OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH
& SAFETY REPRESENTATIVES
Section 29: Election and appointment of Representatives:
a) Employees at a designated working place may elect from among themselves health and safety representatives.
b) Employees at the mine may elect from among themselves any full-time Health and Safety Representative that may be agreed or determined in terms of the conditions contained in the Health and Safety Agreement.
c) Elections referred to in (a) and (b) above must be conducted in the prescribed manner.
d) Employees elected as Health and Safety Representatives must be appointed by the Employer as prescribed in the Health and Safety Agreement.
Duration of Health and Safety Representative Appointment:
a) Term of office of Health and Safety Representative (or alternate) will be two years.
After being appointed, an H&S Rep (and his alternate) will remain in office, until:
a) Term of office elapse, where upon, he may be re-elected and re-appointed.
b) His employment with the company is terminated.
c) Dismissed or retrenched.
d) Transferred or promoted.
e) Resigns or employees are dissatisfied with his performance.
f) Health and Safety Committee may sanction the vote of removal of a H&S Representative by employees.
g) If majority (50%+1) of employees votes in favour, he/she will be removed with approval of the Health and Safety Committee.
Sect 25: Health and Safety Representative and Committees:
1) Every mine with 20 or more employees must have a health and safety representative for each shift at each designated working place at the mine.
2) Every mine with more than 100 or more employees must have one or more health and safety committees.
3) A health and safety representative or a member of the health and safety committee does not incur any civil liability only because of doing or failing to do something which a health and safety representative or a member of the health and safety committee may do or is required to do in terms of this Act.
One or more health and safety committees must be formed when:
1) Employers have appointed 2 or more health and safety representatives.
2) Inspectors instruct employers to do so
Employers have certain functions to perform:
1) Decide on the number of health and safety committee members.
2) Appoint committee members and ensure they attend every committee meeting.
3) Ensure that committees meet at least every 3 months.
4) Ensure that a health and safety committee complies with the provisions in the Health and Safety Agreement and performs the duties assigned to them.
Employers have certain functions to perform:
1) Decide on the number of health and safety committee members.
2) Appoint committee members and ensure they attend every committee meeting.
3) Ensure that committees meet at least every 3 months
4) Ensure that a health and safety committee complies with the provisions in the Health and Safety Agreement and performs the duties assigned to them.
Employers have certain functions to perform:
1) Decide on the number of health and safety committee members.
2) Appoint committee members and ensure they attend every committee meeting.
3) Ensure that committees meet at least every 3 months.
4) Ensure that a health and safety committee complies with the provisions in the Health and Safety Agreement and performs the duties assigned to them.
Section 34: Establishment of Health and Safety Committees:
1) Once the Health and Safety Agreement has been concluded, a Health and Safety Committee must be established in terms of the agreement.
2) A Health and Safety Committee must consist of –
a) At least four employee representatives; and
b) A number of employer representatives equal to or less than the number of employee representatives.
3) The Health and Safety Representatives must appoint the employee representatives on the Health and Safety Committee. The employee representatives must be:
a) Broadly representative of the working places at the mine, and
b) Employees at the mine
4) No more than two of the employee representatives may be appointed from full-time employees who are not health and safety representatives, unless all of the health and safety representatives have been appointed to the committee and there are still employee committee positions to be filled.
5) The employer must appoint the employer representatives on the health and safety committee.
a) The persons appointed must include persons who have authority to develop and implement health and safety policies at the mine.
6) No more than two of the employee representatives may be appointed from full-time employees who are not health and safety representatives, unless all of the health and safety representatives have been appointed to the committee and there are still employee committee positions to be filled.
7) The employer must appoint the employer representatives on the health and safety committee.
a) The persons appointed must include persons who have authority to develop and implement health and safety policies at the mine
Section 36: Rights and Powers of Health and Safety Committees:
A health and safety committee may:
1) Represent employees on all aspects of health and safety.
2) Participate in consultations on any health and safety matter.
3) Request the Chief Inspector of Mines to review any code of practice.
4) Request relevant information from any person who is required by this Act, to provide that information to the committee.
5) Agree on additional qualifications or functions of health and safety representatives.
Request:
1) An Inspector of Mines to conduct an investigation.
2) Chief Inspector of Mines to conduct inquiry.
3) With approval from employer, be assisted by or consult an adviser or technical expert who may be either another employee or any other person.
4) Take reasonable time to prepare for each meeting of the committee.
5) Take reasonable time to report on meetings of the committee.
6) No employer may unreasonably withhold the approval for the health and safety committee to be assisted by or consult an adviser or a technical expert who may be either another employee or any other person.
