British Legal Framework For Construction Health and Safety

British Legal Framework For Construction Health and Safety In 1974 in Great Britain, the parliament adopted the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HSWA) which became the major piece of legislation at work for health and safety matters in the country. This Act was adopted for all industries including construction. Its aims were to provide the main principles and duties to employers, employees and all the participant of the work activity in general (St John Holt, 2005). Then, the European Union (EU) imposed new directives to its members on health and safety issues. The legal framework in Great Britain changed and new acts and directive had been adopted by the parliament setting up a hierarchy of component in the legal system (Howarth Watson, 2009): European Union regulations and directives: all the members of EU are subject to European legislation UK statutory law: acts of parliament HSWA 1974 is the principal act in the UK Statutory instrument: regulations to develop and detail specific duties and requirement concerning health and safety law in the UK Approved Codes of Practice: practical guidance for compliance with health and safety regulations Since 1974, the HSWA had been supported and supplemented by several statutory instruments and regulations (Joyston-Bechal Grice, 2004). Following the framework directives of the EU aiming to improve health and safety for workers at work, the Management of the Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1992 and then 1999 (MHSW) came to provide additional elements to the HSWA. Other daughter regulations had been adopted to implement this act on specific construction related areas (Fewings, 2005). Some examples of these new regulations (St John Holt, 2005; Fewings, 2005): MHSW Management of the Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1992/1999 CHSW Construction (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1996/2000 PUWER Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 LOLER Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998 CSHHR Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 1999 MHOR Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 CDM Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 1994/2007 The HSWA first objectives were to impose duties on the stakeholders involved in the work activity related to the safeguarding of health and safety standards. The key duties were places on employers toward employees, on employers towards people other than employees, on people in control of premises, on designer, manufacturers, suppliers and plant installer for the safety of their products, on every employees and more generally on everybody concerned by work activity (Howarth Watson, 2009). The responsibility for enforcing these act and regulations is taken by the Health and Safety Commission (HSC) which is appointed by the government to develop policies on its behalf. Its executive arm, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is in charge of the enforcement. It controls and advise the companies in the applications of the regulations (St John Holt, 2005). The HSC and HSE are also responsible of recording and monitoring construction industry health and safety statistics in Great Britain. Injuries, diseases and dangerous occurrences are then considered with numbers and corrective actions can be made (Howarth Watson, 2009). Construction design and management (CDM) On 6 April 2007 came into force in Great Britain the new Construction Design and Management Regulations 2007 written by the Health and Safety Commission (HSC) and approved by the Secretary of State and the Parliament. These regulations update, combine and replace the former Construction Design and Management Regulations 1994 (CDM94) and the Construction (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1996 (CHSW) which both needed to be reviewed and updated accordingly with the recent evolutions of the considerations towards health and safety issues in construction and after consultations of the main stakeholders of the construction industry (HSC, 2007). The CDM2007 Regulations aim to reduce construction accidents and ill health in Great Britain by encouraging the various stakeholders of the construction industry to improve in planning and managing their projects taking into consideration matters of safety and health early on in the project definition. By starting focusing on these essential points at the beginning of a project, risks can be identified and managers are able to make good decisions ahead of difficulties (Howarth Watson, 2009). In this new version of the regulations, the HSC focuses on communication and co-ordination between all the parties involved in the construction project and set up several duties for each of the different stakeholders. It also highlights that the amount of paperwork and all the bureaucracy caused by the previous version of the regulations should be reduced and the focus put on the planning and management. (HSE Website) The CDM set up obligations for clients and designers. The main obligation imposed to the client is to appoint the main stakeholders for the planning and the realisation of construction work (St John Holt, 2005). By construction work, the CDM broadly refers to the carrying out of building, civil engineering or engineering construction word (HSC, 2007). The regulations also impose duties to the central figures then appointed which are related to health, safety and occupational safety on construction project and which will be summarised later in this paper. Among the dutyholders which participate to the carrying out of the project are the Client, the Designer, the CDM-Coordinator, the Principal Contractor and the Contractors (St John Holt, 2005). The Client The Client is defined as any person for whom construction work is being carried out, whether done by external labour or in-house (Joyston-Bechal Grice, 2004). It can be an individual as well as a company. By this definition of the investigator of the work, the Client is the one who provides adequate funds to design and realise the work in respect of safety and health regulations imposed by the CDM and thus has a certain influence on what happens on site (St John Holt, 2005). The CDM Regulations 2007 submit the Client to several duties (Howarth Watson, 2009) (Joyston-Bechal Grice, 2004) (HSE, 2006): Appoint a CDM-Coordinator and a Principal Contractor Make sure that these two stakeholders and all the other the client could directly appoint are competent and have the adequate resources to mange health and safety problem associated with the project Ensure that the construction does not start until suitable welfare facilities have been provided as well as an agreeable health and safety plan Provide the CDM-Coordinator and the Designers with all the relevant information about health and safety matters related to the project Retain and make the health and safety file available to anyone who asks for it The CDM-Coordinator should be appointed as soon as possible