Health and

Safety
Regulation in
Construction
 What is health and safety regulation in construction?

According to a set of rules and trends, regulation is

an abstract concept of management of complex
systems. With the same context, authorities have
introduced Health and Safety regulation to protect
and promote the health, safety, and welfare of the
person working on construction sites.

Why Regulation is needed?

• To lay down the major requirements for the
protection of the health, safety, and welfare of
employees working at height.
• To give further effect to Council Directive 92/57/EEC
on the minimum health and safety requirements at
temporary construction grounds.
Why Regulations are designed?

• To clarify the general duties of all parties, i.e. securing occupational safety, health,
and welfare in construction work, including those of Project Supervisors, Clients,
Contractors Designers, and Employees.
• To place obligations on designers and clients to ensure that health and safety is taken
into account before proceeding any construction work.
• To work on all construction projects including the decoration, alteration, installation,
maintenance, and repair of buildings.
List of some Health and Safety Regulation in Construction:
• Work Health and Safety Act (WHS)
• Health and Safety At Work Act (HASAWA)
• Reporting of injuries, diseases and dangerous
occurrence regulations (RIDDOR)
• Manual Handling Operations Regulations
• Control of substances hazardous to health
(COSHH)
• Working at height regulations
• Control of asbestos regulations
• Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
Work Health and Safety Act (WHS)

• Work Health and Safety Act (WHS) is an

approved code of practice mentioned under
section 274.
• This code of practice assists to achieve the
standards of health, safety and welfare
required under the WHS Act.
• It can be applied to anyone who has a
responsibility of care in construction areas.
• It provides guidance to principal contractors
and other persons conducting any
construction business or undertaking
construction work on how to meet the safety
and health requirements under the WHS
Act.
 Health and Safety at Work Act (HASAWA)

Often referred to as HASAW, this regulation is the main piece of UK safety and health
legislation. It lays down an array of duties on employers to protect the 'health, safety and
welfare' at work of all their employees, as well as others on their premises, including
casual workers, temps, the self-employed, visitors, clients, and the general public.

Among other provisions, the Act requires:

• safe operation and maintenance of the working
environment, plant and systems
• safe use, handling and storage of dangerous
substances
• maintenance of safe access and egress to the
workplace
• sufficient welfare provisions for staff at work
• satisfactory training of staff to ensure health and
safety
Reporting of injuries, diseases and dangerous occurrence regulations
(RIDDOR) 1995
Introduced in 1995, RIDDOR requires employers, the self-employed and people in
control of premises, to keep records of work-related incidents.
Incidents can be:
• work-related deaths
• work-related certain serious injuries
• diagnosed cases of certain industrial diseases
• certain ‘dangerous occurrences’

Incidents can be reported:

• to the Incident Contact Centre by telephone on

0845 300 9923
• online — via the HSE's RIDDOR report
webpages (external site).
Manual Handling Operations Regulation has been defined as:
"...any transporting or supporting of a load (including the lifting, putting down, pushing,
pulling, carrying or moving thereof) by hand or bodily force".

The load can be an object, animal, or person. The MHOR 1992 has made a
clear ranking of measures for dealing risks related with manual handling,
these are:

• First — avoiding risky manual handling

operations as is reasonably practicable;
• Second — assessing any risky manual handling
operations; and
• Third — reducing the risk of injury as is
reasonably practicable.
Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH)

• The 2002 Control of Substances Hazardous

to Health Regulations is a United Kingdom
Statutory Instrument that focuses on
employers to protect employees and other
persons from the hazards of substances
used at construction sites.
• The regulations re-enacted with the
amendments to the Control of Substances
Hazardous to Work Regulations 1999
implement several European Union
directives regarding prohibitions on the
import of certain substances into the
European Economic Area.
• Regulations breach by an employer or
employee is a crime—punishable on
summary conviction or on indictment by an
unlimited fine.
 Working at Height Regulations
The Working at Height Regulations 2005 (WAHR) has no minimum height requirement
for work at elevated height. They include all work activities where there is a need to
control a risk of falling a distance liable to cause personal injury. It includes access to
and egress from a place of work. For example:
• Working on a scaffold or from a mobile
elevated work platform (MEWP)
• Container top working in docks, on a ship or
in a freight yard
• Arboriculture and forestry work performed
in trees
• Using ropes to gain access to parts of a
building, or a ship under repair in a dry dock
• Working close to an excavation area where
someone could fall into it
• Using a ladder or kick stool for window
cleaning, shop fitting, or other maintenance
tasks
• Using man-riding harnesses on offshore
installations
• Working in a mineshaft
Control of Asbestos Regulations
The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 (CAR12) is an update to previous asbestos
regulations. Employers and employees working in any asbestos-related situations are
affected by CAR12 regulations. The regulations place responsibilities upon employers,
employees and duty holders. The duty holder could be your employer, another employer,
landlord or – in some situations – a combination of these.
Employee Duties:
• Following employer’s instructions and using personal protective
equipment provided.
• Following company procedures concerning incidents and
decontamination (not to take home any contaminated personal
protective equipment (PPE), work clothes or any other
equipment.
• Reporting any incident to the concerned authorities.
Employer Duties:
• Issuing the correct personal protective equipment (PPE) when
it is required.
• Protecting employees from asbestos exposure.
• Providing company procedures for employees to follow for
incidents and decontamination.
Provision and use of work equipment (PUWER):

These PUWER Regulations place duties on people and companies who own, operate,
or have control over work equipment. PUWER also places responsibilities on
businesses and organisations whose employees use work equipment, whether owned
by them or not. PUWER requires that equipment provided for use at work is:

• suitable for the intended use

• safe for use, maintained in a safe
condition, and inspected to ensure
it is correctly installed and does not
subsequently deteriorate
• used only by people who have
received adequate information,
instruction, and training
• accompanied by suitable health
and safety measures
• used in accordance with specific
requirements
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE):

What is personal protective equipment?

• Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is

worn to minimize injuries and illnesses due
to exposure to or contact with chemical,
radiological, physical, electrical, mechanical,
or other workplace hazards.
• PPE includes items such as gloves, safety
glasses and shoes, earplugs or muffs, hard
hats, respirators, or coveralls, vests and full
body harnesses.
 What can be done to ensure proper use of personal protective equipment?

• All PPE should be safely designed and constructed.

• It should fit comfortably and encouraging to worker for use.
• Employers must train each worker to use personal protective equipment to know—
• When it is necessary
• What kind is necessary
• How to properly put it on, adjust, wear and take it off
• The limitations of the equipment
• Proper care, maintenance, useful life, and disposal of the equipment
Benefits of Using Regulations

To the organisation:
• a positive and caring image
• improved staff morale
• reduced staff turnover and absenteeism
• increased productivity
• reduced risk of fines and litigation

To the employee:
• a safe and healthy work environment
• improved morale
• increased job satisfaction
• increased skills for health protection
• improved sense of well-being
 AT HEIGHT
Sales@At-Height.Co.Uk

0203 409 3230

CAMBERWELL BUSINESS CENTRE, 99-103 LOMOND GROVE, London, SE5 7HN