Posted By andy.c. Advise Please Company is a large Japanese multi-national with European headquarters based in Germany, the company is split into two sectors Manufacturing and repair. A relative of mine works in the UK office of the repair company, which comprises of 5 engineers office/field based, 2 administration staff and an office manager. There is a small warehouse unit with racking and a pedestrian pallet stacker. There is a small repair facility for on-site repairs. The problem that H&S is not even on the German radar never mind the budget, having a pint with the Office manager he told me that the purse strings are held by the German head office and they will not pay for anything they deem not essential and that as a "German Company" the "Rules" are not applied the same!! Now in the time it took to down a pint i discovered nobody has any training on the Pallet stacker, the racking is not bolted to the floor (cos we move it around from time to time)he'd never heard of PUWER for the Hand Tools, and DSE assessments were done when they opened the office in 2004. Sorry for they rambling but can anybody point me in the right direction to help this poor fellow, i have offered to give him a list of what he needs to do but i need something that says they have a legal obligation to fund it. Even if they are German Funny enough the client base of blue chip companies have all the R/A and method statements they require before the engineers visit there site. Regards Andy

Posted By TonyB Hi Andy, What a mess. I'm an ex-HSE inspector who has in the past successfully prosecuted an overseas company for breaches to UK H&S law. That's why I think I can help. So some facts :- Most UK H&S law is based on EU Directives. The UK only impliments the minimum standards required by all the Directives Germany is in the EU, therefore the legal requirements there are, in principle the same as here. Furthermore - if in the UK, UK law applies regards of location of head office (I know everybody knows - just being thorough) Therefore breaches of UK can result in prosecution of company - even when based outside the UK. Now it gets a bit complicated. If the UK side of the business is registered at Company House - either a LTD, PLC etc. Then that legal entity can be served a summons which they must obey. However, If the legal entity is registered outside the UK (in your case Germany) the HSE can still serve the summons, but the company can't be made to attend court! The HSE do have a few options if this occurs but require assistance from the UK Government to use some sanctions against that legal entity to persuade them to do the right thing and attend. However, I have never heard of a non UK company ever failing to attend when they have a permanent presence in the UK. It can get more complicated with regards to enforcement notices. Breach of a notice, and in particular a prohibition notice could result in the site senior management (as individuals) being charge with the offense of breach of notice, as they are person/people in control! Bottom line - just because the money comes from outside the UK doesn't stop the HSE taking enforcement action and therefore the same standards apply and the HSE will not treat the sites any different! Get it wrong and HSE will still take action. Hope it helps TonyB

Posted By Ian Blenkharn Be careful with your assumptions. I have worked as a Consultant to German companies in Germany and with their UK offshoots and they were incredibly hot with each and every regulatory obligation. But look again at what you say - you had a beer with the office manager and he said.... Not exactly a good information source is it? He may know about admin matters, maybe how the photocopier works, who gets paid and when, and what the budgets are. But why should he know anything about those issues you're now worrying about? Has he got it right? Have you? Do you really expect him to know about the training arrangements for warehouse staff, or how the racking is constructed? Why should he know about PUWER? VAT yes, but PUWER?? He is the office manager, its not his job to know about PUWER. And the only hand tools he will need is a stapler and pencil sharpner. But you want to read between some probably non-existent lines and jump to what are probably quite inappropriate conclusions about the company as a whole. Leave it. If you really want to help him, or your relative, or someone else in that organisation with which you have no real connection, maybe the best thing is to realise that you have no information and that your best guess is possibly way off the mark.

Posted By andy.c. Ian That is part of the problem, the office manager is in control of the engineers, is the head of the repair section, and is in control of the warehouse. he was the head of the repair section before he inherited the title of office manager. as such surely he should know about PUWER, LOLER, ETC or have provision in place, which costs money which he's trying to get. it would be easier for me to walk away but nice if i can help someone who has asked for it. Andy

Posted By andy.c. Thanks to all It is becoming apparent that this is not usual of a German company, and as such i have asked myself the questions you have asked and decided to give him the advise of contacting the EHO, and asking for there help and guidance. Thanks again, another short but very helpful learning curve. Regards Andy