Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Law in Ireland 2nd ed

This fully updated and completely reorganised edition of Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Law in Ireland provides a comprehensive analysis and commentary on this increasingly complex and developing area of law. The text begins with a series of chapters that analyse the risk-based principles that are the basis for the general duties of employers, and their managers, in the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005. The author then proceeds to discuss in detail more than 30 specific workplace safety and health topics, which will allow readers to have a complete understanding of the essential elements of the law.

Among the key features of the text are:

• Analysis of the risk-based and management-based statutory duties in the 2005 Act that apply to all employers and in all places of work, whether in the private sector or public sector;
• The role and functions of the Health and Safety Authority (HSA), the lead national regulatory body for workplace safety and health, including the increased focus on prosecutions on indictment under the 2005 Act, in which the average fine in 2024 was over €110,000;
• Discussion of the derivative personal criminal liability of managers in the 2005 Act, including the Supreme Court’s view on the meaning of “manager” where management functions are delegated in medium and large organisations;
• Extensive reference to Approved Codes of Practice (ACoPs) and other authoritative guidance from the HSA;
• Discussion of the general principles of employer’s civil liability for workplace injuries and illness, including the role of the Personal Injuries Resolution Board (PIRB), and the impact of the 2021 Personal Injuries Guidelines made under the Judicial Council Act 2019;
• Detailed analysis of over 30 workplace safety and health topics, including the relevant Regulations that apply to them, as well as extensive reference to case law addressing both criminal liability and civil liability; and
• Full coverage of the common hazards and risks that are reported annually to the HSA, as well as emerging workplace safety and health issues, such as the challenges and opportunities provided by AI, hybrid working arrangements after Covid-19 and return to office (RTO) protocols, and proposals for new fire and emergency legislation.

The book will be of particular interest to legal practitioners advising employers on regulatory compliance with the legislation, as well as those advising in personal injuries claims, and to occupational safety and health practitioners, both in the private sector and the public sector.