Health and safety competent person is a term not all employers will be familiar with. “Competent person” or “competent employee” are terms often thrown around in health and safety discussions, but what exactly does it mean, and what does competency in the workplace look like? What Makes a Competent Person Competent? In this article, we’ll answer frequent questions about this role, helping employers understand its importance for workplace safety.
What is the definition of competence in health and safety?
A simple dictionary definition of the word ‘competent’ often includes relatively straightforward-sounding phrases such as ‘being able to do something successfully or efficiently’.
The definition of competence in health and safety can become much more significant and, at the same time, considerably more nuanced.
According to the HSE, Competence can be described as the combination of training, skills, experience, and knowledge that a person has and their ability to apply them to perform a task safely.
Other factors, such as attitude and physical ability, can also help determine competence in the workplace.
Why is workplace competency critical in risk assessments?
Employers must take account of the competence of employees when conducting risk assessments. This will help to decide what level of information, instruction, training, and supervision must be provided.
HSE competence should always be considered an integral component of workplace activities, not an add-on or afterthought.
If you engage contractors, make sure they are competent, too.
The level of workplace competency in an individual should be proportionate to their job and place of work.
You would not necessitate the same health and safety competence to work in an office as you might insist upon before being allowed onto a construction site.
What defines the competence of employees?
A competent worker will have a combination of appropriate practical and theoretical knowledge and the ability to apply that knowledge in a work situation.
The degree of competence for performing or supervising a particular task must be proportional to the complexity of the task and the associated risks.
For example, a person assembling and erecting a tower scaffold would probably need to have a higher level of competence than a person using it.
Competence is frequently dynamic, i.e. it will change over time due to many factors, so the person and the process need regular review.
How can employers identify a competent worker?
A competent worker might be considered to be someone who can demonstrate that they have sufficient professional or technical training, knowledge, actual experience, and authority to enable them to:
- Carry out their assigned duties.
- Understand any potential hazards and the controls required to prevent harm related to the task (or work equipment) under consideration.
- Detect any technical defects or omissions in that work (or equipment), recognise any implications for health and safety caused by those defects or omissions, and be able to specify a remedial action to mitigate those implications.
For example, when it comes to HSE competence in handling work equipment
Take work equipment, for example. All persons who use work equipment, including the design, assembly, inspection, testing, maintenance, repair and use of that equipment and all associated safety features, must exhibit HSE competence and be appropriately trained.
Typically, individuals should have completed an approved course and hold valid certification appropriate to the work equipment used.
It’s essential for employers to provide instructions and information
Instructions and Information must be readily understood by all concerned, whether provided in writing or verbally. It should be based on the level of competence of employees involved, their experience and training, the degree of supervision provided and the complexity and length of the particular job.
Employers must consider the choice or range of languages used to deliver training/instructions, etc.
How can workplace competency be measured?
When it comes to ‘measuring’ or determining competence, a number of different evaluation techniques will doubtless need to be used to quantify elements such as knowledge, skills, experience, and personal traits.
Where knowledge and skill are concerned, reasonably objective measures should be possible; however, for experience and personal traits, more subjective measures are likely to be used to determine if the employee is a health and safety competent person.
Check Accreditations and Supervision
Check accreditations – ensure that persons claiming to have completed recognised professional or national qualification schemes have done so.
Supervise/observe any person undertaking the activity in question. It should be possible to assess the person’s experience by general observation and by the quality of the work to gauge whether they are a competent employee.
Even though this method could have some subjectivity concerns, it should quickly become apparent that individuals lack the requisite skill set to perform higher-risk tasks and lack competence in the workplace.
Be aware of the role personal traits play in defining a competent employee
Personal characteristics can hugely influence an individual’s approach to safety and the quality of a person’s work. The main areas of personality affecting these qualities are motivation, perception, and attitude.
- Motivation is the force which stimulates an individual to do something
- Attitude is an individual’s perceived response in a given situation
- Perception is how an individual interprets sensory information
Motivation often directly affects someone’s competency in the workplace, including varying degrees of positive or negative influence on how they might approach a task. Errors frequently occur when an individual’s perceptions are incorrect or ill-informed.
A person’s attitude will often directly affect the quality of their work and the degree of safety applied to the tasks undertaken.
Are you seeking a competent professional to act in your interests and advise you regarding health and safety competence?
All workplace activities must be suitably risk-assessed. Inherent within any risk control systems likely to have been implemented is the core requirement that all relevant persons be competent to do what you need them to do.
To find out more about our Health & Safety services and to appoint a competent person, get in touch today: Avensure Contact!
Health And Safety Competent Person FAQs
What defines a health and safety competent person in the eyes of the HSE?
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) determines a health and safety competent person to be an individual who possesses the necessary skill, knowledge, and experience to recognise workplace hazards, carry out risk assessments, and implement appropriate control measures effectively to ensure a safe working environment.
Is a competent employee ultimately accountable for safety?
Yes, a competent worker carries accountability for safety in the working environment. The actions of individuals in the workplace contribute to overall workplace safety, making accountability an integral part of creating a safety culture.
What is a competent employee, and what are their responsibilities?
A competent employee is well-versed in H&S and workplace environmental matters. The responsibilities of a health and safety competent person encompass regulation adherence, hazard identification and risk mitigation, safe working culture promotion, and participation in training to ensure well-being in the workplace for employees.
