lorries traffic motorway road

  • Employers must now make a judgment whether an employee has contracted Covid-19 because of occupational exposure

  • FTA said its members had been concerned “the lack of clarity on the guidance would have left them vulnerable to excessive or unfair litigation”

 

Logistics groups have been given the green light to return to work after the lifting of red tape by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) following a campaign by business group FTA.

The industry organisation lobbied the government agency to amend guidance for Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) to avoid businesses being penalised unfairly as they restart or scale-up operations as the UK emerges from lockdown.

Under the new reporting guidance, employers must make a judgment whether an employee has contracted Covid-19 because of occupational exposure. The FTA said the amendment provided employers with flexibility to decide if submitting a report is required.

“Before this addition, our employer members were concerned that the lack of clarity on the guidance would have left them vulnerable to excessive or unfair litigation, as well as facing an administrative burden when resources are already strained,” added FTA policy director Elizabeth de Jong.

“It would have hindered the return to work and created apprehension among both workers and their employers, impacting ultimately the nation’s economic recovery.”

RIDDOR puts duties on employers, the self-employed and people in control of work premises to report occupational diseases, including coronavirus, among the workforce.

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