Whilst health and safety for employees was very much a secondary concern for employers many years ago, we now know the dangers of what can happen when employees are exposed to dangerous substances. Recently, we have seen the introduction of the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health guidelines. Now, there are set rules to help employers establish good working practices for all involved but why is this important?
Employee Safety - First and foremost, COSHH guidelines help to keep all employees safe when exposed to dangerous substances. With COSHH guidelines, it ensures that the relevant safe practices are in place so employees don’t fall ill or worse when handling dangerous products. With these harmful substances, the damage can range anywhere between eye irritation to chronic lung disease so it presents a serious issue.
Company Efficiency - Aside from employee safety, COSHH regulations also help to keep your company running smoothly for a number of reasons. Firstly, you should have less time wasted due to ill health; previously, with no safety wear or protection, employees would have to take time off thanks to illness but this can now be severely reduced.
In addition to this, there is no way that employees can ever use that dangerous ’s’ word against you - sue. If a business has all the proper safety equipment available and the employees have all been trained in how to handle substances carefully, there is no way the company can be blamed for an accident. Previously, this was an all too common occurrence because the safety equipment simply wasn't being offered to employees.
Employee Morale - Furthermore, employees will also feel a boost of morale knowing that they are being taken care of. If you failed to provide them with the correct safety training or equipment, you would essentially be saying ‘I don’t care what happens, we don’t want to pay money for staff wellbeing’.
With all these factors in mind, it shows the importance of complying with these guidelines that have been clearly laid out. If you are unsure, all the information can be found online and you can contact the relevant bodies to receive access to safety packages of information and posters to keep employees safe.
If you want to be sure or aren't quite aware of what steps you need to take in your industry, why not contact a professional company who will help you set up all the safety precautions? For example, PPS Janitorial specialise in this type of thing and will ensure that you are following the COSHH regulations that apply to the substances you’re using in your business.
Failure to comply with these rules can be extremely costly in a number of different ways and with help always available, there is no longer an excuse to ‘forget’ this important business process.
