The report of the Directors of a company under section 158 of the Companies Act, 1963, should include an evaluation of safety, health and welfare practice in the employment – as laid out in the Safety Statement - in the company annual report. It must be observed that this has been a non-effective provision in practice.

What Do The Safety, Health & Welfare At Work (General Application) Regulations, 1993 Say?

The Regulations make it clear that employers must be able to show in writing how they carried out the hazard identification and risk assessment process that lay behind the construction of their Safety Statement.

The Regulations also impose a ‘duty to co-operate’ – meaning that employers must exchange Safety Statements when they undertake joint activity or where contractors are coming on site or work teams are being sent off site. In this way, knowledge about unfamiliar hazards, employees and workmates, work methods, substances and equipment, will be shared before any unforeseen event can occur.

Is It An Offence Not To Have A Safety Statement Or To Have An Inadequate One?

Yes. A Health & Safety Inspector can direct an employer to improve an inadequate Safety Statement and it is an offence for an employer not to have an effective Safety Statement. If an Inspector considers that a Safety Statement is inadequate, they may direct the employer to revise it to the appropriate standard within thirty (30) days. This would necessitate not just the re-wording of the Safety Statement document but showing evidence that the safe practice spelt out is now the operating standard.

The HSA recently reported that only about 60% of workplaces actually had Safety Statements in place and, of those, less than 50% were found to be satisfactory by the Health & safety Inspectors. This is a sorry comment on employers’ commitment to promoting safer and healthier work environments. It also raises serious questions about the effectiveness of the legislation and inadequacy of the resources provided to the HSA.

The Safety Statement must be signed by senior management and brought to the attention of all staff and others – such as contract workers, delivery personnel or members of the public – who may be affected. The Managing Director or Chief Executive should sign the overall Safety Statement but those delegated specific responsibility with the Safety Statement should be identified. For example, who is responsible for fire safety, fire drill and evacuation? Who orders chemical substances and manages their storage, transportation to, from and within the plant, waste disposal, and usage within whatever work process – as laid down in the appropriate Materials Hazard Data Sheet (MSDS)? Are such chemicals adequately labelled at all points of usage and are exposed employees sufficiently informed as to the dangers, safe handling methods, spillage procedures, first aid, and, if necessary, which appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) to wear?

Is A Safety Statement Admissible In Any Prosecution Of Or Civil Action Against An Employer?

Yes. An employer may cite the Safety Statement as evidence of compliance with legal standards or as example of good workplace practice. Conversely, the HSA in taking a prosecution or an employee in suing for compensation for injury, may cite an inadequate or non-existent Safety Statement to prove breach of statutory duty or negligence, or as evidence that actual practice fell short of the safety policy written in the Safety Statement itself.

Where Can Advice About Writing A Safety Statement Be Obtained?

The Health & Safety Authority (HSA), in consultation with the employers and trade unions, have published a set of Guidelines On Safety Statements which are well worth consulting.  Trade unions will give good guidance on Safety Statements or direct employees to good sources of information.

Can Employees Have Access To The Safety Statement?

Yes, of course. The Safety Statement must be brought to the attention of all employees. This can be done by printing it - or at least the broad, general provisions that have universal application in the job. The more detailed and specific information may only need to be given to the employees directly concerned. Some employers print the Safety Statement in booklet form so that it fits tunic or overalls. Others display safe working rules from the Safety Statement at points of operation where they apply.

Management – particularly at line and supervisory levels - and all employees should have some education and training in the purpose, value and application of the Safety Statement.

Can Employees Contribute To The Safety Statement?

The Act makes it clear that the Safety Statement is a management document, stating in writing their programme to safeguard safety, health and welfare in the employment. But the Safety Statement should, arguably, be an organic document that lives within the workplace and is amended as the workplace changes and as more is learned about safety and health on the job.  The Safety Statement should not simply be viewed as an imposition of the Act that must be written to show compliance. In fact all workplace safety, health and welfare at work problems should be referenced through the Safety Statement.

To this extent, Safety Representatives, Safety Committees and all employees through the consultative channels available should be able to –

Statement;

An effective Safety Statement will -

Rather than seeing the Safety Statement as an end – it should be seen as an on-going process.  It can be said that the journey is more important than the destination. Employees should be brought on that journey and encouraged to travel with their eyes wide open.

A Safety Motto

In constructing a Safety Statement, the following safety motto will serve well -

Apply this motto to any workplace – or indeed to personal lifestyle hazard – and hazards and risk will be significantly reduced.