Health and safety enforcement

The responsibility for enforcing the legislation is in the main divided between HSE and the Lxx al Authorities Environmental Health Departments, depending largely on the nature of the work and the premises on which the work is being carried out. Note the Health and Safety (Enforcing Authority) Regulation 1989. 

Table 2.1. Schedule of health and safety enforcement and accident...

Table 2.1. Schedule of health and safety enforcement and accident investigation for other activities in territorial waters and on the UK continental shelf...

HSE (2003). Memorandum of understanding between the Health and Safety Executive, The Maritime and Coastguard Agency and the Marine Accident Investigation Branch for Health and Safety Enforcement Activities etc. at the Water Margin and Offshore, HSE, available on http //www.hse.gov.uk... 

Enforcing powers are delegated to the local authority by the Health and Safety (Enforcing Authorities) Regulations 1977 (SI 1977 No. 746). 

Understands the role of health and safety enforcement authorities and the powers of inspectors. 

The enforcement demarcation between HSE and Local Authorities (LAs) in respect of construction work is currently set out in the Health and Safety (Enforcing Authority) Regulations 1998, and in Regulations 3(4) and 22 of CDM 94. Interpretation of these requirements is not straightforward, but the practical effect is that LAs are currently prevented from enforcing CDM. 

These sections cover the responsibilities for enforcement of the HSW Act and supporting regulations by the HSE and the local authorities and are expanded by the Health and Safety (Enforcing Authority) Regulations 1989. 

Industrial hygienists work closely with members of several other professions concerned with workplace health and safety, eg, occupational medicine, occupational health nursing, and safety engineering. AH of these groups are involved in the implementation of the laws that regulate workplace health and safety. In the United States the principal law is the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) (1) enforced by the U.S. Department of Labor (U.S. 

An important aspect of environmental, health, and safety laws and regulations is enforcement. Eederal, state, and local regulatory authorities usually have large enforcement sections. In the environmental area, compliance audits are usually conducted aimually. OSHA, both federal and state, usually audits based on a faciHty s accident/incident rate. 

The Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) covers a broad range of issues relating to worker health and safety, many of which impact the power generation industry (16,17). The Act sets standards designed to protect worker health and safety, particularly in industrial settings. The Occupational Health and Safety Administration, organized under the U.S. Department of Labor, implements and enforces OSHA standards and periodically updates poHcies governing worker health and safety. 

OSHA- Occupational Health and Safety Administration The U.S. Occupational Health and Safety Administration, OSHA, is a federal government agency in the U.S. Department of Labor. OSHA s Web site is http //www.osha.gov/. The primary goals of OSHA are to save lives, prevent injuries, and protect the health of America s workers. OSHA employs over 2,000 inspectors to ensure job site safety. OSHA was created by the Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) Act of 1970. While many see OSHA as an intrusive government agency intent on enforcing arcane rules, the fact is that OSHA saves lives. And if that is not enough... 

Congress passed the Occupational and Safety Health Act to ensure worker and workplace safety. Their goal was to make sure employers provide their workers a place of employment free from recognized hazards to safety and health, such as exposure to toxic chemicals, excessive noise levels, mechanical dangers, heat or cold stress, or unsanitary conditions. In order to establish standards for workplace health and safety, the Act also created the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) as the research institution for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). OSHA is a division of the U.S. Department of Labor which oversees the administration of the Act and enforces Federal standards in all 50 states. 

In the United Kingdom, the Health and Safety at Work Act (1974) and regulations made under it require occupiers to provide a safe plant and system of work and adequate instruction, training, and supervision. In the European community, occupiers of major hazard sites are required to produce a safety case, which describes how hazards have been assessed and are kept under control. Many other countries have similar legislation, though standards of enforcement vary. 

Section 11 of the 1968 Act states that Sections 1-10 of the 1956 Act and Sections 1-16 of the 1968 Act shall not apply to works subjected to the Alkalis Act (those premises now listed in the Health and Safety (Emission into Atmosphere Regulations)). These premises are therefore subject to enforcement by HMIP. However, sub-Section 3 of Section 11 does contain a proviso for the local authority, upon application to the Minister, to ask for an Order applying the Acts to the whole or part of the schedule works. If an Order is made, best practical means is applied to all (alkali) works whether or not provided for in the two Clean Air Acts. 

Guidance notes relevant to sound health and safety practices are published from time to time by the Health and Safety Executive. They have no legal status or significance such as found in Codes of Practice. However, as their content is normally based on a wealth of practical experience, it would be expected by the enforcing authorities that employers would follow the advice contained in them. 

Whereas the Health and Safety Commission is responsible for the development of policies in the health and safety field, the Health and Safety Executive, being a separate statutory body appointed by the Commission, will work in accordance with directions and guidance given by the Commission. The Executive will provide advice on health and safety to both sides of industry and will enforce legal requirements. 

A key question here is whether the actual conditions of use will be those that are specified in the exposure scenario. For industrial uses of chemicals, where people have access to safety data sheets and are governed by health and safety and pollution control legislation, there is some hope that people will use the chemical in the way that the exposure scenario envisages. Even here, however, there are bound to be departures from the exposure scenario conditions people will not always wear protective equipment, or follow instructions, and accidents are bound to happen. Consumers, on the other hand, will usually not even know what chemicals a product contains, let alone have access to the details of the exposure scenario. Even if they had, there is no way that their following it and acting in the way it envisages could be enforced. There are therefore major uncertainties as to whether the exposure estimates derived from the exposure scenarios really represent the actual exposure of people and the environment to a chemical. 

By making expectations crystal clear and creating a strong likelihood that those in violation will be punished, Congress and OSHA may have offset the fact that enforcement is so episodic and, therefore, may have secured compliance similar to that that would have been achieved if annual inspections were feasible. However, doing this implies that the particular firms that happen to be inspected may find themselves subject to far more rigorous enforcement of the rules than reasonable protection of worker health and safety requires. 

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