New Delivery Methods Revisions Phase 4 - Mandatory H&S......

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Letter to Branches




No. 194 /13
Ref C26
Date: 26 March 2013

To: All Branches

 
Dear Colleagues,


New Delivery Methods Revisions Phase 4 - Mandatory Health & Safety Checklist and ASR/WSR Involvement: "Safety Throughout Revision Process".
 
Due to a number of complaints from across the country from Area Safety Representatives, the Health, Safety & Environment Department have been
pursuing for some time the introduction of a new, revised and mandatory, nationally agreed 'Delivery Revision, Phase 4, Health and Safety 'Sign-Off Checklist' which secures full Area Safety Rep/Workplace Safety Rep involvement, consultation and input, in line with the Business Transformation 2010 and Beyond Agreement.
 
Royal Mail's initial response was that a "Local Unit Pre-Deployment Safety Assessment and Concurrence (SAC3)" checklist already existed within the agreed Delivery Revision planning process, document set and that there was an existing document which is required to be completed ahead of any new delivery methods changes which requires the local ASR to be involved from the start.
 
However, we pointed out to Royal Mail that a number of ASRs had reported repeated problems that managers were simply ignoring the health and safety checklist and not doing the Health and Safety aspects of the revision process plus the CWU ASR was not being involved from the start as required by the agreed RM/CWU Delivery Revision planning process and document set checklist.
 
With reportedly 50% of New Delivery Methods Revisions completed, the Health, Safety & Environment Department expressed serious concern that Health and Safety was being 'white-washed' and Royal Mail was heading for a repeat of the 'Single Daily Delivery Revisions process where Health and Safety was sidelined whilst the hasty revisions programme went ahead, fuelled by and associated "Dash For Cash". We also pointed out that in fact this had been recognised by the HSE at the time as a massive missed opportunity to improve Safety Standards in Delivery Offices and of course the accident numbers we have today on delivery bears that out.
 
Following a survey of Area Safety Representatives and Regional Safety Forums last year, the feedback and results formed the basis of strong representations to Royal Mail HQ, proving that the revisions process from a health and safety perspective was not working and that ASR involvement and consultation was ineffective in many cases. We made it clear that we were keen to agree and jointly issue an effective, mandatory safety
compliance checklist to be  used in order to achieve a consistent approach to safety within and throughout the duty revision process and a new national standard checklist to deal with the widespread reports and queries being received from CWU ASRs regarding the lack of Health and Safety compliance and lack of CWU ASR involvement and in Revisions.
 


Following negotiations with National Safety Management, Delivery Transformation Management and Delivery Programmes Management, I can now report that a 'New Delivery Methods Revisions Phase 4 - Mandatory Health & Safety Checklist with built in ASR/WSR Involvement has been agreed and is now live with immediate effect. The Checklist covers 15 Required Safety Activity areas with a column listing all the Indoor Methods/Delivery Methods Task Numbers from the Document Set. The Safety Checklist document has been jointly reviewed, revised agreed for use in all future revisions.
This sets out all the critical safety activities that need to be carried out and signed off as part of a successful delivery revision.


Alongside this a new associated Safety Assurance Checklist Process 'Flowchart' or process chart introduced which outlines where this document should be used, which chronologically lists the key activities to be undertaken and a list of process steps with ACP Task numbers covering both indoor and outdoor steps from the initial planning meeting through to post deployment review, with the key activities to be undertaken at each process step.

On both pages of the new checklist, the following instruction is printed,
The DOM is required to ensure that the ASR and Local Workplace Safety Rep are involved from the start and throughout the revision safety assessment process".

Finally a RM/CWU Joint Statement on Delivery Modernisation Revisions Process Health and Safety has been agreed. This Joint Statement re-affirms the commitment to work together to ensure that Delivery Modernisation revisions are planned and deployed with the health, safety and welfare at the forefront and working safely in the delivery environment is of paramount importance and remains the overriding factor. Improving safety in delivery forms an integral part of the Delivery modernisation programme with key activities required to be undertaken in the planning, review and deployment of revisions. Both Royal Mail and CWU recognise in the Joint Statement that, in line with the agreed planning process, working together on the safety aspects of revisions is a key requirement, including the full and meaningful involvement of CWU Area Safety Representatives (ASRs).


The Joint Statement highlights the key element of this is the 'Safety Assessment and Concurrence (SAC3)” checklist, which is designed to give practical assistance throughout the planning process in order to ensure that all required safety related activities have been effectively completed.

In line with the agreed planning process, this revised documents should now be used in all future revisions. As part of this it's important that local planning teams ensure that the CWU Area Safety Representative (ASR) is fully and proactively involved, providing input on safety issues as part of the revision decision making process. This should commence at the initial planning meeting through to post deployment review. Specifically the documents will be used as part of the final Phase 4 readiness for deployment assurance review focussing on the indoor and outdoor safety aspects
of any planned changes. Post deployment it will be further used, with input from the CWU ASR, to ensure that standards are maintained.

Royal Mail and the CWU are committed to ensuring that all parties work together to deploy successful and safe revisions and that this can best be achieved through the early and positive involvement of the CWU ASR. Where required this will involve playing an active role in Work Time Listening and Learning sessions, key planning reviews and final assurance checks, in line with the SAC3 document.


Appropriate release will be provided in order to perform this role and consult with members, with all relevant revision information/data jointly shared.
To ensure ongoing and full involvement in the process, the local Manager and CWU ASR will meet on a regular basis to review progress as part of the planning process. To this end all parties are committed to work together to ensure that Delivery Modernisation revisions are planned and deployed successfully with all safety aspects fully considered and managed. This will ensure that all the new delivery methods and associated safety
improvements are effectively deployed and maintained in line with the agreed planning process.

Attached please find copies of:-

Local Unit Delivery Revision Pre-Deployment Safety Assessment and Concurrence (SAC3)
SAC3 Safety Assurance Checklist Process Flowchart
Royal Mail/CWU Joint Statement - Delivery Modernisation Revisions Process - Health and Safety
Business Transformation 2010 and Beyond Agreement (Key Health & Safety Extracts)


Royal Mail have circulated the attached to all Regional Heads of Delivery Programme and Regional Safety Directors for action and onward cascade with a short covering note stating  "Please find attached a Joint statement with CWU that re-enforces the key processes and role of the CWU ASR within the revision process. Also accompanying this joint statement is a revised SAC3 Safety Assessment & Concurrence checklist document that replaces the previous version and should be used with immediate effect please. These documents are all currently being uploaded to the ACP. If you have any queries please come back to Mark Hogger or Peter E Richardson"
 

Yours Sincerely



Dave Joyce
National Health, Safety & Environment Officer

[General Mannerheim]

Joint statement this,joint statement that...working together

[careful]

HTcs long-term backbreaker s
The proof is in the pudding