© easilyinteractive.com 2006-101 Employment and the law Health and safety legislation Health & Safety Executive website

© easilyinteractive.com 2006-10 1

Employment and the law

Health and safety legislation

Health & Safety Executive website

http://www.hse.gov.uk/


Health and Safety Legislationtask - the cost of ignoring the legislation Read this article from the BBC website

(15/9/06) List the 7 accidents, summarising each one in a

sentence, and identify the major health and safety breach in each case

*

Accident Summary H&S Breach

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4319390.stm


Health and Safety at Work tasks The Connexions website has three good

health and safety activities All are accessed from this link

1. Health and safety blockbusters Use our interactive whiteboard grid with the questions Use our photocopyable grid for a small group game (one

student in each group plays the role of quiz master)

2. Safety at work H&S symbol recognition – perhaps useful before a

business trip (pardon the pun)

3. Spot the hazards 3 drawings: hairdressers, garage and office

*


Health and Safety at Work Act, 1974 The basis of health and safety law is the Health and

Safety at Work etc Act 1974: Both the employer and the employee have a responsibility to

keep the workplace safe Employers must take all reasonable steps to ensure the

health, safety and welfare of all employees Employees must take reasonable care to look after their own

safety and the safety of others

*


Health and Safety Legislation

Other key pieces of H&S legislation: Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992 Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations 1992 Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 Noise at Work Regulations 1989 Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002

*

http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/hsc13.pdf


Health and Safety Legislation Management of Health and Safety at Work

Regulations 1999: Require employers to carry out risk assessments

Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992: Cover a wide range of basic health, safety and welfare issues such as ventilation, heating, lighting, workstations, seating and welfare facilities

Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992: Set out requirements for work with Visual Display Units (VDUs)

Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulations 1992: Require employers to provide appropriate protective clothing and equipment for their employees

*

(1/3)


Health and Safety Legislation Provision and Use of Work Equipment

Regulations 1998: Require that equipment provided for use at work, including machinery, is safe

Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992: Cover the moving of objects by hand or bodily force

Health and Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981: Cover requirements for first aid

The Health and Safety Information for Employees Regulations 1989: Require employers to display a poster telling employees what they need to know about health and safety

*

(2/3)


Health and Safety Legislation Employers’ Liability (Compulsory Insurance) Act

1969: Require employers to take out insurance against accidents and ill health to their employees

Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995 (RIDDOR): Require employers to notify the HSE of certain occupational injuries, diseases and dangerous events

Noise at Work Regulations 1989: Require employers to take action to protect employees from hearing damage

Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH): Require employers to assess the risks from hazardous substances and take appropriate precautions

*

(3/3)


Photo by Spider Dijon

Health and Safety Legislationtask You work in the warehouse for Sinbad Plc, climbing

ladders to fetch large objects like flat-screen TVs You are concerned that this is potentially dangerous

and have obtained a leaflet from the Health and Safety Executive which outlines your rights as an employee

Create a spider diagram of important points from the leaflet in preparation for a meeting with your supervisor

*Leaflet from the HSE website (pdf)


Health and Safety LegislationtaskMake a poster that could be displayed

at school to inform students of their responsibilities under one or more of these pieces of legislation

*Leaflet from the HSE website (pdf)


Health and Safety Legislationdiscussion There has been recent criticism about ‘health and safety

gone mad’ Examples…

Has health and safety legislation gone too far, or are employees and members of the public in need of protection from cost-cutting companies?

*

Photo by Neal Gardner

Photo by Jussi Mantere



Working timeregulations

BERR website

The Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform (BERR) is the new name for the Department for Trade and Industry

http://www.dti.gov.uk/employment/employment-legislation/working-time-regs/index.html


Working Time Regulations, 1998

Provides workers with: A maximum of a 48 hour working week (on average –

though workers can choose to work more if they wish) Four weeks’ annual paid leave Eleven consecutive hours’ rest in any 24 hour period A day off each week A 20 minute rest break after six hours’ work 11 hours rest a day

Workers can complain to an employment tribunal if they are being denied rest periods, breaks or the paid annual leave entitlements

The rights for young workers are different

*

http://www.dti.gov.uk/employment/employment-legislation/employment-guidance/page28978.html



Equal opportunities

legislation

bbc.co.uk guide to discrimination Photo by Skyfaller

direct.gov.uk website

http://www.direct.gov.uk/Employment/Employees/DiscriminationAtWork/fs/en


Equal opportunities legislationdiscriminationDiscrimination: When an employer

treats one employee less favourably than others

*


Equal opportunities legislation

Aims to give all people identical rights and opportunities regardless of: Gender (and marital status/pregnancy) - Equal Pay Act 1970

Race - Race Relations Act 1976 Physical disability - Disability Discrimination Act 1995

Age - Employment Equality (Age) Regulations 2006

Religion or belief - Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003

Sexual orientation - Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2003

Applying equal opportunities allows a firm to select the best employees

*


Equal opportunities legislationage Before reading:

What is the current retirement age? Will it be the same when…

…your parents/teachers retire? (e.g. in 2030) …you retire?

Why might the age of retirement need to change? Now use the article to find the answers to these questions Questions for group discussion:

Do you think that it is unfair that people can be made to retire? Do older workers prevent younger workers from finding jobs? Do older workers have skills/qualities that younger workers don’t

possess? Do you think there should be a legal retirement age?

*Article, BBC News, 25/1/10


Equal opportunities legislation

In general it is illegal for an employer to discriminate on any of these grounds in: selection training and development pay and conditions selection for redundancy

*


Equal opportunities legislationtask Read the article about Julie Hayward,

watch the videos and answer the questions

* ‘One woman’s fight’ article 5-09Original article and videos

The article has been edited a little to make it shorter and more relevant. Answers to the gap fill can be found in the online article.A teaching suggestion: do question 1 in pairs in class (so that cheating isn’t possible!) then set the remaining questions for homework


Equal opportunities legislation An employee who feels discriminated against

should first try to resolve the problem with their manager. If that fails they can go to: Acas Citizens Advice Bureau Trade union

If the dispute cannot be resolved it may go to ACAS arbitration or an employment tribunal

If the employee should win the case, he/she may be entitled to: Re-instatement (same job, same employer) Re-engagement (new job, same employer) Compensation

*

http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=337

http://www.adviceguide.org.uk/index/your_rights/discrimination.htm


Limitations of equal opportunities legislation It is often very difficult to prove

discriminationEmployees are often afraid/unwilling to

deal with the issue

*


…of Human Resource Management (People)

Documents

© easilyinteractive.com 2006-101 Employment and the law Health and safety legislation Health & Safety Executive website