Workplace health and safety hazards and controls
Workplace health and safety hazards and controls tests recognition of common workplace hazards and the selection of practical, legally grounded controls. NGC covers work equipment, electricity, fire, hazardous substances, noise, vibration, manual handling, display screen equipment, work at height, confined spaces, transport, slips and trips, and welfare.
Core rules
- Work equipment: PUWER requires suitable equipment, maintenance, information and training; guarding for dangerous parts.
- Hazardous substances: COSHH requires assessment, prevention or adequate control, monitoring and health surveillance where needed.
- Noise: Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005 set lower exposure action values of 80 dB(A) daily/weekly and 135 dB(C) peak; upper action values of 85 dB(A) and 137 dB(C); exposure limit values of 87 dB(A) and 140 dB(C).
- Work at height: avoid, prevent falls, minimise distance and consequences; prioritise collective protection before personal fall arrest.
- Fire: prevent ignition and fuel accumulation, detect and warn, provide escape and extinguishing, train and drill.
Worked example
A workshop has noisy bench grinders. Dosimetry shows 86 dB(A) daily exposure. This exceeds the upper action value, so the employer must reduce exposure by engineering means (enclosure, damping, maintenance), make hearing protection mandatory and provide it free, mark the area, provide information and training, and offer health surveillance. Reason shown: the numerical trigger drives specific duties; PPE alone is not enough because the upper action value requires exposure reduction.
Traps
Do not quote the old 90 dB(A) limit. Do not treat hearing protection as the first control. Do not ignore peak noise or vibration. Do not give a hazard without a control, or a control without the responsible person and timescale.