms
across Great Britain will be targeted on their health standards by the Health
and Safety Executive (HSE) it has been announced.
These inspections will
be the first time the regulator has targeted the industry with a specific focus
on respiratory risks and occupational lung disease, looking at the measures
businesses have in place to protect their workers’ lungs from the likes of asbestos,
silica and wood dust.
Inspectors will be
visiting construction businesses and sites across the country throughout
October and will specifically be looking for evidence of construction workers
knowing the risks, planning their work and using the right controls, and if
necessary will use enforcement to ensure people are protected.
HSE’s Peter Baker,
chief inspector of construction said: “Around 100 times as many workers die
from diseases caused or made worse by their work than are killed in
construction accidents. Annually, work-related cancers, mainly linked to
asbestos and silica, are estimated to kill 3,500 people from the industry.
Thousands of others suffer life-changing illnesses from their work. Not all
lung diseases take years to develop. Some, like acute silicosis or occupational
asthma, can occur more quickly.
“As a result, we’ve
launched this inspection initiative to find out what exactly businesses in the
construction industry are doing today to protect their workers’ health,
particularly when it comes to exposure to dust and damage to lungs.
“We want construction
workers to be aware of the risks associated with the activities they carry out
on a daily basis; be conscious of the fact their work may create hazardous
dust; and consider how this could affect their health, in some cases irreversibly.
We want businesses and their workers to think of the job from start to finish
and avoid creating dust or disturbing asbestos by working in different ways. We
want to see construction firms encouraging their workers to firstly keep the
dust down and wear the right mask and clothing.
“Ultimately, we want
construction workers’ lungs to be protected from ill health, so they can go
home healthy to their families and enjoy long careers in this important
industry.”
