10 Health & Safety Myths And The Truth Behind Them

Health and safety myths are everywhere. From banning fun activities to controlling the things you do, health and safety will often be given as the reason you can't do something. But is it a scapegoat?

Is health and safety really to blame? Or is it just a convenient excuse used when someone wants to stop something (possibly for other reasons)?

Let's take a look at 10 health and safety myths and the truth behind them...

1. Health and Safety Bans Things

Like with most myths, there is some truth behind it. Health and safety does ban some things. It banned asbestos because it was (and still is) killing thousands of people each year.

But, generally, health and safety laws don't ban things.

And a lot of the things that are reported to be banned for reasons of health and safety are, well, not banned at all.

• Ladders on construction sites.
• Candyfloss on sticks.
• Conkers in playgrounds.
• Umbrellas at an outdoor concert.

I'm sure you've heard many more cases of things being banned under the blanket statement of 'health and safety'. But if ladders were unsafe, and umbrellas a hazard, and were banned by health and safety, they wouldn't be available to buy.

And as for the truth behind it, yes, health and safety does ban some things. But in most cases, the law asks you to reduce risk as low as is reasonable, without banning specific tools or equipment.

Examples include controlling exposure to hazardous substances, or reducing exposure to vibrating equipment.

2. Health and Safety Costs Money

The short-term answer is yes, health and safety does cost time and money. But this statement is still a myth, because health and safety is an investment, and over the long term, health and safety can save you money.

Cha-ching.

It might cost you £5 to supply a hard hat, but a head injury in your workplace will cost a lot more in sick pay, fines, and insurance claims.

3. Health and Safety Is Red Tape

To get to the truth behind this one, let's take a look at the official definition of red tape:

official rules and processes that seem unnecessary and delay results

Ok, so health and safety is based on official rules and processes, I suppose. And then businesses create their own rules and processes based on the regulations.

Tick.

But are those rules unnecessary? Well, if they achieve the number one aim of preventing harm to people, then I'd say they are pretty necessary.

And as for delaying results... let's cover that in our next item.

4. Health and Safety Reduces Productivity

Let us bust that myth and assure you that any statement about health and safety reducing productivity is not correct. Health and safety makes you plan your work. Just the process of carrying out a risk assessment means you think about how work will get completed, safely.

Planning = Productivity.

Planning your work makes you more productive, not less!

And it's often quicker to do things safely too. You don't have to keep stopping due to mistakes or because you are worried about getting hurt.

Some things that do reduce productivity:

• Accidents.
• Ill health.
• Staff being off work.
• Investigations.

And these are all things that good health and safety management will help you avoid. Helping keep you, your team, and your business productive today, and for many years to come.

5. You Need a Health and Safety Consultant

This is both a myth and a fact.

You don't ALWAYS need a health and safety consultant. I mean, if you always needed them, they wouldn't be a consultant; they would be working for you as a full-time member of staff.

You do need a competent person to enable you to meet the requirements of health and safety law, but in many workplaces, like low-risk office-based environments, you probably have the skills and knowledge to manage health and safety yourself on a day-to-day basis.

There are, of course, times when you might need the external knowledge and expertise of a health and safety consultant. In a high-risk workplace, or to guide you through a particular health and safety challenge, or advise on changes to regulations.

6. Health and Safety Has Gone Mad

A lot of things can go mad at work. 2020 was certainly one for the history books. A global pandemic shut down workplaces and required new ways of working, living, and socialising (from a distance).

But if anything, events like this should remind us just how important our health and well-being are.

Often, it's poor health and safety that can lead to things getting out of control.

Like cross-contamination issues, failing to carry out a risk assessment, not managing water systems, or not checking for hazardous materials like asbestos.

7. Health and Safety Is Boring

What's boring about saving lives? Isn't that what superheroes do?

Now, I'm not claiming that health and safety professionals are superheroes. But I'm not not saying that either!

In all seriousness, health and safety is an essential business process, like HR, accounts, and project management. All business processes can seem boring at times, but they all benefit your business. And once you factor in the cost savings and business benefits health and safety can bring, it soon becomes less boring!

8. Health and Safety Killed Christmas

Here are some Christmas-related health and safety myths we have heard:

• Children are banned from throwing snowballs.
• Christmas decorations are banned.
• Carol singers are a health and safety risk.
• Health and safety banned Christmas parties.

Are we talking about health and safety, or Scrooge?

Well, if your boss bans Christmas decorations in the name of health and safety, maybe you work for a modern-day Ebenezer. But we'll certainly be putting our decorations up this year.

And if you're thinking your Christmas party can't go ahead, maybe you need our office Christmas party risk assessment!

9. The HSE Always Enforces Health and Safety

This myth might surprise you because the HSE is the go-to name in health and safety. They are the enforcing authority everyone talks about. And, when you think of health and safety inspections, fines, enforcement notices and prosecutions, you probably think of the HSE.

And the HSE is responsible for enforcing health and safety in a variety of workplaces like construction sites, factories, mines, farms, fairgrounds, schools and colleges.

But this is a myth - because the HSE is not the only enforcing authority.

In fact, for hotels, offices, pubs and clubs, restaurants, nurseries and places of worship, the HSE are not the people to call. Instead, you would need the Local Authority's environmental health department. And there are other enforcing authorities too, like the Office for Nuclear Regulation.

10. Health and Safety Is Inflexible

The fact behind this myth is that sometimes the health and safety rules and procedures you enforce at work might be inflexible. However, health and safety regulations themselves are fairly flexible in that they are not prescriptive.

And that means they tell you what you need to, but exactly how to do it. So you can come up with the best control measures to suit your business.

In 1974, the Health and Safety At Work etc. Act was introduced to move away from prescriptive rule-based legislation to goal-setting legislation. Instead of telling you what to do (prescriptive), it tells you what to achieve (goal-setting).

While this may seem less clear, in that the legislation might tell you that you need to reduce risk, but it doesn't tell you how exactly to do it. But it does mean that the regulations are flexible and can be applied to different workplaces.

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Get the truth behind the myths. Start with your legal health and safety responsibilities as an employer, and health and safety responsibilities as an employee.