The HSE said part of the initiative involves visits to private companies and half of all local authorities that either manage their own, or contract out waste services.
Inspectors will be assessing the management of health and safety, concentrating specifically on the design, specification and management of contracts, workplace transport, manual handling and employee welfare.
At initial visits, inspectors will be looking at policies and control measures in place, and how these are managed. The HSE will then follow these inspections up one year afterwards to check that employers have produced required action plans of improvements.
Injuries
According to the HSE, the waste and recycling industry suffered 17 fatalities, 548 major injuries and 3,186 injuries that kept employees from work for at least three days in the period from April 2001 to the end of March 2002.
A rolling programme of seminars is being held by the HSE alongside the inspections, providing help for local authorities in contract design and the management of contracts/contractors.
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A checklist setting out the framework for effective planning, organising, controlling, and monitoring of activities, including a review of protective and preventive measures needed to ensure the health and safety of employees and others, has been made available at the HSE website.
Industry managers are being urged by the HSE to compare their own (management) control systems regardless of whether or not they receive a visit from HSE.
- Health and safety training for professionals in the waste and recycling industry is being offered by the British Red Cross. The world's largest first aid training provider offers courses at 200 venues nationwide. For more information call 0870 170 9110 or visit the British Red Cross website.
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