1. LEGAL REQUIREMENTS ON THE WORKING ENVIRONMENT
Legal requirements are any requirements that are issued by the local, provincial or federal government and are within scope. The principal legal requirements relating to occupational health and safety are covered in the Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act 1974 (HSWA) and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999.
Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act 1974 (HSWA)
This act implemented the majority of the proposal of the Robens Report. More exactly: i. It established the Health and Safety Commission (HSC). ii. It established the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). iii. It conferred accident prevention powers on HSE inspectors. iv. It placed broad general duties on employers, employees and manufacturers of industrial products as well as on the self-employed and occupiers of buildings where people work. v. It provided for participation of management and workers in the identification and monitoring of workplace hazards by requiring the appointment of union safety representatives from the workforce to carry out periodic inspections of the workplace, and by requiring that changes and improvements in occupational health and safety by discussed in meetings of safety committees consisting of management and union representation. These requirements were laid down in the Safety Representatives and Safety Committees Regulations 1977 (SRSCR).
Duties of designers, manufacturers and suppliers of industrial products
HSWA, sec 6, requires that, so far as is reasonably practicable, designers, manufacturers (including submanufacturers), importers and suppliers of articles and substances for use at work: i. Ensure that they are designed and constructed so as to be safe