Health and Safety at Work Act (1974)

1. Health and Safety at Work Act (1974) By Tara and Sabrina

2. What is the Health and Safety at Work Act? The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 which is also referred to as HSWA, is the primary piece of legislation covering work-related health and safety in the UK. At workforce employers have a duty to provide a safe place of work and protect the health and safety of their employees who are working in the organisation and others that may be affected by their work activities.

3. What is the aim of this Act? • To help new businesses understand their responsibilities and make it easier to listen to them. • To tell employers, owners, managers and businesses what safety laws exist and to provide advice to existing businesses. • To ensure that health, safety and welfare are seen as good management standards • To take action to protect employees, the self employed and the public.

4. Reasons for this Act and how it affects organisations • To protect people from any harm in a company/organisation • To make sure that no one is in danger in the work place that they are working in • To find out what is expected from a business so that their employees are not in harm or danger • The reasons for this Act may also be to make businesses understand the responsibilities that they have for their staff or any other members working

5. which organisations would this affect and how will this apply to them? • Schools would need to follow this law as they have a numerous amount of students that they have to look after as it is their responsibility to take care of them. • Nurseries would need to take this law very seriously as they are infants since they don’t know much about keeping themselves away from any harm or danger • Universities such as the Bournemouth University has appointed ‘Competent Persons.’ A competent person is one who is capable of identifying existing and predictable hazards in the surroundings