Member News
Health & Safety when Reopening your Business
May
As we all deal with the impact of Covid-19 Businesses now face the challenge of how and when to bring employees back safely.
Several factors make this task difficult for business owners to navigate. If not handled carefully we run the risk of people spreading virus.
Under the Safety, Health & Welfare at Work Act 2005 the primary obligation for an Employer is to “ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the safety, health and welfare at work of his or her employees”.
Employers must be able to demonstrate that they have done all that was reasonably practicable to protect their employees, visitors and clients/customers. You must be able to show that you have taken steps to preemptively reduced the risk in your facility.
FP Consulting Ltd can help you to prepare your workplace for the return of your employees and customers in advance of your reopening date.
We will assist with carrying out Risk Assessments for your workplace and managing staff who work remotely.
Avoid making these 5 mistakes when you reopen your business after the Covid-19 Pandemic:-
1. Don’t automatically adopt a Company run temperature taking operation.
Taking employees’ temperatures sounds like a smart safety measure until you consider the logistical challenges.
2. Don’t assume social distancing will be easy to enforce.
Similar to taking temperatures, while social distancing seems simple in theory, it is much more difficult to execute.
3. Don’t assume all your workers will feel safe enough to come back to work.
Even if you take all the necessary precautions it is highly likely you will have some employees who wont want to return to work because they feel unsafe.
4. Don’t equip your team with masks without a proper procedure in place
It is vital that detailed instruction is given to staff on how to use any PPE that they are given.
5. Don’t forget to come up with a plan for how to handle visitors to your business
All of the careful precautions you take to keep your staff safe will be for nothing if you don’t also think about how to handle third-party visitors to your business.
For Businesses that have continued trading during this period and/or have staff working remotely we can carry out Risk Assessments and review your current and future Health & Safety needs.
For further information please contact:
Patricia Mathews
086 8329157