Clarifying responsibilities
September 1st 2010 ASG advises managers of their duties under corporate manslaughter law and how to
ensure they comply
The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate
Homicide Act came into effect in April 2008
and is called
corporate manslaughter
in England,Wales and
Northern Ireland, and
corporate homicide in
Scotland.
In the past, though
it has been possible to
prosecute an
individual director
for corporate manslaughter,
criminal action against a corporate
body has been almost impossible. The
Corporate Manslaughter Act makes it
easier to convict organisations whose
senior managers are found to be in breach
of their duty of care and thereby cause a
death.
The Act overcomes the barrier of having to identify
the 'controlling mind' of an organisation. So an
organisation can now be found guilty of corporate
manslaughter if an organisational or gross management failing
causes a fatality. This means that the actions of senior managers
below director level could be deemed to be the actions of the
organisation.
Employers already have a duty of care under the Health and
Safety at Work Act 1974, to take reasonable steps to protect the
health, safety and welfare of their staff. This applies to staff
working remotely as well as those following more traditional
work patterns.
The new legislation goes further, placing the onus on
businesses to ensure that health and safety guidelines are
followed and that the relevant policy documents
are in place. The mere existence of a safety
handbook, however, will not be
sufficient defense in law. Companies
will have to demonstrate that their
policies are enforced and be able
to produce appropriate
evidence of compliance. All
organisations should review
their health and safety
policies in the light of the
new Act.
ASG Services has
identified a need in the
warehousing and logistics
market for companies and
managers to be made more aware
of their responsibilities for health
and safety and protection for their
employees and thus avoiding the
implications of the new Act.
The company has highlighted key areas that
require attention:
To continue improvements in health and safety.
Provide a means to segregate personnel from materials
handling equipment.
Identify areas of safety and potential areas of danger.
Clearly identify with signage potential hazards from fork lift
trucks.
In the first instance ASG Services often refers customers to the
HSE's guide HSG76 Warehousing & Storage – A guide to Health &
Safety (Page 47 Para 405) – which states:
The mixture of industrial trucks and pedestrians is a recipe for
potential accidents, so it is imperative that you take steps to
minimise the associated risks.
Separate pedestrian activities from areas where trucks are
operating where reasonably practicable. This is particularly
important in retail warehouses where the public may be
present.
Define, designate and clearly mark pedestrian routes and
crossing places.
Provide sufficient clear and unambiguous warning signs at
strategic locations to inform people that trucks operate in the
premises or area.
Provide suitable and sufficient notices at strategic locations
and instruct truck operators to sound the horn.
ASG Services provides a range of warehouse focused safety
products including floor markings, barriers, handrail and safety
signage for their individual warehouse safety needs.
Its own installation teams install warehouse safety equipment
alongside products such as floor marking, warehouse signs for
location ID and site safety signs.
In additional to the product range ASG Services also provides
a consultancy service offering
various health and safety audits. More articles from ASG Services Ltd: | 
