Winter Safety: trips and slips | Seton UK

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Winter Safety: trips and slips

05th January 2010

THE-EXPERT/)
Are you prepared for winter?

Legal responsibilities
(http://www.seton.co.uk/legislationwatch/article/are- 0
you-prepared-for-winter-legalresponsibilities/)
Cold weather, snow and ice can cause
many work-related risks which have to
be dealt with by organisations. Slipping
on icy walkways is More...
(http://www.seton.co.uk/legislationwatch/article/areyou-prepared-for-winter-legalresponsibilities/)

Preventing Slips & Trips at

Work (Training Tool)
(http://www.seton.co.uk/legislationwatch/trainingtool/preventing-slips-trips-atwork/)
Click here to download Slips and trips
are one of the biggest causes of
workplace injury. This useful Training
Tool More...
(http://www.seton.co.uk/legislationwatch/trainingtool/preventing-slips-trips-at-work/)

According to the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) the

most common cause of winter work accidents is trips and slips, accounting
for 38% of major injuries at work with over a quarter of injuries requiring
three or more days off work.
What the law says
The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 (HSWA) requires employers to take all
reasonably practicable steps to ensure the health, safety and welfare of employees
at work.
A number of different health and safety regulations impose more specific duties,
including:
Regulation 7 of the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations
requires that the temperature of all indoor workplaces is reasonable during
work hours.

Slips, trips & falls shatter lives

(http://www.seton.co.uk/legislationwatch/article/slipstrips-falls-shatter-lives/)
Slip, trip and fall incidents in the
workplace cost 40 workers their lives
and accounted for over 15,000 major
injuries last year, More...
(http://www.seton.co.uk/legislationwatch/article/slipstrips-falls-shatter-lives/)

(http://www.seton.co.uk)

Slips, trips and falls

(http://www.seton.co.uk/legislationwatch/article/slipstrips-falls/)
Tips and advice for winter at the
workplace Black ice isn't always visible
and so can be an even greater hazard
for both More...

The relevant ACoP goes on to explain that, subject to practicability, the temperature
should provide reasonable comfort without the need for special clothing and that
the minimum temperature should be 16C or, if much of the work is physical, 13C.
Regulation 11 provides that all outdoor workstations should, so far as is
reasonably practicable, provide protection from adverse weather conditions.
Simon Toseland, Head of Health and Safety at Workplace Law, advises that
employers reduce the risk of slips on ice, frost or snow by carrying out a risk
assessment and putting in a system to manage that risk.
He says:
An organisation should first identify the outdoor areas used by pedestrians most
likely to be affected by ice, for example building entrances, car parks, pedestrian
walkways, shortcuts, sloped areas and areas constantly in the shade or wet.

(http://www.seton.co.uk/legislationwatch/article/slipstrips-falls/)

Workplace Health, Safety &

Welfare Regulations 1992
(http://www.seton.co.uk/legislationwatch/calendar/workplacehealth-safety-welfareregulations-1992/)
These regulations are to maintain a
clean workplace. As far as is
reasonably practicable, every floor in a
workplace and the surface More...
(http://www.seton.co.uk/legislationwatch/calendar/workplacehealth-safety-welfare-regulations1992/)

There are a number of strategies suggested by the HSE for minimising the risks:
Using grit or similar, on areas prone to be slippery in frosty, icy conditions;
Consider covering walkways e.g. by an arbour high enough for people to walk
through, or use an insulating material on smaller areas overnight; and
Install signage to divert pedestrians to less slippery walkways and barrier off
existing ones.

Associated
Product

Other considerations

http://www.seton.co.uk/legislationwatch/article/winter-safety-trips-and-slips/

18-7-2015

Winter Safety: trips and slips | Seton UK

Page 2 of 2

Lighting:
Is there enough lighting around your
workplace for you and your workers to
be able to see and avoid hazards that
might be on the ground?
Wet and decaying leaves:
Wet or decaying fallen leaves can
create slip risks in two ways; they hide
any hazard that may be on the path
and in themselves create a slip risk.
Either remove leaves at regular
intervals or consider removing the
offending bushes or trees altogether.

Slips, Trips & Falls - Are You

Reducing The Risks?

Clear photographs combined with

informative text that promotes health

Rain:
When fitting external paved areas
ensure that the material used will be
slip resistant when wet and use
signage to warn people of areas that become slippery when wet.

Vind ik leuk

and safety in the workplace.

Slips, Trips and Falls Poster covers;

Lighting, Spillages, Footwear, Cables,

Tweet

Floors, Obstructions and Snow and

Ice.

Highlights the latest legislation

Entrances:
Where it isnt possible to fit a canopy over a building entrance to help keep the
ground dry, install large, absorbent mats or change the entrance flooring to one that
is non-slip.

information.

Ice, frost and snow:

Keep an eye on the temperature by using a weather service site, for example the
Met office website www.metoffice.gov.uk/index.html

fall-are-you-reducing-the-risks-

Also includes an area enabling you to

write on contact details.

(http://www.seton.co.uk/slips-trips-

photo.html#HSPC02 A2 LAM)

Gritting:
Rock salt (plain and treated) is the most commonly used grit, used on public roads
by the Highways Authority. Gritting should be carried out when frost, ice or snow is
forecast or when walkways are likely to be damp or wet and the floor temperatures
are at, or below, freezing. Because salt doesnt work immediately, needing time to
dissolve, gritting is best done early in the evening before the frost settles and/or
early in the morning before employees arrive. Its advisable to pre-order bags of
rock salt to ensure youre ready for a cold snap.
What happens if employees are
unable to get into work because
of adverse weather conditions?
Advises David Wright of law firm,
Kennedys:
If the excuse for non-attendance is
reasonable, and the employment
contract allows it, the employer may
still withhold pay or, if the employee
enjoys more than the 20-day
statutory holiday entitlement,
require holiday to be taken.
However, employers who allow
time off with pay in these
circumstances will often benefit
from improved employee morale,
attitude and loyalty.
From a safety perspective,
employers should be wary of
exerting undue pressure on
employees to drive to work in
dangerous conditions.

Anti-Slip Stainless Steel Tread

with Nosings
High-performance solution to slips,
trips and falls for industry and public
access.
Perfect for stairs, steps, ramps,
entrances, decking and much more.
Supplied pre-drilled for easy fitting.
Can be fixed to any checker plate,
metal, wood or concrete surface.

(http://www.seton.co.uk/anti-slipstainless-steel-tread-withnosings.html#SIT292%20Y)

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http://www.seton.co.uk/legislationwatch/article/winter-safety-trips-and-slips/

18-7-2015