Health and Safety Recruitment
Employers today have so many other factors to deal with than their predecessors did in years past, before organizations were created to implement and enforce health and safety in the workplace. The Health and Safety act of 1974, OSHA, H&SA, and ENETOSH to name a few of these organizations, came into fruition to standardize practices, and identify common goals to address their respective populations, and overlap one another to ensure a safer worldwide workforce. For this reason, recruiting the right person with specific health and safety experience for your organization is of the utmost importance.
Health and safety recruitment today takes on a larger role, and with a newer set of expectations than it had in the past. The most common tasks identified by todays professionals start with Risk Assessment. The ability to create, follow-up, and document risk assessment is likely the most important function safety teams deal with on a daily basis.
When considering health and safety recruitment, applicants are expected to understand, have background experience in performing cost benefit analysis, and training of associates.
In addition, the health and safety professional umbrella now covers issues such as civil disturbances, terrorism, addressing workplace stress, weather disturbances associated with climate change and a transitioning workforce that requires our aging population to contemplate life after retirement, while working with the next generation that will carry on the progress that has been started. Add all this to the continual fight against slips, trips, and falls, managing P.P.E. and G.M.P.’s, and the health and safety professional has their hands full.
Education and Certification
Employers actively looking into health and safety recruitment for their companies have several avenues to explore for competencies. Online accreditations, and courses through government agencies are available for students in primary school, university, and businesses, by way of continuing education and certifications.
Health and safety recruiters need to look at undergraduate and advanced degree recipients for specialty positions. Engineers, from industrial, design, chemical and mechanical backgrounds, to safety engineers, need to show competencies in design and controls. Industrial hygienists are expected to show that they understand the effects on humans from environmental factors, the stress caused from these factors and then ultimately how to apply methods to reduce and eliminate these factors when possible.
Health and Safety Recruitment Expectations
What type of person fits into the mould that most health and safety recruiters are looking for? The ideal health and safety professional will be open and consistent in communicating with the management team. In addition to the other qualities mentioned above, they must be capable of promoting high standards of health and safety for all, along with dealing with human error factors.
They must keep policy current and in place, in association with building a safety team. They must be knowledgeable in dealing with musculoskeletal disorders, proficient in record retention and capable of inspection and investigation activities. A health and safety professional must be skilled at building rapport with people in general, as they will be training new employees, and retraining tenured associates alike. They will also be a point of contact for employees, in some cases for customers and vendors, with health care providers when necessary and serve as liaison to government and regulatory agencies.
Expectations of the Health and Safety Recruiter
As with everything, a health and safety professional will have some concerns and expectations as well such as a competitive pay scale. Currently, depending upon the level of education, your health and safety professional will look to earn a minimum of €27,000 and as much as, €47,000 at the high end, annually. These are starting salaries and naturally more seasoned professionals will look to earn more. Surveys consistently tell us that the greatest expectation of the health and safety professional, aside from pay, is training, especially training that is specific to their ongoing education, and that of the associates. Along with training, having the buy-in of management, and their support for inspections and other remediation will be an important consideration for the prospective hire.
Health and safety recruitment teams need to be aware that their candidates are going to be working to drive a culture that is focused on safety. They’ll want to hit the ground running with this ideal. Ultimately, however, what management expects from its associates at all levels, and their adoption of health and safety standards is what will ultimately drive the overall expected results. In hiring, be sure that the person you’re considering bringing on-board has a plan for making that happen.
Find out how to manage your business' health and safety better
RIDDOR and COVID-19
Many employers are concerned about their reporting obligations for COVID-19/Coronavirus/SARS-CoV-2 under RIDDOR in the ongoing pandemic. You may be pleased to know that you do not have to report everything to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). We'll provide more info about when, what, and how to report.
The most common concern we've seen recently from employers is whether they need to report all COVID-19 and coronavirus testing results to the HSE. The short answer is no. According to the HSE: “There is no requirement under RIDDOR (The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013) to report incidents of disease or deaths of members of the public, patients, care home residents or service users from COVID-19. The reporting requirements relating to cases of, or deaths from, COVID-19 under RIDDOR apply only to occupational exposure, that is, as a result of a person's work.”
Generally speaking, the ordinary RIDDOR rules already cover COVID-19. You should only make a report under RIDDOR when one of the following circumstances applies:
• an accident or incident at work has or could have caused the release of coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2). (Report as Dangerous occurrence)
• a worker is diagnosed with COVID-19 due to occupational exposure. (Report as Disease)
• a worker dies because of occupational coronavirus exposure. (Report as Work-related death due to exposure to a biological agent)
The bottom line is that existing rules cover most COVID-19 measures, and most of the COVID-19 guidance comes from public health authorities rather than the HSE. The environment remains chaotic, but you can minimize your legal exposure by continuing your existing compliance steps. This will include communicating with your insurer about risks, following public health guidance, and communicating regularly with your workers or unions on any of their concerns.
© Gavin Coyle, 2021