Safety law could see managers jailed
27 November 2008
A law which has received little media attention could see manufacturing managers jailed from January if one of their employees is hurt at work.
Company directors and managers are in the firing line thanks to the Health and Safety Offences Act 2008, which will start on 16th January 2009.
Safety law could see managers jailed
Leading health and safety training company Pivotal Performance, which trains many manufacturing managers is warning businesses to act now to ensure there are no health and safety risks facing their employees.
The law makes employers personally accountable for the safety of their employees. Breaches could see managers or directors jailed, or face Magistrates Court fines of up to £20,000.
Jane Gillham, director of Pivotal Performance said: “This law changes everything. While an accident involving an employee can already be a disastrous event, the punishment of the leaders of the business under this new law could see the business be forced to shut down.
“It means that employers must carefully manage the risk from everything their employees do, including things such as driving on company business. If an employee had an accident because they had been working long hours, their manager could be blamed as well.”
Gillham added: “There is an opportunity now for all manufacturing businesses to check they are properly up-to-date, have adequate staff trained and are leaving nothing to chance when it comes to health and safety at work.”