Accidents

Accidents

HSE Key annual figures 2011/12 for Great Britain show:

• 1.1 million working people were suffering from a work-related illness

• 172 workers killed at work

• 111,000 other injuries to employees were reported under RIDDOR

• 212,000 over-3-day absence injuries occurred (LFS)

• 27 million working days were lost due to work-related illness and workplace injury

• Workplace injuries and ill health (excluding cancer) cost society an estimated £13.4 billion in 2010/11

Catering industry

The main types of accidents for the catering industry are slips, trips and falls and manual handling.

Accidents happen for a variety of reasons, in catering these include:

• Not wearing correct footwear or other personal protective clothing

• Not concentrating on what we are doing

• Working when tired or under the influence of alcohol or drugs

• Not using equipment properly

• Poor lifting and carrying techniques

• Slipping, tripping or falling on spillages or things left where they shouldn’t be

• Ignoring instructions

• Messing about at work

• Poor housekeeping standards

Every employee has a responsibility to prevent accidents in the workplace by:

• Wearing correct clothing, particularly having non-slip footwear that protects your feet.

• Making sure you are fit to work

• Following any work instructions in doing the jobs correctly and concentrate

• Being careful when lifting or carrying things

• Make sure you have good standards of housekeeping, including clearing up any spillages

• Being aware of other people working around you

Reporting accidents

If you do have an accident it is important to report it so that we can try and prevent the same accident happening again. Every business should have an accident book to record accidents. It is also a good idea to report anything that is a near miss, in other words nearly having an accident but managing to avoid it. If something nearly went wrong it could happen again and you may not be so lucky next time!

There is a legal requirement under RIDDOR – (Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (1995)) for certain things to get reported to the appropriate authority. This is usually done online to the HSE. These include:

• Work related fatal accidents

• Specified Injuries (these include broken limbs and major burns)

• Accidents to non-workers (members of the public)

• Accidents which result in the incapacitation of a worker for more than 7 calendar days