Question: How can we encourage equality in the construction workplace?

Answer passage (source: UK):
page_title: Construction and other outdoor work
section_headers: 5. Cleaning and sanitising the workplace
section_content: In this section

5.1 Before reopening
5.2 Keeping your workplace clean
5.3 Hygiene: handwashing, sanitation facilities and toilets
5.4 Changing rooms and showers
5.5 Handling equipment, materials, waste, and onsite vehicles

5.1 Before reopening
Objective: To make sure that any site or location that has been closed or
partially operated is clean and ready to restart, including:

conducting a risk assessment for all sites, or part of sites, that have been closed, before restarting work
carrying out cleaning procedures and providing hand sanitiser, before restarting work

5.2 Keeping your workplace clean
Objective: To keep the workplace clean and prevent transmission by touching
contaminated surfaces.
Steps that will usually be needed:


Frequent cleaning of work areas and equipment between uses, using your usual cleaning products.


Frequent cleaning of objects and surfaces that are touched regularly, such as buckets, site equipment and control panels, and making sure there are adequate disposal arrangements.


Clearing workspaces and removing waste and belongings from the work area at the end of shift.


Sanitisation of all hand tools, controls, machinery and equipment after use.


If you are cleaning after a known or suspected case of COVID-19 then you should refer to the specific guidance.


5.3 Hygiene: handwashing, sanitation facilities and toilets
Objective: To help everyone keep good hygiene through the working day.
Steps that will usually be needed:


Providing additional handwashing facilities, for example, pop-ups, particularly on a large site or where there are significant numbers of personnel on site.


Using signs and posters to build awareness of good handwashing technique, the need to increase handwashing frequency, avoid touching your face and to cough or sneeze into a tissue which is binned safely, or into your arm if a tissue is not available.


Providing regular reminders and signage to maintain hygiene standards.


Providing hand sanitisers in multiple locations in addition to washrooms.


Setting clear use and cleaning guidance for toilets to ensure they are kept clean and social distancing is achieved as much as possible.


Enhancing cleaning for busy areas.


Special care should be taken for cleaning of portable toilets.


Providing more waste facilities and more frequent rubbish collection.


Providing hand drying facilities – either paper towels or electrical driers.


5.4 Changing rooms and showers
Objective: To minimise the risk of transmission in changing rooms and showers.
Steps that will usually be needed:


Where shower and changing facilities are required, setting clear use and cleaning guidance for showers, lockers and changing rooms to ensure they are kept clean and clear of personal items and that social distancing is achieved as much as possible.


Introducing enhanced cleaning of all facilities regularly during the day and at the end of the day.


5.5 Handling equipment, materials, waste, and onsite vehicles
Objective: To reduce transmission through contact with objects that come into
the workplace and vehicles at the worksite.
Steps that will usually be needed:


Cleaning procedures for the parts of shared equipment you touch after each use, thinking about equipment, tools and vehicles, for example, pallet trucks and forklift trucks.


Encouraging increased handwashing and introducing more handwashing facilities for workers handling goods and merchandise or providing hand sanitiser where this is not practical.


Regular cleaning of vehicles that workers may take home.


Regular cleaning of reusable delivery boxes.


*[COVID-19]: coronavirus

Reviewer feedback on this answer:
Has general information about reopening during the pandemic. Doesn't address equality or construction at all.
These are guidelines for keeping the workplace clean and do not address equality.

Reviewer ratings:
Bad
Bad

Answer passage (source: UK):
page_title: Construction and other outdoor work
section_headers: 3. Social distancing at work
3.2 Moving around buildings and worksites
section_content: Objective: To maintain social distancing wherever possible, while people
travel through the workplace.
Steps that will usually be needed:


Reducing movement by discouraging non-essential trips within buildings and sites. For example, restricting access to some areas, encouraging use of telephones where permitted, and cleaning them between use.


Reducing job rotation and equipment rotation, for example, single tasks for the day.


Implementing one-way systems where possible on walkways around the workplace.


Using signage such as ground markings or being creative with other objects to mark out 2m to allow controlled flows of people moving throughout the site.


Reducing occupancy of vehicles used for onsite travel, for example, shuttle buses, and when needed, social distancing measures should be followed within the vehicles.


Separating sites into working zones to keep different groups of workers physically separated as much as practical.


Planning site access and ‘area of safety’ points to enable social distancing.


Reducing the number of people in attendance at site inductions and consider holding them outdoors wherever possible with social distancing.


Regulating use of high traffic areas including corridors, lifts, turnstiles and walkways to maintain social distancing.



Reviewer feedback on this answer:
Has general information about social distancing in the workplace. Doesn't mention equality at all.
This offers tips for social distancing in the workplace rather than how to encourage equality.

Reviewer ratings:
Bad
Bad

Answer passage (source: UK):
page_title: Construction and other outdoor work
section_headers: 2. Who should go to work
2.3 Equality in the workplace
section_content: Objective: To treat everyone in your workplace equally.
In applying this guidance, employers should be mindful of the particular needs
of different groups of workers or individuals.
It is breaking the law to discriminate, directly or indirectly, against anyone
because of a protected characteristic such as age, sex or disability.
Employers also have particular responsibilities towards disabled workers and
those who are new or expectant mothers.
Steps that will usually be needed:


Understanding and taking into account the particular circumstances of those with different protected characteristics.


Involving and communicating appropriately with workers whose protected characteristics might either expose them to a different degree of risk, or might make any steps you are thinking about inappropriate or challenging for them.


Considering whether you need to put in place any particular measures or adjustments to take account of your duties under the equalities legislation.


Making reasonable adjustments to avoid disabled workers being put at a disadvantage, and assessing the health and safety risks for new or expectant mothers.


Making sure that the steps you take do not have an unjustifiable negative impact on some groups compared to others, for example those with caring responsibilities or those with religious commitments.



Reviewer feedback on this answer:
Has detailed information about supporting equality in the workplace, but isn't specifically focused on construction.
There are great tips on how to encourage equality in the workplace, but they are not specific to construction.

Reviewer ratings:
Acceptable
Acceptable