'It's Health & Safety gone mad' is a recurring trope these days, though one hopefully not common in Glover circles, given the history of UK-made protective gloves that the Company embraces.
Safety has always been close to my heart, as our family business making leather gloves for use in the most challenging environments was at the heart of the industry. Along with other firms including Bennett Safetywear, we were proud to belong to specialist trade bodies including the National Association of Glove Manufacturers (NAGM) and the British Glove Association (BGA), which brought together glove businesses across the UK.
These days, glove manufacturing in the UK is rather reduced, and new 'umbrella' bodies look after the interests of those making and selling Safety Products and Clothing (including gloves) - please note I'm avoiding the use of the descriptor 'PPE' which acquired a rather unsavoury flavour during Covid.
Glovers may be interested to learn about a (relatively) new development in workplace health and safety which will hopefully improve coordination between different bodies and enhance our safety environment, reducing accidents and improving outcomes.
In 2023, nine of the UK’s most prominent Safety & Health organisations united to form the Occupational Safety and Health Stakeholder Alliance. This creates a platform to offer a unified 360-degree perspective on critical Safety & Health issues for the first time.
This is what the BSIF (whch represents companies in the UK PPE and Safety Glove manufacturing industry) had to say about this exciting development:
The British Occupational Hygiene Society (BOHS), British Safety Council, British Safety Industry Federation (BSIF), Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH), International Institute of Risk and Safety Management (IIRSM), Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH), and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) signed a Memorandum of Understanding on May 12th 2023 to create the Occupational Safety and Health Stakeholder Alliance. The National Examination Board for Occupational Safety and Health (NEBOSH) and the Chartered Institute of Ergonomics & Human Factors (CIEHF) have since added their signatures to the Memorandum.
Collectively the Alliance members’ competencies span the full spectrum of OSH considerations, from education and regulation to policy creation, professional standards and thought leadership. It will provide a unified voice for the OSH industry, drawing on members’ collective expertise to inform and support OSH decision-making across government policy – maker, corporate and professional levels.
I am sure this new alliance is a step forward for health and safety in all its various forms for those who live and work in the UK, and should be a welcome development. We shall see whether it has a positive impact, and I'm sure Glovers will take an interest in years to come. Come back to this page for periodic updates!
For more information about the OSH Alliance and the BSIF please go to https://www.bsif.co.uk/occupational-safety-health-stakeholder-alliance/
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