Employing subcontractors? CQMS explains what you need to know

Dec. 15, 2010 - PRLog -- Wayne Eaton from CQMS, a leading health and safety consultancy in the UK comments,

“Ultimately, when you employ a subcontractor, you take on responsibility for their health and safety, so you must ensure they comply with up to date health and safety legislation and have appropriate policies and risk assessments in place.

“This duty can be very onerous for employers.  And, more importantly, you need experience in assessing their competency to ensure you are asking for the right documents and to be able to recognise if they are suitable to the tasks being undertaken.”

Your obligations

When employing subcontractors, employers have a duty to fully vet their subcontractors, ensuring they are competent and adequately resourced as well as:

•   having a suitable Health and Safety Policy
•   having suitable risk assessments
•   having method statements or safe systems of work in place
•   trained, including in the use of any plant, equipment or tools
•   having appropriate insurances in place.

How CQMS can help you

Says Wayne,

“At CQMS we have a number of years’ experience in undertaking competency assessments, ensuring the necessary documentation is obtained and reviewed to determine compliance with health and safety legislation.”

CQMS then makes key evaluation details on each subcontractor available 24/7 via a secure area on our website (www.cqms-ltd.com).

Wayne continues,

“Furthermore, we understand that clients may have specific in-house forms i.e. questionnaires, which form part of their audit process and therefore we can incorporate these forms into our system in the evaluation process.”

Contact us

The consultants at CQMS have many years’ experience in carrying out Competency Evaluations, gained from working on a wide variety of construction projects, however, we know that every project is different, so please contact us on 0845 603 1245 for an in depth discussion about your individual company vetting or competency evaluation requirements.


/ENDS

For more information,
please contact CQMS on 0845 605 1245


ABOUT CQMS

CQMS Limited was formed in July 1994 to support employers and the self-employed across the UK through increasingly complicated Health and Safety Law.

CQMS is run by Eleanor and Wayne Eaton. CQMS is highly regarded throughout the health and safety industry for providing excellent health and safety consultancy services. Staffed by highly qualified and experienced advisers, CQMS provides specialist advice and support enabling the employer to work comfortably within the law, protecting the fundamental right to manage.

By working in partnership with companies, CQMS aim to add value our client’s businesses and help them save money by reducing accidents and incidents at work, increasing productivity and, ultimately, profitability.

As a family-run business we strongly believe in delivering a dedicated personal service that will meet your Health and Safety needs, leaving you free to run your business.

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