Posted By Booney
Good Afternoon,

I feel (and I am sure a lot of other H & S professionals do too) that the role of the H & S practitioner can be somewhat undervalued by employers. I also feel there can be some comparisons drawn between the roles of HR and H & S so, I pose the question to you all:

Which role carries the higher status in your company: Human Resources or Health & Safety?

alternatively, which discipline is considered to provide the most value to your company?

Please discuss

This being the IOSH site, I know we might tend to be a little biased so I would ask for a 'measured' response...

Observations/discussion from professionals who have these dual responsibilities would be most welcome

(It doesn't take a genius to work out where I am going with this so any assistance would be appreciated ?)

Many thanks

Posted By Merv Newman
During the fourteen (?) years I was plant H&S my direct boss was always the RH manager.

I was never (rarely) involved in personnel matters.

Where I had "problems" with employees, supervisors or managers I always went through my boss.

For me the line is clear. If you have a problem with safety then that is a problem for your boss. Not for me.

Merv

Posted By Crim
Most of my clients are small construction companies, some Principle Contractor others just Sub-contractors.

All of them have me as health and safety advisor, none have H R either within or as external consultants. They probably think of H & S as a more specialist area than HR?

In the past I have worked under the H R Director sometimes and for the H & S Director other times.

When I worked for a consultancy company most clients had both HR and H & S and other clients had H & S where others just had H R.

I think it is 50/50 for large companies but more accent on H & S in the smaller firms.

Posted By Philby'
Booney,

I think I know where your coming from....I too am part of the HR Section and, in the structure, sit with my equally qualified peers at professional officer level...here comes the rub...however, in terms of support, little or none for routine administration and operational H&S management, in terms of remuneration, one to three scales below, in terms of priority, eg training needs/service development plans/meeting agendas, always last on list or 'bumped' completely if time or operational constraints demand.

I have a strange working relationship however, I sit in one department, which pays the mortgage, but have responsibility for another also...strange bit is that the second department actually asks for advice, takes it, and does something with it, THEN, thanks me for it! Now, if only I could get a transfer!

Keep plugging away though, I've been here a year and slowly things are a changing...usually by a mixture of persistence, belligerence, humour (god forbid in HR), cajoling and being downright devious!...and if that doesn't work, you can always jump ship, an option I've never been afraid to take.

Philby'

Posted By martin gray1

I have been in my current position which is G.M directly responsible for 100 staff in a manufacturing environment for the past 6 years. During that time I have taken my Nebosh General Cert and I am taking my NVQ 4 which at the moment seems a long way off even after the first year. I also deal with all HR issues within the company and oversee the production. I have managed to get HS to a level where it is now accepted by the workforce and they even embrace it which is brilliant. The directors however still seem to have the opinion it will never happen to us. It is treated as a bit of a standing joke between them but luckily enough they have no contact with the workforce. I do however manage to get them to authorise any spending by putting everything down in writing to them. They do seem to take much more notice regarding any HR issues? perhaps it has something to do with the 2 tribunals we had (which we won) I just look upon the situation that I have managed to get the most important people on side and that with no reportable accidents in the last 2 years we are going in the right direction. It must be tough though if you don't have the dual roles.
Martin