so the Client can receive advice from him in order to appoint the other stakeholders (St John Holt, 2005). One of the important duty of the Client is to make sure that all the main figures he (it?) has to appoint are competent and have the adequate resources to deal with health and safety issues. That means the Client has to ensure that these stakeholders understand well the project, are familiar with construction techniques, are well aware of health and safety matters their risks and consequences but also that they allocate enough money and persons to do the job (Joyston-Bechal Grice, 2004). Maybe what they are not required ? Fraser The CDM-Coordinator The CDM-Coordinator is a person or a company appointed as early as possible by the Client in the preparation of the project. He is a key element for the prevention of risks related to health and safety as he is the main advisor of the Client and he is the guarantor of coordination and co-operation between the main figures involved in the construction process (HSC, 2007). The duties of the CDM-Coordinator imposed by the Regulations 2007 are (HSC, 2007) (Semple Fraser, 2007) (Howarth Watson, 2009): Advise the Client and other stakeholders on appointments: competence and resource availability Notify HSE about the project Coordinate planning and design work on health and safety matters Cooperate with the Principal Contractor and facilitate good communication between the stakeholders involved in the project Collect pre-construction information and prepare a pre-tender health and safety plan Prepare and update the health and safety file Supervise designers and ensure the design is prepared adequately The CDM-Coordinator is appointed only in the case of notifiable projects. That covers all the construction works which are scheduled to last more than 30 days or involve more than 500 person-days of work. A person-day is defined as one individual carrying out construction work during one normal working day (St John Holt, 2005). An important part of the CDM-Coordinators duties is to work close to designers in order to ensure they get the right information are the good moment and to supervise their work in order to figure out if they consider hazard, risks and control (WS Atkins Consultants, rev A. Gilbertson, 2004). The Designer Designers have a key role in managing health and safety on site. They are the persons or companies who can prevent risks at the source (Semple Fraser, 2007). The designer is the one who analyse site information and prepare drawings and specifications for the project. He can be an architect, a land surveyor or an engineer (HSE, 2006). For complex projects, several designers can be appointed to split the design and ensure to identify and examine all the health and safety factors that need to be addressed (WS Atkins Consultants, rev A. Gilbertson, 2004). The main duties of a designers are Eliminate hazards and reduce health and safety risks Provide all the stakeholders with information about the remaining risks that could be eliminated Ensure the client is aware of duties and that he (it?) appointed a CDM-Coordinator Update the health and safety file with all the new information concerning health and safety matters Cooperate with the CDM-Coordinator and the other designers and supply the relevant information Designers have the duty of indentifying and eliminating hazards and reduce the risks of those which cannot be eliminated (HSC, 2007) by using risk assessment methods to detect foreseeable risk and ensure the safety of workers by tackling the problem at the source. For this purpose they have to reduce de likelihood of harmful occurrences and the potential severity of harm resultant from it, limit the number of people exposed the these occurrences on site as well as and the duration and frequency of exposition (Howarth Watson, 2009). The Principal Contractor The Principal Contractor is an individual or a company appointed early in the construction process by the Client and is responsible for planning, managing and controlling health and safety on site during the construction phase of the project (HSE, 2006). The Principal Contractor is usually the main Contractor of the project. He (it?) has to ensure a good cooperation and coordination of work between the Contractors involved in the construction because of the fact they may work on the same site at the same time and then interaction between then can create unexpected hazards (HSC, 2007). The duties imposed to the Principal Contractor are (Howarth Watson, 2009) (Joyston-Bechal Grice, 2004) (HSE, 2006): Plan, manage and control construction phases and provide a good communication with Contractors Create and implement the health and safety plan on the base of the pre-construction plan Set up site rules Provide Contractors with all the information available concerning health and safety matters to ensure safety of their workers Ensure the availability of suitable welfare facilities at the beginning of the work and maintain it during the duration of the construction phase Check the resource availability and the competence of its (his?) appointed stakeholders Provide the workers with an induction when they arrive on site and further training and information for specific work Make the site a safe place and restrict access to people involved in the construction Consult with the workers and liaise with the CDM-Coordinator The Principal Contractor has a significant health implication when designs change or decisions are modified. The consultation process with the workers and the CDM-Coordinator permits to make everyone aware of the new updates in the construction phase plan and of the changing in managing health and safety (Semple Fraser, 2007). The Contractor The Contractor is any person or company who is in charge of the carrying out or the management of the construction work. The Contractor can also organise the work of other stakeholders who carry out the work on his (it ?) behalf (Joyston-Bechal Grice, 2004). The duties of the Contractor are (Howarth Watson, 2009) (HSC, 2007): Plan, manage and control own work and that of workers Check competence of workers and sub-contractors Specific training for workers Provide health and safety information to workers Make sure workers beneficiate of suitable welfare facilities Check the project is notified before starting the work Cooperate with other Contractors and with the Principal Contractor Provide any information to update the health and safety file Report any accidents, diseases and dangerous occurrences to the Principal Contractor as well as problems with the health and safety plan. Most of the time on large projects, several contractors work at the same time on the same site. In this case it is essential they cooperate with each other and follow the instructions of the Principal Contractor not to interact and create new hazards on site. The contractors should ask for the health and safety construction phase plan produced by the Principal Contractor to get all the information they need to ensure safety of their employees (HSE, 2006).

