Wandering Stars – Burning Regrets

Campfire Regret

Our regular social huddle at the Fisherman’s Arms, affectionately refered to as ‘office hours’ by group members, was poorly attended last Sunday. Rab and I formed the stalwart rear party and were left holding the fort of debate. If there had been anything to raise the hackles since we last met, it appears we must have missed it…

Given that both Rab and I generally tend to keep abreast of news and current affairs, it’s somewhat unusual for us to be without a catalyst for the session. Politicians appearing in court for perverting the course of justice (see here) was ‘news’ however, it did little more than serve to remind us; there are (alleged) liars in all walks of life.

In other ‘news’ - after the demise of the NOTW last year, along with the massive financial losses for News International Corp, Rupert Murdoch confirmed the poorly kept secret about lunching a replacement (see here). Great, more tabloid journalism covering salacious ’celebrity’ gossip, sleaze and innuendo. I suppose it will keep the masses happy but worryingly, it probably also generated more interest and excitement than the next piece.

Some of the fiercest critics of the planned NHS reforms in England were angry about government’s ’closed’ meetings on the matter (see here). Indeed, on a local note, William Hague MP was berated in The Sun for supporting a local hospital dispute which seemed to fly in the face of his party’s stance on the NHS (see here). As with much of the recent police reform process currently being implemented, this appeared to be more evidence to prove; politicians rarely seem to listen to those who fully understand all the practical issues surrounding their self-interested political rhetoric.

Finally, early on Sunday morning, a school ski trip coach crashed near Chalons-en-Champagne, in northern France, killing one teacher and seriously injuring 20 people (see here). Although sad for all those involved, it concerns me how our media machine (and social media now) always rush headlong into generating as much national mourning as possible; woe betide anyone who fails to wear their heart on their sleeve.

As a slight aside, I found an interesting piece this week that goes someway toward evidencing the true value of our Sunday afternoon sessions in the pub. Writing about the ‘mob culture’ in social media Milly, a non practicing barrister, wrote…

Beneath The Wig – Calm down dear! – It used to be that comments such as the ones we have seen on Twitter this week were confined to the pub. People would express their outrage, have a pint, and frankly, got over it – especially as each pub would have the wise old grey chap in the corner who would quietly express a contrary view, and urge them to think about the subject matter in hand…(More)

I have to agree with Milly’s comments about ”herd mentality” kicking in after opinion is committed to Twitter and the like. People seem to have this inherent need to be seen to be outraged or belong to the populist and prevalent side of an opinion, any ”contrary view is not heard, indeed it is trampled upon, with scorn and vitriol poured over those who dare express it.”

Being without, or unable to find, any significant fuel source for our fire of opinionated debate, the conversation smouldered on, waiting for that spark to catch hold in our bonfire of social and political combustion. Two ‘Wandering Stars’ in a wilderness bereft of topical subject matter.

Despite both of us having the ability to create fire, a useful skill that separates us from the animals, it appeared my survival compatriot in life and I were only creating a smouldering pile of twigs.  We pressed on, around matters of personal history, achievements and failures until suddenly, a brief glimmer of a spark came from an old chestnut. Thankfully, the subject of personal regrets meant, we were finally able to ignite our fire of our verbal pyromania.

My father, a wise sage of few but always pertinent words, once told me; “son, you don’t have to be the best, just be the best you can be and, when you don’t realise your dreams and aspirations, you can always have another go.” In many ways he was correct but just sometimes, an opportunity presents itself only once, never to reveal itself again. Too often you don’t actually get a chance to apply that old adage; if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. You see it’s not a problem, your personal aspirations don’t always have to aim for the very top of any particular path or career, good generals will also always need capable and willing soldiers!

