Every year, thousands of people are injured at work, and many more become ill because of the work they do. Most of these accidents and illnesses could have been prevented.

This course gives you a practical understanding of health and safety at work: the law, risk assessment, workplace safety and welfare, and the most common hazards you are likely to meet. It is suitable for employees, supervisors and managers in any type of workplace.

In this module you will learn about:

• Why health and safety matters.
• The main causes of ill health and accidents at work.
• The main health and safety law, and the duties of employers and employees.
• Who enforces health and safety law.
• Reporting accidents and dangerous occurrences.

Good health and safety brings real benefits:

• People go home safe and well at the end of every working day.
• Fewer accidents, less sickness absence and lower staff turnover.
• Lower costs from damage, lost production, insurance claims and fines.
• A better reputation with customers, and better morale among staff.
• Compliance with the law.

Accidents and ill health cause pain and suffering to the people involved and their families, and can cost a business far more than prevention would have.

The most common causes of work-related ill health are:

• Stress, depression and anxiety.
• Musculoskeletal disorders, such as back pain, often caused by manual handling and poor posture.

The most common causes of injuries are slips, trips and falls, manual handling, and being struck by moving objects. Falls from height, and being struck by vehicles or caught in machinery, are among the leading causes of deaths at work.

In Great Britain, the main law is the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. It applies to every employer, employee and self-employed person, in every workplace.

It is supported by regulations, such as the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, which require risk assessment, and specific regulations on topics such as manual handling, display screen equipment, work at height, electricity, hazardous substances, noise and vibration.

Under section 2 of the 1974 Act, employers must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of their employees. This includes:

• A safe place of work, with safe access and exit.
• Safe equipment, and safe systems of work.
• Safe handling, storage and use of articles and substances.
• Information, instruction, training and supervision.
• Welfare facilities, and protective equipment where risks cannot be avoided.
• Emergency plans, and consultation with employees on safety.

Under sections 7 and 8 of the 1974 Act, employees also have legal duties. You must:

• Take reasonable care of your own safety and health, and that of anyone affected by what you do.
• Co-operate with your employer on health and safety.
• Use equipment, protective clothing and safety devices correctly, as you have been trained.
• Report hazards, defects and unsafe practices as soon as possible.
• Never interfere with or misuse anything provided for safety.
• Not put yourself or others at risk, for example by working under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

Every employer must carry out a suitable and sufficient risk assessment, covered in the next module. If there are five or more employees, the significant findings must be recorded.

An employer with five or more employees must also have a written health and safety policy. It sets out the employer’s commitment, who is responsible for what, and the arrangements for managing health and safety. It must be brought to the attention of all employees.

In Great Britain, health and safety law is enforced by the Health and Safety Executive, or HSE, and by local authorities. Inspectors can enter workplaces, investigate accidents, and take samples and photographs. Where they find problems, they can:

• Give verbal or written advice.
• Serve an Improvement Notice, requiring the problem to be put right.
• Serve a Prohibition Notice, stopping a dangerous activity immediately.
• Prosecute. Courts can impose unlimited fines and, for serious offences, prison sentences of up to two years.

Under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013, known as RIDDOR, employers must report to the HSE:

• Deaths, and certain specified serious injuries.
• Injuries that keep a worker off work, or unable to do their normal work, for more than seven consecutive days, not counting the day of the accident.
• Certain occupational diseases, and dangerous occurrences.

Injuries causing more than three days’ incapacity must be recorded. All accidents should be recorded and investigated, so that they do not happen again.