The Health and Safety at Work Act (HASAW) 1974 places “a general duty on employers and employees/other regarding health and safety”.
Regulation 3(1) of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 (amended 2006) “requires that employers undertake suitable and sufficient assessment of risk to their employees” whilst at work Where the general risk assessment indicates the possibility of risks to employees from moving and handling of loads, the Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 (as Amended) will apply. These regulations were made under the HASAW act and implement European Directive 90/269/EEC on the manual handling of loads
The Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 were amended by the Health and Safety Regulations 2002; L23 sets out the HSE revised guidance. These factors in annex II of the Directives are that a worker may be at risk if he/she:
- Is physically unsuited to carry out the task in question
- Is wearing unsuitable clothing, footwear or other personal effects
- Does not have adequate or appropriate knowledge or training
The Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations (PUWER) 1998 and the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations (LOLER) 1998 give guidance on maintenance and use of work equipment.
The Reporting of Injuries, Disease and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) 2013 set out the legal requirements for reporting accidents, incidents, near misses and specific musculoskeletal disorders.
Under the Health and Social Care (Safety and Quality Act) 2015 asserts reducing harm in care (section 1) (section 3 5B subsection (1) (b) harm is avoidable, in relation to a service, unless the person providing the service cannot reasonably avoid it (whether because it is an inherent part or risk of a regulated activity for another reason)
The Human Rights Act 1998 ensures that any decision making in respect of manual handling must not only comply with relevant domestic legislation, but also with articles of the European Convention of Human Rights, (article 3 ) the right not to be subjected to inhuman or degrading treatment.
