Health and Safety Legislation Flashcards
Explain the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005
- Has Subsidiaries: General Application Regulations 2007-2021, Exposure to Asbestos Regulations 2006-2010, Construction Regulations 2013-2021
- Exist in the Criminal Framework, can lead to imprisonment
- Gives effect to the EU Framework Directive (replacing original 1989 Act)
- Extensive employee and employer duties, defines ‘reasonably practicable’, specific construction provisions, safety management and competency, personal liability, concerned with ‘place of work’ (defined very broadly)
- Principal Duty Holders: Employers, Persons in control of places of work, Designers/Manufacturers/Suppliers of ‘articles’ and ‘substances’, Persons involved in construction, Employees, Manages/Directors, Other persons
Explain what the principles of prevention mean and what the different principles of prevention
The principles of underpins all H&S legislation, based on directive, concepts of Hazard identification, Risk Assessment and risk avoidance and mitigation
- Components: Avoidance of risks, Evaluation of unavoidable risks, Combatting risks at source, Adapting work to individual (places, equipment & systems), Adapting place to tech progress, Replacing dangerous articles/substances/systems
Prioritise collective rather than individual measures, Adequate prevention policy, Appropriate training and instruction
- Involves assessing risk to employees, others’ employees, customers, visitors, and members of the public, weighing up if they’ve taken enough precautions
- Every employer must identify hazards (potential to cause harm), assess the risksb and prepare or procure risk assessments
- Review assessments when things change and take steps to improve
Describe what a safety statement is and what it entails
A safety statement identifies manner in which safety, health and welfare of employees is secured and managed.
- Includes: Hazards identified & risks assessed, Protective & preventive measures to avoid/mitigate, Emergency plans & procedures, Employee H&S duties, People responsible at place of work, Appointment of safety reps
- Must be brought to attention of employees yearly or if amended, new employees and other persons at place of work who may be exposed to risk
Where specifics tasks pose specific risks, relevant extracts must be brought to attention of those at risk, including measures for combating risk - Must be reviewed when there is significant change, reason to believe it is no longer valid or the HSA Inspector directs it to be amendment
Employers/managers/supervisors should ensure practices reflect the safety statement, carry our regular checks and take corrective action when needed
What is the general overriding duty?
Every employee shall ensure, so far is reasonably practicable, the safety, health and welfare at work of his or her employees
‘Reasonably practicable’ defined as employer having exercised all due care in identifying, assessing and protecting/preventing risk, where further measures are disproportionate regarding the unusual, unforeseeable and/or exceptional nature of circumstances needed to result in an accident
Additional particular duties to manage work activities to ensure safety health and welfare of employees and to prevent improper conduct or behaviour
Include safe place of work including access, safety systems, safe plant/machinery/materials including provision of protective equipment, protection against noise/vibration/physical agent, provision of welfare facilities, training and supervision, reporting of accidents, competency
Also owe duties to third parties, a general duty of safety extending to others’ employees, visitors, members of public and trespassers
What can personal liability apply to and explain what this entails
Personal liability can apply to directors and managers where an offence was authorised by, consented to or attributable to neglect by them.
- Statutory presumption of guilt: assume director or managers involved are guilty, until proven otherwise
- Employees have duties to comply with legal requirements, protect their safety and others’, cooperate with their employer, not engage in improper conduct, attend required training and make proper use of equipment
- Also should not be under the influence of intoxicants (including prescription drugs) that may endanger their own safety or others’
- Also have reporting obligations regarding unsafe work, defects or breach of legal requirements, and must not misrepresent qualifications
- General duty to all people not to interfere with safety equipment/measures or place the safety of others’ at risk without reasonable cause
Give the details on strict reporting obligations around incidents
- Must report direct or indirect (within 1 year) employee fatalities, employee injuries preventing normal work for >3 days, death or injury of someone else (death within 1 year or hospitalisation) or any dangerous occurrence
- Dangerous occurrences involve failure/malfunction of equipment, (partial) collapse of structure under construction or in use, uncontrolled release/ignition of substance, fire involving a substance, unintentional ignition/explosion of explosives
- Responsible person must report, usually employer, can be the person controlling or owning the place of work, can defend if reasonably unaware
- Fatalities must be reported ASAP with brief details by quickest means and full report within 5 days, injuries and dangerous occurrences must be ASAP within 10 days, both must be done via approved form
- Cannot disturb or tamper site of fatality until it has been inspected or 3 days have passed, inspectors may also require articles to be examined/tested, can disturb or tamper if necessary for immediate safety of any person
- Obliged to keep records for 10 years of any accident or dangerous occurrence
Give the different attributes of the Health and Safety Authority
- Advisory
- Monitoring
- Enforcement
- Inspection
- Obstruction
- Non-compliant
- Summary offences
- Other offences
- Fine level
Describe advisory
Advisory: Promote, encourage and foster health and safety via accident prevention, training, promotion, employer-employee cooperation, information and advice
Describe monitoring
Monitoring: Monitor, evaluate and recommend implementation, compliance and best practice around legislation, carry out research and review legislation to propose amendments
Describe enforcement
Enforcement: Make arrangements to enforce, wide powers given, inspectors authorised to exercise, must produce certificate of authorisation if requested
Describe inspection
Inspectors can enter and inspect any workplace at any time, take photos/measurements/samples, require and take records, require maintaining new records, demand any reasonable information, question/summon any person, request additional information
Describe obstruction
Obstruction is an offence, can refuse to answer if it would self-incriminate
Describe non-compliant
If non-compliant, can issue improvement plan/notice, prohibition notice, high court order, name and shame list, prosecution, fine and/or imprisonment
Describe summary offences
Summary Offences (only fine up to €5k): Failure to consult/represent employees, Failure to allow reps PTO or advise them of inspection, Failure to display/bring attention to Improvement/Prohibition notice, Failure to submit/implement Improvement plan, Contravention of Information Notice
Describe other offences
Other offences tried summarily before District Court (up to €5k/12 months each) or indictment in Circuit Criminal Court w/jury (up to €3m/2 years each), depending on seriousness of offence
