Accidents at Work
The workplace plays an important role in many of our lives with a large proportion of the adult population engaging in some kind of work (paid or otherwise), often spending many hours at work every week. The workplace can also be a risky environment with some jobs obviously being more dangerous than others. Accordingly, accidents at work occur now and again, and a large body of law has developed in this this area - common law, caselaw, statute and European regulations.
Vicarious Liability
One of fundamental concepts underpinning the law regulating accidents at work is that of 'vicarious liability', i.e. employers frequently assume liability for the actions and omissions of employees which cause accidents which may in turn cause injury to other employees.
Health & Safety at Work Act 1974
European 'Six Pack' Regulations
Increasingly, the law regulating accidents at work relies on a raft of sets of regulations introduced into domestic UK law on the back of European Directives. The rationale behind these Directives is twofold. Firstly, the institutions of the European Union regognise the importance of this area of law in attempting to minimise accidents at work. Secondly, they recognise the importance of establishing an level playing field among the various EU member states, so one nation may not operate a less safe regime for workplacesga in order to gain advantage over other nations in the international economic market at the expense of workers' health and safety in their territory.
The principal Directive is the Framework Directive 1989, which lays down certain general principles of health and saftey at work, and which was adopted into domestic UK law in form of the Management of Helath & Safety at Work Regulations 1992 and Approved Code of Practice. A number of other Directives have also been adopted in UK law. The main sets of regulations are as follows:
- Management of Health & Safety at Work Regs 1999 (replaces the 1992 Regs)
- Workplace, health, Safety & Welfare Regs 1992
- Provision & Use of Work Equipment Regs 1998 (replaces 1992 equivalent)
- Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regs 1992
- Manual Handling Operations Regs 1992
- Display Screen Equipment Regulations 1992
Thus there are six main sets of regulations, hence the nickname, 'six pack'. However, there are other regulations introduced under the Framework Directive, regulating other, specific types of workplace activity or industry.
However, the Management of Health & Safety at Work Regs 1999 (MHSWR) provides the basic underpinning principles of the law, which include:
- Avoid risks where possible
- Assess unavoidable risks
- Minimise unavoidable risks
- Adapt work to individual employees
- Adapt system of work
- Put in place policy on hazard prevention
- Provide employees wih appropriate training
If there is any ambiguity in the other subordinate regulations or any dispute over their interpretation, then the matter should be referred back to the Framework Directive, MHSWR, and caselaw of the European Court of Justice. Generally, it is not appropriate to refer back to the pre-existing domestic regime (e.g., Health & safety at Work Act 1974, s.1(2), English v Lanarkshire Health Board).
State Employees v Private Employees
An inadvertent feature of the six pack regime is that employees of government organisations or of organisations undertaking government work may rely on the bare European Directives as opposed to the regulations themselves. This may be useful if, for example, the Directives provide a stricter or less ambiguous rule than the regulations. For example, the MHSWR for some reason omits to impose civil liability for non-compliance in cases of adult employees. This is not a problem for government employees, policemen, NHS doctors and nurses, and state teachers, for example, as they may instead rely on the Framework Directive itself.
On the other hand, employees of private organisations generally cannot rely on the Directives themselves.
NB the other regulations DO impose civil liabity for non-compliance.