LTB 520/20 – Royal Mail Group Vehicle ‘Touchpoints’ Cleaning Poster and Communication To All Managers (Coronavirus/Covid-19 Safety Precautions)
No. 520/2020
29 October 2020
Our Ref: E1/20
To: All Branches
Dear Colleagues,
Royal Mail Group Vehicle ‘Touchpoints’ Cleaning Poster and Communication To All Managers (Coronavirus/Covid-19 Safety Precautions)
Royal Mail Group has issued an updated, jointly agreed ‘Vehicle Touchpoints’ Cleaning Poster and communication to all office managers where Royal Mail, Parcelforce and RMSS Fleet vehicles are operated. The vehicle touchpoints poster has been updated to reinforce the requirement for all drivers to wipe down vehicles before and after use. This is a requirement regardless of whether the vehicles are shared or not.
The poster has been agreed by the Royal Mail Group National Road Safety Manager.
There is also now a requirement to record ‘touchpoints cleaned’ in the vehicle log book to provide a record that this has taken place.
The re-issue of the updated ‘Vehicle Touchpoints’ Cleaning Poster and communication to all office managers to monitor the cleaning and ensure its carried out is a welcomed development and is obviously a reaction to the recent enforcement action taken against Royal Mail on vehicle cleaning standard failures by the HSE, as reported in LTB 517/20 issued on 28 October 2020.
Managers have also been advised that when completing ‘SMAT’s’, they should include a check of the vehicle log book and record any observations in the ‘Hygiene Factors Section’ of their ‘SMAT’ report (see note below).
Would all CWU Workplace Safety Reps please regularly check that ‘touchpoint cleaning’ of vehicles is undertaken at their office and if not please report it to both the office manager and to the Branch Area Health and Safety Rep.
Would all Area Health and Safety Reps please carry out health and safety inspection spot checks on this activity and where it is not carried out, please immediately record and report the fact urgently to Operational Management and the RMG Safety Health and Environment Team in order that remedial action can be taken.
NOTE:
SMAT = ‘Safety Management Audit Training’ template/form is a management document and process, completed by managers/PiCs (Person in Control) to enforce safety standards and safe systems of work. The aim of SMAT is to change safe working behaviours and improve health and safety in order to reduce injuries at work through safety and health observations, constructive feedback and coaching conversations with employees. (SMAT Templates are not for use by CWU Health and Safety Reps).
The number of SMATs required to be completed by managers varies from function to function but typically operations managers are targeted to complete a SMAT once a week and non-operational managers once a month. (See attached example copy of ‘SMAT’ template/forms for delivery managers (onsite, yard and offsite) – Note: ‘SMAT’ form contents vary according to the operation/function in which they are used).
Attachments:
- Vehicle Touch Points Cleaning Poster
- ‘SMAT’ Forms (Delivery – On Site, Yard, Off Site)
Yours sincerely
Dave Joyce
National Health, Safety & Environment Officer
Cleaning Touchpoints Poster v3
SHE Guidance (SMAT) 2019 (v 1.1)
SMAT template Offsite – Delivery (June 2020)