Working in construction during COVID-19

RubyRow · Post by **RubyRow** » Sat Mar 28, 2020 11:37 am

Hi all

We are a small construction company working for a number of the larger principal contractors, mainly on health and education projects.

I just wanted to post a few points and would be interested in any comments / advice.

Most of out site have closed down. This is good as we had already taken the decision to pull operatives off for at least a few weeks. What we do isn't easily replicated by others although not impossible. One of our clients is insistent that we return to work despite the fact that what we do cannot reasonably be done without getting closer to others than is acceptable. We are resisting but are now being threatened contractually on an education project that cannot be considered vital. The health projects are so far off completion that, if we are still in lock down by the time they were a usable building then we are going to be a lot worse off that we currently think we are.

I need to address the subject of our RAMS for these works. Has anyone described any process taking into account the 2m rule and could give me some suggestions as to wording?

Also, I am stunned by the silence from our client's H&S people. I have not had a single email, phone call etc from any of the senior H&S people. Perhaps they are all sitting at home with the flu? Given the amount of communication I normally receive on new rules that they are implementing on all manner of things (not complaining - I welcome this sort of thing) that I wonder why none of them have been the ones that are explaining how we should be implementing the 2m rule, how they expect 1 WC per 50 operatives to work, how the expect to manage the welfare when cafes are shut so everyone will be bringing in food, how they are controlling entry and exit to site, how they are keeping scaffold handrails clean etc etc.

I appreciate the recently issued "Standard operating procedures" but this is quite high level and doesn't address specific site issues on sites THEY are running. It all appears to be down to the subcontractors to work out how we do this without compromising our operatives safety.

All communication is coming from relatively junior contracts managers / project manager types with rudimentary H&S training at best and are often in conflict with each other.

Why have these senior people nothing to say? Bizarre.

There was a post of Linkedin last week calling out senior H&S people who normally have quite a lot to say to start giving some senior direction in line with their multiple qualifications / post nominals that they wave in our faces and flout when they think we need to be told what to do. Strangely there wasn't any response from any who were prepared to explain their silence.

Perhaps I just work for 4 large multinationals that don't know what to say but others have sent out directives / communications? Would be interested to know if anyone has heard from any of these high level people? Or perhaps you are one?

Post by **Waterbaby** » Mon Mar 30, 2020 7:07 pm

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=50016

Contents :
Construction industry
Revised guidance on waking watches and COVID-19
Building safety and critical workers
General COVID-19 guidance

WB

Post by **Waterbaby** » Wed Apr 01, 2020 5:21 am

Coronavirus (COVID-19): letter to the construction sector : https://www.gov.uk/government/publicati ... ion-sector

Site Operating Procedures during Covid-19 : http://www.constructionleadershipcounci ... -covid-19/

WB

Post by **Waterbaby** » Thu May 14, 2020 10:51 am

"Coronavirus (COVID-19): construction update Q&A
Questions and answers on today’s (13 May 2020) announcement on construction site working hours to enable social distancing working practices."

Published 13 May 2020
From: Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus ... -update-qa

WB

grim72 · Post by **grim72** » Fri May 15, 2020 4:10 pm

This is one of the better videos I have seen in terms of guidance and best practice for construction sites and COVID19 - might be a useful one to watch and share with your colleagues?

https://youtu.be/doF_vyqjAf0