Construction Design & Management (CDM) 2015 Regulations
CDM 2015 makes it a legal requirement for Employees and Contractors to ensure that anyone working on site is appropriately supervised:
- A contractor who employs workers or manages work under their control must ensure that appropriate supervision is provided.
- Supervisors are a vital part of effective management arrangements. Effective supervisors are those who have the skills, knowledge, training, experience and leadership qualities to suit the job in hand. Where site workers are promoted to a supervisory role, they should be provided with nationally recognised site supervisor training which includes leadership and communication skills.
Construction employers’ will not rely on industry accreditation cards or similar being presented to them as evidence that a construction worker, supervisor or manager has the right qualities.
National recognised quualifications e.g. National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs) provide assurance that the holder has the appropriate level of competence.
Who is a contractor?
CDM 2015 – Para 147:Anyone who directly employs or engages construction workers or manages construction is a contractor.
Contractors include:
- Sub-contractors
- Any individual
- Sole trader
- Self-employed worker
- Any business that manages or controls construction work as part of their business
The duties on contractors apply whether the workers under their control are employees, self-employed or agency workers.
Why is a contractor important?
CDM 2015 – Para 149:Contractors and the workers under their control are those most at risk of injury and ill health. They can influence the way work is carried out to secure their own health and safety ant that of others affected.
What must a contractor do?
CDM 2015 – Para 150:Contractors have a number of specific duties. In the context of this rational these include:
Anyone appointing a contractor must ensure the contractor has the skills, knowledge and experience and, where relevant, organisational capability to carry out the work for which they are appointed; and
To cooperate with other duty holders
Appointing and employing workers
CDM 2015 – Para 162:When a contractor employs or appoints an Individual to work on a construction site, they should make inquiries to make sure the Individual:
has the skills, training, knowledge and experience to carry out the work they will be employed to do in a way that secures health and safety for anyone working on the site; or
is in the process of obtaining them,
CDM 2015 – Para 163:Sole reliance should not be placed on industry accreditation cards or similar being presented to them as evidence that a worker has the right qualities. Nationally recognised qualifications e.g. National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs) can provide contractors with assurance that the holder has the skills, knowledge, training and experience to carry out the task(s) for which they are appointed. Contractors should recognise that training on its own is not enough.