Everyone will have regrets at some point in their life.  We have regrets because we’ve learned better from those “gigantic lessons” and from learning acceptance.  The idea of accepting what happens around and to us in different situations and dealing with all the good and bad situations in life gives up the experience to eventually learn how to live life with no regrets…(Tranquil Dreams)

Many of our aspirations and goals in life tend to actually be based upon the wishes and advice of others. We clamour to achieve what is expected of us by our peers, we develop a personal requirement to be accepted as important in the eyes of our peers. It’s not just a case of ‘keeping up with Mr/Mrs Jones’ any more, we have to excel and be better than them, usually so we can be smug and look down upon them, unfortunately!

How you climb up the mountain is just as important as how you get down the mountain, and, so it is with life, which for many of us becomes one big gigantic test followed by one gigantic lesson… Its how you accept winning and losing, good luck and bad luck, the darkness and the light… (Tranquil Dreams)

I would agree with the author of Tranquil Dreams in that, the majority of my past regrets have taught me how to think better of myself and to deal better with present and future situations. I have no real regrets only lessons I hope I’ve learned from!

Related articles

• Weekly Photo Challenge: Regret (klling.wordpress.com)
• Regret Nothing (hausoflogan.wordpress.com)
• Memories of today, made by tomorrow. (moderndaygrannywoman.wordpress.com)
• Weekly Photo Challenge: Regret (thewishfactor.wordpress.com)
• Don’t Hide Behind REGRET (seraphim6.wordpress.com)

Health and Safety: Staying safe as a lone worker

Risk Management

Today I’ve decided to move away from my usual offerings of opinion and social observation. In this post I’m actually going to talk about Health & Safety for a change; an issue that forms part of the work I’m actually in business to do…

I can hear the cry already – “Oh no, not Elf-n-Safety” but before I continue - “Don’t panic, keep calm and carry on” – Health & Safety is NOT the onerous task  that our media would have us believe (see here). Neither is it a ’Monster’ as suggested recently in a speech - Reducing the burden and impact of health and safety - made by our Prime Minister David Cameron (see video).

Much of this ‘fear’ has come from misinterpretation and/or poor application of health & safety guidance over recent years which in turn, has led to a large quantity of Health & Safety Myths. The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) continue to put the record straight but that’s another story for another time.

Health and safety and successful business or organisation performance are complementary. Good leaders look after their businesses/organisations, and manage skilled workforces who have confidence in them…(hse.gov.uk)

Now on to the main subject of this post. Last week my wife started a new job as a support worker with a local housing association. The work involves visiting various domestic properties, along with some assisted living complexes throughout the area. Eventually after training, many of these visits will be made alone and a fair proportion of them will also be made during the night.

It is estimated that 6.8 million people are lone workers, that is 22% of the 31.2m UK working population. They spend periods of their day outside of direct contact or supervision of their colleagues and management…(Peoplesafe)

There haven’t been any problems with my wife’s work so far and hopefully, there won’t be any in the future however; the ‘risk’ potential is there and it’s this which served to galvanise my thoughts about Lone Worker safety.

Most large organisations usually have a good grasp of Health & Safety and the management of risk however; as with many organisations today, especially in the current economic climate, there is a danger of making management decisions based mainly upon financial considerations.  So far, I have to say, I have no reason to believe that my wife’s new employer doesn’t understand the legal/financial implications of non compliance with Health & Safety legislation.

As with the majority of occupational safety legislation in the UK, there are legal implications both for the employee (my wife) and for her employer (the housing association), who owe her (and her colleagues) a statutory duty of care by virtue of The Health & Safety at Work Act 1974.

It is an employer’s duty to protect the health, safety and welfare of their employees and other people who might be affected by their business. Employers must do whatever is reasonably practicable to achieve this…(hse.gov.uk)

And that means all employees, be they on or off the employer’s premises whilst working. Let me start by debunking the common misconception, mostly held by workers as opposed to their employers; it is not illegal for a person be left alone at their place of work, there are no absolute restrictions on working alone per se. The legal implications relate to an employers responsiblity for Health & Safety management and more importantly, how that employer actually identifies the hazards and manages the risks faced by their workers.

