Using contractors - a joint responsibility

Health and safety responsibilities are defined by the criminal law and as such cannot be passed on from one party to another by a contract.

Control of contractors can be one of the biggest headaches for organisations, especially when they are not experts in the task that has to be carried out.

Contractors are at an increased risk of injury or death as they often work in unknown environments which can cause potential hazards for themselves or their client's employees

Health and safety trade journals are abound with court cases where a contractor's employee has been injured or killed, with both contractor and client trying to blame each other.

In almost all cases both parties will be held jointly responsible and the fine split according to how it is judged that each party discharged their 'duty of care'.

So, whilst perhaps not being an expert in whatever task your organisation needs a contractor for, how best can you mitigate any risks and thus protect workers and your own organisation?

Identify the job

Clearly identify all aspects of the work you want the contractor to do, including the preparation and completion phases.

Use competent contractors

You need to satisfy yourself that contractors are competent (i.e. they have sufficient skills and knowledge) to do the job safely and without risks to health and safety.
Examples for assessing whether a contractor is competent include:

:: Evidence of experience in the same type of work
:: References from previous clients which are checkable
:: Accident ill health statistics
:: Qualifications, skills and ongoing training programs including health and safety training
:: How they will do the work i.e. Risk Assessments and Method Statements
:: Do they have any independent assessment of their competence?
:: Are they are members of a relevant trade or professional body?

Assess the risks of the work

A risk assessment must be done and both the organisation and contractor should be party to it.

The HSE's free leaflet 'Five steps to risk assessment' provides guidance to employers and the self-employed on assessing risks in the workplace.

Provide information, instruction and training

You must provide contractors with information, instruction and training on anything which may affect their health and safety.

This would also include emergency procedures, site rules and welfare facilities

One organisation was prosecuted for failing to provide information to a contractor working on ceiling tiles. Unknown to the contractor, the ceiling tiles contained asbestos and were removed in an uncontrolled manner, placing the contractor and occupants at risk. The organisation was found guilty and fined £35 000 plus costs.

Management, communication and supervision

You need to decide what is necessary to effectively manage and supervise the work of contractors and agree how the work will be done and what precautions will be taken.

Issues to consider include:

:: What equipment should or should not be worked on/used?
:: Personal protective equipment to be used and who will provide it?
:: Working procedures
:: Number of people needed to do the job?
:: Reporting of accidents

I sadly hear time and time again of 'cost' stated by potential contractors to clients as a reason to not comply with the above advice; in each case we advise our clients not to use them as it simply isn't worth the risk.

A good contractor will already have all the evidence to hand and will proactively seek to work in a safe manner.