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Due to the diverse workforce on site we have requested the drugs and alcohol testing company bring saliva testing kits with them instead of just urine during Ramadan. This caters for those involved with Ramadan traditions where operatives may struggle to supply sufficient sample due to the reduced intake of liquids.

Although the difference between smoking a cigarette and a e-cigarette, also known as ENDS (Electronic Nicotine Delivery System), may be noticeably different, the understanding on what is acceptable at the workplace can be less obvious. Organisations need a clear policy on whether to allow people to ‘vape’ anywhere, nowhere or restricted areas, to avoid misunderstandings and legal action. The law…

The risk and impact of drugs to an individual can be a serious concern to their own health, as well as others. It is important to take the topic seriously and provide a thorough approach including both regulation and support, when considering the wellbeing and safety of the workforce. Below is an example of how one site introduced drug testing…

Our Area 12 STEM Ambassador Group arranged a ‘Bring your child to work day’ during the summer holidays to encourage more young people to consider Engineering as a career and provide greater awareness of our construction and engineering activities around the network. This allowed us to reach local communities, to share what we do and why we do what we…

Alcohol Awareness Week is an annual campaign organised by Alcohol Concern. The campaign aims to get people thinking about alcohol and how it impacts themselves, as well families, colleagues and the community as a whole. Any organisation is encouraged to take part from local authorities, emergency and healthcare services, schools, colleges and the workplace. Alcohol concern is providing free resources including…

Dry January is an annual campaign organised by Alcohol Concern that runs the full length of January. The campaign encourages adopting a completely alcohol free lifestyle for a total 31 days with the aim to raise awareness of alcohol consumption and healthy living. Those who have taken part in previous years have reported a noticeable change in health including: Weight loss Better…

The safety and wellbeing of a site’s workforce is a primary concern and must be properly monitored and managed. Amongst other common safety hazards, worker fatigue should not be something that is overlooked. “A state of perceived weariness that can result from prolonged working, heavy workload, insufficient rest and inadequate sleep.” – Office of Rail Regulation 2012 The Effects A construction…

The construction sector has encountered many challenges in relation to recreational drug use, which has become more prevalent since the pandemic and is impacting health and wellbeing across wider society. Robertson Group have developed a video which highlights what they have done to improve Drugs and Alcohol testing on their sites and the support they need to tackle this major…

Many sites have implemented an Alcohol Policy to ensure all operatives on site are not under the influence of alcohol and therefore are fit to work. Alcohol testing might be implemented where appropriate to further encourage this positive culture of safety consideration. For sites that do not have their own company policy in place, the Scheme has included an alcohol…

Worker fatigue poses a potential health and safety hazard, and can be detrimental to the overall health of the workforce. Fatigue can have similar effects to alcohol, slowing down reaction time, causing lapses in judgement, and impairing cognitive ability. This danger is particularly relevant to projects which involve tunnelling, as the long shifts and rotating day and night shifts put workers at greater…

Spotlight on… posters have been designed for general display in and around site welfare facilities. The Scheme has developed a collection of A3 posters from the series of ‘Spotlight on…’ learning toolkits. This resource has proven valuable for display on site and raising awareness amongst the workforce and visitors. To purchase these products, click here. To download a free electronic…

Following a project safety stand down at the beginning of the year, and regular drug and alcohol testing carried out on site, the team have engaged with the workforce on an anti-drug campaign. A drugs and alcohol testing specialist has joined the site in carrying out regular testing and delivering presentations to the workforce in order to highlight the issues…

To further promote safety for vulnerable road users in line with CLOCS, as well as promoting employee safety, a member of Kildare County Council held a road safety and drink awareness talk onsite. Discussing issues and giving role-play demonstrations such as: Managing Driving for Work Alcohol consumption effects Local accident hotspots Speed limits in the regional area Impaired vision due…

Lendlease have started trialling portable fingerprint based drugs testing equipment at their Elephant Park Development. Intelligent Fingerprinting is a fingerprint based system that checks for evidence of recent drugs misuse. The team at Elephant Park is trialling the fingerprint testing system in conjunction with the random drug screenings and in for-cause cases. To find out more, click the link below.

Mitnija UK Ltd have recognised that anyone on a construction site with alcohol in their system may pose a risk to themselves and others, therefore they have put in place a zero-tolerance alcohol policy. To ensure the effectiveness of this policy, before starting work each morning, everyone must measure their blood alcohol level by breathing into an automated breath alcohol…