The highs and lows of the festive period

Christmas at work can be great fun, but it also presents some unique health and safety risks. From excessive drinking to skeleton staffing, here are a couple of things to watch out for at this time of year. 

Don’t lose control of office parties 

There’s much to be said for an end of year shindig, thanking staff for their hard work and bringing everyone together. There are, though, limits to what is acceptable. A party that gets out of hand can be physically dangerous, not to mention creating some serious HR problems. The key to avoiding this is planning ahead: 

• Talk to employees beforehand and remind them of your expectations 
• Consider limiting the number of drinks, and provide food and non-alcoholic alternatives 
• Be clear about when the party will finish, giving employees plenty of time to catch public transport afterwards 
• Monitor the event and deal with spillages and tripping hazards promptly 

Look out for lone workers  

From bringing people together to dangers of isolation: many offices will be operating with a skeleton staff over Christmas, and this could mean employees working alone. There are strict guidelines for protecting lone workers, so be sure that you understand your responsibilities if a usually crowded workplace will be staffed by just one person at times. If you don’t already have a lone worker policy, now may be a good time to create one.  

For help with these or anything else, don’t hesitate to get in touch. 

Back to basics: reducing workplace injuries

The HSE has released its annual report which includes looking at workplace injuries. Overall, the results paint a mixed picture. Fatalities are down, but injuries have increased by 28%. As well as typically dangerous industries such as construction, there have also been high numbers of injuries in office environments. 

If your business has been experiencing more injuries than usual, it might be time to go back to basics. Review your risk assessments to ensure that any changes in the workplace have been accounted for, and inspect all equipment regularly. If the same accidents keep happening, provide a training session on the relevant safety procedures.   

A lack of staff, which many industries are experiencing, can also be a factor. If employees are rushing to cover shortages, they are more likely to cut corners. Hiring extra staff may be the best solution but, if this isn’t possible, consider whether you are setting unrealistic targets for remaining employees. 

What can we learn from the HSE’s annual report?

It may not be the most festive activity, but reading the HSE’s Health and Safety at Work Report has become something of an annual tradition. This year’s statistics are particularly interesting, painting a mixed picture of safety in the post-pandemic workplace. 

Fewer deaths, more injuries 

The good news is that there has been a significant drop in fatal accidents. There were 123 workers killed on the job in 2021/22, compared to 142 the previous year. This decrease is encouraging, but it has been offset by a large increase in work-related ill health. An extra 100,000 people reported a new or long-standing illness this year, bringing the total up to 1.8 million. 

There seem to be several reasons for this. Non-fatal injuries have increased significantly, rising from 0.4 million to 0.6 million. The causes of these injuries remain largely unchanged, with trips and falls, heavy lifting and collisions with moving objects accounting for the majority of injuries in both years. As usual, those working in agriculture and construction are the most at risk. 

The ongoing effects of COVID-19 are also a factor. The research revealed 123,000 workers reported a case attributed to workplace exposure, an increase of 30,000 since last year. However, there is evidence that infections were less likely to have long-term effects. Last year, 645,000 workers reported a long-term illness caused or exacerbated by COVID. This year, the number was 585,000.  

Mental health is a major concern 

The biggest change, though, is a marked increase in mental health complaints. The number of workers suffering from stress, depression or anxiety has risen from 822,000 to 914,000. This is such a big jump that, in the press release accompanying the report, the HSE has flagged it as a particular concern.  

Improving employee mental health will be the biggest challenge of 2023, especially in sectors such as health and education where these increases have been most dramatic.  

As well as the human cost, the report also highlights the economic impact of these changes. Over twelve months, 36.8 million working days were lost to poor health last year, costing businesses an estimated £18.8 billion. With the economy still struggling, there will be a strong financial incentive to improve safety in 2023.  

If you are impacted by these worrying trends, it’s not too late to turn things around. For health and safety advice tailored to your business, don’t hesitate to give us a call. 

Focusing on mental health in 2023

There’s a lot to digest in the latest HSE report, but perhaps the most concerning finding is the sharp rise in mental health conditions among UK workers. There were 914,000 cases of work-related stress, depression or anxiety reported in 2021/22, an increase of nearly 100,000 since last year.  

Reducing these numbers should be a priority for all employers. No-one wants to see their employees in distress; and on top of this, poor mental health also has serious implications for productivity. In the last 12 months, 17 million working days were lost to mental health complaints.  

We’re sure you want to help, but this can be easier said than done. Research shows that over half of employers want to do more to improve employee well-being, but many don’t know where to start.  

Openness is key when it comes to mental health. Staff need to feel that they can talk about their struggles frankly and without judgement. Try to schedule regular one to ones to discuss these issues, and be ready to provide information on external sources of support. If employees are stressed, you may need to adjust workloads to reduce the pressure. This also means tackling the kind of company culture that encourages excessive overtime.   

Training can play an important role, too. Mental health courses can work wonders by ensuring that there is always someone in the office with the skills to help. We have a spotlight on such training elsewhere in the newsletter. If you’d like to book a session, don’t hesitate to get in touch. 

Service of the month: mental health training

We all know that the pandemic had a serious effect on the mental health of UK workers and, with the cost of living crisis on everyone’s minds, these problems are only getting worse. 

Things are especially bad in the construction industry, with a male suicide rate of more than three times the national average. Other industries are suffering too, with almost a million cases of stress, depression and anxiety reported to the HSE in the last 12 months.  

This might sound like a downward spiral, but at least attention is being drawn to the issues; and there are positive steps you can take.  

We offer a range of online and in-person mental health training courses, giving you or employees tools to address poor mental health in the workplace.  

For businesses looking for a starting point, our Wellbeing In Work range of training is the place to look. There are a variety of options from mental health first aid to well-being workshops tackling sleep, smartphone use and emotional agility.  

For more information please email info@hsdept.co.uk or visit our website.