Lift broken at work

[Mitara]

The lift has been broken in my workplace for the last month.

The employer said he has been waiting for a part that he ordered.

However i have heard him moan about the cost of getting the lift fixed. He said that it will cot him thousands of pounds to get it fixed . He wont be paying for it out of his own pocket. It will come out of company money, but he just doesnt like paying for it.

The lift being broken has resulted in me and other members of staff having to walk up and down a lot of stairs more for normal tasks, and we are also having to do heavy lifting up and down stairs. I honestly feel like im going to collapse.

Is there any law or workplace safety regulation that states that an emloyer must get a lift fixed, if not having a lift is causing health and safety risks to employees.

I was trying to look it up last night but havent found anything specific yet. I would love to find something specific and show it to him

just all down tools and refuse to do it=is there a union

I doubt it, although they might find themselves in breach of disability equality regulations.

Is your boss also the owner of the business? Interested due to your comment ‘he’s not paying out of his own money but the company will pay’
Many people lack understanding when you run (own) a business - as every penny spent is yours, regardless of who pays for it!

No he doesn't own the business.

He just manages budgets and spending, and he doesnt like paying out for expensive things for the building.

However lift maintenence is essential

Can you get a doctor's note saying you should not have to carry heavy loads up 4 flights of stairs because of health? Sounds like it could give you arthritis anyway.
Can your group not demand the company employs someone strong and fit to carry the loads upstairs for you? Would trollies help?
I know lifts can take a long time to repair from personal experience living in a flat - so don't wait and wait to react to this situation.

I could also say that many owners/managers lack of understanding of employee's proper health and safety, for the sake of saving money.

So (yet) another of those Brexit benefits <question mark>

"Ask someone strong and fit"

People have been asked. The managers of the different departments are asking each other's departments to do it. People are refusing.

The cleaners are starting to refuse to do it.

Other teams have been asked to do it even though its not their job.

I helped for a while and then i said to my line manager that i wont do it anymore as it is hurting my back and knees.

She then asked another department to do it , and they refused to do it, (male and female employees) because of the health and safety risks. And because it is not part of their job

Knowing the company , i will probably be asked by some manager to do it again

, but i am going to refuse again. I will get a doctor's note for back pain if i have to.

People will only do so much at work. They are not going to risk their health.

I was just thinking , why dont they order in the replacement parts ahead of time?

Because then you need to store them. And that Costs Money that shareholders can ill afford.

If only we had a streamlined just-in-time distribution system where a part can be expected within 36 hours of ordering. That would help, surely ?

This reminds me of when I was a voluntary support worker. When I was about 18-19, I went away on a skiing holiday with a group of disabled people (wheelchair users) to a European country.

I don't know who was responsible for making the booking but it was a tiny little traditional village, and the hotels didn't have lifts. All the bedrooms were upstairs. We had to carry everyone down the stairs for breakfast with everything prepared to go out skiing. After being out on the slopes all day, we'd need to carry people back upstairs to get changed etc. Then back downstairs for dinner and evening entertainment, and then upstairs again for the end of the night.

Honestly, just horrendous all round. Absolutely exhausting for the support workers, especially as the skiing often required physical hands-on help too so we were already knackered when we got back to the hotel. But so humiliating for the individuals who had no independence at all for the trip.

I like @dreamingbohemian's idea of forming a chain to pass things up the stairs - this sounds like a brilliant solution. And you say it's only every 2 days, so it sounds very doable. Can't you put this idea to your management?

How horrendous.

Why on earth would anyone book a holiday for disabled people and not check if the rooms were wheelchair accessible.

Who booked that trip.?

I would just refuse, loudly support everyone else to refuse, and if you see a cleaner continuing and looking tired, insist they take a break , leave their bundle half way up the stairs and take them to the nearest seat, and email their manager saying ‘I found x distrsssed on the stairs, I was worried she would faint, this carrying heavy loads up and down multiple flights of stairs is too hard. If I were a doctor I’d say she can’t do any more today or she risks a heart incident or faint. You will just have to tell senior management they will have to recruit a whole additional team now there is this whole new manual heavy lifting load. Also, I had to leave xs pile of sheets on the middle of the stairs between 3 & 4 so that’s a hazard, I didn’t have any other choice. X certainly couldn’t carry it and my back was strained with having done some of the carrying last week, those sheets are heavy and I won’t risk it, so that needs sorting. Yours, op.’

just so management know they are fully liable for any claims , they’ve been clearly informed. I hope the person with the sore knee has also put in a claim!! They have to fix the lift OR do all the carrying themselves OR just shut the business (hospital?) OR hire a whole extra team. Fixing the lift is cheap, make sure that’s obvious to them.

They should only put suggestions to management that involve management fixing it. I shudder to think of the oh&s assessment for let’s have people all the way up the stairs dynamically lifting and passing heavy things up and down the staircase to the next person.

"some posters' go around the boards being as contrary as they can. Either they're doing it on purpose or they're unhappy in themselves.

I think OP the only way you're going to get any joy is to band together and tell management that they need to pitch in with the lugging until the lift is fixed and join a union if you haven't already.

The Health & Safety Executive has some guidance The Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 Manual handling - Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 - Guidance on Regulations - HSE
There is no weight limit but a risk assessment must be in place and reasonable adjustments made to prevent injury from falling, losing control of the load or straining.

Was going to suggest a stair climbing truck, but see a pp already has. They're not wildly expensive and would allow people to carry heavier loads in one go. I would really have people push your boss to get one or two of these to help while he waits for the part.

Suggest they employ a student to carry the linen for a few weeks?

100% a risk assessment should be done and a temporary solution put in place. This could still mean manually lifting and carrying which is absolutely reasonable to expect, so long as appropriate safe measures are put in place (eg longer time given to complete the task, more frequent breaks, chaining like a PP suggested).

But I sense from the OPs use of dramatic language that they don’t actually want to do any kind of manual lifting or carrying though……

There is a lot of linen. They would need more than one student.

I cant see any student sticking out the job either. Why break their back every day when they could get a coffee shop job

What a stupid comment. OP's work means carrying heavy bags of bedding up and down stairs multiple times a day not just strolling up 4 flights with a handbag!

I am quite suprised there is no service lift or a dumb waiter where at least you can move stuff from floor to floor. If they had that, I would agree that the stairs wouldn't be too big an ask.

I dont want to do any lifting ANYMORE.

Ive done it for a month and ive had enough and my back hurts.

"Use of dramatic language".

So would you be fine doing heavy lifting every second day in your job then? I bet you wouldnt!

you need lawyer/solicitor... split the cost with like minded colleagues.

Yes it is if you’re carrying bags of linen

I’m 54 and I choose to use the stairs instead of lift and we have alot of stairs, I’m now taking them two at a time it gets easier and will keep you fit .