10th January 2014, 12:09 AM
Tool Wrote:I've seen people on site with alcohol in their system (e.g. had a heavy session the night before) yet still operate perfectly safely.No you haven't. You may have seen people who appear to operate safely or who think they can operate safely but their reflexes and judgement would have been impaired. And it is because of this culture, that it's OK to work on a site with drink or two inside you or still hungover, that the screening was brought in to stop. Work on a site where a digger driver or guy operating the crane thinks its OK to work after having had a skinfull the night before, or who might have a pint or two at lunchtime or one where screening is in place and there is a culture of zero tolerance . I know which site I'd rather be on and I'm not too bothered if an individual's right to privacy has been violated if it brings down the chances of someone having or causing and accident, particularity if I might be involved.
Construction sites can be a pain in the neck to work on and some of the health and safety bureaucracy is ridiculous but they're a heck of a lot safer than they were 20 years ago. Worth putting up with some inconvenience for? I agree that in terms of the PPE that individual tasks should be risk assessed and appropriate PPE worn (or not!) for that task. Although as previously stated that often doesn't happen unless you are able / prepared to go pretty high up the management chain. But if by following general site rules they make your job less safe then you shouldn't do. End of.