Introduction to Health and Safety at Work

Organizing for health and safety

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4.1
Introduction
In 1972, the Robens report recognized that the intro-
duction of health and safety management systems was 
essential if the ideal of self-regulation of health and safety 
by industry was to be realized. It further recognized that 
a more active involvement of the workforce in such sys-
tems was essential if self-regulation was to work. Self-
regulation and the implicit need for health and safety 
management systems and employee involvement was 
incorporated into the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.
Since the introduction of the HSW Act, health and 
safety standards have improved considerably but there 
have been some catastrophic failures. One of the worst 
was the fi re on the off-shore oil platform, Piper Alpha, 
in 1988 when 167 people died. At the subsequent inquiry, 
the concept of a safety culture was defi ned by the 
Director General of the HSE at the time, J R Rimington. 
This defi nition has remained as one of the main checklists 
for a successful health and safety management system.
4.2
Defi nition of a health and safety 
culture
The health and safety culture of an organization may be 
described as the development stage of the organization in 
health and safety management at a particular time. HSG 
65 gives the following defi nition of a health and safety 
culture:
The safety culture of an organization is the 
product of individual and group values, atti-
tudes, perceptions, competencies and 
patterns of behaviour that determine the com-
mitment to, and the style and profi ciency of, an 
organization’s health and safety management.
Organizations with a positive safety cul-
ture are characterized by communications 
founded on mutual trust, by shared percep-
tions of the importance of safety and by confi -
dence in the effi cacy of preventive measures.
There is concern among some health and safety profes-
sionals that many health and safety cultures are developed 
and driven by senior managers with very little input 
from the workforce. Others argue that this arrangement 
is sensible because the legal duties are placed on the 
employer. A positive health and safety culture needs the 
involvement of the whole workforce just as a success-
ful quality system does. There must be a joint commit-
ment in terms of attitudes and values. The workforce 
must believe that the safety measures put in place will 
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