Essay on Legislation: Occupational Safety and Health and Health

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Pages: 6
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Legislation
Health & safety at work act (training for staff/risk assessments)
The UK has one of the lowest accident rates in the world. The health and safety at work act 1974 is one of the main reasons for this. Legislation over the last 30 years has helped bring about significant improvements in health and safety in the workplace (including a reduction in fatalities of nearly two-thirds since the act was introduced). Still now, over 200 people are killed each year during work in the UK and over 150,000 are injured. Two million people suffered from many different illnesses that have been caused, or even made worse because of work.
There are several pieces of legislation and various guidelines that you have to work within, as a health and social care worker. The Health And Safety act 1974, also referred to as HSW, is the main piece of legislation covering occupational health and safety in the United Kingdom. In England, Wales and other places the Health and Safety Executive is responsible for enforcing the Act and a number of other regulations relating to the working environment.
Employers are responsible for the health and safety of employees, workers from other organisations, and visitors while they are on the premises, Employers must: * Carry out a thorough risk assessment before opening for business, and it should be updated regularly * Ensure that there is a health and safety policy written for the setting and appoint someone to be responsible for health and safety * Keep a record of all accidents that occur * Provide safety equipment, written health and safety information and training * Ensure the workplace is fully insured
Employees also have responsibilities under the health and safety at work act 1974. You must: * Take reasonable care of your own, and other peoples health and safety * Not deliberately do anything that could jeopardise someone else’s health or safety
RIDDOR (1995)
RIDDOR is the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995. These Regulations require employers, the self-employed and those in control of premises to report specified workplace incidents.
If you are an employer, you must report any work-related deaths, and certain work-related injuries, cases of disease, and near misses involving your employees wherever they are working.
If you are in control of premises, you must report any work-related deaths, certain injuries to members of the public and self-employed people on your premises, and dangerous occurrences (some near miss incidents) that occur on your premises.
RIDDOR is the law that requires employers, and other people who are in control of work premises, to report and keep records of: * work-related deaths; * serious injuries; * cases of diagnosed industrial disease; and * certain ‘dangerous occurrences’ (near miss incidents).
You must report injuries to members of the public or people who are not at work if they are injured following an accident that arises out of, or in connection with, work and are taken from the scene of an accident to hospital for treatment. If the injured person was already at a hospital, the report only needs to be made if the injury is a ‘major injury’
These regulations require you to report the following to the local council or the Health and Safety Executive: * Death * An incident leading to someone being absent from work for three days or more * Reportable diseases * Potentially dangerous occurrences that did not lead to injury or diseases
Reporting this information enables the local council of the HSE to ascertain why, where and how risks occur and to investigate serious accidents and near-accidents. They can then advise organisations on how to prevent or reduce injury, ill-health and damage to property. If at some time in the future you are working in a senior post and an accident occurs, it would be your reasonability to submit the report.
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