Horizon explores: Health and Safety
How to boost employee health and save money
Our targeted programmes can help improve employee health and save the industry money.
Anna PlodowskiSenior Content Editorial Manager, RSSB
The health and wellbeing of industry employees is essential for the efficient delivery of rail services, whether that be in passenger trains or freight. But ‘health and wellbeing’ covers such a wide range of issues—from testing safety-critical staff for alcohol and drug use, to mental health, to the monitoring and management of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs)—that it can be difficult to know how to target resources effectively.
The costs associated with sickness absence are no trivial issue. In October 2023, analysed data from the Health and Wellbeing Dashboard pilot project revealed:
The rail industry’s average cost of sickness absence is £2,214 annually per employee. This is £709 more than the national average, assuming a similar day rate for sickness absence across other UK industries.
For train operating companies, the average cost is £3,048, and for infrastructure/supply chain companies, the average cost is £1,272.
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Reducing days lost to sickness—especially through targeted actions to address the most important causes of ‘lost-time’ days—is, therefore, very important. Mental health is consistently reported as a cause, usually second or third in proportion compared with all other causes. This demonstrates the necessity of existing industry initiatives, such as the Railway Mental Health Charter, to support and increase employee mental health.
The Railway Mental Health Charter is a collaboration between RSSB and Southeastern. It has been designed to encourage active participation by rail organisations, with a focused and brief sign-up process and a flexible action planner that individual companies can customise. This means that individual companies’ mental health actions are those that are most effective for it, not an imposed ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach. So far, 126 rail organisations have signed the Charter, and after it has been reviewed, more will be able to sign up from April 2024.
In other resources we provide, we look at organisational efficiency to improve the wellbeing of industry employees. For MSDs, this includes resources that keep industry abreast of the latest research findings about MSD causes, a myth-busting document about well-meaning but ineffective interventions in MSDs, and a tool for train drivers to assess their own risk of MSDs. We also recognise that considering MSD issues as solely a workplace issue is inefficient because it may overlook ongoing causes outside the workplace. With that in mind, we have provided guidance for line managers that recognises this sensitive issue.
Accurate use of existing processes for health surveillance could also help some rail companies reduce their expenditure in this area. For example, health surveillance for staff who perform high-risk tasks—such as those involving high levels of noise, vibration, fumes, dust, solvents, or biological agents—is a legal requirement. However, not all employees in an organisation need to carry out such jobs. Our Health and Wellbeing Dashboard project has found that some companies routinely assess all of their employees as part of health surveillance, even if it's only legally required for a fraction of their employees.
In addition to inefficiency, since the introduction of GDPR, the use and storage of personal data that is not required by the task for which it was collected has been under more scrutiny. Focusing health surveillance solely on those who legally require it could help rail organisations improve efficiency and comply with legal requirements for both health surveillance and GDPR.
We hope these examples shed some light on how our resources can help you improve your employees' health and save money at the same time. Follow the links below for more information.
Tool to assess risk of MSD risk for train drivers
Managing MSD in the rail industry
Our library of case studies captures good practice from across the rail industry.
Case Study: Alstom - Integrating health and wellbeing competencies
Alstom used RSSB’s Health and Wellbeing Competency Framework to create its ‘Leading Mindfully’ programme to help line managers develop the skills needed to support wellbeing and foster a positive environment where staff can talk about their health.
Case Study: Southeastern - Cab Ergonomics and MSD Risk
A look at how Southeastern used RSSB’s MSD risk Assessment Tool and driver surveys to improve drivers’ interactions with cab components to reduce MSD risk and what was learnt.
Case Study: Southeastern - Creating a Company-wide MSDs Policy
This case study demonstrates the actions put in place by Southeastern to define and describe how the organisation will prevent, mitigate, and manage MSD risks.
Case Study: Transport for London - Musculoskeletal Disorder Risk Assessment of Train Cabs
Transport for London provides information on the work it conducted to identify the ergonomic risk factors associated with operating trains, which included using RSSB’s MSD risk assessment tool.