Management Guide
Managing Health & Safety at Work
Introduction
This management guide examines the reasons why high standards of health and safety are
important, and explains why ensuring that employees are safe and healthy at work has to be one of
the fundamental requirements of the employer. It summarises health and safety law, and also
describes the benefits and business case for good health and safety in the workplace. The guide sets
out the main duties of employers and the roles of employees, managers and the Health and Safety
Executive, and provides practical advice on what a health and safety policy statement should
include, and how risk assessments should be completed. The guide also discusses how an
organisation can achieve a more engaged workforce through encouraging wellness, work-life
balance and management of stress.
Why is Health & Safety important?
High standards of health and safety are important because:
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The elimination or at least minimisation of health and safety hazards and risk is the moral as
well as the legal responsibility of employers.
Ill-health and injuries resulting from the systems of work or from working conditions cause
suffering and loss to individuals and their dependants.
Accidents and absences result in losses and damage to the organisation: the ‘business’
reason is much less significant than the ‘human’ reason, but this still remains a
consideration.
The achievement of a healthy and safe place of work and the elimination to the maximum extent
possible of hazards to health and safety are the responsibility of everyone employed in an
organisation, including those working there under contract. The onus is on management to achieve
and indeed go beyond the high standard in health and safety matters required by legislation – the
Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations
(1992, updated 1999), and the various regulations laid down in the Codes of Practice.
Health and Safety Law
There are a vast number of different statutes governing safety issues, but health and safety is not
only governed by legislation. Under what is known as ‘common law’ all employers have a duty of
care imposed on them to protect their employees. There is also a term implied into all employment
contracts requiring employers to take care of their employees’ health and safety.
The Health and Safety at Work Act (1974) sets out the following basic duties of an employer:
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To install a safe working system
To provide safe premises, a safe working environment and safe equipment
To recruit competent and safety conscious staff
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To give proper instruction and supervision to ensure that healthy and safe systems and
conditions of work are achieved
If an employer fails to take reasonable care in any of these areas, an employee may have a number
of claims, including the ability to resign and claim constructive unfair dismissal and a personal injury
claim in appropriate cases.
Employees, too, have responsibilities and should work with their employer to develop a safe place of
work.
All work places are covered by the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 (HSWA) which says that an
employer must do everything reasonably practicable to provide a safe and healthy workplace with
adequate welfare facilities. HSWA has been supported and extended by various sets of regulations,
codes of practice and guidance, all of which deal with various aspects of health and safety. The
Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is the government body which decides upon and implements
health and safety policy.
The six regulations that came into force during the 1990s, introduced to implement the European
Framework Directive and its five associated directives in Great Britain were:
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The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1992 (updated 1999) – placed a
specific duty on employers to carry out detailed risk assessments, and strengthened safety
representatives consultative rights
The Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992 – provide for eye tests
and training for regular users of display screen equipment
The Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 – require employees to avoid hazardous
manual handling operations wherever possible
The Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations 1992 (updated 1998) – set out
comprehensive requirements on the provision of personal protective equipment
The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1992 (updated 1998) – cover the
selection, suitability and maintenance of all equipment in the workplace
The Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 – set out the minimum
standards for cleanliness, ventilation, temperature, lighting and maintenance
Codes of Practice have been introduced by the Health & Safety Executive concerned with the
implementation of key regulations, and offer sound advice and information. These should be
considered carefully when developing/introducing new policies, and when conducting risk
assessments, safety audits and accident investigations.
The Working Time Regulations 1998 (SI 1998/1833), as subsequently amended, are also an
important piece of health and safety legislation. The Working Time Regulations currently provide
employees with the following basic rights and protections:
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a limit of an average of 48 hours a week over a 17 week period which a worker can be
required to work
a limit of an average of 8 hours work in 24 hours which night workers can work
a right to 11 hours rest a day
a right to a day off each week
a right to an in-work rest break if the working day is longer than 6 hours
a right to 28 days paid leave for full-time workers per year
Currently in Britain organisations can ask (but not force) employees to ‘opt-out’ of the 48 hour limit
and employees must not be dismissed for refusing to agree.
