Has a risk assessment been carried out at your workplace?
If you own or manage a business, you have a legal responsibility to ensure that all employees and visitors are safe from harm in the workplace. Although you can’t predict every incident, you can take reasonable steps to remove risks and hazards and keep people safe.
There are a number of important elements included as part of a full and thorough workplace risk assessment. These are:
- General risk assessment
- Exposure to harmful or dangerous substances or chemicals
- Workstations and Visual Display Units (VDUs)
- Manual handling and hazardous lifting
- Noise control in the workplace (protecting people’s hearing)
- The use of personal protective equipment (PPE)
- Asbestos identification and control
Fire risk assessment
As it is such a vital part of health and safety in the workplace, fire risk assessments are often carried out separately. This risk assessment encompasses everything from storage of flammable materials, electrical fire safety and escape procedures to fire alarms, emergency exits, fire doors and fire awareness training for staff.
If you are an employee at a business and you feel that risks and hazards aren’t being dealt with in your workplace, you should let a manager or supervisor know. This way, a risk assessment can be carried out and the correct health and safety training implemented.