Health and Safety Legislation

Overview of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974

The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 (HASWA) is the main element of health and safety legislation in the UK, outlining the responsibilities of employers to ensure the health, safety, and welfare of their employees at work. Here are the key points:

General Duties of Employers

1. Safe System of Work: Employers must provide a safe system of work, ensuring that all processes and procedures are designed to minimise risks.
2. Safe Place of Work: The workplace itself must be safe, including the physical environment and conditions.
3. Safe Equipment and Machinery: All equipment, plant, and machinery used by employees must be safe and properly maintained.
4. Competent Personnel: Employers are responsible for ensuring that employees are competent and capable of performing their tasks safely.
5. Risk Assessments: Employers must carry out risk assessments to identify potential hazards and take steps to eliminate or control these risks.
6. Information and Training: Employees must be fully informed about potential hazards and provided with appropriate instruction, training, and supervision.
7. Competent Person: A competent person must be appointed to oversee health and safety management, conduct safety inspections, and liaise with
   staff safety representatives.
8. Consultation with Safety Representatives: Where a union is recognised, employers must consult with workplace safety representatives and set up a
   safety committee if requested by two or more safety reps.
9. Staff Welfare: Adequate facilities for staff welfare must be provided.

Qualified Duty: “As Far As Is Reasonably Practicable”

• The Act qualifies many of its requirements with the term “as far as is reasonably practicable”. This means that employers must balance the costs of safety measures against the level of risk.
• Employers must demonstrate that they have done everything reasonably practicable to ensure safety and that further measures would be disproportionately costly compared to the residual risk.

Practical Application

• To understand the general duties of the Act in practice, it is necessary
to refer to other sources of health and safety law, such as regulations
made under the Act, Approved Codes of Practice (ACoPs), and guidance
documents.
General Duty of the Employee
• Section 8: This section places a duty on everyone to not misuse anything
provided in the interests of health or safety at work under a statutory
requirement.
Duty of HSE
• Information Provision: HSE inspectors are required to supply certain
information on health, safety, and welfare matters affecting safety to
workers or their representatives.

The ‘Six Pack’ of Workplace Regulations
On 1 January 1993, a set of regulations known as the ‘six pack’ came into effect.
These regulations implement various European Directives on health and safety and
clarify how employers must comply with their duties under HASAWA.
The six regulations are:
• The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations: These
regulations require employers to assess and manage risks to their
employees’ health and safety.
• The Display Screen Equipment Regulations: These regulations set out
requirements for work with display screen equipment, such as computers,
to protect employees from health risks.
• The Manual Handling Operations Regulations: These regulations aim to
reduce the risk of injury from manual handling tasks, such as lifting and
carrying.
• The Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations: These
regulations require employers to provide appropriate personal protective
equipment (PPE) to employees where risks cannot be controlled by other
means.
• The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations: These regulations
ensure that work equipment is suitable, safe, and properly maintained.
• The Workplace Health, Safety and Welfare Regulations: These regulations
cover a wide range of basic health, safety, and welfare issues, such as
ventilation, heating, lighting, and sanitary facilities.

Common Features of the ‘Six Pack’ Regulations
• Emphasis on Prevention: Focus on preventing exposure to hazards rather
than relying solely on protective equipment.
• Comprehensive Coverage: Health and safety arrangements must cover all
workers.
• Risk Assessments: Employers are required to carry out risk assessments to
identify hazards, risks, and their consequences.
• Monitoring and Control: Continuous monitoring and control of hazards.
• Competent Persons: Appointment of competent persons to oversee health
and safety.
• Consultation and Information: Employers must consult with employees
and provide necessary information.
• Health Surveillance: Implementation of health surveillance measures.
• Record Keeping and Reviews: Maintenance of records and regular reviews
of health and safety practices.
Most enquiries from Health and Safety Representatives relate to the implementation
of these strands of Health and Safety legislation and other Scotland specific
Education law. Please see section 15 for further practical advice on application in
an Educational Setting.