Employers’ health and safety obligations
Employers’ duties to provide a safe and healthy working environment arise from the core principles
of negligence, contract and the numerous specific statutory duties referred to above. Employers
should at least:
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publish a health and safety policy
arrange for the appointment of health and safety representatives
establish a health and safety committee if requested by a recognised trade union
appoint a competent person to evaluate risks and hazards
arrange periodic risk assessments
consult with employee health and safety representatives
prevent risks
inform staff of risks
combat risks at source
arrange protection from unavoidable risks
provide safety training
comply with the updated provisions concerning health and safety posters and leaflets
monitor and improve safety arrangements
provide health-risk surveillance
adapt work to the individual especially with respect to the design of workplaces
alleviate monotonous work
develop a prevention policy
appoint one or more competent persons to assist in undertaking preventive and protective
measures
establish procedures to be followed in the event of serious and imminent danger to persons
working in the organisation
require persons at work who are exposed to serious and imminent danger to be informed of
the nature of the hazards and steps taken to protect them
provide comprehensible and relevant health and safety information
provide adequate health and safety training during working hours.
Implementing a health and safety policy
Employers who employ over 5 people are required to set out written statements of their health and
safety policy and the arrangements they have in force to further the intentions of the policy. They
have to consult with their employees on measures for promoting health and safety, which implies
discussing the contents of the policy with them before it is published. Annual reports of companies
registered under the Companies Act are required to present information about accidents and
occupational diseases suffered by employees, and about preventative measures taken. The Act
additionally lays down that it is the duty of employees to observe the legal health and safety
provisions and to act with due care for themselves and others.
Written policies are a declaration of consent, a definition of the means by which that intent will be
realised, and a statement of the guidelines which should be followed by everyone concerned in
implementing the policy. The policy statement should consist of 3 parts:
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The overall statement of policy
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A description of the facilities and the personnel provided by the organisation for health and
safety
Details of arrangements for implementing the policy by means of those facilities and
personnel
The declaration of intent should emphasise four fundamental points:
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That the safety of employees and the public is of paramount importance
That safety takes precedence over expediency
That every effort will be made to involve all managers, team leaders and employees in the
development and implementation of health and safety procedures
That health and safety legislation will be complied with in the spirit as well as the letter of
the law
The provisions by the organisation should describe the health and safety arrangements of the
company through which high standards are set and achieved by people at all levels in the
organisation. It should underline the ultimate responsibility of top management, and then indicate
how key management personnel may be held accountable for performance in their areas. The role
of safety representatives and safety committees should be defined, and the duties of specialists such
as the safety adviser and the medical officer should be summarised.
This statement must:
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be written
be carefully thought through and demonstrate a commitment to managing health and safety
be workable
contain a general statement of intent to provide a safe and healthy working environment
be easily accessible and brought to the attention of all employees
give details of health and safety responsibilities within the organisation
name key individuals
cover the systems and procedures in place
refer to other documents where appropriate
cover managing risk assessments
include arrangements for employee consultation, maintaining equipment, safe handling of
substances
explain arrangements for training, supervision, accidents, first aid and emergencies
address stress, and drink and drug misuse
Policies should be produced after consultation with employees and after conducting surveys on staff
attitudes to health and safety. They should be applied uniformly and there should be a system for
regularly monitoring and reviewing the policy to ensure that it complies with current legislation.
Risk Assessments
Risk assessments are concerned with the identification of hazards and the analysis of the risks
attached to them. A hazard is anything that can cause harm. A risk is the chance of harm being
actually caused by the hazard. Every employer must make a regular assessment of their premises to
assess a number of risks. Self-employed workers have a duty to assess risks to themselves and
others.
