Coronavirus COVID 19 Testing Kits – Health and Safety and SSOWs – Ongoing RM/CWU National Review
LTB 193/20
No. 193/2020 9 April 2020 To: All Branches with members in Royal Mail Group Dear Colleagues, Coronavirus COVID 19 Testing Kits – Health and Safety and SSOWs – Ongoing RM/CWU National Review As detailed in LTB 161/20 and LTB 166/20 Branches will be aware the government has announced that Royal Mail will have a role in the distribution of Coronavirus testing kits to NHS and Social Care frontline staff currently in isolation and will be exclusively responsible for the collection of these kits. Whilst the CWU welcomes the government’s decision to entrust this crucial task to the Royal Mail network, the priority of the CWU Health and Safety Department is the health, safety and wellbeing of our members, the workforce. Appropriate consultation and discussions have been taking place at a senior level with the business. The Health and Safety SAC1 has previously been circulated in LTB 166/20. Following constructive consultation and dialogue with the RMG Central SHE Team and the RMG Dangerous Goods Advisor the attached documentation provides more details on the process and safety arrangements drawn up. Functional Safe Systems of Work (SSOW) have now been drawn up: COVID-19 Test Kit SSOW Deliveries and Collections COVID-19 Test Kit SSOW Processing These are comprehensive documents focusing on the safety of the workforce. There will be ongoing RM/CWU review at national level, including a weekly conference to ensure oversight of the COVID-19 Testing Kits. To this end, the CWU Health and Safety Department requests Branch ASRs monitor arrangements in their Branch areas and localities, feeding back queries and questions to the CWU Health and Safety Department. These queries and questions will be logged with the RMG Dangerous Goods Advisor and will be discussed as part of the ongoing national review. Yours sincerely Ray Ellis Acting National Health, Safety & Environment Officer LTB193-Coronavirus-COVID-19-Testing-Kits-Health-and-Safety-and-SSOWs-Ongoing-RM-CWU-National-Review
COVID-19-Test-Kit-SSOW-Deliveries-and-Collections