Health and safety at work

dickydonkin

gazza7788 wrote: »

The stores enviroment i work in is involved with the issuing of aircraft spares direct to aircraft .This work demands the staff work in a meticulous way.Some members of staff have been complaining about the distraction of the radio loudness has on their work and ability to concentrate and communicate effectivly.I dont believe decibal meters are the solution ,its not about turning the radio off to allienate all the staff who want the radio but some members of staff have voiced concerns to me about the loudness of the radio.
Its also not about being a jobsworth but about trying to find a solution to keep everyone happy,because as a newly appointed safety rep i want to do my best for everyone i work with.

Ok - I thought I was done with this thread - but other peoples safety is more important than me throwing the rattle out of the pram.

You 'don't believe decibel meters are the solution' well - if you could have access to one, then that would assist you in identifying if indeed the noise is too loud - although some knowledge of noise and how to interpret readings is very important.

I would now be thinking that if some of your colleagues are suggesting that the radio is a distraction, then ignore it at your peril.

Where working around aircraft is involved, I fully understand why meticulous safe systems of work are in place - they are in place for obvious reasons and anything that may compromise concentration or create a distraction needs to be seriously considered.

If members of your team are complaining about the noise of the radio - then I would suggest you and/or the company's safety team look into it as potentially, there is a hazard being introduced.

Does your company have a Health & Safety Professional employed who can offer some support - or has the poisoned chalice of Health and Safety been passed on to your HR department?

Yes - I know it's only a radio, but a distraction could create a problem somewhere down the line - particularly when dealing with aircraft parts or when working in the vicinity of aircraft.

As for you being a safety rep - how would you feel if a problem arose in the future caused by the distraction - and then it was known that the safety rep was aware, but did nothing?

I dont believe decibal meters are the solution ,its not about turning the radio off to allienate all the staff who want the radio but some members of staff have voiced concerns to me about the loudness of the radio.

What it is all about is making sure you and your colleagues are not at risk.

Trust me on this - if you want to progress your health & safety career or just be a good safety rep - you will need to have the skin of a Rhino and have a certain character.

You must make decisions based on the information you have and how it applies to legislation - and not what others may think of you. As you are new to this role, that may be difficult until you have had some qualifications and experience.

If your colleagues are expressing concerns to you and you are seen by them to be doing nothing - then once you have lost their trust - you have lost the many eyes and ears around your workplace who can provide you with all of the information that is goin on. I can assure you that you won't please everyone - but that is not your role.

When I first started my first Health & Safety job - people would see me walking aroud the site and avoid me. I made up my mind then to make sure that in the future, people would come to me instead of waking away. They were my eyes and ears around a massive site. I achieved that eventually once they knew I was on their side and not on the 'dark side' of management. Getting workplace safety right benefits management and the workforce in general.

I can guarantee you that if your colleagues see things happening because of your interventions - they will gain your trust. Lose their trust - and you have a difficult job on your hands.

Sorry about the protracted post, but I hope I have provided some help.

Notmyrealname wrote: »

My advice is to hand in your notice if you don't know a basic fact which is part of your job to know.

A little harsh, but yes,a safety rep should at least have some basic health & safety training.

DVardysShadow

gazza7788 wrote: »

The stores enviroment i work in is involved with the issuing of aircraft spares direct to aircraft .This work demands the staff work in a meticulous way.Some members of staff have been complaining about the distraction of the radio loudness has on their work and ability to concentrate and communicate effectivly.I dont believe decibal meters are the solution ,its not about turning the radio off to allienate all the staff who want the radio but some members of staff have voiced concerns to me about the loudness of the radio.
Its also not about being a jobsworth but about trying to find a solution to keep everyone happy,because as a newly appointed safety rep i want to do my best for everyone i work with.

Knuckles rapped for deleting your original post. Moving on.

Your additions here make sense. There is a H&S issue - not manifesting in the workplace but rather in locations which are dependant upon your workplace functioning correctly. Do not dress this matter up with spurious issues such as forklift operations unless the radio does genuinely render them less safe. Stick rigorously to the point about getting the correct parts despatched and concentration.

