Safety committee
A formal joint body of management and worker representatives established to promote cooperation on health and safety matters. The duty to establish a safety committee, and its functions, differ by jurisdiction.
By jurisdiction
UK HSE
“safety committee”Exact equivalentSection 2(7) of HSWA 1974 requires employers to establish a safety committee if requested by at least two safety representatives. The functions of a safety committee are set out in the Safety Representatives and Safety Committees Regulations 1977. The committee must keep under review the measures taken to ensure health and safety, investigate accidents and dangerous occurrences, and examine the causes of occupational disease.
Irish HSA
“safety committee”Close equivalentSection 26 of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 allows employees to select a safety representative, and section 27 provides that the employer and safety representative may agree to establish a safety committee. There is no mandatory duty to establish a committee in the Irish Act; it is agreed rather than required on request.
US OSHA
“safety and health committee”No equivalentNo equivalent in this jurisdiction.
Practitioner note: In GB a committee must be established on written request from two recognised trade union safety representatives. It is a consultation forum, not a decision-making body.