LTB 078/24 – Royal Mail Group (Royal Mail, Parcelforce, RMSS etc.) – Yard Safety Rules and Risk Controls – Reminder
No. 078/2024
22 February 2024
Our Ref: C1/24
To: All Branches
Dear Colleagues,
Royal Mail Group (Royal Mail, Parcelforce, RMSS etc.) – Yard Safety Rules and Risk Controls – Reminder
The Health, Safety and Environment Department has recently received a number of complaints regarding yard safety rules concerns at a number of major Royal Mail sites. In one case a very serious accident occurred where an employee fell from height, sustaining a severe leg injury, namely a deep laceration to his calf, which exposed the bone and there was significant blood loss from the injury which covered the vehicle tail-lift.
Therefore, this LTB is being issued as a reminder regarding the importance of maintaining and monitoring yard safety.
In RMG, a ‘mandatory’ annual review risk assessment is carried out of all yards in order to take a careful look at what the risks are and what could harm people. The risk assessment is carried out firstly as a legal requirement and secondly to help management decide whether the employer has taken enough precautions in dealing with hazards or should they do more to prevent harm to anyone working in the yard. A hazard means anything that can cause harm to the workforce or visitors. A risk is the chance that somebody will be harmed by the hazard (high or low) and how seriously they might be harmed (seriously or not). High risks are those where someone is very likely to be harmed or where the harm is likely to be serious (or both).
Yard hazards can include:
- Being struck by a vehicle;
- Injuries when loads are moved by hand;
- Falls from vehicles; and
- Risk from using powered or manual plant and equipment.
PiCs (Persons in Control) and the site management team needs to promptly take responsibility and put any hazardous situation right with remedial action in relation to legal compliance and compliance with Royal Mail’s own ‘Mandatory’ SHE Instructions and Standards.
The Royal Mail SHE Team and the CWU take yard safety very seriously indeed bearing in mind the hazardous nature of yards and the number of serious accidents, incidents and injuries that occur in yards.
As such, Yard Risk Assessments are in place and are regularly, periodically reviewed annually in April by the PiC in consultation with the CWU ASR and supported by the RMG SHE Safety Advisor as necessary. A staff WTLL is refreshed and managers must deliver this annually. The yard safety rules are to be communicated by the PiC/site management to employees. Visitors, contractors and all employees must be shown the RMG ‘Yard Safety Awareness Training’ film/video.
In 2023 the programme issued through the SHE Calendar on yard safety was as follows and these tasks would have been required by all operational sites. The same or very similar task list will also be set for 2024.
- April 2023 – All site PiCs/Management to have completed and submitted a Yard Risk Assessment (v3.3).
- April 2023 – All employees on site to have watched the ‘Yard Safety Awareness Training’ film/video available on RMG Content on Demand.
- 1 October – 31 October 2023 – Review the site Yard Risk Assessment.
- October 2023 into November 2023 – Deliver the Yard Safety WTLL to all employees. Following completion of the Yard Risk Assessment, communicate the site Yard Safety Rules to all employees, visitors and contractors.
Why is yard safety so important?
Due to the mixture of vehicles and pedestrians, significant injuries can occur in the yard
if yard rules are not adhered to. Serious injuries have occurred in the past so it’s important people don’t become complacent when working in and around vehicles. Some examples of Royal Mail’s past poor yard safety record which led to HSE/LA health and safety prosecutions and convictions are:
- Royal Mail was fined £200,000 plus £3,500 costs after a blind pensioner, was run over and killed by a reversing 7.5 tonne lorry in the Bridgend Delivery Office yard.
- Royal Mail was fined £1.6 million plus £22,000 costs for health and safety offences, after an employee was struck and seriously injured by 7.5 tonne vehicle in Jubilee Mail Centre yard.
- Royal Mail was fined £132,000 including costs after an employee was crushed to death by a HGV in the Heathrow Worldwide Distribution Centre yard.
- Royal Mail was fined £50,000 plus £10,000 costs after an employee had his foot run over and crushed by an FLT at the Rochester Distribution Centre.
ASR Action
Would all ASRs concentrate attention on the above, ensuring Units/Sites have fully complied with the RMG SHE calendar list of requirements and that yard safety is monitored and checked by managers plus safety conversations take place. In summary the requirements are:
- Yard Risk Assessment (v3.3) completed.
- Yard Risk Assessment (v3.3) review completed.
- All site workforce employees have watched the ‘Yard Safety Awareness Training’ film/video.
- Yard Safety WTLL has been delivered to all the site workforce employees.
- Yard Risk Assessment and Yard Safety Rules have ben communicated to all site workforce employees, visitors and contractors.
Attachment
- SHE WTLL FY23 007
Yours sincerely
Dave Joyce
National Health, Safety & Environment Officer