Good practice advice for businesses

Good practice in health and safety makes sound business sense and it’s the law.

Your business can benefit by protecting your workers from the suffering caused by accidents and ill health, reduce absences and sick leave and retain staff. Also it can maintain your organisation's reputation, boost productivity and profits and reduce your insurance premiums and legal cost such as paying out compensation.

The Better Business campaign website shows why health and safety is good for business and offers some simple steps and tools to help you get started.

As an employer you have a legal responsibility to protect the health and safety of your staff and other people – such as customers and members of the public – who may be affected by your work.

In general, employers must:

• make the workplace safe and eliminate or control risks to health
• ensure plant and machinery are safe and that safe systems of work are set and followed
• ensure articles and substances are moved, stored and used safely
• provide adequate welfare facilities
• give workers the information, instruction, training and supervision necessary for their health and safety
• consult workers on health and safety matters

If you are an employer, self-employed or in control of work premises you are required, under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995 (RIDDOR), to report specific types of work-related accidents and acts of violence.

Use this link RIDDOR to report an incident.

Business specific advice links

• Cooling Towers and Evaporative Condensers
• Hairdressing and Beauty Therapy
• Enforcement and Prosecutions
• Help with Health and Safety

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