Introduction to Fire Safety Management

Organising for safety
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(b) 
The particular workplace hazards and the 
measures necessary to eliminate or minimise 
the risks deriving from these hazards
(c) 
The employer’s health and safety policy, as he 
is included in it somewhere
2. To encourage cooperation between the employer 
and his employees in promoting and developing 
essential measures to ensure the health and safety 
of the workforce and in checking the effectiveness 
of these measures
3. To 
investigate:
(a) 
Hazards and accidents in the workplace, 
specifi cally those which are reportable to the 
enforcing authority and
(b) 
Employee complaints relating to health, safety 
and welfare
4. To carry out inspections in the workplace, with a 
right to do so every three months
5. To alert the employer, in writing, to any unsafe or 
unhealthy working practices or conditions, or unsat-
isfactory arrangements for welfare at work
6. To represent the employees to whom he has been 
appointed in consultation with HSE inspectors 
and any other enforcing authority. This may be as 
a result of an accident, an employee complaint or 
simply a routine visit by the inspector
7. To receive information from HSE inspectors regard-
ing site visits, fi ndings of inspections or investiga-
tions, and any future action to be taken.
8. To request the formation of a safety committee 
(two or more representatives must make the 
request).
9. To attend safety committee meetings in connection 
with the previous items.
A recurring theme throughout these regulations is that 
the employee representatives have the right to perform 
certain functions, and the employers are then required 
to provide them with such facilities and assistance as 
they may reasonably require them to carry out.
Specifi cally, an employer must:
➤
Provide time off with full pay to enable the repre-
sentative to carry out his functions and to undergo 
such safety training as may be required. There is no 
statutory requirement determining the type or level 
of training required, but guidance suggests it should 
be appropriate to the level and type of risks encoun-
tered within the workplace in question
➤
Provide information which the representative may 
need to fulfi l their functions. The guidance notes to 
the regulations suggest that this should include:
(a) 
Information about the plans and performance 
of the workplace, with particular regard to any 
proposed changes which may have health and 
safety implications
(b) 
Technical information about hazards in the 
workplace and the precautions necessary to 
overcome them. This might include safety man-
uals, materials safety data sheets, manufactur-
ers’ instructions, etc.
(c) 
Records of any accidents and diseases and sta-
tistics relating to these
(d) 
Any other information which would be relevant, 
for example results of inspections, air monitor-
ing, risk assessments, noise surveys, etc.
In general, the functions laid down for union appointed 
safety representatives under the SRSC are taken as a 
recommendation for the conduct of non-union appointed 
representatives. To properly deal with representatives 
from these other workplaces it is necessary to look at 
the regulations which were introduced to include them 
in the consultation process.