To do this correctly and effectively they need to think about what, in their business, might cause harm to people and decide whether they are doing enough to prevent that harm. This is known as a risk assessment. Once the ’risks’ have been identified, they need to decide how to control them and put the appropriate measures in place to mitigate those risks. (See HSE: Health & Safety Made Simple)

The importance of risk assessments and manual handling training have been highlighted by a £90,000 payout to a care worker who was injured when a client fell on her…(hrzone.co.uk)

All lone workers are under the responsibility of their employers during working hours, and the environment in which they work must be as safe as it can be. Employers have to accept responsibility for lone worker safety whether they are in the office, on the shop floor, in a vehicle, in the street or when they knock on someones door to make a home visit.

As already outlined, there is no general legal prohibition on working alone, but the broad duties of the relevant Health & Safety legislation still apply. These require identifying hazards of the work, assessing the risks involved, and putting measures in place to avoid or control the risks.

Control measures may include instruction, training, supervision, protective equipment etc. Employers should take steps to check that control measures are used and review the risk assessment from time to time to ensure it is still adequate.

When risk assessment shows that it is not possible for the work to be done safely by a lone worker, arrangements for providing help or back-up should be put in place. Where a lone worker is working at another employer’s workplace, that employer should inform the lone worker’s employer of any risks and the control measures that should be taken. This helps the lone worker’s employer to assess the risks.

Lone workers should not be at more risk than other employees. This may require extra risk-control measures. Precautions should take account of normal work and foreseeable emergencies, e.g. fire, equipment failure, illness and accidents. Employers should identify situations where people work alone and ask questions such as:

• Does the workplace present a special risk to the lone worker?
• Is there a safe way in and a way out for one person? Can any temporary access equipment which is necessary, such as portable ladders or trestles, be safely handled by one person?
• Can all the plant, substances and goods involved in the work be safely handled by one person?
• Is there a risk of violence? (See HSE statistics also)
• Are women especially at risk if they work alone?
• Are young workers especially at risk if they work alone?
• Is the person medically fit and suitable to work alone?
• What happens if the person becomes ill, has an accident or there is an emergency?

Getting back to my wife’s new job, which was the catalyst for this post; social support, like community nursing and social work, is a type of work which presents the possibility of violence. There are also others which perhaps we wouldn’t necessarily expect.

In 1986 Suzy Lamplugh, a 25-year-old estate agent disappeared after she went to meet an unknown client.. Personal safety training is one of the most effective ways of reducing the risk of violent and aggressive incidents occurring in the workplace…(Suzy Lamplugh Trust)

Although a large proportion of those being supported by the housing association my wife works for are elderly and/or infirm, there are also others who have mental health issues. They may well be physically able-bodied but still require support, to live as independently as possible within the community.

HSE Work-Related Violence (Lone Workers): Occupational group is the factor which is most strongly associated with the risk of assaults at work (Budd, 1999). However, exposure to violence at work not only depends on a person’s occupation but also upon the circumstances and situations under which a person performs their job. Working alone, for example, increases the vulnerability of workers (Chappell & Di Martino, 2000.)

The HSE case studies relating to work-related violence went on to say; “Lone work does not automatically imply a higher risk of violence, but it is generally understood that working alone does increase the vulnerability of workers.” Obviously any increased vulnerability will also depend on the type of situation in which the lone work is being carried out. (See also the HSE Work-Related Violence – Lone workers case study summary of key points.

The number of violent incidents at work shows a downward trend over the last decade, with incidents remaining fairly constant over the last five years…(hse.gov.uk)

These HSE case studies on work-related violence for lone workers concluded that; “whatever the size, location or nature of the organisation, there are many simple, practical and cost-effective measures which employers can use to help prevent and manage the risk of violence to lone workers. In particular, they show that effective measures do not have to be expensive. The most effective solutions usually arise from the way the business is run, such as staff training, job design and changes to the physical environment. High technology and high cost security equipment will normally only be needed where there is a particularly high risk of violence” (see here).