Finding Hercules in Much Ado About Nothing :: Much Ado About Nothing Essays

William Shakespeare, one of the greatest writers of all time, uses Hercules as a persona of excellence throughout his play, "Much Ado About Nothing".   Hercules, in Greek mythology, is a hero known for his strength, courage and legendary adventures.   This gives the impression that Shakespeare liked the tales of Hercules.      In order for us to understand what he meant by using Hercules' name and amount of background would need to be known. The first time Shakespeare uses Hercules name is with his character Benedick.   This takes place in Act two, Scene One: Benedick:  Ã‚   "...I would not marry her though she were endowed with all that Adam had left him before he transgress'd.   She would have made Hercules have turn'd spit, yea, and have cleft his club to make the fire too."   Shakespeare uses this to connect with the one of the tales of Hercules.   When a centaur (part man and horse) by the name of Nessus captured Deianeira, Hercules shot the centaur with a poisoned arrow.   With the centaur's dying breath he gave Deianeira a vial of his poisoned blood telling her she could use it to rekindle Hercules' love for her if it ever faded.   Hercules fell in love and married Deianeira (Hercules second wife).   One day when she felt that his love was fading, she made him a robe that was dipped in the blood of the centaur.   When Hercules received the gift from his wife he was overjoyed and put it on, almost immediately his skin started to burn and he caught on fire.   The club that is mentioned is Hercules' weapon.   Benedick says Beatrice would harm him, even if he used a weapon, he wouldn't be able to stop her, even though she may not mean any harm. Shortly after Benedick spoke of Hercules, Don Pedro mentions his name but for good use instead of the unhappy end of Hercules. Don Pedro:  Ã‚   "...I will in the interim undertake one of Hercules' labours, which is, to bring Signior Benedick and the Lady Beatrice into a mountain of affection th' one with th' other.   I would fain have it a match, and I doubt not but to fashion it if you three will but minister such assistance as I shall give you direction.

India Unity Essay

India is land of variety. There is great variety in variety of aspects. The languages, lifestyles, religions, habits, geography, climates, cultures might be different but still they unite us into an invisible frame, the frame of Indianism. Diversity is there in every aspect of India, a land that encloses 1,222,559 sq. meters of land and is home to more than one billion people. As such stats imply, there ought to be diversity, but this does not always imply that there are differences. Rather, India is a land where in spite of so much of diversity, there is still unity. Be it the joining of hands for a mission or against it, Indians have always shows great unity. There have also been instances where people have fought against each other for some reason or the other but such cases do break out in all countries, so India being a niche of such diversity can be excused for once! India won’t be India if not for this diversity. If India means Kanchivaram sadi then India also means Pashmina shawl. If India means extreme hot climate of the south India, then India also means the snow covered mountains of the north India. If India means the desert of Rajasthan then India also means the highest rainfall grounds of Assam! Such diversity is also found in the school of minds, where one stands for the motion, another stands against it. This means an added advantage, because while one is looking at the positive aspects of a side, other is hunting for the counterpart negatives. The diversity of India has a great edge over the plain unanimously joint countries! It might be speculated that is just another starry eyed optimist opinion, but then if we didn’t differ wouldn’t we be non-Indians

