A ground maintenance business based near Glasgow and a subcontractor have been fined £3,300 for conducting unsafe work at height, highlighting the importance of proper training and control measures.

Inex Works Civils Limited and subcontractor Colin Martin pleaded guilty to breaching work at height regulations during the incident in January 2017. Workers were observed carrying out roof repairs without the appropriate safety measures, throwing brushes and bags to each other between levels and failing to secure their safety harnesses to safe anchor points.

The ruling follows several similar incidents last year where fines ran into the tens of thousands of pounds on several occasions. Working at height is the biggest cause of fatal workplace accidents in the UK, so it makes sense that it’s treated so seriously.

Working at Height Safely

The primary legislation covering this area is the Work at Height Regulations 2005. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) summed up its main principles for employers: “you must do all that is reasonably practicable to prevent anyone falling”.

Employers are responsible for conducting risk assessments, providing the right equipment and making sure their workers are properly trained to carry out the job. As the Inex Works Civils Limited and Colin Martin incident shows, employers’ duties extend to the subcontractors they hire to complete the work.

Work at Height Training from VinciWorks

Our Working at Height eLearning courses make it easy to deliver engaging training to all employees who are working at height, ensuring everyone is aware of what their responsibilities are and helping employers to avoid the repercussions of unsafe work at height.