Health & Safety Policy January 2017

Precision Construction Limited, under our 'take ownership policy', takes complete responsibility for the role of Project Supervisor Construction Stage (PSCS) for the management of safety on site. Precision Construction Limited, over its working years, has endeavoured to establish a clean and accident-free working environment, and has introduced best work practices to minimise the possibility of accidents and ill-affects on our workforce and the environment. Precision Construction Limited is aware that accidents and work-related health problems cause suffering to persons and their families with possible losses to them and also to our company. It is with this in mind that our Health and Safety audit system is constantly under review to endeavour to achieve an accident free working environment.

A considerable proportion of Precision Construction contracts are 'design and build'; therefore we have additional responsibilities for the management of safety during the design stage of the project which is Project Supervisor Design Stage (PSDS). Precision Construction Limited recognises the importance of professional management of Health and Safety and environmental issues. In practice, our company have adopted the regulatory conditions as a minimum standard and we have introduced management and audit systems capable of achieving the highest standards by introducing a pro-active approach, from management to all operatives, right across the spectrum of our contracts.

Precision Construction Limited achieve this by the implementation of the following:

• Introduction of our Think Safety policy.
  
• By constantly reviewing the legislative requirements and ensuring that these are met as a minimum standard with onuses on our audit system which yields an enhanced standard.
  
• Introduction of Safety and Health audits and systematic periodic reviews which benchmark the system to evaluate the performance against actual.
  
• Clear transparent job descriptions for Health and Safety managers, with a Key Performance Indicators (K.P.I.) system to ensure traceability.
  
• Training – ensuring all levels of training, induction and information is provided to our employees at the correct level.
  
• Communication – encouraging 360º communication and feedback from all employees, safety managers, safety representatives and consultants. Identifying risks and concerns which in turn leads to their commitment and acceptance of our Health and Safety policy.
  
• Be Pro-active regarding signage and policies to provide awareness amongst all staff and to introduce all necessary training and induction to enable staff to implement these policies efficiently and effectively.
• Risks – Identification of risks through our audit system, preparation of plans, safe working and monitoring of the operations to ensure safe completion.
  
• Implementation of adequate resources to ensure that the safety, management and audit system is enforced.
  

Precision Construction Limited ensures that the safety policy is implemented on an ongoing basis by weekly site inspections, monthly management reviews, quarterly capability reports and annual reviews. Where a shortfall is identified, or upgrading of our policy procedures or further training is required, this item is addressed and remedied.

Our employees also recognise that they are responsible for there own safety and health and that their actions can impact on the safety and health of others. Accordingly we require our employees to comply with the company safety policy and procedure to provide a safe working environment. In addition, it becomes part of their employment contract which they have signed prior to their appointment.

Taking account of the fact that the vast majority of people desire to work in an environment in which honesty is encouraged and respected and in which they and their employer are protected from any dishonest acts by fellow employees, customers, suppliers or the general public, the Company sets out here in its general policy on honesty.

The Company believes that the overwhelming majority of staff are both loyal and honest and it undertakes to strive to take into employment only persons who believe in and practice honesty in their dealings with their employers, fellow workers, customers and suppliers.

Any dishonest act by a staff member while at work or otherwise representing the Company will be considered an infringement of the reputation for honesty of other staff and of the Company.

Therefore any member of staff found:

1. Converting or attempting to convert to his/her own use or to the use of another, any cash goods or valuable thing, the property of another staff member without the permission of that staff member will be subject to dismissal and/or prosecution.
2. Converting or attempting to convert to his/her own use or the use of another any cash goods, supplies or equipment regardless of monetary value, the property of the Company (or in the Company care) without authority, such authority to be granted only by the Site Manager or a Company Director, will be subject to dismissal and /or prosecution.
3. Assisting or attempting to assist others in the theft of staff property or of Company assets of any type (or property in the Company's care), will be subject to dismissal and /or prosecution.
4. In his/her capacity, as a Company employee directly or indirectly soliciting from any person, Company supplier or group, anything of economic value as a gift, gratuity or favour will be subject to disciplinary action, which may include dismissal.

No staff member while employed by this Company or thereafter will disclose Company information or business plans obtained in the course of employment except in such circumstances as may be approved by the Directors.

Precision Construction Limited’s quality policy is to design, value, engineer, construct and fit-out buildings to the highest standards that meet our customers' needs. This is proven by our repeat business from our Client base and Design Team recommendations.

