‘It’s In Your Hands’ Campaign To Raise Awareness of Skin Diseases In the Workplace

British Safety Industry Federation’s launches ‘It’s In Your Hands’ safety campaign which focuses on skin conditions which can affect employees in the workplace.

The ‘It’s In Your Hands’ campaign was launched by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), the British Safety Industry Federation (BSIF), Safety Groups UK (SG UK), the British Occupational Hygiene Society (BOHS), the Institute of Occupational Medicine (IOM) and TUC in 2006.

The campaign is designed to raise awareness and increase prevention of work related skin diseases, including dermatitis and skin cancer.

The BSIF said that work related skin diseases are preventable yet 40,000 new cases are recorded every year by the HSE and it’s only the tip of the iceberg based on the anecdotal evidence. The objective of the campaign is therefore to provide information to employers on what to look out for as well information on how to protect workers from hazardous substances.

The campaign focuses on four key steps which are designed to reduce the risk of employees developing skin diseases. These include maintaining a safe working distance from any hazardous substances, minimising or avoiding skin contact, keeping regular checks in light of any skin symptoms and using personal protective equipment.

Expert Opinion

The campaign highlights a number of practical steps which employers can take at minimal cost, to ensure the safety of their employees. The Regulations with regards to exposure to hazardous substances are clear in so far as the risk of injury must be reduced to the lowest level reasonably practicable. <br/> <br/>“Unfortunately, we have seen a number of recent cases where employees have been left to work with harmful substances, without even having been warned of the risks that they may face. Hopefully this campaign will go some way to addressing this very real issue which impact upon the lives of so many unsuspecting workers. <br/> <br/>“We would therefore urge any workers who have developed early signs of skin conditions to contact us as soon as possible and particularly given the strict time limits which apply to compensation claims.” <br/> Alex Shorey - Senior Associate