Health And Safety

Health and Safety for Recycling Crew Glastonbury Festival

Please read this carefully, it tells you how to work safely at the festival.
You'll also receive further training when you arrive.

General

• Always wear your gloves when you’re at work, if they get damaged ask for a replacement pair.
• If you’re given a high visibility vest, wear it while you’re at work, don’t cover it with a bag, or anything else.
• You must not work under the influence of alcohol or drugs
• If you have any injuries; you must make sure they are protected and tell your supervisor about them before starting work.
• Only do the work you have been explicitly asked to do in the areas you have been asked to work in.
• You must tell your supervisor about any hazards or dangers you might see.
• Use your breaks to rest and refresh yourself, these are an important part of your working day.
• Do not bring any litter picking equipment with you

Working outdoors

Hygiene when dealing with waste

• Do not handle waste without gloves, even bagged waste.
• Do not handle any item that has been used to handle waste, without wearing gloves.
• When you take off your gloves during a break, or at the end of the shift, wash your hands as soon as you can. We will provide anti bacterial handwash.
• If you get splashed with liquid from waste (you may hear this described as “bin juice”) you must wash it off immediately, if it goes in your eye ask your supervisor for eye-wash.

Litter Picking
If you stand on, kneel on, or brush against a sharp item of waste you might get scratched, this can cause infection;

• Always wear footwear that covers your feet, not sandals.
• Wear long trousers when you work.
• Never touch or disturb an item you are concerned may be hazardous. Examples may include: a syringe, some poo, a container of an unknown liquid, a broken or cracked car battery, bandages that might have blood on them. If you find something you are not sure about don’t touch it, stay with the item and alert your supervisor, if you leave the item you may not be able to find it again.
• Do not kneel or lean on an area of ground that has not been picked.

Avoid strains:

• Change position frequently when you are picking; kneel, lean down, change hands. Varying your position will put less strain on your back.
• It’s always better to pick going up-hill, the ground is closer, you don’t have to stretch as far which will put less strain on your back.

Dealing with sharps / needles
Although the gloves you are given have a high puncture resistance; glass or needles can still puncture them.

• Do not attempt to handle sharps, when you find them; alert your supervisor and stay with the item.
• Although it’s unlikely you’ll find one, the needles attached to a hypodermic syringe carry a particular risk of serious infection from blood born diseases. If you receive a needle stick injury like this you should carefully remove the needle and your gloves and encourage the wound to bleed (don’t suck it) while alerting your supervisor and those around you.

Litter picking at the roadside

• When working near a roadway, don’t wear ear protectors or a personal stereo.
• Be constantly aware of traffic.
• Do not leave bags or equipment in the roadway
• Only work in the exact areas described by your supervisor, if you’re not sure, ask.

Handling and moving litter and bagged waste
Normal loose litter is put into refuse bags, these are then tied and placed in a pile. Sharp objects can puncture a bag and scratch you; which could cause infection

• Do not put anything sharp e.g. broken glass, into a bag.
• Only move or carry bags you have filled yourself.
• Carry bags away from your body, avoid them banging into your legs and don’t throw them over your back.
• Strains from bad lifting of heavy objects can injure your back and affect you for the rest of your life
• Do not collect or handle any single item weighing more than about 5kg.
• Tie up refuse bags when they are only half full with normal loose litter, don’t put any large or heavy items in a refuse bag. When you tie them up they shouldn’t weigh more than two bags of shopping (approx 5kg)
• Tie bags securely, keep your gloves on when you do this.
• Never throw bags of litter.

Using a Wheelbarrow
If you use a wheelbarrow to move waste:

• Don’t overfill it making it unsteady
• If it begins to tip when you’re wheeling it, let go, don’t try to stop it.
• Go slowly and carefully downhill, if it starts to run away with you, put it down. If you’re in a crowd get another member of staff to walk in front.

Lifting and moving oil drum bins

• Avoid lifting bins, use a sack trolley, or move empty drums by tipping them over and rolling them.
• If the bin is too heavy or full to lift; take some of the contents out first and put in a bag.

Where a lift is required:

• Two people of similar height are needed to lift an oil drum bin.
• With straight backs squat either side of the bin, both facing it, with feet shoulder width apart.
• Hold the top rim of the drum with one hand
• Tip the drum slightly, move the other hand under the drum and hold onto the lower rim.
• With your lifting partner count aloud “one, two, three”, on “three” stand up slowly without jerking, keeping your back straight with the weight of the drum on your lower hand.

To tip a drum

• From the upright position move the upper hand out and down, and the lower hand out and up, as if turning a large wheel.
• Keep your back straight and face your lifting partner, don’t twist your back
• If you lose a grip on the drum shout “drop!” to your partner, you should both step back from the falling drum, don’t try to catch it.