Expert perspective on health and safety determinants in wineries.

BACKGROUND: The scientific literature contextualizes health and safety (H&S) in two major models, the first is based on a holistic perspective with H&S processes in all company departments, and the second approaches health and safety management from a more operational perspective. In this study, we examine the issue of health and safety in wineries. In 2017, a census showed that wineries account for 14% of the food and beverage industry in Spain. They provide direct employment for 24,051 people and involve complex winemaking processes that can cause accidents or occupational diseases. Wineries are part of the industrial sector, which, with 5,264 lost-time accidents per 100,000 workers in 2017, ranks second in the number of occupational accidents in Spain. This shows the need to determine the changes needed to improve health and safety in wineries. METHODS: In this study, we identify H&S determinants in wineries using Delphi methodology with a panel of 11 experts. CONCLUSION: The experts gave high scores to the "activities" dimension, and others such as "control of personal and collective protective equipment" and "training", together with "accident investigation", "coordinated health and safety measures" and "signage" are associated with operational health and safety determinants, namely, capitalizing on knowledge gained in situ and promoting organizational learning.

Does Europe Need an EU Product Safety Directive for Access Scaffolding?

The main requirement established for the development of European Union product safety directives is to ensure a high level of safety for users. This research aims to analyze whether Europe needs a product safety directive for scaffolding and identify the main factors to be defined in public policies on the use of standardized scaffolding in the absence of such a directive. The principal types of scaffolding were reviewed, along with European regulations, and their risk levels. Finally, a qualitative study using a panel of experts was conducted to determine the differences between types of scaffolding and whether the enactment of such a directive would be justified. Key results were that the risk level associated with scaffolding positioned it third or fourth between material agents more hazardous in relation to falls from height. There is no existing product safety directive for scaffolding, despite the fact that there are directives for other products less dangerous than or as dangerous as scaffolding. However, there are noncompulsory standards EN 12810-1-2 and EN 12811-1-2-3-4 for scaffolding, which would form the basis of the essential requirements contained in a directive if it were created. The experts highlighted significant differences between "standardized" and "nonstandardized" scaffolding, with higher safety levels and productivity, and better maintenance, inspection, assembly, and dismantling associated with the former, and lower costs with the latter. Thus, they found that the enacting of an EU product safety directive for scaffolding would be justifiable, and in its absence supported the promotion of the use of standardized scaffolding.

Quality evaluation of official accident reports conducted by Labour Authorities in Andalusia (Spain).

BACKGROUND: A public accident investigation is carried out when the consequences of the incident are significant or the accident has occurred in unusual circumstances. OBJECTIVE: We evaluated the quality of the official accident investigations being conducted by Safety Specialists of the Labour Authorities in Andalusia. METHODS: To achieve this objective, we analysed 98 occupational accident investigations conducted by the Labour Authorities in Andalusia in the last quarter of 2014. Various phases in the accident investigation process were examined, such as the use of the Eurostat variables within European Statistics on Accidents at Work (ESAW), detection of causes, determination of preventive measures, cost analysis of the accidents, identification of noncompliance with legal requirements or the investigation method used. RESULTS: The results of this study show that 77% of the official occupational accident investigation reports analysed were conducted in accordance with all the quality criteria recommended in the literature. CONCLUSIONS: To enhance glogal learning, and optimize allocation of resources, we propose the development of a harmonized European model for the public investigation of occupational accidents. Further it would be advisable to create a common classification and coding system for the causes of accidents for all European Union Member States.

A decade of occupational accidents due to direct or indirect electrical contact in the primary, secondary and tertiary sectors in Spain (2003-2012).

Occupational accidents caused by electrical contact are a major concern worldwide due to their severe consequences. The study conducted is based on an analysis of the evolution of incidence rates and dependence between variables for 14,022 electrical accidents occurring in Spain between 2003 and 2012. The results show that electrical accidents as a whole are 3.6 times more likely to have severe consequences than the rest of the accidents in the country. This proportion is even nine times greater in the case of fatal accidents. They also confirm a significant relationship between the severity of this type of accidents and the economic sector in which they occur. On the other hand, there is a positive trend in the reduction of the incidence rate, especially in relation to direct contact, although unexpectedly the rate of accidents due to indirect contact is on the rise. Thus, preventing electrical occupational accidents requires efforts to guarantee adequate training adapted to the needs of workers in the various economic sectors. Furthermore, those responsible for safety should work to implement mechanisms to monitor and control compliance with efficient protective measures against electrical contact.

Consideration of stakeholder interests in the planning of sustainable waste management programmes.

Those responsible for developing sustainable solid waste management programmes must consider the impacts of programme elements on everyone involved. This paper focuses on identifying the effects of waste management activities and assessing their overall impact on stakeholders. Collaborating with four focus groups and 36 experts, 19 effects were identified and nine questionnaires were designed to evaluate them, one for each stakeholder group. All told, 1805 people took part in the survey. The results show that the effects most important to the survey participants are: (a) recycling solid urban waste, (b) pollution and (c) corporate social responsibility.

Can fire safety in hotels be improved? Results from the survey of a panel of experts in Spain.

BACKGROUND: The hotel industry is an important driver of the European labour market with over 250,000 hotels employing some 2 million people. In Spain, 240 workers were injured by fires in hotels from 2004 to 2008. Fire is considered to be the most important risk in the hotel industry, but the lack of an EU-wide data recording system for hotels makes it difficult to give exact figures for fire events. OBJECTIVE: We analysed the state of fire prevention systems in hotels in Spain with the aim of proposing strategies to improve fire safety. METHODS: A 10-item questionnaire was administered from 2007 to 2009 to 15 Spanish experts in fire safety. The questions were measured using a Likert scale and classified into 4 sections: current state of installations, influence of establishment characteristics, application of regulations and priority ranking of actions. Descriptive statistics summarized the data and t-tests evaluated the agreement foreach statement in the questionnaire. RESULTS: The statistical analysis showed homogeneity in the responses by the experts in all four categories: current state of fire safety installations, influence of establishment characteristics, application of regulations, and priority of actions. There was consensus among the experts over the necessity to improve the enforcement of regulations and also regarding the existence of an association between the hotel category (in Spain they are ranked using a 1 to 5 "star" rating system) and the level of fire safety; hotels with a higher category had higher levels of safety. CONCLUSIONS: There is a need to identify ways to apply fire safety standards to older hotels so that they comply with new regulations, to standardize regulations for different regions and countries, to improve the maintenance of installations and equipment, to increase the effectiveness of inspections conducted by government bodies, and to raise the general awareness of stakeholders involved in hotel fire prevention.

Severity of electrical accidents in the construction industry in Spain.

PROBLEM: This paper analyzes the severity of workplace accidents involving electricity in the Spanish construction sector comprising 2,776 accidents from 2003 to 2008. METHOD: The investigation considered the impact of 13 variables, classified into 5 categories: Personal, Business, Temporal, Material, and Spatial. RESULTS: The findings showed that electrical accidents are almost five times more likely to have serious consequences than the average accident in the sector and it also showed how the variables of age, occupation, company size, length of service, preventive measures, time of day, days of absence, physical activity, material agent, type of injury, body part injured, accident location, and type of location are related to the severity of the electrical accidents under consideration. SUMMARY: The present situation makes it clear that greater effort needs to be made in training, monitoring, and signage to guarantee a safe working environment in relation to electrical hazards. PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS: This research enables safety technicians, companies, and government officials to identify priorities and to design training strategies to minimize the serious consequences of electrical accidents for construction workers.