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- Guidance for employers and The Management of H&S at work Regulations 1999
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Guidance for employers and The Management of H&S at work Regulations 1999
Although this report was commissioned by the Office, the findings and recommendations are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.
Appendix 28/3
Guidance for Employers
1. Non-statutory guidance, entitled Fire Safety: An employers guide,was published on 22 July 1999 to help employers to meet their fire safetyresponsibilities in the workplace. The guide offers user-friendly advicethat seeks to satisfy the needs of all who are caught by the Fire Regulations,irrespective of the size of their undertakings.
2. Although the guide is primarily directed towards employers, it shouldnevertheless be of assistance to local managers, supervisors, employeesrepresentatives and others who need to know about fire precautions in theworkplace. The Home Office recommends that fire safety officers shouldalso be familiar with its contents and take them into account when respondingto requests for advice and in their discussions with employers and othersabout compliance with the Fire Regulations.
3. It should be noted that following the guidance is not compulsory.Employers are free to take other action in order to comply with the FireRegulations. However, if they do follow the guidance they will normallybe doing enough to comply with the law.
4. The guide is a joint publication between the Home Office, the ScottishExecutive, the Department of the Environment for Northern Ireland and theHealth and Safety Executive. It replaces the previous guidance document"Fire Precautions in the Workplace" which has been withdrawn. Thered signpost card, which was issued to brigades in 1997, has also beenwithdrawn. There are no plans to revise and replace the card.
5. Copies of the guidance priced at £9.95; ISBN 0-11-341229-0 may be purchased from The Stationery Office (telephone orders 0870 6005522) and HSE Books (telephone 01787 881165). They may also be obtainedthrough The Stationery Offices accredited agents or any good bookseller.
Appendix 28/4
The effects of amending and re-enacting The Management of Health and Safetyat Work Regulations 1992 as The Management of Health and Safety at WorkRegulations 1999
(For the purposes of this appendix, the 1997 Fire Regulations, as amendedby the 1999 Fire Regulations, are collectively referred to as "the FireRegulations".)
1. The proposed Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations1999 ("the 1999 Management Regulations) are likely to come into force byJanuary 2000. They will amend and re-enact the Management of Health andSafety at Work Regulations 1992, taking account of the changes proposedin the draft Health and Safety (Miscellaneous Modifications) Regulations1999 (now obsolete) and those introduced earlier to implement the Pregnantand Young Workers Directives (European Council Directives 92/85/EEC and94/33 EC respectively) and by the 1997 Fire Regulations.
2. Fire authorities should note the following :-
- regulation 28 of the 1999 Management Regulations will provide that, subjectto the exceptions specified in regulation 9 of the Fire Regulations, the1999 Management Regulations will have effect as health and safety regulationswithin the meaning of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. (Thiswill make regulation 7 of the Fire Regulations obsolete);
- the amendments to the 1992 Management Regulations made by regulation 8of the Fire Regulations are being incorporated into the 1999 ManagementRegulations. (This will make regulation 8 obsolete);
- regulation 29(1) of the 1999 Management Regulations will revoke the 1992Management Regulations and the previous amendments to it, including theHealth and Safety (Young Persons) Regulations 1997 and Part III of the1997 Fire Regulations;
- regulation 29(2) of, with Schedule 2 to, the 1999 Management Regulationswill make consequential amendments to the Fire Regulations:
in regulation 2(1), the references to "the 1992 ManagementRegulations" will be replaced by references to the 1999 Management Regulations;and
in regulation 9(2)(b), the reference to regulations 1 to 4, 6 to 10and 11(2) and (3) of the 1992 Management Regulations, as amended by PartIII of the Fire Regulations, will be replaced by a reference to regulations1 to 5, 7 to 12 and 13(2) and (3) of the 1999 Management Regulations.
3. The definition of "the workplace fire precautions legislation" in themodel enforcement notice Notes at Annex B of Appendix 28/2 has not beenamended at paragraph 1(b) on page 78 to refer to regulations 1 to 5, 7to 12 and 13(2) and (3) of the Management of Health and Safety at WorkRegulations 1999 (S.I. 1999 No. XXXX). The change should be made (withthe statutory instrument number inserted when it is known) in line withthe coming into force of the 1999 Management Regulations.
