Posted By Ali
I know it's not common sense, but their managers feel the need to have a "belt & braces" approach to H&S, leaving nothing out ! Maybe being outside all day makes them a target for birds ?

Posted By MGF
Its the old everyone must wear hats, gloves, glasses, boots so you at fault if not wearing such, the question should be over wether this is actually managing sites and specific problems on those sites.
Have been on sites where you received a bad report if sat in a finished newly built room without your hard hat on, coz it was a hard hat site, no risk of anything falling, or head hitting but the policy was all had to wear -so more time apent enforcing the hard hat rule than actually identifying actual site problems

Posted By Ian Mitchell
The example cited of a guy being made to wear a hard hat in a completed apartment in a block may seen silly. Let me assure you that from personal experience that if they do not, then they will walk out from apartment to apartment along communal balconies for example and forget/ not bother to do the hat thing. They will say 'sorry mate' again and again, and may even mean it, but until people can be trusted 100% to put the hat on and off as appropriate then they will wear it at all times through the gate as far as I am concerned!

I am only open to risk- based wearing in very specific circumstances. One such example was roof felt operations where there was no chance of anything falling on them (no crane) and the hat actually caused more hazards than it prevented due to the nature of the work.

Posted By John J
Because passing vehicles ping up stones at an impressive rate of knots. Particularly large heavy vehicles.
They also offer some shade when working outside in the sun.

Posted By Pete48
So the surveyor is on the bridge at 1600, at 1500 working near a machine with overhead risks and will be moving to another area with head risks next. 700 meters between the locations.
What does the surveyor do with the hard hat when there is no direct risk? Put in a pocket or just leave it on a bonce?
So in everyday work it is just worn, like your shoes or trousers or whatever. Nothing to do with direct risk, just a fails to safe method of ensuring that when it is really needed it is there. There is also the fact that hard hats do make people more visible in many environments.
The problems start when some well meaning person calls attention to another who is not wearing their hard hat in an area where there is actually no risk and goes on to discipline that person. I would either watch and make sure they put it on when they moved away from that "safe" area or remind them to do so as I left the area. At least it worked for over 25 years but then that wasn't today.

Posted By Pete48
Phil hi-vis underpants?
Sorry mods, it is nearly Friday.
P48

Posted By Southerner
Having been hit with a sheered wheel nut off a truck whilst working on the motorway, I think I am in a good position to say that hard hats are a good idea on the highways.

Some people on this website worry me, they are probably the one moaning about not having jobs with just the GC though.

(by the way the wheel nut chipped a bone in my shin and drew blood through work trouser, had it of hit me in the head without a hard had a fractured skull would probably be on the cards as a minimum)

Posted By Tim Corbett
The amount of items thrown at workers on the side of the road. Full plate armour may be more appropriate. As I was told, not all those bottles have Locazade in them!

Posted By Jeffrey Watt
The true Scots do not need them when they have these

http://www.blaklader.se/...bility-kilt/yellow-3300/

There are about 80 RTA's a year involving wheel nuts coming loose and striking other vehicles.

These safety caps from the US might cause even more accidents
http://www.safetycompany...-safety-caps/p_2052.html

Posted By FAH
Just to round this off - well, as others have said it is Friday!.

What's the point of a "hard hat" without a usable chin-stay that is actually used to hold the thing in place on the head?

Frank Hallett

Posted By Peter Moran
Helmet wear is generally a blanket rule nowadays on motorway maintenance works, specified both by the Highways Agency and contractors within the supply chain. This is regardless of the fact that in many circumstances there is no risk of a head injury and under certain conditions can actually create an increased hazard to workers and others.

'Bump-Caps' were in use a few years ago as a supplementary wear item for surfacing works but were dumped as many operatives failed to don the more appropriate issued headwear when passing under structures etc.

For certain activities such as Traffic Management, helmet wear has always been a contentious issue with TM operatives having to cross live lines, sometimes multiple live lines, whilst carrying signs etc. Helmet wear in these circumstances presents both a hazard to the wearer and the travelling public from the risk of dislodgement and falling into the path of fast moving traffic.

It is for this reason that you will rarely see any TM op wearing a safety helmet unless well within the road closure itself. This relaxation is common and the HSE formally commented to the TM industry a few years ago on this subject as they themselves felt that blanket wear was inappropriate in specific circumstances.

The blanket wear of LEP (Light Eye Protection) is another development that equally has some negative aspects under inclement weather conditions on motorway maintenance works....but well, thats another story!.....