For those of our members working in the UK, the personal protective equipment (PPE) at work regulations will be changing from 6 April 2022. The change is that employers will now be required to provide PPE for all ‘limb workers’.

‘If a risk assessment indicates that a limb (b) worker requires PPE to carry out their work activities, the employer must carry out a PPE suitability assessment and provide the PPE free of charge as they do for employees.’

HSE

It puts Limb (b) workers under the same requirements as Limb (a) workers in terms of PPE. Limb (b) workers are those that:

  • carry out casual or irregular work for one or more organisations
  • after 1 month of continuous service, receive holiday pay but not other employment rights such as the minimum period of statutory notice
  • only carry out work if they choose to
  • have a contract or other arrangement to do work or services personally for a reward (the contract doesn’t have to be written) and only have a limited right to send someone else to do the work, for example swapping shifts with someone on a pre-approved list (subcontracting)
  • are not in business for themselves (they do not advertise services directly to customers who can then also book their services directly)

These changes do not apply to those who have a ‘self-employed’ status. The above list of possible limb (b) workers were provided by HSE but they have stated that ‘…employment relationship will be specific to the individual and employer, the precise status of any worker can ultimately only be determined by a court or tribunal.’ As such, FAME would recommend that a cautious approach is taken as a court/tribunal determination is expensive and if in doubt it is better to provide equipment than to risk the potential financial downsides associated with an adverse court/tribunal decision.

The full details of these changes can be found at the HSE website: https://www.hse.gov.uk/ppe/index.htm?utm_source=govdelivery&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=guidance-push&utm_term=interim-guidance&utm_content=ppe-11-jan-22