Although trade unionists' rights have been weakened in many ways, health and safety still remains an area of strength. Recent developments in law and in management strategies bring new opportunities - and threats.

To take advantage of organising opportunities, trade unionists must elect safety representatives and make sure they are able to exercise their powerful legal rights under the Safety Representatives and Safety Committees (SRSC) Regulations 1978.

The SRSC Regulations were introduced under the Health And Safety At Work Act 1974, and have the same legal force as the Act itself. Where there is a recognised trade union, the members are legally entitled to elect at least one safety rep. The employer must then comply with the Regulations and may not negotiate anything less than the statutory provisions set out in them. The Regulations are accompanied by an Approved Code of Practice and by Guidance, which spell out more clearly how the Regulations themselves are to be interpreted - this is what is commonly known as "the Brown Book".

Basic rights

Safety Reps have rights, or "functions" - not duties or any more responsibilities than ordinary employees, although increasingly employers attempt to use trade union safety reps as unpaid company safety officers. Those rights allow reps to:

Inspect

make a formal, planned inspection of the workplace at least every three months investigate accidents, diseases and dangerous occurrences investigate complaints from members carry out extra inspections where there is to be or has been a change in the working conditions, or where new hazards information has become available

Get information

this means any information held by the employer that relates to health, safety and welfare (unless it identifies a particular member of staff) reps have the right to see and take copies of any document that the employer is required to keep by law, such as risk assessments, safety policy, fire certificate, accident book etc reports from the enforcement authorities information on any plans or proposed changes that might affect the health and safety of members

Training

paid time off to attend courses "as shall be necessary for the purpose of undergoing such training in aspects of those functions as may be reasonable."

Beware! trade union training is now coming under threat because of Government funding cuts and pressure to change to "distance learning" and National Vocational Qualifications for trade union reps. For the moment normal provision of trade union education will be in place, but get trained up - the sooner the better, contact your union or the TUC for details.

Safety committees

Where there are two or more elected trade union safety reps (not necessarily from the same union), the employer must set up a joint trade union/management safety committee if the safety reps request one in writing. This must be done within three months, and membership must be balanced between management and unions sides.

Facility time

Reps must be given sufficient paid time off during working hours to carry out their functions under the Regulations.

Enforcement

Although the regulations are part of a criminal statute, the enforcement authorities do not want to get involved in disputes between management and unions regarding their interpretation. Safety reps should use the provision in the Regulations to take disputes regarding time off for training or for carrying out functions to an industrial tribunal. Any question on whether a rep has been appointed by "a recognised trade union" should be referred to the conciliation service, ACAS.

A 1993 survey of safety reps rights by Labour Research Department concluded that the main problems were getting paid release to attend any further courses after the Stage One TUC reps' training, getting time off to carry out inspections and in getting adequate information from employers and from enforcement officers.

New rights

At the beginning of January 1993 there was a shake up in health and safety legislation with the introduction of the Management of Health and Safety at Work (MHSW) Regulations and five other new sets of Regulations. The MHSW Regulations provide a useful extension of safety reps rights.

The crucial point is that employers must consult with safety reps "in good time" as to:

any changes in the workplace that may affect the health and safety of employees they represent the appointment of "competent" persons any health and safety information the employer is required to give to employees the planning and provision of any health and safety training for employees the health and safety consequences of new technologies

Safety reps should press home these new requirements on employers. If possible, they should negotiate the right to be present at any induction training for new employees, to talk to them about the role of the trade union in maintaining good health and safety standards in the workplace. They should also press for the use of trade union and labour movement materials in the provision of information and training for all employees.

The Trade Union Reform and Employment Rights (TURER) Act 1993.

This legislation is intended to weaken trade union rights, but there is an important part (Section 28), which is supposed to protect employees from victimisation because of health and safety activities.

There are five sets of circumstances under which the employer must not disadvantage workers. "Disadvantage" can mean disciplinary action, the sack or any kind of victimisation.

If the employee is designated as a "competent" person, or is given particular health and safety responsibilities and is carrying them out. if the employee is a safety rep or member of a safety committee and is carrying out some function. an employee points out a hazard or shortcoming in safety arrangements the employee leaves the workplace (or dangerous area of it) because they believe there is serious, imminent and unavoidable danger the employee takes reasonable steps to protect themselves or others from such a danger.

If an employee suffers any disadvantage as a result, they can take the case to an Industrial Tribunal, regardless of length of service or hours of work.

This is the UK government's interpretation of the European Framework Directive's clause which gives the right to refuse dangerous work. The Directive gives complete protection against dismissal, the UK only gives the right to appeal to an industrial tribunal for unfair dismissal - after you've had the sack. Since IT's cannot re-instate workers and can only award compensation, it still allows employers to get rid of "troublemakers" who raise concerns about health and safety. That is hardly adequate protection, and doesn't meet the spirit or the letter of European law.

New Management Techniques

With the introduction of management duties to carry out risk assessments, employers increasingly want to rope in safety reps to take on management responsibilities in the workplace. This combined with the current obsession for "Total Quality Management" and BS 5750 certificates is resulting in pressure from employers for a changing role for safety reps.

For example, in an effort to reduce accidents in their Teesside plant, British Steel called in consultants from Surrey University, who identified the role of safety reps as a key element in any successful strategy.

Quite right too, but what happened next is becoming increasingly common. The company first supported safety reps' TUC training, but this was followed up by in-house training to "explain the new approach." Since this involved taking on management responsibilities a number of safety reps resigned, whilst those remaining and newly elected were put on full time safety duties. They are now functioning more as safety managers and are taking the burden off supervisors. The safety reps carry out training of contractors and are representing all employees, regardless of whether that person is a member of the union.

The SRSC Regulations provide a good machinery for management and safety reps to cooperate. Safety reps all too often have to struggle for management recognition of this machinery, or for management to take their health and safety concerns seriously. There is no need for new mechanisms and reps should ask what motives employers have for proposing them.

References:

LHC Members