Health and Safety Regulations

Although most employers are aware that DSE health and safety legislation exists some are still unsure of what exactly is required and what they should do. The problem with this is if it is not rectified the director is the one ultimately responsible and unlike common law guilt is assumed until proven innocent.

The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and the EU 1992 "Six Pack" Legislation governs the health and safety requirements for all offices.

The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974

The essence of this Act is to safeguard the health, safety and welfare of the employees. The employers have a legal responsibility to make sure that this happens. A major part of this Act recognises that it can be the actions or negligence of people that causes accidents associated with work, rather than the materials or equipment used within the workplace.

The Health and Safety Commission was set up as the co-ordinating body to advise on and administer all aspects of the Act. The Health and Safety Executive became the operational body of the Commission replacing the factory inspectors. The principal remit of all branches of the Executive is to consult and correct, rather than to prosecute. However, it has significant powers at its disposal.

• The power of entry into a workplace
• The power to issue an enforcement notice to improve a situation
• The power to issue an enforcement notice to close the premises until remedial action is taken

THE HEALTH AND SAFETY (DISPLAY SCREEN EQUIPMENT) REGULATIONS 1992

INTRODUCTION

1 The Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992 (DSE Regulations), came into force on 1 January 1993. This circular highlights the key issues for inspection and enforcement by local authority enforcement officers. Practical guidance on the Regulations is given in the HSE booklet L26 Display screen equipment work: Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992: guidance on regulations ISBN 0-7176-2582-6.

BACKGROUND

2 The DSE Regulations:

• implement Directive 90/270/EEC
• attract considerable interest from all parts of industry in view of the large number of users, although only a small proportion of users will suffer health problems as a result of their work.

ENFORCEMENT APPROACH

3 (1) The objective in enforcing the Regulations is to minimise the risk of occupational ill-health, by ensuring that operators or users have:

• Adequate training and information;
• Proper breaks or changes of activity;
• Work stations suitable for them which meet, where necessary, the standards in the schedule
• Eye tests if they request them.

(2) Employers may need guidance on prioritising the action they need to take to comply. Actions should be taken first to remedy those elements which create the greatest risk. Priorities should be decided on a case by case basis.

(3) To achieve the objective, enforcement officers should avoid a bureaucratic approach and:

• concentrate on the implementation of practical solutions rather than written analysis of work stations;
• emphasis the needs of individual users or operators rather than standard hardware requirements;
• seek to put in place an adequate management system to ensure compliance in both the long and short term.

(4) Action may be appropriate where (in relation to the objective outlined at para 3(1)):

• DSE use is a significant part of the work activity resulting in a foreseeable risk
• Employers appear deliberately obdurate and unwilling to recognise their responsibilities
• Standards of compliance are low.

ENFORCEMENT RESPONSIBILITY

4 Local authorities have access to EMAS advice and may find this helpful when deciding what action is appropriate to deal with complaints alleging injury or ill health related to the use of display screen equipment. Ergonomic Specialist or Medical advice may also be necessary when considering formal action. EMAS may be able to provide such assistance.

COMMENTARY ON SPECIFIC REGULATIONSScope and definitions (REG 1(1) TO (3))

5 (1) The definition of user follows that in the Directive. Some organisations wanted a time based definition, whilst others thought that intermittent users should be excluded. However, the intention of the definition is to apply the Regulations to people who use DSE sufficiently frequently and/or intensively for there to be some possibility of risk.

(2) When considering whether a person is a user or operator, LA enforcement officers should consider carefully the criteria set out in the guidance, and in particular the examples quoted.

Application (REG. 1(4)

6(1) In deciding whether a person is a DSE user, no account should be taken of time spent by that person on those item listed in Regulation 1(4).

(2) The exclusion for equipment on board a means of transport applies only where the primary purpose of the "means" is transport (eg trains etc) and not to mobile equipment itself.

Analysis of Work Stations, Risk Assessment and Reduction (REG 2)

7 (1) Carrying out an analysis under the DSE Regulations will also satisfy the requirements of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1992 (MHSW Regulations) to make a Risk Assessment insofar as DSE work are concerned. The significant findings, if any, of the Risk Assessment should be recorded if there are 5 or more employees, as required by MHSW Regulations. See LAC L 2/6/53 on MHSW Regulations for further advice on recording Risk Assessments.

(2) The duty under reg. 2(1) is to analyse individual work stations used by users or operators. Risk Assessments can make use of generic information in cases where there are a lot of similarly equipped work stations. Screen equipment and work station furniture can be assessed by model or type. However, there is still a requirement for individual analysis of work stations to check on factors which will vary according to position, task demand and individual requirements of users or operators.(2a) Where workers are not based on their employers premises, the best approach to Risk Assessment may be for the employer to train each user to assess risks for themselves and correct or report any problems (see L26, paragraph 26, which gives this advice in the context of home workers).

