05 Nov HSA Annual Report 2019
HSA release its 2019 Annual Report
The Health and Safety Authority (HSA) has released its Annual Report for 2019.
The report outlines all the HSA’s activities during 2019 across its 5 “Strategic Priorities”, namely: 1. Regulate; 2. Promote; 3. Accredit; 4. Influence; 5. How We Work.
Here are some of the key regulation and enforcement figures for 2019 from the report:
- 9,270 inspections completed in 2019
- 1,032 investigations were completed following accidents or complaints to the HSA which included 53 in agriculture, 298 in construction and 38 in healthcare.
- 68% of investigations and inspections resulted in some form of enforcement action
- 992 improvement or contravention notices issued
- 21 prosecutions taken (10 on indictment and 11 summarily)
- 11 fines were imposed at a total of €938,000
The first custodial sentence for a breach of occupational health and safety was also handed down although on appeal the custodial element was removed and the accused was ordered to pay €300 to the RNLI.
Inspections
The HSA carried out 4,269 inspections in the construction sector, 1,684 inspections in the farming sector, 575 in the transport and storage sector and 182 in the health and social care sectors.
In construction, inspections focused on machinery and vehicle risks, occupational health (manual handling and chemical exposure) and working at height. 242 inspections addressed chemical agents in the workplace, with 40% focusing on respiratory and skin sensitisers. 74% of workplaces inspected had completed an adequate chemical agent risk assessment. In agriculture, inspections focused on tractors and machinery, livestock handling and working at height.
A specific docks campaign was completed in response to the high numbers of fatalities in the period 2018–2019. The 76 inspections focused on the management of health and safety during vehicle movements in docks and port areas.
Chemicals
The HSA assessed 337 chemical products on the Irish market for compliance and focussed mostly on mixtures, in particular, detergents, paint and construction-related products. Twenty six assessments for compliance with CLP requirements were undertaken on chemical products sold online which mainly included DIY and construction stores and auto maintenance stores.
Education
The HSA reports that 32,210 online courses were completed in 2019, which was a 38.5% increase in the use of hsalearning.ie from 2018.
There were 66,296 cumulative users of BeSMART, 9,967 of whom were new users in 2019. Users prepared 11,018 safety statements using the tool.
The report gives a detailed breakdown of all the HSA’s activities across all its strategic priorities throughout 2019. Access the HSA’s Annual Report 2019 here: https://www.hsa.ie/eng/publications_and_forms/publications/corporate/hsa-annual-report-2019.pdf