Free Essays on Ethics In Evangelism

A number of years ago, I enrolled in a "preacher-boys" class at a fundamentalist university in the South. The only requirement of the course was to witness to seven people every week and write a brief report on each contact. The teacher of the course- and the founder of the university- was an old-time Southern evangelist who wanted his preacher-boys to be evangelists. The teacher’s method of evangelism had three steps: tell people they are sinners, tell them about Christ, and lead them to salvation. This approach may have converted some people, but statistics would probably show that many of those conversions didn’t stick- which is one of the reasons mainline churches are not attracted to hit-and-run evangelism. Mainline churches are, however, becoming increasingly interested in practicing evangelism. The recurring question for such churches is, What kind of evangelism? In response, I would recommend a liturgical approach to evangelism, one that is based on the evangelical practices of the church in the third century. Liturgical evangelism, which is being revived in the Catholic Church, is also an evangelism that emphasizes the ethical side of the gospel. It is this kind of evangelism that will, I believe, take hold in many mainline Protestant churches. Third-century liturgical evangelism consisted of seven steps- four stages and three rites of passage. This process was designed to bring the converting person to Christ and into the church through a series of seven successively deeper commitments. These stages can be described under the headings of inquiry; rite of entrance; catechumenate; rite of election; purification and enlightenment; rites of initiation; and mystagogy. The ethical content of evangelism appeared in all seven stages. Here is how it worked: A person who evidenced interest in the gospel was brought to the pastor and elders of the church. An inquiry into or a formal presentation of the gospel took place ... Free Essays on Ethics In Evangelism Free Essays on Ethics In Evangelism A number of years ago, I enrolled in a "preacher-boys" class at a fundamentalist university in the South. The only requirement of the course was to witness to seven people every week and write a brief report on each contact. The teacher of the course- and the founder of the university- was an old-time Southern evangelist who wanted his preacher-boys to be evangelists. The teacher’s method of evangelism had three steps: tell people they are sinners, tell them about Christ, and lead them to salvation. This approach may have converted some people, but statistics would probably show that many of those conversions didn’t stick- which is one of the reasons mainline churches are not attracted to hit-and-run evangelism. Mainline churches are, however, becoming increasingly interested in practicing evangelism. The recurring question for such churches is, What kind of evangelism? In response, I would recommend a liturgical approach to evangelism, one that is based on the evangelical practices of the church in the third century. Liturgical evangelism, which is being revived in the Catholic Church, is also an evangelism that emphasizes the ethical side of the gospel. It is this kind of evangelism that will, I believe, take hold in many mainline Protestant churches. Third-century liturgical evangelism consisted of seven steps- four stages and three rites of passage. This process was designed to bring the converting person to Christ and into the church through a series of seven successively deeper commitments. These stages can be described under the headings of inquiry; rite of entrance; catechumenate; rite of election; purification and enlightenment; rites of initiation; and mystagogy. The ethical content of evangelism appeared in all seven stages. Here is how it worked: A person who evidenced interest in the gospel was brought to the pastor and elders of the church. An inquiry into or a formal presentation of the gospel took place ...

Influence of Alcohol and Drug Addiction on Political socialization in America essays

Influence of Alcohol and Drug Addiction on Political socialization in America essays Effects of Drug and Alcohol Addiction on Political Socialization in America Political Socialization is the process, by which citizens of a particular region, nation, state, city, or country develop the ways in which they develop views and beliefs about the political issues of their respective areas. This process is developed in America, through this nations citizens families, peers, the media, and their political party involvement (if any). It is the intent of this research paper to show the reader how the rise in alcohol and drug addiction has had adverse effects on this process called political socialization, in America. The paper will lead the reader through the four influences in this process and show how addiction has a negative effect upon each . The first influence in a United States citizens life is the citizens family. The ways in which the family views political issues has a big effect on the ways that the individual also views these issues. Parents teach their children about the value of participating in the political system through their example and approval. Therefore, if the family has a strong addictive, anti-social tendency towards the political factions of their society, there will be a stong tendency towards the same anti-social perspective created in their children. In The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse, Volume 24, number 4, Jeanette Taylor, M.A. states that, after tabulation for the families of 35 delinquent, substance-abusing (multiple problem) adolescent males, as expected, a significant, positive correlation among conduct disorder, anti-social personality disorder, alcohol abuse, and drug abuse was found for each corresponding males family. It was concluded that identifying male multip le problem youths also identifies families with a high incidence of similar problems. This information states that a families tendencies are an almost m...

