The cost to Britain’s increase is calculated by the rate of working days lost, cost of work-related injuries and illness, and the annual fines sanctioned to businesses for negligence and unlawful practice. In short, businesses that do not have integrated safety procedures in Britain are accumulating this cost. I suggest that businesses should make the outbound cost and invest in implementing safety practices, which will save money, protect business reputation and worker wellbeing in the future, avoiding heavy fines and disgruntled workers.
Employers have a legal obligation to ensure their staff are safe whist at work, including providing assessments and management of possible risks, supplying information, training and PPE as well as ensuring adequate measures are available if an employee is injured or taken ill at work. In the last two years, new sentencing guidelines have made it tougher and more costly for managers, directors and UK companies to ignore their health and safety obligations.
In 2015/16 prosecutions increased by 6%, with the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), Crown Office and the Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) prosecuting 696 cases. In a similar vein, the largest fine in 2016 was two-and-a-half times the size of the largest fine in 2015 and almost ten times more than the largest fine in 2014.
The new guidelines are designed to give courts a more consistent means of passing sentences by taking a step by step approach, first determining the offence category by culpability and harm. The courts must decide level of the defendant’s culpability, using a scale of “very high” to “low”. They must then establish a harm rating of between 1 and 4 (with 1 being the highest rating) depending on the scale and severity of potential harm. Following the measurement of harm and culpability, the fines awarded to offending businesses is then consequently determined by its annual turnover. For micro-organisations with a turnover of less than £2 million, recommended fines range from between £50 to £450,000. For large organisations with a turnover of £50 million and above, fines can be between £3,000 and £10 million, depending on the offence.
With tighter regulations and sentencing guidelines, businesses must be more responsible or face high costs. As an industry we are stomping down on employer irresponsibility, highlighting that health and safety is a business critical issue and must be managed as such. Businesses should look to review their health and safety policies, in order to highlight any concerns and ensure compliance. Integrated safety procedures can save business money, time and unhappiness – a definite worthwhile and critical investment.
Competency training is available for those who want to do better – in business and for their workers. Experienced, safety and health practitioners can work with companies to understand what safety looks like for their organisation, which can include looking at brand, reputation, insurance, business continuity and financial wellbeing. For those looking for support, Arco offers bespoke consultancy which can help businesses create a safer work place and be confident that they are getting the best advice. Arco can provide a wide range of accredited health and safety competence training courses which will ensure that all members of the organisation fully understand their health and safety responsibilities.
To conclude, this 5.6% increase highlights a shift in the health and safety industry – and is a huge wake up call for negligent businesses.