We provide buildings which are technologically advanced through innovation, research and development which reflect our skills and efforts first time and ensure quality to our customers' total satisfaction. This is achieved through our professional customer service, from Director level to Project Manager to Site Supervision, by the employment of top quality operatives and sub-contractors, along with the implementation of our strict quality control checks and audit quality management system.

The Quality Management Structure implemented lends itself to a pro-active self-snagging system which effectively eradicates most snag items which in turn leads to increased standards generally. Our 360° communication policy ensures all Employees are aware of our Quality, Health, Safety and Environment Policies, from their initial induction and training which is endorsed by our regular fortnightly and monthly review meetings. This process highlights to the Quality Manager any shortcomings, which can be remedied by the introduction of corrective measures through our meetings, benchmarking and audits, prior to our quarterly management review meetings or Quality Manager furnishing a report to the Board of Directors.

We believe that our clear job descriptions, requirements and open communication policy effectively ensures a higher standard/quality generally throughout our sites.

Employment

All employees will be given a job description and a written statement of their terms and conditions of employment on joining the Company. This summarises the contractual arrangement between Precision Construction Limited and each employee. In addition Precision Construction Limited will incorporate into contracts of employment the following legislation as covered by:

1. Terms of Employment (Information) Act 1994 -2001
b. Terms of Employment (additional information) Order 1998
c. The National Minimum Wage Act 2002 d. Unfair Dismissals Act 1997-2001
e. Protection of Young Persons (Employment) Act 1996
f. Protection of Employees (Part-time Work) Act 2001

Employees are asked to read the staff handbook carefully, sign the acceptance form and return it to Precision Construction Limited Head Office.

All employment will be subject to the satisfactory completion of a probationary period and the receipt of (where appropriate) satisfactory employment references / training.

Equal Opportunities

Precision Construction Limited is committed to the principle of equal opportunity in employment as covered by the Employment Equality Act 1998.

• In other words, we will ensure that you do not receive less favourable treatment on the grounds of your gender, marital status, family status, age, race, nationality, ethnic or national origin (including membership of the travelling community), religion, disability or your sexuality.
• All of our employment policies are fair and equitable.
• We do this to ensure that as a Company we have access to the widest labour market and secure the best employees for our needs whatever their background.
• Everyone has equal access to training and development opportunities.

Employing young persons

Protection of Young Persons (Employment) Act, 1996

The employment of children and young people is primarily governed by the Protection of Young Persons (Employment) Act 1996.

Scope The act applies generally to young employees under 18 years of age. Under the Act:

• A child is defined as a person who has not yet reached the age of 16 years
• A young person is defined as a person who has reached the age of 16 years but has not reached the age of 18 years.

There is a general prohibition on the employment of children except in the following circumstances:

• Employers may employ 14 and 15 year olds on light work:

• Employers may employ children over 15 years of age to do light work during the school term provided the hours of work do not exceed eight per week, or as part of a training/work experience programme approved by the Minister of Enterprise, Trade and Employment or FAS, where such work does not exceed eight hours per day or 40 hours per week.

The Act has three staged main purposes:

• Outlaw discrimination against part-time workers where such discrimination exists;
• Improve the quality of part-time work;
• Facilitate the development of part-time work on a voluntary basis and thus contribute to the flexible organisation of working time, taking into account employer and employee needs.

The Worker Protection (Regular Part-Time Employees) Act, 1991, has been repealed and replaced by this legislation. Other statutes that were amended as a result of the enactment of this legislation include:

• Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Acts, 1973-2001
• Protection of Employees (Employers’ Insolvency) Acts, 1984-2001
• Redundancy Payments Acts 1967-2001
• Terms of Employment (Information) Acts, 1994-2001
• Unfair Dismissals Acts, 1977-2001
• Worker Participation (State Enterprises) Acts, 1977-2001.

Safety at work

Precision Construction Limited is committed to doing all that is reasonably possible to ensure the safety, health and welfare of all staff. Staff must comply with the conditions of the Company’s Safety Statement, and must take care of their own safety and that of others.

Traning

All staff will receive full induction training in company regulations, operating procedures, systems, materials and usage.

Promotion

Precision Construction Limited’s policy is to encourage and support, where appropriate, internal promotion through training, development and appraisal programmes. Promotion will be at the discretion of management and will be based on ability and suitability for the position.

Communications

Our aim is to establish a working environment which promotes open communication and encourages staff members to contribute suggestions for the improvement of standards generally.

Grievances

All staff have the right to discuss any grievances they may have with their immediate Supervisor / Site Manager and to have these fairly considered and responded to.