Harmonization of Financial standards and reporting standards Essay

Harmonization of Financial standards and reporting standards - Essay Example In relation to this discussion, the integration of accounting practices followed by the company with that prevailing within the host country is also an important issue faced by the company in its global business practices. In order to address this issue, the phenomena of harmonization of different accounting standards and practices and emergence of a common set of accounting standards has come into lime light (Choi, Frost and Meek 1999). In this context, the paper aims to discuss the phenomena of harmonization and evolution of one common set of accounting standards in the most empirical manner. The paper intensively focuses upon financial and reporting standards and need of their harmonization. The paper also investigates the significance of different international bodies and organizations such as International Accounting Standard Board (IASB), International Federation of Accountants (IFAC), and Accounting standards Board (ASB) in the context of making the process of harmonization of reporting and accounting standards more smooth and effective (Deegan and Unerman 2011). Financial accounting and reporting standards and their needs Financial accounting can reporting standards can be considered as guidelines and direction provided by the apex regulator authorities of the country for the purpose of aligning accounting practices undertaken by individuals and business organization in maintaining their accounts and reporting the financial records in a fair manner. In relation to this, different accounting and reporting standards reflects some crucial accounting principles on the basis of which, an organization can undertake fair and effective accounting practices (Nobes 1999). As the span of and importance of business activities of different organization in an economy is quite vital, having integrity of accounting practices becomes quite essential phenomena. These standards are quite essential for the purpose of preventing misrepresentation of different account

Wilfred Owen's poem, Dulce Et Decrum Est and Tim O'Brien's The Things Research Paper

Wilfred Owen's poem, Dulce Et Decrum Est and Tim O'Brien's The Things They Carried deal with two different war - Research Paper Example The main theme that dominates both works is as follows: the realities of war that soldiers on the ground experience contradicts the idealistic view of war promoted by governments / the military. Compare/contrast the approaches and strategies these writers use to explore this theme. The most painful episodes of twentieth century history are its wars. Starting with the losses of the First World War in 1914 the Second World War was even more catastrophic. Then followed the theatre of the Cold War, in which the American military intervened far and wide in the globe. Notable examples include the Korean War and the Vietnam War. The two works in discussion, Wilfred Owen’s â€Å"Dulce Et Decrum Est† and Tim O’Brien’s â€Å"The Things They Carried† talk about two of the several wars of the recent century, namely the First World War and the Vietnam War. The political context, military strategy and technological aids employed in these two wars were quite diffe rent. Yet, their human tragedy remains the same. Separated by half a century, these two conflicts reflected the global geo-political power equations of their respective times. The two authors, far from glorifying war, present the realities of it in all its gory detail. Their works clearly suggest that futility and absurdity are the captions to the phenomenon of war. This view is in opposition to government/military propaganda, which would have its population believe that war is a noble of enterprise, undertaken to promote high values such as democracy, liberty, etc. There is even the preposterous propaganda slogan that ‘War is necessary to achieve peace’. The rest of this essay will flesh out the following thesis: Far from government rhetoric of the purpose and virtue of war, up-close observations of the actual theatre of war show how despairing, absurd and tragic the event is. The poem ‘Dulce Et Decrum Est’ is the best known of Wilfred Owen’s war po etry, the opening lines of which portray the wretched travails of a soldier during the First World War: â€Å"Bent double, like old beggars under sacks, / Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge, / Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs/ And towards our distant rest began to trudge.† (Owen, 1917) There is a palpable atmosphere of gloom and hopelessness that faced soldiers of the First World War and Owen’s poem starkly captures this reality. The genius of Owen is his ability to create art out of this most despairing human experience. The fact that Owen himself succumbed in the war is a powerful testimony to the messages and sentiments expressed in the poem. To place it in historical context, the First World War is one of the major tragic events in twentieth century history. Referred to as the Great War, it accounted for great loss of lives and material resources. For example, the trauma suffered by soldiers is captured in these lines â€Å"In all my dreams, before my helpless sight/ he plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.† (Owen, 1917) Dulce Et Decrum Est is remarkable in its ability to move the reader. It also excels in stunning and disturbing the reader’s preconceived notions of war. So, while the shockingly graphic elements in the poem sit uncomfortably in the reader’s mind, it is a sound method for condemning the atrocities of war. Owen’s works in general, including the poem in question, also concern themselves with what he saw as â€Å"poetry's failure to render war's actualities truthfully. In the draft preface written for a projected collection of his war poetry, Owen states, "All a poet can do today is warn. That is why the true Poets must be truthful". (Cyr, p.65) This is a veiled criticism of official government portrayal of war, which largely serves a propagandistic