Hannah Belton, director and head of employment law at Morgan LaRoche, on risk assessments around Covid-19
Covid-19 health and safety duties
Employers have duties under the HSE ‘Covid-secure’ guidelines, while thecurrent requirement to undertake a Covid-19-specific risk assessment is covered by the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999.
Carrying out a risk assessment
HSE suggests that the minimum an employer must do in an assessment is:
- identify what hazard in the business could cause illness or injury
- decide the likelihood of risk and how serious the harm
- take action to eliminate the hazard if possible, or to control the risk.
The assessment must be in writing, where there are five or more employees; and with a staff of more than 50, at least a summary should be published on the employer’s website.
Assessment information
Employers must then provide employees with ‘comprehensible and relevant information’, primarily on:
- the risks to their health and safety
- preventive and protective measures that the employer needs to take to comply with its legal obligations
- the procedures to follow in the event of serious and imminent danger to persons at work.
- The Covid-related matters that need to be covered include:
- intentions to emerge from lockdown in line with the Government’s advice
- steps taken to inform its position and its meaning for employees, including return to the workplace, proposed changes to terms and conditions of employment or redundancies
- workplace changes the employer has made to enable and support a return to work, requirements of employees when at work and support available to employees
- staff requirement to remain vigilant about their health and the health of their household and the requirement to self-isolate if they start to experience symptoms of Covid-19.
For further advice, please contact hbelton@morganlaroche.com