(3) if an Improvement Notice is issued (subject to the necessary requirements not being met) under reg. 2(1) (analysis), then enforcement officers should consider a subsequent Notice under reg. 2(3) (reduce risks to the lowest extent reasonably practicable) if the employer has not taken action as a result of the analysis.

Requirements for Work Stations (REG. 3 AND SCHEDULE)

8 (1) The requirements of the Schedule may not apply in all circumstances. Paragraph 1 of the schedule sets out the relevant criteria. These mean first (paragraph 1) that there is no specific duty to provide (eg) a chair (unless the Risk Assessment had shown a chair to be necessary to prevent a risk to health) . However, if a chair forms part of the workstation, it should be adjustable etc. If a particular requirement would not actively secure the health and safety of the user, it need not be applied (paragraph 1(b)). Detachable keyboards may be unnecessary, for example, where the keying element of the task is insignificant and there is no risk of upper limb damage (eg in some non-standard screen work such as using on microfilm readers). Paragraph 1(c) of the Schedule means that where the task could not be successfully carried out if the requirements were satisfied, they need not be applied.

(2) Enforcement officers should use HSE's guidance on the Regulations to clarify the meaning of the minimum requirements in the Schedule. These follow the wording of the EC Directive and some particulars are not self explanatory or are ambiguous. For example, the requirement that seat backs should be adjustable in height and tilt, does not require independent adjustability. "Shell" chairs adjustable in relation to height from the ground satisfy the requirement.

Daily Work Routine of Users (REG. 4)

9 (1) This Regulation is designed to reduce fatigue and stress from intensive periods of DSE work. An appropriate pattern of work, with breaks or changes of activity at suitable intervals, will reduce the risk of workers developing work related Upper Limb Disorders (WRULDs).

(2) The Regulations and guidance do not quantify the duration or intervals between breaks or changes of activity because:(a) DSE jobs are very varied and what would be appropriate intervals for one job could be inadequate for another;(b) Where circumstances permit, the best arrangement is for users to have some individual control over the pace of work and when to take breaks.

(3) [Recent HSE sponsored research (by Professor Cox et al, University of Nottingham), recommended amongst other things, that periods of work between breaks should be at least 50 minutes but not greater than 120 minutes, and that breaks should be between 12 and 15 minutes in duration. However, the researchers were only considering repetitive (short cycle) VDU work such as data entry, and their conclusions, which were subject to a number of caveats, are not valid for other kinds of DSE work.]

Eyes and eye sight (REG. 5)

10 (1) There is good evidence that work with DSE does not cause any permanent damage to eyes or eye sight, although complaints of temporary discomfort, eye strain and headaches are common. As with any work that is visually demanding, users with existing uncorrected vision defects are more likely to suffer fatigue and stress in DSE work. The eye tests and corrective appliances provided under reg. 5 are intended to be a means of alleviating such problems.

(2) HSW s.9 is applicable to payment for eye tests and special corrective appliances. Employers are responsible for costs. Special corrective appliances paid for by the employer remain the employers property.

(3) There is no legal requirement for employers to provide paid time-off for eye tests, although in practice the majority of employers will probably do so.

Training (REG. 6)

11 Employers have a duty to provide initial training to users they employ when the Regulations come into force, and thereafter they must train their employees who are to become users. Where the organisation of a work station is substantially modified, the employer in whose undertaking the work station is situated must provide training to each user of that work station, whether employed by him or not. Examples of the type of training are given in the HSE guidance on DSE. It is unlikely that a modified work station will require re-training in all elements.

European Law - 1992 'Six Pack'

Additional European legislation was passed in 1992 and this has been added to the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974. This legislation has become known as the "Six Pack" and it set a minimum standard of provision for health and safety across the European Community.

This incorporates maintaining good working practices and having positive and actionable health and safety policies.

The current regulations now focus on the basic requirement to undertake Risk Assessment that will identify hazards. These hazards, if they cannot be eliminated, should be assessed to establish the degree of risk that the employee would be exposed to whilst at work, and train that employee to work safely with these identified risks. The 'Six Pack' legislation consists of:

1. Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1992
2. Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992
3. Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992
4. Personal Protective Equipment at Work 1992
5. Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992
6. Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations (PUWER) 1992

Additional Heath and Safety Legislation

• Health and Safety (First Aid at Work) Regulations 1981
• Electrical Regulations 1989
• COSHH (Control of Substances Hazardous to Health) Regulations - 1994
• The Reporting of Injuries, Discuss and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1995 (RIDDOR)
• Health and Safety (Consultation with Employees) Regulations 1996

British Standards criteria and health and safety executive guidelines would be used as a judgement measure in cases where the minimum standards are not being implemented.

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