Over the past 18 months, the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) has made 316,000 Covid spot checks of construction site and business premises. The intention was to offer advice rather than catch people out. Occasionally, action had to be taken though.
Manchester Magistrates鈥� Court heard that on 9th July 2020, an HSE inspector performed a proactive Covid-19 spot check at a construction site in the city. During the inspection, issues were identified with working at height, welfare, Covid-19, site security, and electricity. The principal contractor was served with a prohibition notice and two improvement notices.
A return inspection was made on the 17th August 2020 after little communication from the principal contractor. Little or no improvement had been made regarding the issues, the HSE said, so additional enforcement action was required, including a further prohibition notice relating to an unsupported excavation.
It was subsequently established that the contractor had failed to comply with any of the improvement notices that the HSE had served.
Principal contractor Umar Akram Khatab, now resident in Hollingwood Lane, Bradford, pleaded guilty to breaches of Section 21 of the Health & Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and Regulation 13(1) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015. He was sentenced to a 12-month community order. He was also ordered to pay 拢3,000 towards costs and a victim surcharge of 拢95.
HSE inspector Rebecca Vaudrey said after the hearing: 鈥淗SE prides itself on being a proportionate and evidence-based regulator. Since the beginning of the pandemic HSE has carried out more than 316,000 Covid spot checks, with the priority to urgently make workplaces safe from transmission risks, rather than heavy-handed enforcement.
鈥淭hese checks have demonstrated that the majority of employers want to do the right thing to ensure their workers go home safe and well.
鈥淭his is the first prosecution to arise from the Spot Check programme. We鈥檝e repeatedly stressed that prosecution is a last resort, but this case clearly illustrates that where there is consistent disregard to Covid or other risks to employees鈥� health and safety, HSE will use its powers to take action.鈥�
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