Guernsey Health & Safety Basics

I am an employer

An employer must ensure so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of their employees. The Ordinance goes on to specify five areas which are the most important: -

To provide and maintain machinery equipment and other plant in a condition that is safe and without risks to health;

That any ways in which articles and substances are used, handled, stored and transported are safe and without risks to health;

Shall provide all his employees with the information, instruction, training and supervision necessary to ensure their health and safety at work;

Must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, any place under his control and where employees work, is kept in a safe condition and does not pose a risk to their health;

Shall ensure so far as is reasonably practicable, the Health and Safety of the employees working environment.

Employers of more than five persons must formulate a Health and Safety Policy. This is a written document which gives the companies commitment to manage Health & Safety, it would also detail how the companies structure will deal with issues and the arrangement to be put in place. The Policy should be a working document based on sound risk assessments, it needs to be formulated by management, for staff and must be brought to their attention.

A policy which is written by an outside organisation merely satisfies the word of the law, a good policy which is a working policy, satisfies the spirit as well.

I am an employee

Employees have specific duties under the terms of the ordinance, they are expected to take reasonable care for the health and safety of themselves and of other people who may be affected by what they do, or fail to do, at work.

The employee must also comply with safety rules and procedures laid down by the management to ensure nothing they do, or fail to do, puts themselves or others at risk.

Whilst it is not usual for individual employees to be prosecuted for a breach of duties implied by the ordinance, the court does have the power to prosecute employees should it be demonstrated that they acted in reckless disregard for the safety of themselves or others.

I am a Person in Control of Premises

The ordinance does not merely look at safety issues going on inside the workplace, consideration must also be given to the impact that a work activity may have on persons outside, for instance the general public. Thus an employer or person in control of premises must ensure that no-one is endangered by their undertaking.

e.g. Under Section 1 of the Ordinance, an employer of persons on a building site must ensure that his employee or the employee of another is not injured by a falling concrete block, he must also ensure that if that same concrete block falls outside the site into a public place, it does not injure a member of the public.

I am a Designer and/or Manufacturer

Designers and manufacturers have a very important role to play in health and safety. Equipment, plant and buildings must be designed with safety in mind, it should be a prime factor at an early stage, as often it is difficult to build in safety at a late stage.

The Ordinance places specific and far reaching duties on designers, manufacturers etc., in fact Section 5 has no less than 12 separate subsections dealing with duties including one which prescribes the requirements for those who design, manufactures, imports or supplies an article for use at work or an article of fairground equipment.