During May 2010 the Health and Safety Executive levied a number of fines on employers for failing to comply with the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.  It is easy to become complacent about health and safety at work; however, this may lead to injury to your employees and result in costs to the business. 

On 19 May 2010 the Health and Safety Executive fined Hartog Hutton Limited and Fluorocarbon Company Limited £10,000.00 and £5000.00 respectively after they pleaded guilty to breaching the following health and safety provisions:

• The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, Reg 3(1)(a) by failing to make a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks of working on a roof;
  
• The Work at Height Restrictions 2005, Reg 9(1) by failing to take reasonably practicable steps to prevent a person working near or on a fragile roof;
  
• The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007, Reg 4(1)(c)(i) by failing to ensure that employees working on a roof were competent to do so;
  
• Floru Carbon Company Limited admitted breaching the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 Reg 4(1)(a) by failing to take reasonable steps to ensure the contractor engaged to undertake the work was competent to do so.

The employee injured his spine when he fell through a factory roof light, hit a gantry crane and landed on machinery. 

On 21 May 2010 the Health and Safety Executive fined a contractor £7000.00 for breaching section 3(2) Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974.  The contractor was found guilty of failing to properly plan, manage and monitor work at the site.  An employee suffered 7 fractured ribs, a broken back in 4 places, a fractured right hand and serious damage to his internal organs when a wall which had been built on the 3rd floor of a partially constructed block of flats had not been properly secured and a gust of wind blew it over sending concrete blocks more than 7 metres below.

The contractor was also ordered to pay costs of £6969.50.

On 26 May 2010 the Health and Safety Executive ordered an employer to pay £4347.00 towards the cost of the prosecution and an additional fine as they pleaded guilty to breaching the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 section 2(1).  An employee had suffered serious injuries to 4 fingers, including the partial amputation of 2, when they came into contact with the blades of a high speed fan whilst he was trying to repair a drain unit.  The HSE investigation concluded the company's procedures for repairing the machine were inadequate as the power supply should have been switched and locked off or temporary guards used.

It is vital that your company has the correct health and safety measures in place and complies with all the relevant legislation.  Below are 11 steps which you must take to comply with health and safety legislation:

1. You must ascertain whether your business needs to be registered with the Health and Safety Executive and/or your local authority.
   
2. You must take out Employer's Liability Compulsory Insurance which will cover you against any claims from employees who are injured or become ill as a result of their work.
   
3. You must appoint a competent person to ensure you comply with your health and safety duties.
   
4. You must write a health and safety policy setting out the arrangements you have put in place on managing health and safety in your business. The policy must also say who does what, when and how, examples of health and safety policies are available on the HSE website.
   
5. You must carry out a risk assessment and act on the findings of your risk assessment, this includes putting sensible controls in place to prevent accidents and ill health and also ensuring that they are followed. Templates of risk assessments are also available on the HSE website along with practical tips. You may have to make a more detailed risk assessment for more complex risks and circumstances.
   
6. You must provide a safe and healthy environment for all employees, this includes toilets, washing facilities and drinking water along with appropriate lighting and temperatures.
   
7. You must provide free health and safety training and supervision for everyone who works with you. This includes self employed people.
   
8. You must consult with your workers regarding health and safety issues, allowing them to raise concerns and influence decisions. The size of your organisation will influence how you do this, small organisations may be able to do this on a one to one basis, larger organisations may need to do this through employee representatives.
   
9. You are required by law to display the health and safety law poster which contains basic health and safety information and advises people as to who is responsible for health and safety in your workplace.
   
10. You must understand RIDDOR (the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrence Regulations 1995). These Regulations impose a legal obligation on you to report work related accidents, diseases and near miss incidents. You should know how to report an incident even if you do not need to. Reportable incidents include work related deaths, major injuries, over 3 day injuries, work related diseases and dangerous occurrences (near miss) accidents.
    
11. You must keep up to date with developments regarding health and safety. There is extensive information on the Health and Safety Executive website.

Disclaimer: The information and opinions expressed in all Lee & Priestley LLP articles contained in our briefings and on our website - http://www.leepriestley.com are not necessarily comprehensive and should not be relied upon without taking in-depth professional advice.

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