Contractors often come onto your premises to carry out routine maintenance and repairs to the building, the electrical installation and the heating system. They will also visit for other purposes such as machinery or equipment installations, cleaning, pest control, servicing photo-copiers and the like. Contractors will be experienced in their field of activity and a number of the surrounding issues but they will not always have a working knowledge of the business they are working for, the premises or the hazards associated with the activities of the host organisation. As a result contractors are often placed at greater risk than your employees. Contractors, through their work, may also create hazards which are not normally present in the workplace, increasing the risk to the workforce. Employers need to make contractors aware of any particular hazards and risks that they face whilst on the premises and make appropriate arrangements for ensuring their health and safety. Employers who are themselves contractors must consider the risks faced by their workers when working on a client’s premises: risks of the job itself as well as any workplace specific risks. They must also consider the impact of their own activity on the health and safety of their client’s workforce; making their client aware of any hazards and risks that their work will create in the workplace.
