The Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 cover a wide range of basic health, safety and welfare issues and apply to most workplaces. This guide is based on extracts from the governments “Workplace health, safety and welfare – A short guide for managers” and it summarises the regulations and the amendments issues since 1992.

Requirements under these Regulations:

The regulations say that if you are an employer, you have a general duty under section 2 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare of your employees at work. You also have a duty of care towards people who are not their employees but use their premises.

Putting it simply, you have a responsibility to everyone (able and disabled) who is on your premises at anytime. Where necessary, parts of the workplace, including in particular doors, passage ways, stairs, showers, washbasins, lavatories and workstations, should be made accessible for disabled people.

Health Regulations:

The measures outlined in this section contribute to the general working environment of people in the workplace.

Ventilation: Workplaces need to be adequately ventilated. Fresh, clean air should be drawn from outside the workplace, uncontaminated by discharges from flues, chimneys or other process outlets, and be circulated through the workrooms.

Ventilation should also remove and dilute warm, humid air and provide air movement which gives a sense of freshness without causing a draught. If the workplace contains process or heating equipment or other sources of dust, fumes or vapours, more fresh air will be needed to provide adequate ventilation. Windows or other openings may provide sufficient ventilation but, where necessary, mechanical ventilation systems should be provided and regularly maintained.

Indoor workplace temperatures: Environmental factors (such as humidity and sources of heat in the workplace) combine with personal factors (such as the clothing a worker is wearing and how physically demanding their work is) to influence what is called someone’s ‘thermal comfort’. Individual personal preference makes it difficult to specify a thermal environment which satisfies everyone. For workplaces where the activity is mainly sedentary, for example offices, the temperature should normally be at least 16