Introduction
In this week’s round-up, we cover the importance of inclusive workforce and inclusive workwear and a podcast by the British Safety Council to keep up to date to gain insights and keep up to date with all the industry information.
Prioritising Workplace Support for Employees with Health Conditions
This week’s news highlights how The Commission for Healthier Working Lives emphasises the need for improved support to help individuals with health challenges remain in the workforce. The data revealed that 20% of the UK population aged 16 to 64 years have a health condition that limits the type or amount of work they can do, while only 45% of workers have access to occupational health services. 10% of people leave employment each year, often due to long-term sickness or disability.
A more recent report urges individuals with health conditions to remain employed. While the number of people with health challenges who are still working has increased significantly by 64% these individuals are at much higher risk of leaving the work compared to people without health issues.
According to this report, mental health conditions and musculoskeletal disorders are the most common health issues affecting both employed and unemployed individuals. The Health Foundation’s analysis found that while most employers want to provide help and support but lack the knowledge to act effectively, small organisations often struggle with resourcing.
There should be a change from simply assisting those already out of work to prioritising support that helps individuals remain in employment. This approach is essential to reducing the number of people who become economically inactive due to health problems, which is worsened due to the pandemic to building a more inclusive workforce.
The Need for Inclusive PPE in the Workplace
There is slow progress toward inclusive PPE, while efforts have been made to bring more women into men-based industries, companies often fail to provide PPE designed for women, which causes discomfort and dissatisfaction. As a result, many women leave these roles due to inadequate PPE, which fails to fit properly or make them feel included.
One of the biggest challenges, according to Janson, is the organisational culture. Introducing inclusive PPE requires not only a decision to provide it but also changes in procurement processes and supplier relationships, which can be time-consuming and require more effort. This can have long-term benefits providing improved comfort, safety, and a sense of belongingness.
Debbie emphasises the need for a policy change. The standards and regulations need to be worded better to ensure that PPE is properly fitted to the person using it. Several reasons were highlighted of how ill-fitted PPE can cause such as women being laughed at or mocked at. People’s confidence and inclusivity are negatively affected. She talks about the importance of making people feel comfortable and inclusive in PPE which is a workwear for many professions.
New podcast series and support towards “Battery Breakdown”
British Safety Council has launched a new podcast series called Health and Safety Uncut, in which they invite selected guests to talk about important subjects that are straight to the point while being in a format that gets you thinking and understanding things deeply. The podcast was launched on the 4th of November and new episodes are released on the first Monday of every month. Hosted by the group director of safety, health, and wellbeing at Belron, Dr Shaun Davis.
The first guest on the podcast was Matt Humby, the Firecheif Global was the podcast’s first guest speaker who talked about lithium-ion batteries and the risks and hazards attached to it when not handled and stored properly with the surge of lithium battery-related fires in residential buildings and workplaces, it is a relevant topic. The British Safety Council announced its support towards the Battery Breakdown Campaign run by Electrical Safety First and supported by Matt Humby which aims to raise awareness of the risks from batteries to improve safety.
The rise of new technologies and the use of e-bikes and scooters has brought in new questions on the safety of the use of it all such as going to work. The campaign aims at securing a safe future for e-bikes and e-scooters.
This podcast will also be covering many other health, safety, and environment-related topics such as issues related to alcohol and drugs or sustainability which provides well-rounded information on making the workplace a healthier and happier place.
To read more on these topics, please find the links to the articles here:
https://www.shponline.co.uk/anticipate-london/making-a-difference-around-ppe-debbie-janson/
