Six steps to protect seasonal workers during the festive season

During the festive period, retailers and businesses across all sectors will hire gig economy, agency and temporary workers to help with the Christmas rush. For employers, this comes with a need to understand your legal duties and responsibilities to ensure a safe working environment.

Here, Partner and Head of Regulatory & Professional Conduct Lachlan Nisbet and Paralegal Alex Walton outline employer obligations under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HSWA 1974), including the six key steps you should take to protect workers.

Your duties and responsibilities as a dutyholder

Businesses often hire new staff to provide extra resource during the busy festive season. This year, Amazon is hiring more than 15,000 additional staff in seasonal jobs across the UK, with the likes of Aldi, Argos and Morrisons also looking to make thousands of hires. 

When businesses welcome a huge influx of new workers in this way, the risk of accidents occurring increases — typically due to their unfamiliarity with the job and working environment, especially at such a demanding time of year.

Under Sections 2 and 3 of HSWA 1974, an employer must ensure that employees and persons not in their employment aren’t exposed to risks that impact their health or safety (so far as reasonably practicable). It doesn’t matter how long that employee has worked at the business — from day one, their health, safety and wellbeing will always be protected by the law. 

Six key steps to prepare for new agency, gig or temporary workers

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has set out guidance for companies that hire new workers. This highlights the importance of ensuring that new workers are properly trained and equipped at the outset. The risk of an accident occurring is as great in the first six months at work as during the rest of a worker’s working life. 

From this guidance, there are six key steps to remember.

1. Assess the new worker’s capabilities including previous experience, physical ability to perform the job, general health and literacy and numeracy levels.
2. Provide a full and comprehensive induction, including a tour of the workplace to identify hazards.
3. Guarantee that health and safety control measures are fit for purpose, up to date and properly implemented.
4. Provide appropriate information, instruction and training about risks and precautions.
5. Provide adequate supervision and ensure that workers are aware of how to raise concerns. It’s important for supervisors to be alert to the fact that workers may find it difficult to raise concerns due to inexperience and awareness. 
6. Ensure that workers understand the information, instructions and training provided. Workers must know who they can share concerns with and be aware of your emergency procedures.

It’s important to remember that a breach of health and safety law arises when there’s an inadequately controlled risk of harm — even if no actual harm has occurred.

Failure to comply with your health and safety obligations may result in the HSE prosecuting your company.

Case study — HSE prosecutes case involving agency worker

On 25 April 2024, Loadhog Limited pleaded guilty to breaching Regulation 11 of the Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations 1998 and Regulation 3 of the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999.

The company was fined £100,000 and ordered to pay £3,139.75 in costs. 

The prosecution arose after an agency worker injured their fingers when using a table saw without a guard at the company’s site in Sheffield. The HSE inspector said that the “incident could so easily have been avoided by simply implementing the correct control measures and safe working practices”. 

Talk to us

Businesses must ensure that the health, safety and wellbeing of their employees — including gig, agency or temporary workers — are protected at all times. 

If your business requires additional support from agency or temporary workers during the busy festive period, we recommend that you consult the HSE’s guidance and ensure that your policies and procedures are compliant.  

If you need any help in reviewing your health and safety arrangements, our expert health and safety law team can help.

Talk to us by giving us a call, sending us an email or completing our contact form below.