Discipline

It is Precision Construction Limited policy to apply appropriate disciplinary measures for breaches of Company policies, procedures and failure after training to achieve satisfactory standards.

1. Our Business

Precision Construction Limited was set up in July 1995, in direct response to an increase in the level of demand for Specialist Shop Fitting/Fitting-Out Contractors serving the Retail, Commercial, Manufacturing and Financial Sectors.

To this end, our commitment is to ensure that any skills, behavioural or competency gaps are met through ongoing quality training, delivered both internally and externally, to a high standard.

We are committed to allocating resources in the region of 5% of current salaries to provide this training for our staff and management.

The Management of Precision Construction Limited are committed to monitoring and being involved in training and development on an ongoing basis.

This will further ensure that appropriate, quality training is provided by accredited companies at all times.

We are also committed to ensuring that the individual training and development needs of all employees are being met by the training chosen.

Furthermore, access to training is available equally and equitably to all staff and management in a fair and constructive way. With regard to this point, management will continue to assess – objectively and comprehensively – any requests for training made by staff, bearing in mind the need for all training to be evaluated in terms of its contribution to the overall strategic growth of the business.

We meet with our ‘Training Co-Ordinator' weekly to discuss progress with regard to all training plans. This is working well and ensures that the Training and Development function of our business remains a high priority.

All training will be reviewed in terms of how, initially individual and subsequently department/company, performance improves as a result. Management will at all times evaluate training from the Qualitative and Quantitative perspective and will continue to involve the appropriate staff member in this evaluation process.

2. Health and Safety Requirements

3. Projection – Training Implications of Any Forthcoming Changes in Technology, Markets or Work Organisation.

The environment in which we operate is forever changing. We are therefore cognisant of the need to stay on top of any changes in procedures, enhanced machinery, changing legislation, competition, etc.

We encourage all employees to keep management advised of any changes and developments which might apply to us.

This area of our business development is of primary importance to the continuing growth of the business and we therefore see it as the duty and responsibility of senior management to keep themselves informed and up to date at all times.

When considered appropriate, we have, and will continue to engage external consultants to advise us accordingly.

We use our monthly team meetings to discuss any forthcoming changes accordingly and to evaluate the implications of any developments in our business.

Bullying Policy

Precision Construction Limited is committed to ensure that the working environment for all employees is free from all forms of harassment and bullying, as laid down in the legislation of the Employment Equality Act 1998.

Harassment and bullying will not be tolerated.

What is Harassment?

Sexual Harassment

Examples of some forms of sexual harassment are listed below:

• Physical sexual harassment - unwelcome physical contact such as groping, pinching, patting or unnecessary touching, unwelcome fondling or kissing, sexual assault or rape.
• Verbal or written harassment - unwelcome sexual advances, unwelcome pressure for social contact, sexually suggestive jokes, remarks or innuendo.
• Non-verbal / visual sexual harassment - sexually suggestive or pornographic pictures and calendars, leering, staring, or offensive gestures.

Note: This list is not exclusive or exhaustive.

1. The Company will not tolerate sexual harassment in any form.
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Sexual harassment will be treated as serious misconduct under the Company's disciplinary code and may result in dismissal.

1. A more serious view will be taken in the case of sexual harassment of staff by persons in positions of authority.
2. The Company will deal seriously and confidentially with allegations of sexual harassment. Staff complaining of sexual harassment may report the matter to their immediate Superior or if this is inappropriate to a Company Director.
3. Where it is established that there is a case to be answered a fair investigation will be carried out in accordance with normal procedures before any disciplinary action is taken.
4. Each member of Management and staff carries responsibility for his/her behaviour under this policy.

Bullying

Some examples of bullying include:

• using threatening behaviour to undermine the persons feeling of security in their employment or job location
• offensive gestures, material
• over-monitoring with malicious intent
• shouting, swearing, name calling
• spreading malicious rumours, gossip or ridicule
• making unreasonable demands
• physical abuse, jostling, pushing
• inappropriate withholding of information
• unfair allocation of work or responsibilities

The Company will not tolerate bullying in any form. Bullying will be treated as serious misconduct under the Company's disciplinary code and may result in dismissal.

A more serious view will be taken in the case of bullying of staff by persons in positions of authority.

The Company will deal seriously and confidentially with allegations of bullying. Staff complaining of bullying may report the matter to their immediate Superior or if this is inappropriate to a Company Director.

Where it is established that there is a case to be answered a fair investigation will be carried out in accordance with normal procedures before any disciplinary action is taken.

Each member of Management and staff carries responsibility for his/her behaviour under this policy.