Warehouse safety is one of the highest-stakes areas of workplace health and safety. There are health and safety risks in every workplace, however in warehouses the risk is greater, thanks to the nature of heavy objects being moved around constantly from high up areas.
Between 2012/13 and 2019/2020, the percentage rate of non-fatal injuries in transportation and storage (per 100,000 workers) was higher than most of the all-industries average of 1.9% (ZoneSafe). According to Thompsons Solicitors, around five per cent of all UK warehouse workers are injured every year which is a significant number, and some of these injuries can be serious.
If you own your own warehouse, it’s vital that you come up with a comprehensive health and safety program for employees to ensure these risks are mitigated and a culture of safety is implemented successfully. This blog will delve into some of the most up to date ways this can be achieved, as well as some of the most common warehouse safety hazards, so you can improve health and safety in the warehouse from the ground up.
Common Warehouse Hazards
In order to sort out the best mitigations for warehouse health and safety, it’s important to look at some of the most common warehouse hazards. Some of these include:
- Slips, falls and trips.
- Physical strain from carrying a variety of heavy large objects.
- Moving around machinery, as well as loading and unloading goods from trucks to the warehouse itself.
- Exposure to Harmful Substances, from products and cleaning equipment.
- Collisions with moving vehicles. With forklifts constantly moving around stacked goods, this can increase the risk of a collision. Old machinery or workers with inadequate training on how to use these vehicles can only increase this risk. See our forklift safety guide for the full HSE dos and don’ts.
- Lack of training, increasing the risk of the above.
- Ergonomic Risks. Warehouses can all come in various designs, from the location of goods to the design of workstations. As a result, there can be areas that are at greater safety risks. Desks and workstations that are not adjusted to individual needs can lead to musculoskeletal disorders like back and neck pain. Individuals who may be doing repetitive tasks like constant lifting may be at greater risk of MSDs. This is where processes that can be automated may lead to a reduction in injuries. Our office ergonomics guide covers workstation setup in more detail.
Warehouse layout optimization. Another crucial aspect of injury reduction in a warehouse environment comes from thoughtful physical layout optimization. By reviewing your warehouse space to ensure clear paths for movement, dedicated areas for different tasks, and adequate spacing between racks, you can not only improve operational efficiency but also reduce accident risks caused by congestion or improper storage. Incorporating a proven warehouse layout best practice can provide practical guidance on implementing key principles to create a safer, more efficient warehouse environment.
Many of the same manual handling principles also apply during residential relocations. Proper planning, secure packaging, and professional moving packing support can help reduce the physical strain of lifting heavy items while improving load stability and minimizing the risk of damage during transportation.
Warehouse health and safety regulations and requirements (UK)
Before looking at best practices, it helps to know the legal requirements. In the UK, warehouse health and safety is governed by the same core legislation as other workplaces, including:
- The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, the overarching duty to protect workers and others so far as is reasonably practicable.
- The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, which require suitable and sufficient risk assessments.
- The Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992, central to a setting built around lifting and moving goods.
- The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 (PUWER), covering forklifts and other equipment.
- The Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992, covering floors, traffic routes, lighting and welfare facilities.
Meeting these requirements is not optional, and the HSE can issue improvement or prohibition notices, or prosecute, where they are not met. The practices below help you satisfy them in a warehouse setting.
Health and Safety Best Practices
The good news is warehouses have been around for so long mistakes have been made as a result of the hazards mentioned above, and there are now many mitigations that can be implemented to correct these hazards. Some of the best practices for a warehouse environment include:
Risk Assessment
Despite the common warehouse hazards being listed above, every warehouse will be different and have its own bespoke safety risks. Therefore it’s vital that each individual risk is listed out in a documented risk assessment, scored by likelihood and severity, with clear control measures and a named owner for each one. This record should be reviewed regularly and updated whenever the layout, equipment or processes change.
Effective Staff Training
One of the main first steps is to ensure effective training takes place for all employees in the workforce. For example, effective training will help more people avoid physical strain, know how to handle items and wear appropriate PPE, all of which lead people to work more safely and reduce the risk of injury on site. Refresher training and inductions for new starters and contractors keep these standards consistent.
The official HSE website has a number of resources available for warehouse business owners to download and create their own plan from them. Some of these include a ‘Warehousing and Storage’ PDF as well as a ‘Warehousing and storage: A guide to Health and Safety‘ guide.
Use the right warehouse safety signs
Clear signage is a simple but effective control, from hard hat and high-vis areas to forklift routes, racking load limits and emergency exits. Getting the colours and formats right matters for compliance; see our guide to what colours health and safety signs have to be.
Investment in PPE
Investment in PPE can also be critical for reducing the risks like falls, as well as carrying heavy equipment. It’s critical that employers provide warehouse workers with the most appropriate PPE like eyewear, ear defenders, facemasks/respiratory protection, high visibility clothing, safety footwear and gloves.
This is critical for not only workers but also visitors on site, who may also be exposed to risks like falling stock from high areas. Improving overall safety also includes implementing advanced warehouse security systems that monitor access points and reduce the risk of unauthorized entry or theft. The use of a helmet can help reduce the risk of serious injury.
Create a Health and Safety Policy
Creating a health and safety policy will not only allow for a safer work environment, but also lead to increased worker retention and less sick days. According to the Health and Safety Executive, the first 3 steps for creating a health and safety policy are:
- Statement of intent: Include your commitment to managing health and safety, as well as your aims. This should be signed by the most senior person in the company, and reviewed regularly.
- Responsibilities for health and safety: This part of the document lists out the names, positions and roles in the business who are responsible for health and safety.
- Health and safety arrangements: Details on practical arrangements can be placed here, showing how health and safety aims can be achieved.
Official documentation will help your warehouse know where you stand in response to health and safety, and can be referred to if an accident were to take place. The official HSE page can be viewed here.
Warehouse safety checklist
Use this quick warehouse safety checklist as a starting point, then tailor it to your own site:
- Complete a site-specific, documented risk assessment and review it regularly.
- Train all staff on manual handling, PPE and safe use of vehicles, with inductions for new starters and contractors.
- Separate pedestrian and forklift routes, and mark them clearly.
- Provide and enforce the correct PPE for the tasks and the site.
- Keep walkways, loading areas and racking clear, stable and well maintained.
- Display the correct warehouse safety signs and keep them clean and visible.
- Maintain a written, signed health and safety policy.
- Report, record and learn from near misses and incidents.
Overall, we hope this article has been beneficial to you in learning more about the importance of warehouse health and safety, some of the risks associated as well as best practices. Do not hesitate to get in touch with the Health and Safety Executive official page to learn more about health and safety at work.
