How Can I Be Covered For Health and Safety at Work?
Any employer in the AUS may be required to provide evidence of health and safety compliance for a Biz collection. Workwear safety measures are a recognized requirement of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). This is one of the ways that employers may be considered liable for injuries that are either caused or contributed to by the workplace.
At first glance, this may seem like an easy task, since all workwear must comply with the Health and Safety at Work Regulations of 1978, but employers may be surprised to find out that they have more obligations than this. The regulations governing workwear wear were specifically drafted for the construction industry, where people work in confined spaces and move around in a work environment which is as dangerous as it is busy.
It is necessary to keep the law in mind when drafting the workwear which your employees will be required to wear, and this means being aware of the legal obligations which arise with the wearing of workwear, and what the definition of 'workwear' is, both when it comes to clothing that is worn to work, and more importantly, when it comes to any of the workwear fittings which are used. Whilst the regulations require that workwear is fit for purpose, and complies with all applicable regulations, there are also specific details on fitting issues that apply to garments, such as EPLI.
EPLI refers to 'Exempt Protective Factor', which is one of the most important factors to consider when considering whether a garment is fit for purpose. This refers to the amount of protection that a garment can offer its wearer, or more importantly, its wearer's family and friends. Protective factors can also be related to the fabric of the garment, so it is important to read the relevant regulations, and ensure that you are able to fit garments with a protective factor of around twenty-five for workwear to be considered fit for purpose.
The regulations regarding workwear also state that you need to keep adequate records of the fittings that are used in the production of your products. You need to keep these records for the periods of time needed to prove compliance with Health and Safety at Work Regulations.
The regulations governing workwear cover many issues, including the types of materials which can be used, their density, and so on. This is particularly important to take into account when producing clothes for the more formal or corporate market, as many clothing manufacturers require a different level of fitting requirements when it comes to their clothing line.
Other aspects of Health and Safety at Work Regulations include ensuring that the fittings for clothing are interchangeable, ensuring that they are waterproof, having sufficient ventilation, and ensuring that they are of a non-combustible material. Even if the garment you are making is for the casual market, there may still, be some garments which need to be treated differently from other garments. For example, asbestos cannot be used in clothing, and if a piece of clothing is made from resin which is not combustible, then it is classed as fire-resistant.
Asbestos is widely recognized as being a potentially toxic material, which should not be used in clothing for any reasons, and should be cleaned away with the use of a solvent, or in the case of textiles, with a bleach solution. Resin fabrics should be treated as 'fire-retardant' textiles and to do this, the manufacturer should allow the garment to be exposed to heat over a short period of time.
You may be in the position of wanting to ensure that you are well aware of any health and safety requirements that are associated with your business, and you need to be aware of how your employees will be required to fit their workwear. Although, there are quite a few ways in which you can follow up your Biz collection with Health and Safety at Work Regulations compliance, it is important to remember that health and safety issues can often be complex, and this means that you need to look to different sources for help.
There are many health and safety consultants who specialise in the area of compliance of workwear for the business and these consultants can help you to get information about the workwear regulations that apply to your workwear and Biz collection. They will not only be able to provide you with advice about health and safety at work, but can also give you some useful tips on how to improve your own workwear so that you can minimize the amount of health and safety issues that arise at work.
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