Risk can be calculated in the following way:
Risk = severity x probability
There are many detailed regulations requiring that risks in different industries should be assessed
and HSE provides a variety of useful guidance.
The purpose of risk assessment is to initiate preventative action, to enable control measure to be
devised on the basis of understanding the relative importance of risks. They must be recorded by
law if there are 5 or more employees.
More information can be found in the ‘Health and Safety Risk Assessments Management Guide’.
Who is responsible for health and safety?
In a nutshell, everybody is responsible for health and safety and therefore it is important to
communicate effectively when delivering safety messages, and health and safety training is a key
part of the preventative programme, starting with the induction.
The specific roles of management are summarised below:
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Management develop and implement policies, and ensure that procedures for carrying out
risk assessments, safety audits and inspections are implemented.
Line Managers can exert greater influence on H&S, they are in immediate control and keep
constant watch.
Employees should be aware of what constitutes safe practice and take account of their
actions.
H&S advisers advise on policies and procedures, and methods of working. They conduct risk
assessments and audits and report on trends.
Medical advisers have 2 functions: preventative and clinical.
Safety committees consist of H&S representatives and advise on policies and procedure,
assist in conducting risk assessments and audits, and make suggestions for improvement.
The duties of employers apply to anyone allowed to use their equipment or visit their premises, and
extend to anyone affected by what the employer does – neighbours, public and those who use the
products/services it provides.
Accidents and disease at work
The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1985 (known as RIDDOR)
require employers to report any of the following to the HSE or the local council at once:
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fatal accidents
major injury or conditions which require medical treatment
dangerous occurrences
Other matters should be reported immediately, preferably by telephone followed by a written
report within seven days. These are:
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accidents that prevent a worker from doing their normal work for more than three days
certain work-related diseases (poisoning, lung diseases, infections and other conditions must
be reported when linked to specified types of work)
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certain gas incidents
Employers are legally obliged to provide first-aiders and inform all employees of the arrangements
for getting first aid. Treatment of injured workers must be addressed without delay by an appointed
first-aider.
An employer must record all workplace injuries, diseases, dangerous occurrences or certain near
accidents in an accident book. Employees must also report any accidents or illnesses caused by work
and record the details in the accident book.
Managing stress and encouraging ‘wellness’
There are 4 main reasons why organisations should take account of stress:
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They have a social responsibility to provide a good quality of working life
Excessive stress causes illness
It can result in the inability to cope with the demands of the job
Excessive stress can reduce employee effectiveness, and therefore organisational
performance
If employees are encouraged to protect their health, this will enable them to deal more effectively
with unavoidable stresses at work. Organisations can help by offering:
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individual development plans and regular appraisals to provide an opportunity to review
work-life balance on a regular basis
information and guidance on health issues
health screening
subsidised private healthcare
on-site exercise facilities or subsidised access to gyms, etc.
Stress can also be managed through:
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job design
targets and performance standards
career development
performance management processes
counselling
management training
What is the business case?
There is often a perception of contradictions between health and safety and business priorities, but
operational necessity is no excuse for cutting corners and there are significant benefits to business
when implementing high standards of health and safety.
Introducing health and safety policies to underpin work-life balance issues create:
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higher productivity and competitiveness
increased flexibility and customer service, for example to cover for absence and holidays
raised morale, motivation, commitment and engagement
reduced absenteeism
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improved recruitment and retention of a diverse workforce
wanting to become an ‘employer of choice’
meeting legal requirements
Employers may incur additional costs in adopting policies to support work-life balance, including
increased managerial workloads. Such costs are however generally outweighed by the gains in
achieving strategic objectives. The biggest obstacle to implementing good practice is in many cases
the difficulty of persuading individual line managers to accept more flexible working arrangements.
This resistance is often based on assumptions about the likely problems that flexibility will cause that
often turn out to be unfounded.