Working safely during the summer

Landscapers will be familiar with the challenges of working in hot and sunny conditions but keeping safe is one which can be tackled by taking a few simple steps.

The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) says working in hot environments can have serious impacts on health, both in the short- and long-term, leading to conditions like skin cancer.

Working outdoors in hot conditions can also affect the ability of workers to keep themselves safe; for instance, when using machinery.

The regulator suggests a range of actions for keeping safe in hot environments generally and in sunny conditions specifically:

• Tips for hot environments
• Reschedule work to cooler times of the day
• Provide more frequent rest breaks and introduce shading to rest areas
• Provide free access to cool drinking water
• Introduce shading in areas where people are working
• Encourage workers to remove personal protective equipment when resting to help encourage heat loss
• Make sure workers can recognise the early symptoms of heat stress

Tips for sunny conditions

• Keep your top on
• Wear a hat with a brim or a flap that covers the ears and the back of the neck
• Stay in the shade whenever possible, during your breaks and especially at lunch time
• Use a high factor sunscreen of at least SPF15 on any exposed skin
• Drink plenty of water to avoid dehydration
• Check your skin regularly for any unusual moles or spots and see a doctor promptly if you find anything that is changing in shape, size or colour, itching or bleeding

One common question from BALI members is around whether employers are obliged to provide sunscreen or it falls to individual employees.

Sunscreen provision

The issue of who should provide sunscreen reached the Court of Appeal in 2014, where a gardener with sun-damaged skin argued their employer should have supplied sunscreen and a hat.

However, the judge ruled in favour of the employer, finding that they did not have to provide sunscreen and a hat in order to meet health and safety rules – though there is also no rule to stop them doing so.

BALI is acutely aware of how expensive sunscreen can be and recently joined forces with other industry organisations to ask the government to remove VAT on high-factor products.