Safety issues - Slips and trips

Slipping and tripping in the workplace was the cause of 19% of injuries reported under RIDDOR in plastic manufacturing companies. Slips and trips cost UK employers approximately £512 million per year in lost production and other costs.

Many slips occurred as a result of flooring contamination eg by water, fluids, waste plastic film or spilled plastic granules. Most trips were due to poor housekeeping.

Where slips and trips are a risk in your workplace, the law asks you to assess the risks and put in place controls. The solutions are often simple and cost effective, a suitable assessment will help you to work out the right mix of solutions to suit your workplace. The solutions should include (in no particular order):

• prevention of contamination
• management of spillages and cleaning regimes
• effective matting systems
• choice of suitable footwear
• design of workplace and work activities
• maintenance of plant and the work environment
• specification of appropriate flooring
• housekeeping
• effective training and supervision

The biggest barriers to putting the problems right include:

• People not taking the risks seriously.
• Little understanding of the causes of slipping.
• Thinking that slips and trips are inevitable.
• Poor application of risk assessment and management controls.

But simple cost effective measures can reduce these accidents!  For more information on slips and trips in the workplace and for materials from the "shattered lives" campaign please visit the slips and trips pages.