My approach [just mine -others may tackle it differently] would be to approach the radio offenders and tell them that complaints have been made and that you fully agree with these complaints. Point out that if you need to involve management, you will not be brokering a compromise that the radio is kept down, because you are aware that compromise has not worked to the present - and your job is only to deal with the radio as it is. Rather you will be asking management to get the radio taken out. Tell them that it is for them to broker their own compromise, perhaps suggesting that 2 or 3 radio free hours a day may actually allow others to arrange their work so that the radio is not an issue. And that if compromise fails, they are on their own.

ILW

dickydonkin wrote: »

A strange assertion taken in the context of your first post.

I know many safety professionals may need to wear a safety helmet occasionally (not a cap),but where he or she would have to wear it, then so would all of the other workers in the vicinity - so (using your analogy) how would you determine who has all of the 'authority' in such a situation?

Maybe everyone is a jobsworth!

I was thinking more the peaked cap generally favoured by the jobsworth type. (And most of the worlds great dictators)

gazza7788

Firstly i would like to say thank you to everyone for their advice on this.

Picking up on a few points here, i did attend a Health and safety representative training course when i was asked to represent my department.
The course was very good and provided a good overview on many issues that can arise in the workplace.I will also say my company has a vey good health and safety department who provided this course to us.
Taking some of the good advice i have been given on here, i will be speaking to my Health and safety department to hopefully resolve this issue in my worplace
Thank you

eamon

Some of the posters have been unduly harsh. Everybody at sometime in their lives will come across a situation where they have no experience, expertise or knowledge.
Your options are limited.
1. Banish the radio
2. Assuming that your employer has the appropriate licences get them to install a decent sound system with multiple loudspeakers and locations.

However I suspect the problem may not be the volume but the content. I could bore everybody with tales of radio woe but I shall spare you that pain.

The best of luck in getting a solution that works.

pinkshoes

Put a sign next to the radio stating that the volume must be no louder than X (choose a sensible maximum) to prevent distraction, and if it's found to be above this volume, it'll be removed.

There's an idiot in my office who always has headphones in, and his music not only annoys others, but he can't hear his work phone. No doubt they will now ban headphones, and I bet he's the first to moan!

DVardysShadow

pinkshoes wrote: »

Put a sign next to the radio stating that the volume must be no louder than X (choose a sensible maximum) to prevent distraction, and if it's found to be above this volume, it'll be removed.

This is not the role of the H&S rep.

The solution has to be arrived at between the people in the stores or the radio must go. Basically the perpetrators of the radio are behaving in a childish way. Putting up a notice as you suggest is to treat them like children - and is also disrespectful of those complaining, because it does not take into account whether the demanded volume level meets their needs. And it risks alienating everyone in the stores all in one go.

Best bet is to give everyone in stores to opportunity to deal with it as adults first.

gazza7788

pinkshoes wrote: »

Put a sign next to the radio stating that the volume must be no louder than X (choose a sensible maximum) to prevent distraction, and if it's found to be above this volume, it'll be removed.

There's an idiot in my office who always has headphones in, and his music not only annoys others, but he can't hear his work phone. No doubt they will now ban headphones, and I bet he's the first to moan!

This is interesting as well because one member of staff super glued the volume control to a high level .What i mean by a high level is a level of volume whereby members of staff complain that is distracting them from their work and concentration levels are affected.



Childish is a word i would use for this behaviour.

DVardysShadow

gazza7788 wrote: »

This is interesting as well because one member of staff super glued the volume control to a high level .
Childish is a word i would use for this behaviour.

That does rather cut out the adult options for dealing with this problem.

You need to talk this through with your opposite number in management.

dickydonkin

DVardysShadow wrote: »

That does rather cut out the adult options for dealing with this problem.

It certainly does - and goes back to my earlier post where you need to have the skin of a Rhino - as some of the things people do beggar belief.

It can be a thankless task at times - but you have to consider the bigger picture and sort out the minority of clowns as you develop your safety management system - and let me tell you some of the clowns can be in the upper echelons of an organisation.

I never liked the disciplinary route - but at times, there was no option where horseplay or non conforming of safety requirements was concerned as it not only compromised me - but also the company and its operations and the majority of employees who did care for their own well being.