Temporary workers in Britain often face greater risk of injury in their working environment because they are not familiar enough with the workplace, Staffing Industry website reports.
Failings on things such as workers not knowing the full breadth of the tasks involved, mean incidents at work involving temporary workers are not rare as they should be. Several recent examples attest to this, including a shocking accident which saw an agency worker crushed to death by a reversing tractor.
Whether a worker is temporary or permanent shouldn’t hold a bearing when it comes to health and safety. However, as a blog by Kirsten Hastings at Staffing Industry points out, not all temporary workers are given training to the same level of detail as new employees.
When full-time workers are involved in a high-risk working environment, they are regularly trained and, as such, over time they have an ingrained knowledge of safe practices. Hastings questions why – given how important a temporary workforce can be – they are not armed with the knowledge.
Agencies that provide talent on-demand have also been brought question from UK regulator, the Health and Safety Executive. According to UK laws, employers share the responsibility for their staff with the agency or hirer that is involved in their recruitment. Whilst the client company carries most of the responsibility, agencies are required to do their bit – such as acquiring risk assessments – too.
Further still, if risk assessment information is not provided to the agency, The Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations says that the agency may visit site and carry out its own health and safety checks.
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