22/12/2009 by Geoff.

Directors, employers and employees need to be aware of the harsher sentences for Health & Safety breaches contained within the Health & Safety Offences Act, which came into force on January 16^th 2009.  The Act does not create any new offences but increases the maximum penalties available to the Courts in respect of many health & safety offences.There are significantly increased powers to imprison by altering the penalty framework set out in the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974, which was considered too cautious with regards to criminalising offenders.  The new law reflects the current view that health & safety offences should be taken more seriously and that health & safety issues should be given more priority by companies.  It is primarily aimed at those who cut corners, thereby potentially putting workers and the public at risk.Most breaches of the Act will now potentially carry a custodial sentence of 12 months imprisonment for a conviction in a

and 2 years for a conviction in a Crown Court.  Fines which may be imposed by a

have been increased from £5,000 to £20,000, whilst fines imposed by a Crown Court remain unlimited.Prosecutions for health & safety breaches can be brought alongside prosecutions brought under the Corporate Manslaughter Act (see website article article).What action should companies be taking to protect themselves?·           Undertake a “healthcheck” of the existing safety management system to identify level of compliance to legislative requirements and best practice·           Ensure suitable and sufficient risk assessments are in place for any significant hazards·           Consult regularly with employees in respect of any issues which may affect them·           Provide suitable Information, Instruction and Training to enable employees to execute their duties in a safe manner·           Conduct regular reviews of the Arrangements in place to ensure they remain suitable

·           Ensure support and advice is provided by a competent person

Or just contact EMS at enquiries@emseff.co.uk

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16/12/2009 by Geoff.

FROM TENDER SUBMISSIONS AND THIRD-PARTY AUDITS On many occasions the interpretation, preparation and completion of the pre-qualification questionnaires required by the majority of client organisations may fill you with dread? For small and medium size enterprises this exercise can prove daunting and extremely time consuming for those unfamiliar with the requirements and the standards involved.EMS Management Consultants can provide a useful service to bridge the gap - working with their customers to identify what they do already and formalise it into an acceptable format to present to outside agencies.

For further information on how

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07/12/2009 by Geoff.

Simone Greasley our HR expert writes:

The Employment Tribunal statistics for 2008/2009 show that the average award for an Age Discrimination claim was £8,000.00.

Message to all employers? Know the rules. If you need some help contact us at enquiries@emseff.co.uk

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07/12/2009 by Geoff.

Are you in the construction industry? Do you want to be part of delivering sustainable construction?   Then visit www.constructionproducts.org.uk  The Construction Products Association aims to work with the construction products industry in the development of products and processes that contribute to a more sustainable built environment. 

There has been several updates this month in NetRegs:  Lights Out for Inefficient Bulbs: Restrictions on the type of lamps and light bulbs that can be manufactured and imported are being introduced to improve energy efficiency and reduce mercury emissions from lamps. Certain types of inefficient lamps and light bulbs will be banned. Site Waste Its Criminal - 10m tonnes of construction products are wasted every year, at a cost of £1.5 billion. Much of this site waste is harmful to the environment and costly to your business. Site Waste Management Plans (SWMPs) will help you manage site waste more effectively, reducing potential harm to the environment and human health. SWMPs are now a legal requirement in

Do you need assistance with your site waste management plans? If so why not give

.

Written by our environment expert.

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29/11/2009 by Geoff.

Managers are not doing enough to prevent accidents in their vehicle fleets, research by a leading insurer has found 87% of fleet drivers on the road don’t have basic eye checks and Companies do not carry out checks on the licenses of driving employees. You’re probably breaking the law!! 

We can work with you to produce a Driving at Work Policy and Fatigue Management Plan. Contact us now - enquiries@emseff.co.uk

Written by one of our H&S practitioners

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23/11/2009 by Geoff.

Are you providing adequate PPE? A factory was fined £27,500 and ordered to pay £10,700 costs on 9 September after pleading guilty to breaching reg.6(1)(a), 7(1), and 7(3) of the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002. The Company had failed to provide adequate PPE to an employee who had contracted dermatitis after being regularly exposed to hazardous substances. The continued exposure with his skin caused him to suffer skin irritations across large parts of his body. As a result of the illness he has been left with permanent scarring and has to avoid contact with a large number of substances that cause further skin irritation. He has been unable to return to work and has been forced to retire on medical grounds at the age of 48. 

Do you need an assessment of your workplace to ensure compliance with legal and other requirements? If so why not give

Written by one of our H&S practitioners

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08/11/2009 by Geoff.

Our environmental expert has identified the following help for businesses. The Carbon Trust is offering expert guidance and £100m in interest-free loans to companies prepared to do away with old, power-hungry equipment and replace it with modern energy-efficient equivalents. For more details have look at the following link www.carbontrust.co.uk or contact enquiries@emseff.co.uk

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31/10/2009 by Geoff.

We will be updating our website late in October ‘09. In this update we will include an article by Tony Storey OBE entitled “Doing Business With Secondary Schools”.

We thought you’d like to know that Tony, Britains longest serving Secondary School Headteacher until he retired last year, is in the process of publishing a book “An Educated Life - A Boys Own Story”

If you want a copy you can contact us on enquiries@emseff.co.uk or Tony direct on  tonystoey.66@btinternet.com.

Price is £7.50 (plus £1.50 p and p)

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17/10/2009 by Geoff.

I’ve just returned from a great holiday in New Zealand and whilst there I saw some things that you might find of interest since they’re related to business or will just lighten your day.

Business Opportunities

I saw two of these which to my knowledge have not been exploited in the UK. We are going to evaluate the  ideas so at the moment I can’t tell you more. If we don’t follow these up then we will pass them on. Please contact us to express any interest (enquiries@emseff.co.uk).

Getting your business noticed

It’s always wise to get your business noticed. Whilst in NZ I saw a woollen shop - to get them selves noticed they had the sheep in the field in front of their shop dyed purple - very noticeable! No prizes for the name of the shop!

A bit of humour

Kiwis seem to have a passion for throwing themselves off things and doing things that are good for the adrenaline. Whilst one of our group leaped off the Sky Tower in Auckland and did a bungee jump off the bridge that started it all we settled for a less dramatic jet boat ride. The driver recounted a tale that his passengers irrespective of real age were all really 30 -35, a 93 year old passenger took exception to this telling the driver he felt like a teenager - not working and taking drugs!!! 

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24/02/2009 by admin.

We came across the following which some of you may have seen before but struck a cord with her with respect to requirements of members of your team.

Mathematical view point:
This is a strictly mathematical viewpoint…it goes like this:

What Makes 100%?
What does it mean to give MORE than 100%?Ever wondered about this?We have all been to those meetings where someone wants you to give over 100%.
How about achieving 103%? What makes up 100% in life?Here’s a little mathematical formula that might help you answer these questions:
If:
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
is represented as:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26.Then:H-A-R-D-W-O-R-K
8+1+18+4+23+15+18+11 = 98%

But,

A-T-T-I-T-U-D-E
1+20+20+9+20+21+4+5 = 100%

We have edited the rest of the mathematical proof!

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