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March/April 2023 issue

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News

HSENI consults on EMF Directive implementation

Open-access content Friday 5th February 2016
From the archive:  Just so you know, this article is more than 3 years old.

The Directive is designed to protect those subjected to EMFs with frequencies up to 300 GHz

"HSENI proposes to transpose into standalone Northern Ireland regulations only the requirements of the Directive which go beyond or are more specific than those covered by existing NI legislation", the HSENI said in its consultation document.

EMFs include radio and microwaves, light, X-rays and gamma radiation. The EMF Directive draft guidance classifies frequencies of between 100 kHz and 300 GHz as "high frequency fields", exposure to which can cause health problems such as thermal stress, localised limb heating (eg knees or ankles) and deep tissue burns.

Though existing legislation includes some health requirements relating to EMF exposure, there are no specific regulations on protecting workers from the effects of EMFs. The Directive is designed to protect those subjected to EMFs with frequencies up to 300 GHz. Broadcasting transmitters, dialectric heating equipment (for plastics welding, for example) and high voltage power lines all generate fields within the range covered by the proposed regulations. It allows a derogation for Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scanners, used in hospitals, which would otherwise be restricted under its terms.

The Directive was first proposed in 2004, but lobbying against the initial inclusion of MRI scanners led to its withdrawal and revision.

The new regulations would see dutyholders use a set of thresholds to evaluate workers' EMF exposure. The consultation document acknowledges that though employers will have to carry out exposure risk assessments, many businesses would not be impacted by the regulations because EMF levels are low and considered safe or because where high levels of EMFs are present, these are already being assessed and properly managed.

The document also states that there are very few cases of workers at risk in Northern Ireland and there have been no incidents reported in recent years as a direct result of EMF exposure.

The British Health and Safety Executive consulted on proposals for introducing the EMF Directive in England, Scotland and Wales between 20 October and 3 December 2015. The Maritime Coastguard Agency is also proposing to introduce the EMF Directive that would apply to UK-registered vessels as well as foreign flagged ships in UK ports.

Overall the EMF Directive aims to introduce "minimum standards of EMF safety" so dutyholders to can reduce the levels of risk EMFs pose to employees. The Directive does not cover suggested long-term effects of electromagnetic fields, since there is currently not enough evidence.

For the consultation document, draft guidance to support the Control of Electromagnetic Fields at Work Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016 and to comment on the proposals, click here. The closing date to submit comments is 28 March.

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Dame Judith Hackitt has been appointed as chair designate of EEF

 Hackitt to take on EEF top job

Monday 1st February 2016
She will move from her post of Health and Safety Executive (HSE) chair and will succeed Martin Temple CBE, who has served more than 17 years as director general and then chair of the body. Other members of the board include representatives from Jaguar Land Rover, Siemens, Tata and the Marshall Group.
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 CITB invalidates 4,600 CSCS cards after fraud

Tuesday 26th January 2016
The fraud was revealed last October during an episode of Newsnight following investigations by the BBC and CITB. Thousands of applicants will have to retake their HS&E exam as the CITB announced it is recalling 6,000 tests, and more than 2,000 people are required to reapply for their Site Safety Plus certificate.
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 Gangmasters authority’s remit to extend to construction

Wednesday 20th January 2016
The GLA, to be renamed the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) will also gain direct enforcement powers where it finds workers are being systematically exploited through unsafe working conditions or pay below the minimum wage.The announcement came in the government’s response to its consultation titled Tackling Exploitation in the Labour Market which closed in December.
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 HSE consults on first innovation plan

Tuesday 19th January 2016
The consultation examines the influence new technologies can have on the industries HSE regulates. It says research is under way to reveal how “mature technologies”, such as robotics and remotely controlled work equipment in factories, which have been implemented in other sectors, can be successfully applied to agriculture.
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 In short: Steel fabricator ignored improvement notices

Wednesday 24th February 2016
William Fry Fabrications received both improvement and prohibition notices in 2011, requiring it to thoroughly examine two of its cranes at least once a year. However, an investigation by the HSE found the company did not comply with these demands during 2012-2015.
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 UCATT: Construction death convictions are too low

Friday 26th February 2016
The drop was revealed in answers to parliamentary questions tabled by Stephen Hepburn, Labour MP for Jarrow, by Justin Tomlinson MP, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Work and Pensions). UCATT said the fall in conviction rates is in spite of HSE findings that management failures caused or contributed to 70% of construction worker deaths. An internal audit previously carried out by the HSE estimated that prosecutions should occur following 60% of construction deaths.
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  Morrisons’ £3.5m fine is ‘a warning to all employers’, says council

Friday 24th March 2023
Morrisons supermarket has been fined £3.5 million for failing to ensure the health and safety of an epileptic employee who died after falling from a shop stairway.
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 IOSH launches new five-year strategy

Tuesday 21st March 2023
IOSH launches its new five-year strategy this spring. It will build and act on the reshaped purpose and ambition gained during WORK 2022, which ran from 2017 to 2022.
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 Risk & Compliance software provider collaborates with HSE and Costain to improve risk management on worksites

Friday 17th March 2023
A Belfast-based Risk & Compliance software provider has been collaborating with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and construction giant Costain as part of an ongoing project to unlock artificial intelligence’s (AI) potential in improving the management of risks on worksites.
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Latest from Regulation/enforcement

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 A reasonable balance to strike

Friday 24th March 2023
Safety interventions should be practicable and cost-effective, but too much of an imbalance towards safety does not make economic sense for employers, argues Geoff Vaughan, who suggests ‘gross disproportion’ provides a practical limit.
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 Spring budget and occupational health

Friday 17th March 2023
Richard Jones CFIOSH, comments on the occupational health aspects of the Chancellor Jeremy Hunt's first budget statement.
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 Health and safety regulations at risk under draft law

Monday 13th March 2023
A proposed new law aims to revoke EU-derived legislation, including life-saving protections, by December 2023, unless specifically kept or replaced – Richard Jones CFIOSH explains how OSH practitioners can get involved.
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