Health And Safety Responsibilities And Responsibilities

You have a responsibility for the health and safety of your employees whilst they are working for you. This is set out in the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and other legislation. However, employees do also have a responsibility for their own health and safety whilst at work.

You must provide a safe and healthy environment for you, all your employees (including homeworkers, part-time and temporary workers), contractors and visitors and take their welfare needs into account. This applies to all workplaces.

Health and safety management is not a necessary evil but part of your ongoing business management. Whilst protecting people from harm it at the same time should help the future success of your business.

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Any such representatives should be adequately trained; provide clear instructions so everyone working for you knows what they are expected to do; provide free tailored health and safety training that is up to date, relevant and effective; provide an appropriate level of supervision, especially for new, inexperienced and young workers; carry out regular health and safety risk assessments to protect the health and safety at work of yourself, your workers and others who may be affected by what you do (if you have five or more employees it should be documented) – this applies to all premises where work is undertaken, all work activities and everyone at work, including the self-employed and business owners working from home; have a health and safety policy and, if you have five or more employees, have it documented setting out your commitment to managing health and safety, what you want to achieve, who is responsible for specific actions and the detail of what you are going to do to achieve those

The impact of the above should be proportionate to the health and safety risks that your employees are exposed to. For example, if your business is involved with hazardous substances or heavy plant and machinery then you are more likely to need to take more action than for someone running a small business from an office.

What are employees’ health and safety responsibilities?

Employees have a duty to take care of their own health and safety and that of others who may be affected by their actions at work. They must also co-operate with employers and co-workers to help everyone meet their legal requirements. They need to:

take care of their own health and safety and that of others; co-operate with you to help you comply with health and safety legislation; follow any instructions or health and safety training you