The Health and Safety (Offences) Act 2008, will introduce stringent new workplace rules regarding safety issues. Employers are being urged to pay close attention to their responsibilities as failure to do so may result in a jail sentence of up to two years. The Government has assured civil rights activists that the only the most serious offenders will have such a sentence imposed but it is widely thought that the courts will be under pressure to hand out jail terms to staff who hold supervisory roles.
The new powers could also mean that a careless employee could face a prison sentence too if they contributed to the offence. This could occur even if no serious accident resulted from their actions. Last year 229 people died at work from health and safety breaches.
