Safety committees

An employer who receives a written request from at least two safety reps must establish a safety committee within three months of the request. The employer must consult the reps making the request and representatives of recognised trade unions in workplaces covered by the committee. A prominent notice must also be posted stating the composition of the committee and the work areas it covers.

The HSE suggests that the basic tasks for a committee include analysing accident and disease trends, developing safety rules and advising on safety communication. Guidance to the SRSCR recommends that the committee should be made up of half management and half union reps, and that safety advisers, doctors and other health and safety professionals should be ex-officio members – which means they should be given the role because of their position.