Memorandum by the Institute of Directors
(HSE 13)
INTRODUCTION: THE
INSTITUTE OF
DIRECTORS (IOD)
AND HEALTH
& SAFETY
1. This is the IoD's response to the Committee's
public invitation to comment, for its inquiry into the work of
the HSE.
2. The IoD is an individual membership organisation
made up of some sixty thousand directors of business and other
important organisations worldwide. Over forty-eight thousand of
the IoD's members are based in the United Kingdom.
3. Members of the IoD are drawn from all
sectors and functions within organisations. These include people
who are themselves professionals in health and safety. As an employing
organisation itself, the IoD is in the business of seeking to
carry out good health and safety practices. In both its capacity
as a membership organisation and as an employing body, the IoD
is affected by the work of the HSE.
4. The IoD is also involved in scrutinising
Government and European Union (EU) policies for their effect on
business. The IoD regularly comments on health and safety consultative
documents, whether issued by the Health and Safety Commission
(HSC) or the Department of the Environment, Transport and the
Regions (DETR), for example. The IoD issues its own policy documents,
that cover health and safety matters and their relevance to business.
Several have appeared in the last few years. Underpinning the
Institute's comments are various postal and telephone surveys
of the membership, as well as contact with members and the geographically-based
regions and branches of the IoD.
SUMMARY OF
THE IOD'S
RESPONSE
5. The main points:
(a) The IoD supports the need for good practice
in health and safety, including health and safety at work. See
paragraph 6.
(b) Bodies such as the HSE, working in partnership
with businesses and other organisations, will probably have contributed
to the good health and safety record of the UK as compared with
some other countries. See paragraphs 6-7.
(c) There is a host of public sector bodies
that have some responsibility for health, and health and safety
issues. There seems to be a need for better "joined-up government",
to make it easier for outside bodies or "users" to seek
advice and guidance on health and safety matters. This is especially
the case now that the HSE has been getting involved in "health"
issues, and other matters such as stress, which have been the
province of bodies such as the National Health Service and other
agencies. See paragraph 8.
(d) Improved ways of dealing with businesses,
especially small businesses, should be sought. Regulations are
needed, but excessive and overly-complex regulations are not.
Whereas the HSC and HSE are not legislators, they have important
roles in the regulatory regime. These range over some of the documents
issued by the HSC and HSE, to enforcement actions of certain HSE
inspectors. Some of the documents need to be made easier to read
and understand, and perhaps an even greater emphasis should be
placed upon a "customer care" approach. The latter is
especially important, given that the HSE acts not only as an advice-giver,
but also an enforcer of EU and UK legislation. See paragraph 12.
(e) Consideration should be given to a change
of name, to at least avoid the confusing references to the Health
and Safety Commission and to the Health and Safety Executive.
See paragraph 9.
THE IMPORTANCE
OF HEALTH
AND SAFETY
6. The IoD supports and promotes good practice
in business. It also supports the principle of good practice in
the area of health and safety. We would consider that the UK has
a good safety record at work by comparison with many countries,
including some other EU members.
7. Part of that success will be due to the
work of bodies such as the HSE. It is also important for the HSC
and HSE to work with practitioners in business and other sectors
to maximise the beneficial effects. We therefore welcome the intentions
of the HSE to work with business. The "Good Health is Good
Business" programme has been running for about four years.
We would concur with the idea that good health can be good for
business and business outcomes. That particular HSE programme
is perhaps not as well known as it might be, if the results of
an IoD member survey carried out by NOP Business in June 1998
are indicative. Some 5 per cent of the 500 directors surveyed
at that time said that their organisation was involved in that
HSE programme, although a further 8 per cent were involved in
other joint initiatives on health at work, including involvement
with local authorities, business organisations or others. See
Health Matters in Business—Health at Work, IoD Research
Paper, Geraint Day, August 1998.
8. In terms of liaison with the outside
world, the fact that the HSE and local government are both involved
in health and safety advice and enforcement, over different aspects,
illustrates one thing that can affect responses to health and
safety advice and enforcement. DETR's Consultation Document
on Transport Safety (March 1999) also provides a good example,
whereby there are well over a dozen public bodies that deal with
transport safety. This is because not only are the HSE and local
councils involved, but also the Department of Health and its constituent
parts, including bodies such as the Health Education Authority
(which has its own health at work programme). Clearly there is
also very important work carried out by voluntary bodies such
as the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents and professional
organisations like the Institution of Occupational Safety and
Health. Now that the HSE is also increasingly involved in more
of the "health" aspects of health and safety, and with
issues such as stress, it may become more important to try to
ensure that there is better "joined-up government",
as far as the Government and public sector are concerned.
9. A minor point: it can be very confusing
to refer to both the Health and Safety Commission and the Health
and Safety Executive. It is not usual practice to make a distinction
between a supervisory body (here, the Commission) and the executive,
so it might be better to come up with one term that can be used
both internally and—more importantly—by the outside
world.
REGULATORY ASPECTS
OF THE
WORK OF
THE HSE
10. We support the need for legislation,
and for enforcment of health and safety rules. However, and as
with all regulations, there is a balance to be struck.
11. Health and safety at work rules can
sometimes be of concern to many of the members of the IoD. For
example, one IoD member survey showed that:
(a) One in five directors found the current
health and safety set-up to be a burden on their business.
(b) The rules were most problematic to small,
growing, businesses. A quarter of those which employed 21-100
people reported that they found health and safety rules a burden.
(c) Fifty-one percent of those [ie of those
at 11(a) above] who felt that health and safety legislation was
a burden indicated that there were too many rules, 62 per cent
thought that they were too complicated and 30 per cent that they
were badly enforced.
(d) A third of directors thought that small
firms should not necessarily have to meet the same health and
safety standards as large firms.
(e) Only 27 per cent found the HSE guidance
notes easy to understand.
(f) A third of those directors whose organisation
had been visited by an HSE inspector in the previous five years
had reported that they did not find the inspector helpful.
(g) Fifty-five per cent of directors surveyed
said that they did not know what the penalties for failing to
comply with health and safety laws were. Of those who did, 25
per cent felt that the penalties were unfair. Only 14 per cent
of directors said that they were aware of the procedures for appealing
against unfair enforcement action.
12. The findings referred to in paragraph
11 are taken from Deregulation, IoD Economic Comment, Alison
Cansfield, January 1997. Now, after the change of Government in
the intervening period, we would still recommend that some of
these issues be addressed:
(a) Improved ways of dealing with businesses,
especially small businesses, should be sought. Regulations are
needed, but excessive and overly-complex regulations are not.
Whereas the HSC and HSE are not legislators, they have important
roles in the regulatory regime. Clearly there must be due regard
to protecting people from dangers, but with the best will in the
world, it takes time and effort to digest, understand and implement
the many and various regulations. This adds to business costs.
(b) More attention should be given to the
HSE's enforcement role, in both uniformity of practice and a "customer
care" role. Given that the HSC and HSE can act as both an
advice-giver and an enforcer, these point are important.
(c) HSE documents should be made easier to
read and understand. Many are. However, when, for example, HSC
consultative or other documents set out in typescript for each
proposed regulation or group of regulations: the regulations themselves,
followed in some cases by a draft Approved Code of Practice, and
guidance material, some readers have commented that they really
do not find this easy to follow. Health and safety being an important
issue, it must be important to ensure that those affected, and
with responsibility to comment or to implement the regulations,
are able to easily follow the material.
September 1999
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