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Health and safety is a fundamental consideration for all businesses in the modern-day, protecting employees from the risks inherent to their vocation, and in turn, protecting employers from the ramifications of injury on work premises – whether legal or financial.
The 6th of April saw key amendments to existing PPE regulations within health and safety law, which could have a significant impact on the operations of businesses. Here we will examine the previous requirements for employees and employers regarding PPE legislation, and the new expectations afforded by the regulation changes put into place.
Existing Regulations
Regulations relating to the training in, and use of, PPE on work premises were formally written into law in 1992. The PPER 1992 stipulates that it is incumbent on the employer to provide adequate PPE to employees in order to mitigate the risks presented by occupational hazards. Employers must do this free of charge to the employee, and can use PPE suppliers to remain stocked up on the equipment highlighted as necessary by workplace risk assessments.
It is also incumbent on the employer to provide adequate training in the correct deployment of workplace PPE, in order to eliminate the possibility of injury due to improper protection. Likewise, it is the employer’s responsibility to ensure that any PPE provided is correctly stored and well-maintained, to reduce the likelihood of defective PPE resulting in injury.
New Requirements for Contract Workers
The above provisions have not been altered in any way by the latest changes to PPE regulation, PPER 2022. Instead, the same provisions have been extended to protect a wider cohort of workers. Under the Employment Rights Act 1996, there are two ‘limbs’ attributed to the ‘worker’ designation, which describe different kinds of the employment agreement. Limb (a) workers are self-employed workers contracted to carry out a task or deployment, while limb (b) workers do not carry the ‘self-employed’ designation and work casually under a contract for service.
Prior PPE regulation required employers to provide training and PPE to employees and limb (a) workers, but not limb (b) workers. PPER2022 stipulates that training and PPE must be provided to all workers, including limb (b) workers, equally.
Penalties for Non-Compliance
Non-compliance with PPE regulation is treated seriously, with a potential custodial sentence of up to three months for particularly egregious offenses. More commonly, a fine is levied against the business in contravention of the law – but a fine of any size can be imposed, up to an unlimited fine for the large-scale offense.
These potential penalties are applicable to PPE regulation in its entirety, including the latest additions. As such, it is important for businesses to ensure they are providing training and PPE to limb (b) workers alongside contractors and employees, to be legally compliant.
