Collections most hazardous waste sector activity

The HSE says that 80% of all accidents in the sector occur during the collection of household and trade waste and that it is keen to work with supervisors and team leaders who it says play a critical role in managing collection crews.

In a bid to identify what competencies these leaders need to effectively manage these risks, the HSE has commissioned the Health and Safety Laboratory (HSL) to carry out some research.

Research

As part of the research the HSL is looking at whether responsibility for health and safety is clearly set out in the job descriptions of team leader and is covered in their training.
In addition it is looking for organisations to volunteer some of its supervisors, team leaders and collection crew members to take part in discussion groups.

The HSL will work with these organisations to:

• Identify what competencies supervisors and team leaders need to manage health and safety effectively. For example, what knowledge, skills attitudes and behaviours does a supervisor or team leader who manages health and safety effectively possess?
• Identify whether the training given to supervisors and team leaders provides an adequate basis for these competencies or whether there are further training needs.

Skills

Commenting on the importance of effectively managing health and safety, the HSE said: Supervisors and team leaders have a critical role in managing the health and safety of the collection crews and drivers. Promotion to supervisor or team leader is often based on an individuals experience and practical ability, and this credibility is very important when supervising a team on a day-to-day basis.

However, supervisors and team leaders also have to make their teams aware of less obvious health and safety hazards and risks that they might encounter during their rounds and persuade them that certain working practices reduce those risks and protect their health and safety.

The HSE added that communication and interpersonal skills are also crucial if the importance of health and safety is to be communicated effectively.

Poor performance

Despite improvements over the last five years, the HSE said that the health and safety performance of the waste sector remains poor in comparison to other industries

Earlier this month it was revealed that a total of five workers were killed in the industry in 2011/12 (see letsrecycle.com story), almost a 50% decrease on the previous year. The average number of fatalities per year in the sector is six.