It’s often tempting for business owners to overlook or forego training. It can be seen as an encumbrance, an unnecessary expense for any business – particularly when budgets are stretched. However, anyone in training will tell you that this is a false economy, especially in the area of asbestos awareness.
A case in point is the Mercure Goldthorn hotel in Wolverhampton who, according to Wolverhampton City Council, have just been fined £10,000 for exposing their staff to dangerous levels of asbestos. The council’s Environmental Health team successfully prosecuted the owners of the hotel after an inspection carried out in 2012, which identified the presence of asbestos in the hotel’s boiler house. The asbestos insulation was in poor condition and many staff had had occasion to spend time in the boiler house as part of their duties.
The owners pleaded guilty under the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 to failing to make an adequate assessment of asbestos containing materials and to exposing their employees to asbestos.
Wolverhampton City Council’s Head of Regulatory Services, Andy Jervis, said:
Being exposed to asbestos puts lives at risks and it is imperative that all employers ensure that their staff are not exposed to such danger.
In addition to the £10,000 fine, the hotel owners were ordered to pay over £2,000 in costs.