7) Members of health and safety committees are entitled to perform their functions and to receive training during ordinary working hours.
8) Any time reasonably spent by a member of a health and safety committee for a purpose referred to above, must be considered for all purposes to be time spent carrying out the employment duties of that member.
Functions of Health and Safety Committees and Members:
1) Make and keep records of recommendations to employers and Inspectors.
2) Discuss reports and keep records of incidents in which someone is killed, injured or becomes ill.
3) Make recommendations to the employer regarding any matter affecting the health or safety of persons at the workplace.
4) Meet at least once a month.
5) Determine own rules and procedures.
6) Represent management / employees on all aspects of health and safety.
7) Participate in consultations on any health and safety matters.
8) Request Chief Inspector of Mines to review any code of practice.
9) Request relevant information from any person who is required to provide that information to the committee.
10) Agree on additional qualifications or functions of Health and Safety representatives.
11) Take reasonable time to prepare for each meeting.
12) Decide together with management on the intervals for review training of all employees.
NB. A Health and Safety Committee or a member thereof, shall not incur any civil liability by reason of the fact that it or any member failed to do anything which it or any member may or is required to do.
Section 26: Negotiations and Consultations before appointment of Representatives:
The employer of any mine where there must be a health and safety representative in terms of Section 25 must meet, within the prescribed period, with the representative Trade Union/s of the mine, to enter into negotiations to conclude a collective agreement concerning:
1) Designation of working hours.
2) The number of full-time health and safety representatives.
3) Election or appointment of health and safety representatives.
4) The terms of office of health and safety representatives and circumstances and the manner in which they may be removed from office.
5) The manner in which vacancies are to be filled.
6) The manner in which health and safety representatives must perform their functions and duties in terms of the Act.
7) Procedures for effective exercise of the right to withdraw from serious danger in terms of Section 23.
8) Circumstances and the manner in which meetings must be held.
9) Facilities and assistance that must be provided to health and safety representatives in terms of Section 31 (3).
10) Training of health and safety representatives.
11) Procedure that provides for conciliation and arbitration of disputes arising from application or interpretation of collective agreement or any provision of this Chapter.
12) Any other matter which the parties believe will promote health and safety at the mine concerned.
NB:
Before concluding a collective agreement with the representative Trade Union, the employer must consult on the matters referred to in that subsection with all other registered Trade Unions with members at the mine.
Section 27: Designation of working places:
1) If a collective agreement is concluded, employer must designate working places in terms of Section 26 of the MHSA.
2) If no collecting agreement is concluded, employer must designate working places at the mine so that –
a) Every working place at the mine is designated.
b) No health and safety representative is responsible for more than 100 employees.
c) No health and safety representative is responsible for more than 50 employees if designated working place includes separate working places.
Section 31: Duty to compensate and assist Representatives:
1) Employer must pay every full-time health and safety representative appropriate remuneration at least equal to the remuneration the representative earned immediately before being appointed as a full-time health and safety representative.
2) Employer must provide reasonable time and facilities for employees to meet monthly with their health and safety representatives in order to consider: -
a) Health and safety in their places, and
b) Reports by the representatives on the performance of their functions.
3) Employer must provide health and safety representatives with:
a) Facilities and assistance reasonably necessary to perform their functions.
b) Training that is reasonably required to enable them to perform their functions, and
c) Time off from work, without loss of remuneration, to attend any training course that is agreed or prescribed.
4) Unless otherwise agreed, the assistance referred to above does not include any associated with advisers or independent experts contemplated in in either Section 30 (1) (h) or Section 36 (1) (g)
5) On completion of a term of office as a full-time health and safety representative, the health and safety representative is entitled to –
a) Employment in the same position held immediately before being appointed as a full-time health and safety representative, or –
b) Employment in a position that is at least as favourable as the position held immediately before being appointed a full-time health and safety representative
Section 32: Duty to inform representatives:
1) Every employer must notify the health and safety representatives concerned and, if there is a health and safety committee, the employee chair-person of that committee –
a) In good time, of inspections, investigations or inquiries of which an Inspector has notified the employer, and
b) As soon as practicable, of any accident, serious illness or health-threatening occurrence, or other dangerous event
2) All mining companies need to ensure that sufficient health and safety representatives are elected and properly trained in health and safety representative functions for designated workplaces on the mine
3) Effective conducting of health and safety representative activities will not only strengthen the organization’s goals and objectives, but also prevent injuries and losses
4) In all operations, we must be alert to potential consequences of incorrect working standards
5) We must strictly adhere to all laid down standards and procedures that will ensure our own safety and the safety of others.
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