Today (28 April 2023) is World Day for Safety and Health at Work. At SLC, we prioritise safety above all else and have clocked up over 150,000 safe working hours in the past 12 months on projects. We’ve also implemented a variety of initiatives to support our commitment to health and wellbeing . From subsidised gym memberships and a running club to mental health first aiders and a wellbeing room, we’re committed to creating a safe and healthy workplace for all.
We asked some of our colleagues to share their thoughts on health and safety on this important day:
Mark Finney, HSEQ Manager said: “Whilst we put the Health and Safety at the forefront of our day-to-day operations, Days like this give us the opportunity to reflect on our culture as a business and the great work we are doing to keep everyone safe and healthy.”
Siân Pitchford, Head of Engineering, said: “At SLC, health and safety is not just about what happens on site and everyone’s thoughts of orange PPE, boots and hard hats, it starts way before that. It starts at the concept stage of projects and is considered throughout the options, through feasibility and the design process. We take on the responsibilities of Designer and Principal Designer under CDM 2015 and advise Clients of their legal obligations. We are actively involved in eliminating and reducing health and safety hazards to make all the projects we work on safer for all.”
Mike Wills, HSE Manager, said: “On all our projects, we encourage everyone to develop the habit of thinking about safety. SLC supports and encourages me to deliver a positive safety culture collaboratively.”
Baljeet Kalsi, Senior MEP Construction Manager, said: “Health and Safety means taking the time to recognise the hazards and taking appropriate steps to protect yourself, fellow workers, and family. It also means changing people’s attitudes to make our workplace safer and more pleasant.”
Alistair Keen, Senior Project Manager, said: “Health and Safety at SLC extends beyond the traditional construction site-based activities, it starts with the way we develop our projects from the outset, at the feasibility stage considering the constructability of a new station or asset and the health & safety implications and challenges a particular project may face ensuring that our Clients can make the right decisions at the outset. SLC has a culture of doing the right thing for our Clients and projects, and this extends to our attitude on health & safety – all staff, whether site-based or office based, are empowered to speak up if they feel that there is a health and safety risk, this also extends to employee wellbeing given how intrinsically this is linked to health and safety behaviours and performance.”
Thomas Coon, Senior Project Manager said: “Our approach as a business to Health and Safety reflects our approach to everything we do. We have an excellent track record of safety across the business. This is because everyone genuinely takes ownership of their actions whilst looking out for each other at the same time. SLC also puts a huge emphasis on mental health and wellbeing. This sets the right foundations for people to come to work in the right physical and mental state, reducing the likelihood of accidents occurring. I feel that everyone in the business has the right attitude to challenging when something doesn’t look or feel right. That’s both in terms of challenging and being challenged and responding positively to both.”
