COVID-19 - hidden restart risks

Back to business as usual?

Restart the economy?

Stay alert? That, at least, might be good advice.

Business as usual entails the same risks that it always did – risks that well laid plans could go wrong, that accidents could happen and that investigations and prosecutions might heap misery onto misfortune. However, a return to business as we emerge from lockdown poses greater threats still.

The government recently issued a raft of sector-specific guidance indicating how employers might safely reopen business, that contain a number of very useful and sensible suggestions – maintenance of social distancing wherever possible, reorganisation of offices, staggering shift patterns, side-by-side working rather than face to face and so on. It is obvious that effective infection control is a minefield requiring significant adaptations to the way in which businesses work. It’s a huge additional burden but it’s important that none of the other, normal concerns are forgotten.

While the process and approach will be familiar to many – employers must assess, avoid and control these risks as they do so many others – it is worth noting that the type of risk will be unfamiliar to many who now have to carry out such assessments. An expert in work at height, for instance, might be very familiar with the risks likely to arise in the course of a normal day but might never have had to turn their mind to infection control measures.

HSE and other enforcement bodies fulfil dual roles to some extent, offering guidance but also enforcing the law where measures are not up to scratch. The initial suggestion at the start of lockdown seemed to be that they, like everyone else, would focus on work that could safely be done from the comfort of a desk. There was talk of desk-based interventions at the outset and we anticipated that some of the older dormant investigations might be dusted off and progressed.

In practice, clients engaged in essential work tell us that they have, in some instances, received greater attention from HSE on site than had been the case before, with inspectors even filming to confirm social distancing was being effectively observed. These observations are borne out by recent press reports which suggested that over 7000 Covid related concerns have been raised with HSE, with approximately 1400 of those matters being referred for further investigation. Some 3000 dangerous occurrences relating to Covid were logged under the RIDDOR reporting system during the same period, over 70 of which tragically concerned worker deaths.

It is clear that the HSE will be busy: government has allocated additional funding of £14 million to HSE – an uplift of about 10% on what might otherwise have been expected – to account for the additional work anticipated. That substantial investment will demand justification in practice.

Any responsible business looking to reopen in the current climate will want to do so with care – the whole world, it seems, is acutely aware of the threat Covid poses – but it is vital that businesses have mind to the additional hidden dangers that can arise if appropriate safeguards and procedures are not adopted and followed.

The solution is the same in both cases – early intervention offers the greatest chance of controlling the unwelcome development. Don’t wait until it’s too late to lockdown – get legal advice at the outset.

For further updates and other articles discussing the impact of the coronavirus please view our coronavirus hub.