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All employers and businesses have to adhere to the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations (1999). These clearly require employers to carry out a risk assessment where they consider everything in the workplace that may be harmful or hazardous to employees and members of the general public. Once these risks have been carefully considered and identified procedures should be put in place to either eliminate or reduce the risks as much as possible.

These preventative measures need to be kept up to date with any changes in the company and current laws. Something to consider when carrying out a risk assessment is the risks for all different employees (there are some you many not automatically consider like expectant mothers or people who are not used to the work place such as visitors or contractors). Also it is worth noting that for specific risks there are particular procedures that are required by law to be in place for details of these look at the government health and safety executive website.

It may be helpful to know that you do not need a record of a risk assessment in you have under five employees but it is still a good idea to carry one out, especially if you wish to avoid personal injury claims.

A few more general health and safety considerations are that all employees should be made aware of any hazards and safety procedures (if you are a larger company maybe a mandatory health and safety video for all new employees is a good idea), making sure employees are fully trained when using equipment with a potential risk and providing the necessary personal protective equipment and ensuring that it is of a high enough standard for its purpose.

Some more basic health and safety ideas include making sure the workplace and equipment is clean and safe, warning signs could be helpful in high risk areas, providing adequate working conditions (lighting, good ventilation, comfort) and having plans for emergencies (such as fire escape routes).

There are much more specific laws regarding manual handling and the place to find these is the Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992. Overall the key to avoiding risk and personal injury claims is a bit of common sense and taking the time to really consider all the hazards from all angles. Taking this time for a careful consideration will definitely pay off in the long run. wypadek w pracy w Anglii