Health and safety in contracting situations – new guidance from the Department of Labour
Contractor safety is a significant issue for many workplaces. Where contracting for services was once the exception in all but a handful of industries, such as construction and forestry, it is now increasingly common across all types of workplaces.
In recent years up to a third of prosecutions taken by the Department of Labour for breaches of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 have been against principals to contracts.
To help organisations better understand the requirements of the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 (the Act), the Department of Labour has developed new guidance - A principal's guide to contracting to meet the Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992.
The new guidance sets out a broad process for building health and safety into contract management and will assist businesses to comply with the Act.
In a first for the Department, the principal's guide was 'road tested' by comparing it with the practice of the Manukau City Council (MCC), a large local authority recognised for its high performance in this area. The resulting case study, which confirmed the validity of the approach, has been published with the guidance.