European Good Practice Awards
The European Agency for Safety and Health at Work invites nominations for the seventh European Good Practice Awards in occupational health and safety.
The 2006 award scheme will recognise companies or organisations, including schools, colleges and training providers, that have made outstanding and innovative contributions to ensure that young people make a safe start in their working lives, and that risk awareness and prevention is promoted in enterprises, schools and colleges.
European Week
The European Week is organised by the Agency in co-operation with the Member States and the Presidency of the European Union. One of the principal activities to support the Week is the European Good Practice Awards scheme that is organised specifically to identify examples of good practice to promote risk awareness in schools and colleges, and the prevention of risks to young workers in the workplace.
What are the awards?
The awards aim to demonstrate, by example, the benefits of following good safety and health practices to all European employers and workers, and to schools, colleges, young people and their parents.
Those selected will be recognised for their role in improving working conditions in Europe. In addition:
- Representatives of the selected enterprises/organisations will be invited to the European Week for Safety and Health at Work 2006 closing event and award ceremony in Bilbao.
- The examples will be presented in an Agency booklet to be widely distributed across Europe and presented on the Agency’s website.
What types of good practice can be entered?
Good practice examples are implemented solutions to promote the effective management of the occupational safety and health of young people in the workplace, and prevention measures to reduce the incidence of accidents and ill health amongst young workers.
All entries should therefore show good management practice, particularly the effective use of risk assessment and implementation of its findings, and should be focused on the successful prevention of risks to young people.
The good practice examples should preferably focus on:
Effective management actions, involving the workforce, for example:
- An effective risk assessment and subsequent action programme taking a holistic approach to the employment of young workers
- Initiatives that take account of the fact that many young people lack physical and mental maturity at work
- Programmes and initiatives to prepare young people for the health and safety aspects of working life
- Eliminating or reducing risks by promoting quality work for youngsters - safe and healthy workplaces and practices
- Promoting risk awareness education for children and young people through a collaborative approach between enterprises and schools / colleges
- Support for networking and information exchange among stakeholders
Training and supervision as part of an integrated approach, for example:
- Organising effective workplace training and education programmes to raise awareness of the safety and health risks to young workers
- Providing health and safety training in vocational and professional courses
- Mentoring and other structured supervision
- Communicating effectively knowledge on hazards, risks, and solutions by means such as instruction, training, and actions by safety representatives
What should the examples demonstrate?
The good practice examples should demonstrate where appropriate:
- Relevance to the theme of young people and work
- Workplace or education setting involving interventions aimed at the workplace
- Risks tackled at source through good management practice, particularly the effective use of risk assessment and the implementation of its findings
- Successful implementation
- Real improvements
- Effective participation of the workforce including young people
- Consultation between management and the workforce including young people where appropriate, or between education establishments and commercial enterprises
- Sustainability over time
- Going beyond simple compliance with all relevant legislative requirements
- Possibility of transfer to other workplaces or education establishments, preferably including those in other Member States and to SMEs, and
- ´Freshness´ of the information, so that the example is recent or not widely publicised.
Good practice examples should not have been developed solely for commercial profit. This particularly relates to products, tools or services that are or could be marketed. Examples focused on the individual, such as training, should also demonstrate how they are part of a wider risk-management approach. Examples of awarded good practice from previous years are shown on the Agency’s website at:
Who can take part?
Good practice examples will be accepted from enterprises or organisations in EU Member States, including:
- Individual enterprises (from whom entries are particularly welcomed) where actions have been taken
- Enterprises or organisations within the product, equipment or personnel supply chain
- Schools, colleges, education authorities, training providers and providers of work experience for young people
- Employer organisations, trade associations, trade unions, non-governmental organisations, and organisations working with young people
- Regional or local occupational health and safety prevention services, insurance services, and other intermediary organisations.
How to enter
The Agency’s network partner responsible for organising the European Week in your country has more detailed information available and will inform you about the closing date for receipt of nominations.
Contact the Focal Points for further information and closing dates
IRELAND (Closing date for Ireland entries: xx/xx/xxxx)
Siobhan Rafter
National Focal Point for Ireland
2 George's Street
Waterford
IRELAND
Tel: + 353 51 311138
Fax: + 353 51 876002
E-mail: focalpoint@hsa.ie
Web: http://ie.osha.europa.eu/
UNITED KINGDOM (Closing date for United Kingdom entries: 15/09/2006)
Rose Court
2 Southwark Bridge
London
SE1 9HS
UNITED KINGDOM
Tel: + 44 (0) 845 345 0055
Fax: + 44 (0) 845 408 9566
E-mail: uk.focalpoint@hse.gsi.gov.uk
Web: http://uk.osha.europa.eu/
