Warehouse temps
With the economic recovery still fragile, the flexibility of temporary warehouse staff is understandably attractive. But as Richard Shore of Mentor Training points out, short-term workers pose special safety risks that can’t be ignored.
“Agency workers and contractors have their own section in the HSE’s forklift safety bible, L117 Approved Code of Practice for Rider-Operated Lift Trucks, emphasising that special risk management is required. And with good reason: research shows any worker is four times as likely to be involved in an accident during the first month of their employment, and each percentage point increase in new staff raises a company’s risk of major workplace injuries by between 1.7% and 2.5%.
“L117 is also keen to remind employers of their duty of care to temporary and casual staff: you are no less responsible for the safety of an agency worker on their first day, than you are for someone who has worked for you tirelessly for decades.”
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