Protect your outdoor workers during summer

Workers who work outdoors in warm weather have an increased risk of developing skin cancer, overheating, heat stress and heat exhaustion due to being exposed to the sun for long periods.

It is therefore important that businesses who employ outdoor workers carry out risk assessments for the risks of exposure to the sun and put in place appropriate controls/protection.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) advise the following when working in hot weather outdoors:

• Reschedule work to cooler times of the day
• Provide more frequent rest breaks and introduce shading to rest areas
• Provide free access to cool drinking water
• Introduce shading in areas where individuals are working
• Encourage the removal of personal protective equipment when resting to help encourage heat loss
• Educate workers about recognising the early symptoms of heat stress

Do employers have to provide sun cream?

This is a common question we get asked during the summer. The answer is there is no legal obligation to provide sun cream for your workers; however it should be noted that the PPE at Work Regulation 1992 advises that employees must be provided with suitable PPE for work conditions, which means weather must be considered.

Employers should consider PPE such as wide brimmed hats and workwear clothing (shirts/trousers/shorts/Hi-Vis) which incorporates permanent sun protection technology. There are a number of retailers who specialise in providing UV protection workwear, should you want to provide this to your employees.

Know the risks

Being exposed to too much sunlight has long been known to be harmful, can cause skin damage and long term can cause an increased risk of skin cancer. In the UK alone there are over 50,000 new cases of skin cancer every year.

Providing your staff with information on the risks of sun exposure, and introducing the measures suggested above, will hopefully lead to a reduction in reported cases.