CIWM is set to launch a brand-new health and safety (H&S) campaign in June this year, with an emphasis on highlighting the need for CIWM members to take personal responsibility for their H&S.
This year-long campaign is the Project of the CIWM Health and Safety (and Welfare) Special Interest Group (HS&W SIG), and will focus on encouraging individual CIWM members to take personal responsibility for H&S in their role.
As a membership organisation, CIWM, and so the HS&W SIG, has a role in supporting members (as opposed to organisations) in issues associated with H&S, so that it becomes a habit rather than a special consideration.
The intention is to encourage members to improve standards by making changes within their area of responsibility, with the view to reduce incidences, improve standards and so improve the sector and how it is viewed.
The campaign will include a programme of events that will encourage CIWM members to look at H&S from a personal angle and to enact upon issues within their sphere of influence. Part of the campaign will also involve highlighting methods of good/best practice and encouraging others to use good examples, or indeed to benchmark themselves against good performers.
Over the course of the year, CIWM, with the help of WISH, will highlight issues on social media, offer best-practice and responses through blogs and will create a dedicated section for the campaign on the CIWM website. Articles will also appear in the CIWM Journal and CIWM Journal Online, so look out for those.
We encourage all members to get involved in order to help create a safer sector.
According to the most recent figures by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), the number of fatal injuries to workers in the waste sector in 2016/17 was 14, almost double the average for the past five years (eight).
Although it is acknowledged this figure fluctuates from year to year, the aim with this campaign is to help reduce incidences as far as possible.
The purpose of the CIWM HS&W SIG is to support the priority theme in the CIWM Strategy 2018-2023 relating to H&S in the resource and waste management sector.
As the professional body, and as a stakeholder in the WISH, WISHNI and SWITCH fora, CIWM will be prioritising this important initiative by encouraging behavioural change and sharing of best practice in this area.
Dr Toni Gladding, Senior Lecturer at the Open University and Chair of the SIG, commented: “The waste industry has made improvements in health and safety, supported by CIWM and fantastic WISH guidance over the past few years.
“However, there is still some way to go, and it is disappointing that the same old injuries and incidences keep reoccurring. It is important we keep aiming to improve health and safety performance and so the perception of the waste industry as a benefit to society and a safe place to work.”
CIWM Media Centre