Health and safety in the workplace is a combined responsibility, and it relies on the joint efforts of everyone in the workplace to succeed. But what are the responsibilities of the employees regarding workplace safety exactly? Here, we break down the specifics of health and safety at work in relation to both employers and employees.
Health and Safety at Work: Employer Responsibilities
When it comes to who is responsible for workplace health and safety, laying the foundations for a safe workplace is largely the responsibility of the employer. Health and Safety law points out that “All workers are entitled to work in environments where risks to their health and safety are properly controlled”. It is the employer that is responsible for carrying out risk assessments and implementing the necessary steps to eliminate or reduce hazards.
On identifying risks, employers are responsible for equipping workers with the necessary skills, training and tools to safely do their jobs. But accountability doesn’t end with the employer, as employees have a huge role to play in health and safety at work.
What Are the Responsibilities of Employees Regarding Workplace Safety?
Much as the basis for workplace health and safety is established by employers, employees have a great responsibility in contributing to a safe workplace. The main areas of employee responsibilities — outlined in HSE Health and Safety: What You Need to Know — are as follows.
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Follow Health and Safety Training
Employers must build workplace safety training around the hazards specific to their industry and workplace, and it is their responsibility to let employees know how to safely carry out tasks. Much of the responsibility of employees when it comes to safety is compliance, and following training is crucial in minimising risks.
Training has little use if it is not implemented correctly, so employees have a responsibility to follow instructions and abide by the rules and regulations put in place for the protection of themselves and others around them. If employees feel their training is lacking or there are gaps in their knowledge, it’s crucial that they seek out further training, as continuing to work without the relevant training increases the likelihood of risks leading to accidents and injury. Employees asking for clarification on areas within the training can be helpful for employers, as it can potentially shape future training to be more user-friendly and efficient.
Take Reasonable Care
Workplace health and safety responsibilities for employees include taking reasonable care of themselves and others. Training can help communicate the seriousness of non-compliance so employees have a full grasp of the repercussions of taking unnecessary risks. Employees taking shortcuts or knowingly circumventing safety measures should face consequences to set an example that not adhering to reasonable standards won’t be tolerated.
Behavioural safety can be useful in reinforcing the importance of individual accountability for employees. Employees taking care of their own health and safety will have a positive knock-on effect, as when individuals take reasonable care for themselves, they expose the people around them to fewer unnecessary risks.
Cooperate with the Employer
Compliance and cooperation go hand in hand when it comes to employee health and safety responsibilities. Cooperating with their peers is key, but as management sets the standard for health and safety guidelines in the workplace, employees must be willing to adhere to the standards set by their employer.
Employers should be doing their due diligence in putting together a risk assessment, and this includes consulting with employees. As they are the people on the front line in the workplace that encounter potential hazards day-to-day, using employee experience to form the risk assessment will provide useful insight into the real-life likelihood of risks. If asked to contribute in this way, employees should cooperate with their employer and be thorough in their description of how they encounter risks in their role.
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Report Workplace Risks
Cooperating with management when called upon will help reduce risks, but employees should also be forthcoming with relevant health and safety information unprompted. On seeing a potential risk, employees play a crucial role in reporting incidents and hazards. Identifying risks and reporting them in a timely manner helps keep everyone vigilant and makes workplace health and safety a team effort.
Management should make every effort to carry out frequent checks of risks and safety measures, but in between floor walks, employees should know that the reporting of risks is part of their role. It should be clear who risks should be reported to — be it employers, supervisors or the nominated health and safety representative. If employees are unsure about how or where to report risks, they have a responsibility to seek out this information to make sure the risk is addressed.
Having a culture of employee compliance and vigilance can be invaluable in helping employers reduce the chances of dangerous and costly risks. While employees have a responsibility to report the risks, employers should make this an easy and accessible process to encourage employees to contribute in this way.
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