Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Construction) Regulations
The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Construction) Regulations 2006 (S.I. No. 504 of 2006) came into operation from 6 November 2006. These Regulations have been amended by the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Construction)(Amendment) Regulations 2008 (S.I. No. 130 of 2008), the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Construction)(Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2008 (S.I. No. 423 of 2008).and the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Construction)(Amendment) Regulations 2010 (S.I. No. 523 of 2010).
The 2006 Regulations set out the main requirements for the protection of the safety, health and welfare of persons working on construction sites. The Regulations apply to all construction projects including the alteration, decoration, maintenance and repair of buildings and the installation, maintenance and removal of mechanical and other systems fixed within or to structures. They place obligations on clients and designers to ensure that safety and health is taken into account before any construction work begins. Contractors must ensure that the work on site is properly co-ordinated and carried out in a safe manner.
The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Construction)(Amendment) Regulations 2008 (S.I. No. 130 of 2008) amend the 2006 Construction Regulations by changing the operational date for Regulations 19(1)(b), 25(1)(b), 29(1)(g), 74(e) and 97(b) and (c) from 6 May 2008 to 6 July 2009, in respect of the possession of a Construction Skills Registration Card under the Construction Skills Certification Scheme, as it applies to the following tasks-
(i) Mobile tower scaffold (where the employee has not been trained in basic or advanced scaffolding),
(ii) Signing, lighting and guarding on roads,
(iii) Locating under-ground services, and
(iv) Shotfiring,
which are listed at paragraphs 1(1)(c), (r), (s) and (t) of Schedule 4 to the 2006 Regulations.
These Regulations also rectify a typographical error in paragraph 1(1)(n) of Schedule 4 to the 2006 Regulations.
The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Construction) Regulations)(Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2008 (S.I. No. 423 of 2008) amend the 2006 Construction Regulations by substituting revised provisions for Regulation 97, relating to guarding, lighting and signage in connection with construction works on roads, footpaths and cycle tracks.
The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Construction)(Amendment) Regulations 2010 (S.I. No. 523 of 2010) substitute revised provisions for Regulations 22 (Duties of the project supervisor for the construction stage, notification to the Health and Safety Authority), 51 (Safety precautions), 79 (Health hazards) and 98 (Shelters and accommodation for clothing and for taking meals) and insert new Schedule 7 relating to “Minimum particulars to be notified by the Project Supervisor for the Construction Stage to the Health and Safety Authority before the construction work begins”, in the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work (Construction) Regulations 2006.