11 March 2010
A change to the Health and Saftey at Work Law which clarifies the responsibilty employers have to identify risks to staff, comes into force today (12 March 2010).
Amendment No. 4 to the Health and Safety at Work (Jersey) Law, 1989, which was passed by the States on 12 May 2009, was registered in the Royal Court on the 5 March 2010 following confirmation by Her Majesty the Queen.
The amendment comes into force in 2 stages. The first stage, which clarifies the duty on employers to identify and assess the risks to their employees' health and safety, comes into force on the 12 March 2010.
The second stage of the amendment comes into force on the 5June 2010. Currently, employers with 5 or more employees are required to prepare a written health and safety policy statement. Once the amendment comes into force, they will be required to record significant risks to their employees’ health and safety in the written statement, together with the manner in which they are to be addressed. The written health and safety policy statement must also be prepared and brought to the attention of employees in a language that the employees can understand.
Director of Health and Safety, Colin Myers, said “This is an important step in clarifying the legal duty placed on employers to carry out a risk assessment and ensuring that employers identify the significant risks which are present in the workplace. Employers are advised to review the arrangements that they have in place to ensure that they are appropriate.”
Guidance on the changes to the Law is available from the Health and Safety Inspectorate on 447300.
gov.je