Updated Health & Safety Law Poster deadline approaches

On 5 April 2014 all workplaces are required to display the latest Health & Safety Law poster, while a new pocket card has also been produced to replace the Health & Safety leaflets circulated to employees based off-site. Workplaces have been required to display the current Health & Safety poster in a prominent position since 1999, as part of the Health and Safety Information for Employees Regulations (HSIER). A distributor of the printed materials since 2009, workplace equipment supplier Slingsby warns employers not to miss the deadline.

Lee Wright, marketing director at Slinsgby, explains: “The old Health & Safety law poster is a familiar sight but it’s visually unappealing with too much small text and despite it being easily recognisable to millions of people; very few have ever read it.  The new poster is designed to be easy to digest, with less text and it contains colour images which immediately make it more eye catching.

“Another change is that employers are no longer required to write contact details for local enforcing authorities and Employment Medical Advisory Services on the new poster.  Instead there’s a helpline that employees can call with any queries.

“We’ve been selling the updated poster since it was first unveiled but we know from our regular site visits to businesses across all industries that lots of organisations are still using the old poster and the majority of these are unaware that these changes are just a few months away so there will be lots that miss the deadline.

“Another development on the new poster is that each one includes a hologram and serial number in the bottom right corner to certify that it’s genuine because even Health & Safety posters can fall victim to counterfeiters.”