Health and Safety at Work Act 1974: Key Duties Explained

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The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 is the main law covering health and safety at work in Great Britain. It places general duties on employers to protect their employees and anyone else affected by their work, on employees to take reasonable care and co-operate, and on certain self-employed people, premises controllers and suppliers. It also sets up the Health and Safety Executive, gives inspectors their enforcement powers and provides the framework under which most other workplace regulations are made.

If you manage people and need to apply these duties day to day, our IOSH Managing Safely course page explains how managers learn health and safety legislation alongside risk assessment and control.

The Act at a glance

The Act is often shortened to HSWA, the HSW Act or HASAWA. HSE describes it as the primary piece of legislation covering occupational health and safety in Great Britain. These are the sections most people at work need to know:

Section	Who it applies to	What it requires
1	Everyone	Sets the aims: securing the health, safety and welfare of people at work and protecting the public from work risks
2	Employers	Protect the health, safety and welfare of employees, so far as is reasonably practicable
3	Employers and certain self-employed people	Do not expose people who are not your employees to risk
4	People in control of non-domestic premises	Keep premises, access, plant and substances safe for others who use them
6	Designers, manufacturers, importers and suppliers	Make articles and substances for use at work safe and provide information
7	Employees	Take reasonable care and co-operate with the employer
8 and 9	Everyone, and employers	No misuse of safety provisions; no charging employees for things the law requires
20 to 22	Inspectors	Powers of entry and investigation, improvement notices and prohibition notices
33 and 37	Organisations and their officers	Offences, and personal liability for directors and managers

What “so far as is reasonably practicable” means

Most duties in the Act are qualified by the phrase “so far as is reasonably practicable”. HSE explains that you are not expected to eliminate all risk, but you must do everything reasonably practicable to protect people from harm. That means balancing the level of risk against the money, time or trouble needed to control it.

The burden sits with the duty holder. Under section 40, if you are prosecuted for failing a reasonably practicable duty, it is for you to prove that it was not reasonably practicable to do more than you did.

Section 2: what employers owe their employees

Section 2 is the heart of the Act. Every employer must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all employees. The section lists what that includes in particular:

Plant and systems of work that are safe and without risks to health, and properly maintained.
Safe use, handling, storage and transport of articles and substances.
Information, instruction, training and supervision so people can work safely.
A safe place of work under the employer’s control, with safe ways in and out.
A safe working environment with adequate welfare facilities and arrangements.

Section 2(3) adds the duty to prepare a written health and safety policy, keep it under review and bring it to the attention of all employees. Employers with fewer than five employees are excepted from this written policy duty by regulations made in 1975. Section 2 also requires employers to consult trade union safety representatives and, where they request one, to set up a safety committee.

Section 3: people who are not your employees

Section 3 protects everyone else your work could affect: contractors, visitors, customers and members of the public. Employers must run their business so that these people are not exposed to risks to their health or safety, so far as is reasonably practicable.

Self-employed people have a similar duty, but only where their undertaking is of a prescribed description. Since October 2015 that means activities listed in regulations, which include any work carried out on a construction site, or any other work that may pose a risk to the health and safety of other people. A self-employed person working on site is therefore covered.

Section 4: people in control of premises

Section 4 applies to anyone who controls non-domestic premises used by people who are not their employees, such as landlords and managing agents of shared workplaces. They must take reasonable measures to make sure the premises, the ways in and out, and any plant or substances provided there are safe.

Section 6: designers, manufacturers, importers and suppliers

Section 6 reaches back up the supply chain. Anyone who designs, manufactures, imports or supplies an article for use at work must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that it is safe when it is set, used, cleaned or maintained, arrange any necessary testing, and provide adequate information about safe use. People who erect or install equipment at a workplace have their own duty under this section.

Sections 7, 8 and 9: duties of employees and everyone else

Under section 7, every employee must take reasonable care for their own health and safety and that of others who may be affected by what they do, or fail to do, at work. They must also co-operate with their employer so the employer can meet its legal duties.

Section 8 applies to everyone: no person may intentionally or recklessly interfere with or misuse anything provided for health, safety or welfare, such as guards, fire equipment or signs. Section 9 stops employers charging employees for anything done or provided to meet a specific legal requirement.

How the Act is enforced

The Act establishes the Health and Safety Executive under section 10 and gives the Secretary of State power to make health and safety regulations under section 15. That power is why familiar rules such as the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 and the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 are made under the 1974 Act. Section 16 allows HSE to approve codes of practice that give practical guidance on meeting the law.

Inspectors have wide powers under section 20. They can enter premises at any reasonable time, or at any time where the situation may be dangerous, examine and investigate, take measurements, photographs, recordings and samples, and direct that an area is left undisturbed. They can then serve two kinds of notice:

Improvement notice (section 21): requires a contravention to be put right within a set period.
Prohibition notice (section 22): stops an activity that involves a risk of serious personal injury, and can take effect immediately.

Breaching the general duties, or ignoring a notice, is an offence under section 33. Under Schedule 3A, the most serious cases heard on indictment carry up to two years’ imprisonment, a fine, or both. Section 37 makes a director, manager, secretary or similar officer personally guilty where a company offence was committed with their consent or connivance, or was attributable to their neglect. HSE notes that directors can also face disqualification.

Putting the Act into practice with Target Zero

Knowing the sections is the start; applying them is where managers need support. Our IOSH Managing Safely course covers risk assessment and control, health and safety legislation, common hazards such as fire, electricity, work equipment, vehicles, manual handling, noise and chemicals, as well as active monitoring, investigating accidents and safety management systems. If you are unsure whether your team needs it, read who needs IOSH Managing Safely.

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FAQs

What is the main purpose of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974?

To secure the health, safety and welfare of people at work, and to protect other people from risks arising from work activities.

What are the main duties of employers under the Act?

Under section 2, employers must provide safe plant and systems of work, safe handling of articles and substances, information, instruction, training and supervision, a safe workplace and a safe working environment with adequate welfare. Section 3 extends protection to non-employees.

What are employee responsibilities under the Health and Safety at Work Act?

Section 7 requires employees to take reasonable care of themselves and others affected by their work, and to co-operate with their employer. Section 8 means nobody may interfere with or misuse safety equipment.

Does the Act apply to self-employed people?

Yes, where their work is of a prescribed description. That includes any work on a construction site and any work that may pose a risk to other people. Self-employed people who employ others also have employer duties.

What happens if you break the Health and Safety at Work Act?

Inspectors can serve improvement or prohibition notices and prosecute. Serious offences can lead to a fine, imprisonment of up to two years, or both, and directors and managers can be prosecuted personally under section 37.

Is the Health and Safety at Work Act still in force?

Yes. It remains the main health and safety law in Great Britain, amended many times since 1974. Always read the up to date version on legislation.gov.uk.

If you are responsible for people at work, the quickest way to turn these duties into everyday practice is structured learning. See dates and book on our IOSH Managing Safely course page, or call 0333 444 0018 to talk to our team.