Employees signing RAMS?!

[CF2]

Do you have to have all of your employees sign off a risk or method statement? Is it a legal requirement to have their signature on them?

Thanks!

 

[Chris Ashdown]

There is a legal responsibility to undertake a fire risk assessment and also a health and safety assessment , You would have a need under HSE to have safe operating instructions and ensure they are operated to these instructions
There is also a gas safety certificate that is required every year for commercial premises

Normally it is the person doing the assessment who signs them, but it would be wise to have people sign the HSE operating instructions

Many people don't understand that everyone is responsible for HSE and not just management, if for instance you allow a colleague to act in a unsafe manner then you can be held partly responsible

 

[Newchodge]

Do you have to have all of your employees sign off a risk or method statement? Is it a legal requirement to have their signature on them?

Thanks!

No. No.

 

[CF2]

Great, thank you both for your replies. So for example, on a construction site, it would be okay for the site manager to create the Risk and Method statements, without having all the workers on site to sign them, as long as the works are carried out safely as per the method statement? And should they have a visit from a HSE inspector, it would be okay that only the site managers have signed the RAMS off?

 

[Newchodge]

The HSE inspector may require that you explain exactly how you are sure that all the employees know and understand the RAMS. Lazy organisations have their employees sign such things in order to provide that proof. Unfortunately all it proves is that the employee can write their name when told to do so. I am aware of a large organisation that gave 'training' to its staff that concluded with a written test. The employees wree told by the trainers not to write anything on the test until they had been told what each answer was.

 

[Chris Ashdown]

My understanding is that many courses for HGV drivers follow a similar pattern basically giving the answers in a simulated test prior to the exams, my relative drives a gas tanker hgv and has about 3 tests every two years i think by a independent school