These injuries resulted in a whopping 3.9 million working days being lost, costing the UK both money and productivity. It is naturally beneficially for both employees and employers to ensure that workplace safety is a top priority within their company in order to avoid any expensive accident at work scenarios.

Looking at safety equipment

For 2017/18, the construction industry suffered the highest amount of fatalities in its workforce, with 38 deaths recorded. Agriculture had 29 deaths, and manufacturing suffered 15 fatalities. These industries in particular often require certain safety equipment to abide by health and safety regulations – and wearing the equipment could separate your employees from a near death experience and a non-fatal injury.

One example is using a hard helmet on a construction site to avoid head injuries. If your staff fail to wear the required hard hat, any of those injuries could be a direct cause of not wearing the correct safety equipment. Protective glasses should also be worn by employees that are exposed to debris, dust and bright lights that could damage the employee’s sight.

There are so many protective pieces of clothing available now. These include steel toe cap boots, hi-vis clothing, safety gloves and noise cancelling headphones. Implementing a work policy that says your staff are required to wear safety clothing and equipment is the first step to preventing workplace injuries that could lead to fatal deaths or long-term work absences, which cost your company money.

Correct training for employees

For reducing risk in any industry, training your staff should be high on the list. Every employee should be briefed on the safest fire exits around the premises, as well as what the procedure is in case of an emergency. In fact, many premises are permitted to carry out practice fire drills to ensure all members of staff are aware of the routine.

There are a number of other safety areas to consider too. In the manufacturing industry, which is the third most dangerous environment for fatal injuries in the workplace, some job roles require particular training and qualifications to use machinery. Where hazardous or dangerous machinery is involved, staff must be trained on how to use it – and must use the correct safety equipment and clothing at all times. 135,000 of the 555,000 non-fatal injuries in 2017/18 led to over 7 days of work absence — providing your staff with the appropriate training could save you a big cost seen through a loss of working hours due to workplace injuries.

Individual employees may require further training too. For instances, some processes will need employees to gain the correct certification to be able to carry them out with reduced risk of injury. For example, in the construction industry, any employee who will be navigating a crane will require a Construction Plant Competency Scheme (CPCS) licence.

The benefits of audits

Internal audits are a beneficial way for companies to monitor the processes within their workplace in order to continuously improve them and look out for developing risks. For example, slips, trips and falls caused 31% of non-fatal injuries in the workplace in 2017/18. The main causes of slips, trips and falls in the workplace are uneven floor surfaces, unsuitable floor coverings, wet floors, changes in levels, trailing cables and poor lighting – all of which can be prevented or marked out safely if the proper regulations are followed. Legally, businesses must follow The Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992, which stipulates that employers must ensure that floor spaces are in good condition and free from obstructions. Furthermore, the Health and Safety (Safety Signs and Signals) Regulations 1996 legally require businesses to provide and display the appropriate safety signs when there is a potential risk too – whether that is a wet floor sign, or signs indicating loose cables or exposed electric cables.

Safety measures are important for employee welfare, but they are also important in terms of protecting a company as a whole.

Sources

http://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/overall/hssh1718.pdf

http://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/overall/hssh1516.pdf?pdf=hssh1516

But if you have to spend £20 every year on a replacement pair, then over three years that’s £60 spent. It makes more sense to spend that £60 at the start on a pair of shoes that will last three years or more, especially if they are more comfortable and a higher quality.

Your shopping habits have a huge effect on the environment too, and it is certainly suffering for these so-called ‘fast-fashion’ trends. While scooping up a dress for £5 might seem like an exciting bargain, let’s be honest, the price might be more the motivator in the purchase than the style, quality, or comfort. More and more of these clothes just end up being worn once or twice before heading to the bin. In fact, in a survey by Method Home, of 2,000 British shoppers, nearly a fifth admitted to throwing clothes in the bin.

What impact can fast fashion have?

With fashion trends changing faster than ever before, there’s an increasing pressure on consumers to change up their wardrobes faster. But, with our money only stretching so far, many of us are turning to cheaper outlets for our clothing.

Cut-cost fashion must also find somewhere to make savings along the production line. You can’t sell a £5 dress without using cheaper materials and such. This often leads to garments made quickly with non-organic fabrics. Plus, as the Independent reported, the process of dying these clothes is the second largest contributor to water pollution.

While the short-term purchase may be cheaper, the cost to keep replacing the item over the years will add up. If a more expensive version will last a number of years, it could end up being comparatively cheaper.

By its very nature, it is expected that the garment you have purchased will not be kept long, nor will it be expected to last for years. On the flip side, fashion with an emphasis on quality and durability will see you through. This manifests particularly in the threads lost during washing. Cheap clothes tend to shed tiny microfibres when washed, which end up polluting our oceans.

