What responsibilities do employees have for health and safety?

Thursday June 9, 2022

When we talk about workplace health and safety, we tend to focus on an employer’s responsibilities towards their employees and other people on site. This is an important aspect of H&S, but it’s not the whole story.  

You have a duty of care towards your staff, but they also have an obligation to act safely. In this blog, we’ll look at the main responsibilities of employees, and provide some tips for making sure everyone understands their duties.  

What duties do employees have? 

The legal obligations of employees are covered by Section 7 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974. This states that “Workers have a duty to take care of their own health and safety and that of others who may be affected by their acts or omissions at work”. These duties fall into four main categories: 

  • Following the guidelines set out in training, especially when operating potentially dangerous equipment. 
  • Taking reasonable care of their own safety, and the safety of those around them. 
  • Co-operating with their employer on matters relating to health and safety, and not doing anything to disrupt H&S procedures. 
  • Informing their employer or supervisor of anything that could jeopardise workplace safety. 

Can employees be prosecuted? 

Employees can only be prosecuted if they have acted dangerously in spite of the best efforts of their employer. In one example, a warehouse worker was fined £2,000 after lifting and injuring an apprentice with a forklift truck. The employer had provided all of the necessary safety training, and therefore could not be blamed for the employee’s behaviour.  

Although this type of prosecution is rare, it is not unheard of. Between 2000 and 2012, 239 employees were prosecuted by the HSE. Most cases result in a fine or suspended sentence, but serious offences can be punished with up to two years in prison.  

What can I do to help?  

Even if you’re not to blame, an employee prosecution reflects badly on the whole company. It could also do serious damage to staff morale, making it harder to enforce the rules in the future.  

We’re sure that you’re keen to avoid this situation, but you may be unsure of the best approach. Ensuring that everyone understands their obligations is a two part process. Specific guidelines are important, but so is building a workplace culture that prioritises health and safety. There are several ways to do this, some of which are mandatory and others just ideas which may work for your organisation: 

  • Create a health and safety policy and make it readily available to staff. This should be displayed in a prominent location, and pointed out to new employees as soon as they arrive.  
  • Encourage employees to come to you if they have any concerns about health and safety. Make it clear that they can raise safety issues, even if this means criticising someone senior. 
  • Make sure that employees have adequate training for any potentially dangerous tasks. If problems keep recurring in the same area, consider holding a targeted training session.  
  • Provide refresher training at regular intervals. This could take the form of a toolbox talk at the start of the day. These sessions are also an opportunity for employees to raise any new safety concerns. 
  • Make employees feel involved in the health and safety process. Ask for their feedback on any H&S policy changes, and consider inviting them to lead training sessions in their own areas of expertise. Employees are more likely to buy into the rules if they have had a hand in creating them.

For health and safety to work, it has to be a dialogue between employers and employees. If you need help getting the message across, we’d be happy to explore leading a training session at your workplace. Alternatively, we have a huge range of e-Learning courses. Contact your local Health & Safety Dept to find out more.   

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