When at least two Safety Reps have put their request for one in writing, an employer must set a safety committee up within three months.
During this process, the employer must consult the Safety Reps who made the request and the representatives of recognised trade unions whose members work in any workplace to be covered by the committee.
A notice must be prominently displayed, stating the composition of the committee and the work areas that it will cover.
The Guidance to the SRSCR states that working out the size, shape and terms of reference of a safety committee must depend on discussion and agreement between employers and unions.
It recommends:
- Committees should be compact.
- There should be 50/50 management and union representation.
- Safety advisers, doctors and other health and safety professionals should be exofficio members.
Safety Committees could also provide a link with HSE.
Points for discussion
Agenda items for safety committees might include:
- Studying accident and ill health trends.
- Examining safety inspection reports.
- Considering information from inspectors, unions, employer and industry bodies.
- Discussing reports from safety reps.
- Developing safe systems of work.
- Examining the health and safety implications of new plant, equipment and processes.
- Reviewing the health and safety content of employee training.
- Monitoring the effectiveness of the employer’s health and safety services.
- Reviewing risk assessments.
- Reviewing the operation of the employer’s health and safety policy and making an annual assessment of health and safety performance, problems and future priorities.
- Reviewing the effectiveness of health and safety information and publicity materials.
EIS advice for Safety Reps
The measure of a good safety committee is whether or not it can secure change. If it is only a talking shop, or never takes any decisions, or the same items appear again and again on this agenda, Safety Reps should take action to put it right - for example by:
- Making sure meeting dates are agreed in advance and only postponed by joint agreement.
- Making sure that a senior person with managerial health and safety responsibility is committed to being present (this person should be named in the employer’s health and safety policy - the tuc would suggest a board member or director).
- Seeing that the right items are regularly on the agenda.
- Making sure that named people are given the responsibility for actions and are committed to a completion date.
- Making sure the minutes are issued promptly, are well displayed and reflect fairly the discussions, decisions and agreed timetables for action.
One of the most frustrating experiences for a Safety Rep is to be part of a weak or poorlyorganised safety committee. Safety Reps should make sure that safety committees have the power to improve health and safety at the workplace. Committees should not be used as a means for employers to avoid acting.
Consultation, Information and Representation for Non-Union Members
Under The Health and Safety (Consultation with Employees) Regulations 1996, employees who do not belong to a trade union and who are not covered by trade union Safety Reps must be consulted by their employers.
Employers can choose to consult everyone individually or consult via representatives (Representatives of Employee Safety) elected by groups of employees.
When organising the “election”, employers may take into account:
- The total numbers to be represented.
- The different groups (divided by occupation, local, type of work or shift patterns).
- The nature of the work activities and its impact on their health and safety.
Under HSCER 1996, elected representatives of non-union employees have the same basic functions as union Safety Reps. And they have the same basic legal rights to:
- Consultation (hsce reg 6).
- Training (with paid time off, endorsed if necessary by employment tribunal) (reg 7).
- Facilities (including lists of employees in their group, secretarial support, and reasonable opportunities to discuss health and safety issues with management (reg 7).
- Time-off with pay to carry out representative duties (reg 7).
- No harassment (reg 8).
Elected reps do not have statutory rights to inspect the workplace, investigate accidents or request a safety committee.
