Company Directors´ (Health and Safety) Act 2003
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WELCOME |
We have a rather timely reminder for you this month. Something has been quietly brewing in the background and this month it is about to be revealed in all its glory. I'm talking, of course, about the new bill that is currently making its way through parliament and which has serious consequences for many, if not most, of the UK's company directors.
To quote someone who is often in the news, "it's a kind of tidying up of what was there all along". In fact, if the bill is passed in its present form, it goes somewhat further than tidying up since it turns what has previously been good practice into legal obligation.
The government is serious about implementing good health and safety in UK companies and this bill is another step along the way.
Now is the time, therefore, to take stock of how well your organisation is currently fulfilling its health and safety obligations. It is more true than ever, that every organisation needs to do right and have the evidence available to prove it.
David Skews, (CEO)
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COMPANY DIRECTORS´ (HEALTH AND SAFETY) ACT 2003 |
If you are a director of a company in the UK with more than 5 employees, then there is a bill currently going through parliament that you need to know about. It is referred to under the title "Company Directors' (Health and Safety) Act 2003 and its stated intent is:
"To require companies to appoint a director as the health and safety director; and to impose duties on this director and on other directors of companies in relation to health and safety; and for connected purposes".
We posted an article on current Directors responsibilities in our December 2002 newsletter. (Still available on our web site at http://www.edp-uk.com/newsletters/directorresponsibilities.htm ). The bill, currently passing through parliament, clarifies and adds to these legally backed responsibilities.
At present the bill is scheduled for its second reading on 13th June and, although nothing is certain, there is every chance that it will be law before the end of this year. Consequently, now is the time to consider to what extent you are prepared for legal compliance.
Assuming it is passed in its present form, the new act will introduce a number of changes including:
- Each organisation (other than private companies) will be required to appoint one of its directors as the Health and Safety Director. This director must be named in the annual return
- All directors must be more active in pursuance of health and safety and be able to produce hard evidence to this effect
Implications for All Directors
A whole new section is to be added into the Companies Act 1985, which goes into detail about the new duties of all directors in regard to health and safety. These include:
- Directors exercising their powers and discharging their duties in the interests of the health and safety of employees and others affected by the company's operations, and
- Directors taking effective steps to ensure the company acts in accordance with the obligations imposed on it by any applicable law relating to health and safety.
Whilst at first sight these requirements may not appear to be very precise, this actually means that they have broad application and a more careful consideration reveals that their impact is far reaching.
Importance of Comprehensive Records
To drive home the importance of compliance, the statement of directors' duties includes advice on how directors can demonstrate that they have satisfied the requirements of the act, namely:
- They must have acted reasonably and in good faith
- They must have informed themselves about the company's health and safety obligations in particular circumstances of its operations
- They must have considered reports produced by the Health and Safety Director
Clearly, no authoritative body is likely to take these evidences as read and therefore it would be prudent for all boards of directors to maintain comprehensive records by way of proof, should this ever be required
Implications for the Health and Safety Director
Getting even more specific, duties are defined for the specifically appointed Health and Safety Director, including:
- To monitor the health and safety performance of the company and to ensure the management systems provide for effective monitoring and reporting
- To ensure the company's health and safety statement is consistent with current board priorities
- To immediately report significant health and safety failures to the other directors and recommend appropriate remedial action
- To flag up to the board what are the health and safety implications of its decisions
For those organisations that already take health and safety seriously, there is little new in this bill. Perhaps the main message for such organisations is to produce and maintain comprehensive records that will serve as evidence of legal compliance.
For other organisations, what was once considered good practice is about to become legal obligation. It therefore behoves every organisation to review their current practices in order to safeguard their reputation and stay on the right side of the law as well as caring for the health and safety of their employees.
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David Skews, (CEO)
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EDP Health Safety & Environment Consultants Ltd
Lakeside, Alexandra Park, Prescot Road, St. Helens, Merseyside, UK
Telephone: +44(0)1744 766000
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