Resources

• HSE: Working Alone (indg73) – Guidance Leaflet (pdf)
• Personal Safety Training – Suzy Lamplugh Trust
• Lone Worker (technological solutions) Directoy – Suzy Lamplugh Trust
• Personal Safety in the workplace – Suzy Lamplugh Trust
• Handy Guide to Home Visits: Staying Safe – Suzy Lamlugh Trust

Related articles

• Health and safety training a must for employers (career-advice.monster.co.uk)
• Letters: Health and safety is no ‘monster’ (guardian.co.uk)
• LONE WORKER SAFETY 2012 Conference & Exhibition (prfire.co.uk)

Social Media: The law according to His Honour Lord Justice Spock

Mr Spock

When it comes to the law, the topic of humour is getting in some deep doggy do of late. As we all know, ‘the law can be an ass’ sometimes, so it’s hardly surprising that it doesn’t understand funny, perhaps a lot of our judiciary are descended from Vulcan roots?

Al Murray is one of several high-profile comedians arguing in favour of the right to make jokes on Twitter – however bad – without fear of legal overreaction. He (and many others) are asking; is it right that someone should become subject of legal proceedings because of a “not particularly funny” joke?

As an erstwhile pedlar of some not particularly funny jokes just ask the Guardians comedy critic, he doesn’t dig what I do at all, this matters to me a great deal…(Al Murray – The Guardian)

In the now infamous Twitter Joke Trial,  which has become something of a cause celebre, mainly due to the fact, as one columnist put it in The Guardian recently (see here); “it punctures the comforting illusion that Britain is a moderate country” - In my opinion we’re simply stuffing the bird again. It’s either out of a pure fear of the power in social media or, a simple misunderstanding of the platform and it’s capabilities.

A worrying factor that fits within this broad topic is; recourse via our judicial system for libelous, inflammatory, let alone humourous comments posted within social networks, seems to be dependent upon who the ‘victim’ is, what their ethnicity is and importantly, how much money they have to pay for any challenge to what has been said or implied. Remember the footballer and his (alleged) affairs. Is it right to seek to control the opinion of another by legal means, simply because you don’t like what you hear or see?

And whilst on that train of thought. When we consider the rights and wrongs of what people say (from a purely legal basis) via Twitter et al, how can it OK for some Islamic fundamentalist to actively promote “death to the infidel” free of prosecution yet, some less than intelligent idiot makes comment about the ethnicity of footballers (see here), and he falls foul of our laws? Let me be clear however; as I’ve said before, I neither condone or support racism in any shape or form, from whichever side of the ethnic fence it originated.

Humour?

But back to the rights and wrongs of the humour aspect of this post. People of all ages and cultures respond to humour, people are able to experience humour, i.e., to be amused, to laugh or smile at something funny, and when they do they are considered to have a sense of humour. Whether or not you find something funny is ultimately decided by your personal taste, this is wholly dependent upon a host of variables, including geographical location, culture, maturity, level of education, intelligence and context. The person lacking any sense of humour would likely find the behaviour induced by humour to be inexplicable, strange, or even irrational.

The manner in which the law is being applied to social media is something reminiscent of a Klingon invasion of our human need/desire to express an opinion… As Mr Spock, the now famous half-Vulcan Science and First Officer of the Starship Enterprise would have retorted – “It’s Highly Illogical Captain” - perhaps some of our judiciary trained at Starfleet Command?

Related articles

• Al Murray on the Twitter joke trial: ‘Problem is, the law don’t do funny’ (guardian.co.uk)
• Judgment reserved in Twitter airport threat appeal (guardian.co.uk)
• Twitter Joke Trial: Judges Don’t Get Social Media, Says Stephen Fry (mashable.com)
• Must read posts on the TwitterJokeTrial appeal (newstatesman.com)