Introduction to Health and Safety at Work

3.8 
Self-employed
The duties of the self-employed under the HSW Act are 
fairly limited. The Revitalising Health and Safety Strategy 
document expressed concern about whether the HSW 
Act suffi ciently covers the area, in view of the huge 
growth in the use of contractors and sub-contractors 
throughout the UK. At December 2001 they are still 
being reviewed to consider how adjustments should be 
made. Under the HSW Act the self-employed are:
➤
responsible for their own health and safety
➤
responsible to ensure that others who may be 
affected are not exposed to risks to their health and 
safety.
Figure 3.3
NEBOSH is in control here.

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Introduction to Health and Safety at Work
36
These responsibilities are extended by the Management 
of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, which 
requires self-employed people to:
➤
carry out risk assessment
➤
cooperate with other people who work in the 
premises and, where necessary, in the appointment 
of a health and safety coordinator
➤
provide comprehensible information to other peoples’ 
employees working in their undertaking.
3.9 
The supply chain
3.9.1 Introduction
Market leaders in every industry are increasing their 
grip on the chain of supply. They do so by monitoring 
rather than managing, and also by working more closely 
with suppliers. The result of this may be that suppliers 
or contractors are absorbed into the culture of the 
dominant fi rm, while avoiding the costs and liabilities of 
actual management. Powerful procurement departments 
emerge, to defi ne and impose the necessary quality 
standards and guard the lists of preferred suppliers.
The trend in many manufacturing businesses is 
to involve suppliers in a greater part of the manufac-
turing process so that much of the fi nal production is 
the assembly of pre-fabricated subassemblies. This is