Background to the DSE Regulations
The Health and Safety (Display Screen Equipment) Regulations 1992 are
in force.
This is a European Directive, 90/270/EEC and is LAW.
EC Directives are binding upon Member States and take precedence over
national legislation.
Compliance is mandatory.
Link here to the HSE's web site referring to all prosecutions and their Register
of convictions.
Main requirements of the DSE Regulations
Whatever type of checklist is used, employers
should ensure workers have received the necessary training before being
asked to complete one.
DSEasy delivers this Training, as well as a Test to record and prove understanding of the Training given.
Every employer shall
perform a suitable and sufficient analysis of those workstations...for
the purpose of assessing the health and safety risks to which those
persons are exposed in consequence of that use. And reduce risks.
Under Regulation 2, Guidance paragraph 39, it states that an ergonomic checklist should preferably be completed by users or with their input.
DSEasy delivers the Ergonomic Checklist and
will reduce an assessor’s time at each workstation by up to 80%.
They know of any issues before visiting the user.
Ensure workstations meet specified minimum requirements.
DSEasy includes in the ergonomic checklist a
series of questions to let you know if you are not complying with this
part of the Regulations.
Every employer shall
so plan the activities of users at work in his undertaking that their
daily work on display screen equipment is periodically interrupted by
such breaks or changes of activity as reduce their workload at that
equipment.
DSEasy delivers much advice on the benefit of taking short breaks away from DSE work.
Eyesight test on request.
DSEasy advises users of their entitlements on your behalf.
Provision of Information relating to all matters of health & safety. Includes:
- What the employer is doing to comply to the Regulations.
- Advise the users of risks associated with working with DSE.
DSEasy delivers this part of compliance on your behalf.
Key Phrases
- 'Workstation Assessment requirements to be completed... not later
than 31/12/96'.
- 'employers should ensure workers have received the necessary training
before being asked to complete a Workstation Assessment'.
- Risks identified in the assessment must be remedied as quickly
as possible.
- Assessment... Ergonomic checklist which should preferably be completed
by users.
- Recorded assessments could be stored electronically.
The DSE regulations are clear:
'employers should ensure workers have received the necessary training
before being asked to complete a Workstation Assessment'.
'Workstation Assessment requirements to be completed... not later than
31/12/96'.
The Regulations DO NOT say. Provide training only to those registering
a problem.
You need to provide training pro-actively to all,
not reactively to those complaining of aches and pains. This is
reactive. And non compliant. So, firstly we need to ensure that all the
necessary training is provided. You will find with our DSEasy®
software that workstation best practice training is comprehensive.
Training can be provided in a variety of ways. Face to face, seminars,
video presentations or handouts, but... how do you ensure all those who
need the training, have received it?
The logistics can be a nightmare.
What happens when further training information is sought at a later time,
or information was misinterpreted, forgotten or never given?
The 3 fundamental Steps to Compliance
The DSE Regulations state: "Whatever type of checklist is used,
employers should ensure workers have received the necessary training before
being asked to complete one".
Therefore
-
Train
All users in workstation best practice, advise them of the associated
risks and of their entitlements.
You need to prove that the Training has been understood.
(In the recent case Mrs. Clark v The Metropolitan Police, the Court
was told that Mrs. Clark had received no training other than to watch
a video. Where was the proof that the Training had been understood?.
Mrs. Clark was awarded £385,000. The Met had also failed to
comply with EU Directives.
In another more recent case against Barclays Bank, a clerk who developed
RSI was awarded £235,000. She had a poor ergonomic desk set
up.)
-
Ergonomic checklist
‘should preferably be completed by users or with
their input’ (Quote
from the DSE Regulations)
-
DSE Assessment
An analysis of the ergonomic checklist and putting right as quickly
as possible any wrongs.
To be carried out by a ‘competent’ person, a trained DSE
assessor, as specified in the DSE Regulations.
Chaos Ergonomics' business is to work with Organisations on their compliance
with the DSE Regulations.
Organisations have choices as to how best complete the 3 steps necessary.
Experience has shown us that in larger Organisations, the cost and sheer
administrative burden of recording and implementing a compliance based
upon recording findings on paper, (providing training and proving understanding
of the training, face to face or by seminars/videos) is not the way forward.
An alternative way, such as the dedicated computerised program DSEasy® will save £’000s and streamline and record the whole process.
The HSEs View
As promised in November 1999, the HSE has now published its first ever
enforcement report which 'names and shames' hundreds of businesses,
organisations and individuals convicted of health and safety crimes during
1999/2000. The report coincides with the publication of the HSE's Annual
Report and Accounts.
This latest report, 'Health and Safety Offences and Penalties', lists
around 1,600 individual offences committed by large and small businesses,
local authorities, hospitals and universities.
The HSE is now making the list of offenders available to everyone. In
addition to the report, full details of each conviction are available
on a special web site where users can access the offenders geographically,
by industry type, by size of fine or by type of work activity.
The site also contains a recap of the HSE's enforcement policy, a useful
resource for workplace managers.
A brief review of the site makes sobering reading, containing hundreds
of detailed instances of poor health and safety practice. Statistics from
the report itself show that in 1999/2000:
The HSE prosecuted 1,133 cases, involving 2,253 charges - increases of
9% and 28% respectively on last year.
According to the provisional statistics, out of the 2,253 charges, only
72 led to a 'not guilty' or 'not proven' verdict.
This information page is published in association with www.workplacelaw.net to whom credit goes for research and content.
Penalties for Managers
Managers face the possibility of being suspended without pay
for health and safety offences, under new proposals announced by the
Health and Safety Commission.
The package also includes measures to increase penalties for health
and safety breaches and to introduce a new Code of Practice that will
make named directors responsible for health and safety in the workplace.
For the first time ever, the government has announced targets to reduce,
accidents and injury in the workplace. The specific targets are to:
- reduce the number of working days lost from work-related injury and
ill-health by 30 per cent by the year 2010 (a decrease of 7.5 million
working days)
- reduce the incidence of people suffering from work-related ill-health
by 20 per cent by the year 2010 (80,000 fewer new cases)
Following their recent consultation process, the government are set
to introduce a number of measures. These include:
- an occupational health strategy to combat work-related illnesses
- tougher penalties to deter health and safety offences. Imprisonment
will be available for most health and safety crimes and the increased maximum fine available in the lower court - £20,000 - will
be extended to most health and safety offences
- an examination of new innovative penalties such as fines linked to
turnover, prohibition of bonuses and suspension of managers without
pay
- a director's code of practice, which will make a named person
responsible for health and safety matters within every company
- co-operating with the insurance industry to introduce incentives in
reward for good health and safety performers at the expense of those
companies with poor health and safety records.
This information page is published in association with www.workplacelaw.net to whom credit goes for research and content.
Solutions
Contact Chaos Ergonomics, the DSE Regulation specialists, on freephone
0800 013 4566 or e-mail us now.
Chaos Ergonomics provides:
- The Training to all users.
- The ergonomic checklist for them to complete.
- The assessors to assess each user.
- The DSE Assessor Training Course, so you can carryout the DSE. assessments
yourselves.
- DSEasy® software to enable you to be
compliant on-line, no more paper.
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