Thought to be the largest stand-down initiative of its type in the UK, the ‘Stop. Make a Change’ will reportedly see 60,000 construction and supplier workers stop work to discuss health & safety issues such as mental health and worker fatigue
Since it was launched in November 2016, over 50 organisations including Skanska, Balfour, Morgan Sindall and Crossrail have agreed to take part.
In addition to this, 30 of those signatories have made specific commitments to the campaign’s main focuses. These focuses, chosen by a panel of industry experts, are mental health, plant safety, fatigue and respiratory illness.
These focuses will be discussed throughout the day, with suppliers and workers at over 1000 facilities sitting down to discuss how to improve working conditions and prevent issues relating to the campaign’s focuses. Employers will also have the option to add their own topics to the day’s discussions.
‘Stop. Make a Change’ has been supported by CITB’s Structured Fund as part of Infrastructure 21, a Civil Engineering Contractors Association-led project to help ensure that civils suppliers are primed ready for expected growth in the sector in the coming years.
“It’s great to see so many employers getting behind this important campaign. While we know that there has been sustained improvements in health and safety in recent years, there is much more to be done.” CITB chief executive Sarah Beale was quoted as saying.
She went on to say, “Stop. Make a Change signals a new, heightened awareness of health and well-being issues among construction firms and their employees across the UK, which CITB is pleased to support.”
The campaign’s organiser, the Civil Engineering Contractors Association (CECA) will be providing guidance on employer commitments.
CECA chief executive Alasdair Reisner commented, “When we first started planning Stop. Make a Change we hoped that we might get up to 10 companies and a few thousand employers involved in this first year. The response from industry has been tremendous, with a real desire to use the event as an opportunity to deliver positive change across the sector. We are looking forward to events today, and the health, safety and wellbeing improvements that they will drive”.
Further information and resources about the initiative can be found on the official website.
[…] Construction work shuts down today for health and safety talks nationwide. Over 50 major construction contractors are set to halt work today in support of the ‘Stop. Make a Change.’ campaign. Read more: (SHP Online) […]