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Posted By KEVIN O'KANE
Hi, I know its seems somewhat premature to be talking about this topic, but I have issues which will raise its head soon. I just wondered has anyone had this issue in the past and how did they deal with it diplomatically!
As always a big thanks in advance
Kevin
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Posted By J Knight
Hi Kevin,
My partner's a physio, and between June and September she is allowed to wear shorts in the hospital she works in. Why would shorts be a problem, I suppose would be my question. If its to do with hazardous substances or a risk of laceration then fair enough, but otherwise why not just allow it and put boundaries in place?
John
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Posted By Merv Newman
There was a long thread on this last year. I think the conclusion was "why not".
Long trousers might protect from the odd scratch but not from any incident likely to cause a more serious injury.
Exposure to sunshine or chemicals might come into the question.
And if you have female employees how do you handle the lady who wishes to wear shorts instead of a skirt ? (sorry, could have phrased that better)
Merv
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Posted By John Lewis
In 2005 I was asked by a manager to do an RA on wearing shorts in the work place. Only when I found no reason not to, did I realise that he didn't want to see shorts worn and was looking for a spurious justification under "elfansafety".
Watch your back. Same manager told me the other day to decide whether I was on the management dside or the union side.
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Posted By Martyn Hendrie
I'm not too sure your thread is premature.
The other Thursday when it snowed(approx 125mm round our way) my wife was so amazed to see the postman delivering in shorts she rang me at work to tell me.
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Posted By Phil Rosenberg
Think you will find it is law that if you work outside that not only cant you wear shorts because of skin cancer , you must also wear a sleeved top ie;keep shoulders covered .If our postman freind got bit on the leg by a dog , his after thought may be that the dog may have nipped his trousers and not his ankle .
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Posted By Raymond Rapp
There is a lot of nonsense discussed about this issue of wearing shorts. The notion that shorts will act as some quasi PPE, or the law forbids it is rubbish.
I was talking to a director of a kitchen fitting company and he proudly told be me that he took h&s seriously and such such he had banned shorts. Expecting me to praise him I simply asked why? Subsequently he was lost for words.
I cannot see any good reason why certain trades cannot wear shorts in hot weather. Cuts, bruises and minor burns are likely to happen regardless. I prefer to focus on serious safety issues and at the same time gain the respect of the workforce.
Regards
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Posted By John Murgatroyd
Bearing in mind the sex discrimination act etc etc etc.....
I've decided to wear a skirt to work when the weather is hot.
Women can wear shorts, trousers and skirts. But men are expected to wear long trousers. Crap. My skirt may well be in a form of tartan...let the management work that one out.
It is not only illegal to discriminate against a person because of their sex, but also their sexual orientation as well. Further, if the discrimination takes the form of calling a normal heterosexual male a poof, that is also illegal. I may well wear a pink top too. Let H&S and HR work it out. Better get onto the union in advance.
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Posted By Ken Taylor
It depends upon the job being undertaken and the conditions of employment (eg whether a specific uniform is required). I wouldn't want to see someone in shorts using a chain-saw - or a kilt for that matter, John.
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Posted By John Murgatroyd
Really. So, a woman in a skirt wouldn't be allowed to use a chainsaw ?
Or is it just a man in a kilt ?
In any case, why would a sane person WANT to use a chainsaw ?
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Posted By Merv Newman
Sorry, but I have two chainsaws. One is electric for light work the other is two stroke for cutting up trees. Bootiful !
And I know (from direct personal experience) that it really doesn't matter if you are wearing shorts or trousers. Get a chainsaw across your bum and you are not going to be sitting down for a while.
It seems that Kevlar trousers are the best bet.
Merv
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Posted By John Allen
John,
A kilt is not the same as a tartan skirt! Anyone impugning your masculinity or sexual orientation for wearing one is doing so out of sheer ignorance.
A kilt is a male garment and of course is usually worn by gentlemen. When worn with knee length woollen stockings I’m sure there are many jobs where the kilt will give a perfectly acceptable level of protection to the lower legs however I doubt that using a chain saw is one of them.
The kilt forms part of the accepted standard dress for male guests at formal occasions such as weddings and dinners and is infinitely smarter than a standard male evening suit, tuxedo or tail coat and striped trousers.
If you contact me direct I will gladly put you in touch with gentleman's outfitters who will be able to kit you out properly.
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Posted By Beau
Apologies for returning to the inital point!!
However no one seems to have addressed COSHH substances being splashed about on peoples pins - personally I find it someone hypocritical to have brickies etc wearing gloves and shorts???!!!!
Out site rules here - No Shorts!!!
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Posted By Jayne Harris
I work for a large distribution company, last year this very issue was raised to quite a senior level within our Safety & Risk Dept. The conclusion was that due to the nature of our industry, wearing long trousers will only offer minimal protection against minor cuts and grazes. It would also be difficult to police as soon as the employees were out of the 'gates'. And with the labour intensity of the job the employee would benefit from the comfort factor. We did however stipulate what standard of shorts were acceptable.
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Posted By Richard Mathews
Beau
The COSHH issue I don’t think is relevant to wearing or mot wearing shorts at work. I think if a proper RA is carried out then shorts shouldn’t be a problem in a lot of cases. If there is a risk from chemical splash then long trousers would sometimes be worse than shorts. With shorts you would be able to wash off the splash immediately with long trousers the possibility exists for the chemical to be against the skin for longer periods (personal experience).
Richard
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Posted By KEVIN O'KANE
Thanks for all your comments , gives me something to think about.
cheers
kevin
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Posted By Allan St.John Holt
Shorts are uniform issue at Royal Mail, and of course the wearing of them has been fully risk assessed. Beats me why anyone would want to wear them in the winter, but it's personal preference and certainly not something which we would force anyone to do. Whoever thinks it's against the law to allow people to wear shorts at work is barking up the wrong tree. Dog bites are another issue entirely.
As an aside, we don't issue sunscreeen in the summer - following a very detailed risk assessment, and we have agreed this with our unions.
Allan
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Posted By Beau
Richard
I take your point, and shall ensure all our operatives work naked in future!
Not sure of the speed at which concrete would soak through jeans as apposed to epidermis - I must check.......(!!!)
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Posted By Beau
* Beg your pardon think I meant Cement!!!
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Posted By Richard Mathews
Beau
I did say "sometimes" worse than shorts and I do accept that shorts will not be suitable or acceptable in all cases.
I wouldn't recommend builders working naked though. Where would their tools hang!
Richard
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Posted By Mike Herbert
For what its worth i recall reading about the case of a floor screeder (?) wearing long trousers who didn't realise that chemicals were leaking through his jeans onto the skin and suffered some nasty burns. I believe the company was fined for not carrying out a proper COSHH assessment but that is another matter.
Surely its all down to the activity and assessing that rather than shorts per se.
Advice to use suncream is probably appropriate in some circumstances but then so is warning staff about all the potential problems they might face in their job. Select and use the appropriate controls as necessary or PPE if necessary.
People cringe when my legs come out in the summer but they will have to live with it!
regards
mike
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