Morning All,

what are your opinions on the legal duties around charging for replacing lost safety knives. My thoughts are that as they have been selected for the 'safety' aspect of their function then section 9 of the HSWA comes in, the 'duty not to charge'. If people continually lose them and aren't carefull enough then I suggested we could go down the disciplinary route, but what we can't do is charge.

Any opinions would be great.

thanks.

thanks everyone - not suggesting they are PPE but isn't section 9 broader than that - anything that has been bought or pursuant to a statutory requirement; with that being the requirement to reduce 'as far as is reasonably practicable......' They have specifically been bought because they are safer, not because they are better than the existing ones.

thanks

Before heading off down the route of trying to charge employees for consumables

How / Why are these items being lost?

Are customers getting free gifts delivered with the product?

Are people putting them in their overall pockets and forgetting they are there when they drop them in the laundry service?

Is workplace design a contributory factor - lack of a designated work station holder the employee returns the knife to when not in use?

Is the knife suitable for the activity? (free roaming employees at another employment had push clip lanyards to stop knives being left around the workplace)

Only then should you consider contractual arrangements with your employees regarding deductions - that employment tribunal may prove way more expensive

https://www.gov.uk/understanding-your-pay/deductions-from-your-pay

I would suggest everyone gets issued one (or however many) to start with, which they sign-out and subsequent safety knives will be issued upon request.

It is fair to expect that you as an organistaion need to track stock and therefore expenses; and the staff in question having to be individually accountable for the number they use usually makes them a bit more careful of  losses.

The only issue you would need to ensure you manage against would be the potential of theft of each others safety knives that would come from a reluctance to ask for more.

But I would suggest improve your systems, rather than preaching legislation

Only if a recharge is covered by a term already in the employees contract

Otherwise you will have to renegotiate contracts or give notice of change

Then be prepared for employees countering by wanting to bring their own (probably non-safety) knives

You don't have to rewrite the terms and conditions to charge for a knife. You would only need a policy to state that this is what will happen. Employees cannot just say well we will bring our own in, you just ban the knives from the site.

The easiest way is to put a provcedure in place so that you can control the knives.

You could always put a vending macxhine in that will only allow so many to be claimed in one day so that you can calculate how many are being used.

Only a court can decide just what S:9 applies too but I am convinced that it is wider than just PPE, a trap that many have fallen into, therefore if those specific knives are supplied because they enhance safety then it can be argued that S:9 applies

This is a simple management issue and it appears yet again that they cannot manage without having something to blame e.g. H&S so advise accordingly and then let them get on with it

Additionally PUWER and many other areas also apply at the same time apart from the base safety angle as they also need to be fit for purpose