The cost of quality

As Life Hacker rightly states, a high price doesn’t always mean high quality. Here’s some top tips for spotting good quality shoes and clothing:

1. Spares for repairs — this is like a calling card from the designer. If the item comes with spare buttons, then the item is expected to last enough for it to require a button mend at some point!
2. Check the pattern matches at the seams — it’s the little things that are the biggest giveaway!
3. Look for gaps in the stitching — an item that will last will have no gaps between stitches on the seam, and also have more stitches per inch. Take a good look at those stitches!
4. Don’t look at the price tag — as mentioned before, this isn’t always an indicator or quality. People can, and will, charge good money for a poor product. Take a look at the item itself.
5. For clothes, scrunch them up a bit — take some of the material in your hand and ball it up for a few seconds, then let go. A good quality material will survive and the wrinkles will fall out. Cheap material will stay wrinkled and creased.

Leather ankle boots for example are versatile and can be used for range of occasions, so make sure to buy a quality pair to withstand all those wears! Divide its cost by the amount of times you think you’ll wear it and that will give you the cost per wear. If it’s something you’ll wear every day, definitely check the quality of the item! Remember, the ‘bargain’ comes in how many times you think you’ll wear the item. It’s always recommended to invest a little in timeless staples that can be mixed and matched for a variety of outfits.

Sources:

https://theecologist.org/2018/oct/30/fast-fashion-method-madness

https://lifehacker.com/cheap-clothes-are-too-expensive-buy-quality-instead-1751019637

https://fashionunited.uk/news/fashion/method-soap-brand-wants-to-clean-waste-in-fashion/2018101239428

http://www.wrap.org.uk/content/love-your-clothes-waste-prevention

https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/fashion/environment-costs-fast-fashion-pollution-waste-sustainability-a8139386.html

https://www.itv.com/news/2018-10-31/britains-love-of-fast-fashion-is-harming-marine-life/

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/london/like-uber-for-clothes-stmnt-startup-fight-fast-fashion-closet-rentals-1.4902265

https://www.buzzfeed.com/alisoncaporimo/clothing-quality-clues?utm_term=.dewknndvZ#.jdqgLLJQ3

https://www.liveabout.com/how-to-spot-quality-clothing-1387970

We’d bet that the vast majority of people reading this, regardless of gender, race or socioeconomic background, carry the same few basic items with them at all times; a phone, some keys, a few dollars, a debit card, and maybe some I.D are all items you’d reliably expect to find if you asked an average person on the street to turn out their pockets. But what would you find if you asked a millionaire, or even a billionaire, to do the same thing? As it turns out, it would appear you’d find they’d produce more or less the same or less from their pockets as the average Joe.

Two thirds (64%) of 18-25 year olds in the UK now use a mobile wallet, according to research released by social money transfer app Moneymailme.

The research reveals that 48% of 18-25 year olds believe that physical money will be obsolete within 20 years, while more than a third (38%) say that we will no longer need it in 15 years’ time. Less than three in ten (28%) say that they don’t think cash will ever stop being used or produced.

The research, which surveyed 1,000 18-25 year olds across the UK, known as Gen Z, revealed that young people prefer alternative methods of payments to cash, even for small purchases. Eight in ten (79%) say that they make purchases under £20 at least once a day, but when asked how they feel when faced with a ‘cash only’ sign at a bar or a shop nearly two thirds (62%) say that they felt frustrated. One in seven (14%) said that they would be frustrated enough to leave and go elsewhere.

In terms of mobile wallet preference, PayPal seems to remain one of the most frequently used online payment services among 18-25-year old’s (52%), while newer entrants to the market like Apple Pay (18%) and Google Wallet (9%) are starting to gain more market share.

While 36% say that they currently don’t use a mobile wallet only 14% say that they have no interest in having one, suggesting there is room for considerable growth in this market for services that appeal to the younger generation.

Nearly half of respondents (49%) say that they pay back their friends up to £10 per month, but almost a quarter (22%) wouldn’t consider a bank transfer for under £10, which currently leaves them reliant on cash to share money unless they have access to a mobile wallet.

Moneymailme CEO Mihai Ivascu said: “This generation of young people has grown up with mobile technology and for many of them using cash seems like a very dated concept, especially with the range of alternatives available to them. In 2015 electronic payments overtook cash for the first time in the UK and as this generation gets older this trend is only going to continue until producing physical cash is no longer desirable.”

Moneymailme, which combines social interaction with the instant sending and receiving of e-money in over 130 countries, recently launched the fintech industry’s first app to offer video calls with cash transfer capabilities to make sending cash to a friend or family member a more personal experience.

(Source: Moneymailme)