Understanding Safety: What is smart PPE?
Understanding Safety: What is smart PPE? ANDY TILLEARD EHS Consultant EazySAFE PPE (personal protective equipment) has long been recognised as a useful tool in providing a barrier between a person and a hazard. We are all familiar with high visibility vests, hard hats and safety footwear which are probably the most common items of PPE used throughout the industry on a daily basis. Covid-19 has also raised our awareness of both PPE and RPE (respiratory protective equipment) in…
Risk Assessment
Risk Assessment GEMMA COLLINS DOYLE EHS Consultant EazySAFE We hear the term risk assessments bandied about all the time regarding health and safety. However, from my experience, many people are unaware of how important they are, what they are and how they really are the foundation of ensuring you are adhering to health and safety legislation and maintaining your health and safety management system. In simple terms, a risk assessment is a thorough examination of what, in a workplace, could cause harm,…
Planning Your Return to Work
Planning Your Return to work JENNY COLLINS EHS Consultant EazySAFE The Irish Government have issued an easing of COVID-19 restrictions with a phased return to the office, emphasising flexibility from 20 September 2021. This brings a lot of consideration and yet more change for Organisations. COVID-19 forced a mandatory ‘work from home’ arrangement from March 2020. Overnight, employers and employees had to create new ways of working and engaging from a distance, to regain autonomy…
Outline of Global Sustainability in OHS
Outline of Global Sustainability in OHS ANDY TILLEARD EHS Consultant EazySAFE What is sustainability? A common definition for sustainability, in general, is to ensure that we have "…ability to meet the needs of the current generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs." It fundamentally relates to the available resources that we have and how we optimise these for today and tomorrow. It is an issue that has a history; for example,…
Fatigue in the workplace
Fatigue in the Workplace? ANDY TILLEARD EHS Consultant EazySAFE Many day-to-day hazards are easy to identify in the workplace; workplace vehicles, chemicals, noise and many others have physical characteristics which make them easy to recognise and assess. However, fatigue is a workplace hazard that is not always so easy to identify, but it can be present in the workplace all of the time to varying degrees and be embedded into the organisation's management and workforce. What makes…
Rebuilding the Workplace
Rebuilding the Workplace LISA QUINN O'FLAHERTY Solicitor Fitzsimons Redmond Never before have we had such a blank slate to shape our workplaces to suit the needs of all stakeholders. Office workers have kept businesses afloat over the last year and a half from their own homes. They have proven that the model where everybody works from a central office is both unnecessary and outdated. Workers have shown that targets can be met while working from…
Bullying and Harassment
Bullying and Harassment LISA QUINN O'FLAHERTY Solicitor Fitzsimons Redmond Bullying and harassment at work are risks to be monitored and mitigated. Workplaces that deal inappropriately with bullying leave themselves open to the high turnover of staff, lost productivity, absenteeism, civil claims in respect of stress, bullying and harassment and even claims for constructive dismissal. They may also find themselves in breach of Health and Safety legislation for failing to prevent stress-related injuries. As well as the impact on the…
Vaccinating against workplaces issues
Vaccinating against Workplace issues LISA QUINN O'FLAHERTY Solicitor Fitzsimons Redmond As businesses reopen, and employers contemplate bringing workers back to the physical workplace, there remains a duty to ensure a safe place of work for all employees and the people who come onto their premises. Precautions must be taken to protect workers and others from contracting Covid-19. One way of ensuring this is done safely is to request that all employees avail of a Covid-19 vaccination. It must be noted that the Department of Enterprise,…
The Right to Disconnect
The Right to Disconnect LISA QUINN O'FLAHERTY Solicitor Fitzsimons Redmond Ready access to technology, coupled with the steep rise in remote and hybrid work, has allowed the lines between work life and home life to become blurred. Many workers will check in on emails and take calls outside of their usual working hours. While flexibility from both employees and employers is particularly appreciated in times of crisis, an expectation to be always available can lead to stress and burn-out for employees. …
Reporting Covid-19 risks. Is your business ready?
Reporting Covid-19 risks. Is your business ready? ANDY TILLEARD EHS Consultant EazySAFE As the Covid-19 pandemic bites deeper, some workers are understandably becoming concerned about how their employer implements government Covid-19 guidelines. They may hold a different view from their employer on how their workplace should be kept/made safe.They may see shortcomingsin how safety procedures are being put in place, and how they are implemented in practice. They may feel unsafe in the workplace. Workers know that their employer is balancing not only the health and…