One sign that the financial recovery has truly begun to find traction, is the employment boom the UK construction industry has been experiencing, over the past 6 months.
A forecast from the Construction Products Association anticipates the £111bn industry will see a 19% growth by 2017, which equates to a £20bn expansion of activity over the next three years.
One independent recruitment consultant was recently quoted on national news outlets as saying, that if she had 40 Bricklayers walk into her office that morning, she'd be able to find them all work by the afternoon.
The Construction sector is often seen as the barometer for the UK economy - first to be hit by recession, first to pick up in any recovery - and right now, housing, energy and transport infrastructure projects are leading the recovery - fueled, in part, by Government initiatives around "Help to Buy" schemes, first announced last year, and extended in the recent Budget.
The construction industry currently employs more than 2 million people in the UK and last summer saw it reach its highest level of activity since 2010, according to a Markit/CIPS Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) survey.
Of course, much of the work on construction sites is physically demanding - lifting heavy loads, working at altitude & using heavy plant machinery is all part of the job and the risk of injury to Construction workers is high.
Although there has been a steady and significant reduction in the number of construction injuries and fatalities over the past 20 years, there were still 39 construction related deaths last year and an average of 53 fatal injuries to construction workers over the previous five years.
The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) reports that although construction accounts for only around 5% of employment in Britain, Construction injuries account for 27% of fatal injuries to employees and 10% of reported major injuries.
The most common building site accidents include:
- Falls – either down holes and shafts or from scaffolding
- Defective, faulty, or poorly maintained machinery –
- Falling objects
- Electrocution
- Manual handling
Not forgetting the serious long-term effects of prolonged exposure to hazardous materials.
In a series of forthcoming blog articles we’ll be looking in more detail at these common health problems caused by conditions in the construction industry:
- Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome (HAVS)
Explaining HAVS and how to reduce the effects of working with high vibration tools - Musculoskeletal Conditions
How to minimise the risk of injury from heavy lifting - Damaged Hearing
Caused by poor ear protection or prolonged exposure to high noise levels - Respiratory Illness
Which can cause long-term health issues for those working with wood, concrete or insulation. - Skin Conditions
Prolonged contact with hazardous substances can cause dermatitis and other skin conditions - Stress
Of course, there is a risk of injury in any profession if proper precautions are not taken. The HSE estimates that 2 Million people within the UK are presently suffering from an illness caused by, or worsened by the environment in which they are currently employed - Imagine; that's the equivalent of every person currently employed in the construction industry!
Employers have a duty of care to their employees, which means they have a responsibility to protect them, as well as contractors and visitors. This should be done through carrying out risk assessments, checking and maintaining equipment, providing suitable tools for the job and providing appropriate safety wear such as goggles, hard hats, ear protectors, safety gloves, high visibility jackets etc.
We Can Help
If you are injured at work as a result of your employer’s failure to do the above (negligence) then you may be entitled to make an accident compensation claim. Our friendly specialist advisors can talk to you about your situation and see if you have a valid genuine compensation claim. There is no charge for this service and you are under no obligation to claim with us.
If You Have a Genuine Claim, Contact a Genuine Company
May I Claim, is a trading name of R Costings Limited and our CRM number is 25770
If you have had an accident that wasn’t your fault and suffered an injury - you can trust us to handle your claim professionally.
Call us now on 0800 756 7774 and talk to us to find out if you have a claim - or fill in our Quick Claim form (on the right of this page).
http://info.mayiclaim.co.uk/personal_injury_compensation_claim_news/bid/341766/Construction-5-of-all-Employment-27-of-Fatal-Injuries-at-Work
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