A safety control system using cards to show the contract workers have completed safety induction programmes can prevent contractors from sending temporary, unskilled and uninitiated staff to sites, thereby reducing the risks to workers, contractors and companies.

UK safety access management subsidiary Safety Pass Alliance South Africa (SPA (SA)) MD Gavin Wilson says the system requires contract workers to carry a card as proof that they have undergone a safety induction, and it has proven to be a profound safety benefit for the petroleum and other industries in the UK since it was launched in 1998, he notes.

“This simple accreditation scheme has led to a significant reduction in injuries and incidents across 14 sectors in the UK.”

The passport is a robust and secure photocard that displays a tamperproof photograph of each contractor who has successfully completed a two-day, industry-specific health and safety training programme.

“Contractors pay for the cost of the training on the understanding that their workers will not be allowed on site without their safety passports in those industries that subscribe to the scheme.”

The concept has gained traction in the UK with food producer Nestlé reporting a 68% drop in workplace accidents in the first two years and a division of underground railway utility Metronet reporting a 75% drop in accidents in its first 18 months on the scheme.

While the card system aims to ensure that contractors are aware of site-specific dangers, industries can possibly share safety accreditation, which has boosted the use of contractors concurrently with safety improvements in the 14 industrial sectors in the UK, highlights Wilson.

“The scheme is adaptable to different workplaces, as its key aim is to ensure that cardholders are aware of dangers on site. The scheme is not an access control system, but was developed to promote safety while working at open sites such as fuelling stations.”

SPA (SA) is the administrator of the scheme in South Africa and assists companies that want to meet international best practice safety requirements for each specific industry. These industry safety requirements are then augmented with each company’s safety prescriptions. The training is done through sector education and training authority-accredited providers.

The South African Petroleum Industry Association supports the scheme and is beginning to roll it out among participating members. Fuel station chains BP and Total are part of the scheme in South Africa and fitness company Virgin Active wants to use the system to manage contractors at its facilities.

SPA (SA) is promoting the concept to the pharmaceutical industry and to food and beverage manufacturers in South Africa, adds Wilson.

There are contractor passport safety programmes in the European Union and in New Zealand. Training companies SGS, Nosa and SA SMTS, in South Africa, are accredited to do safety training for the scheme, concludes Wilson.