As a worker on a construction site, you have legal duties for health and safety as well as your employer. Under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, you must take reasonable care of your own health and safety and of anyone who could be affected by what you do or fail to do, and you must co-operate with your employer so they can meet their duties. In practice, this means following training and site rules, using equipment as intended, reporting hazards and not putting others at risk.
Key takeaways
- You must take reasonable care of your own health and safety and that of others who could be affected by your actions or omissions.
- You must co-operate with your employer and others on site so that they can carry out their own safety duties.
- You must not interfere with or misuse anything provided for health, safety or welfare, whether intentionally or recklessly.
- Use equipment, tools and PPE in the way you were trained, and follow site rules and instructions.
- Report hazards, defects, near misses and anything you think is unsafe to your supervisor.
- Employers and other duty holders have duties too, so your duties sit alongside theirs and do not replace them.
The legal duties of workers
The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 is the main piece of health and safety law in Great Britain. It places duties on employers, the self-employed, people who control premises, manufacturers and suppliers, and on employees. The duties for employees can be summed up in two parts.
First, you must take reasonable care of your own health and safety and that of other people who may be affected by what you do or do not do at work. "Reasonable care" is not a test of perfection. It means acting sensibly with the information, training and instructions you have been given. The reference to what you do not do matters: ignoring a hazard that you could have reported or dealt with can count as a failure of this duty.
Second, you must co-operate with your employer, or anyone else carrying out a duty under the law, so that they can do what they must. That includes following safe systems of work, attending the training and briefings you are asked to attend and following instructions that are there to keep people safe.
The Act also says that nobody may intentionally or recklessly interfere with or misuse anything provided in the interests of health, safety or welfare. That covers guards, fencing, signs, alarms, fire equipment, first aid supplies and welfare facilities. Removing a guard, blocking a fire exit, switching off an alarm or messing about with equipment would fall into this area.
Other health and safety regulations add further detail, such as duties to use PPE and work equipment in line with your training and to tell your employer about dangers. The HSE page for construction workers is linked in the Sources section and is worth reading.
What workers should do on site
The headings below put the duties in sections 7 and 8 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 into practical terms for site work. Read the Act on legislation.gov.uk for the exact wording.
Look after yourself and others
Think about the effect of what you are doing on people nearby. Keep your work area tidy, do not leave tools or materials where someone could trip, and tell people if your work creates a hazard for them. Do not take shortcuts that you know put others at risk.
Follow training, instructions and site rules
Pay attention at your induction and in briefings. Follow site rules about access, parking, speed limits, permits and PPE. If an instruction seems wrong or unsafe, ask. Do not just ignore it. See site induction explained to understand what you should be told when you arrive.
Use equipment and PPE properly
Use tools, machines and PPE only as you were trained. Do not use equipment you are not trained or authorised to use. Check PPE before use and tell your supervisor if it is damaged, does not fit or is missing. Wearing it is part of your duty to take reasonable care.
Report hazards and problems
Tell your supervisor or the person in charge about anything that you believe could cause harm, including damaged equipment, unsafe access, missing guards, poor housekeeping and near misses. A near miss is often a warning of a more serious incident to come. Our guide to risk assessment on site shows how to spot and report hazards.
Do not interfere with safety measures
Leave guards, barriers, signs and alarms as you found them. If a safety measure is in your way, report it rather than removing it.
Who is responsible for what
Worker duties sit within a wider system. The table below is a simple overview. For the detail of other duty holders' roles, see the HSE construction pages.
| Who | Main part in site safety |
|---|---|
| Employer | Provides a safe system of work, information, instruction, training, supervision, equipment and PPE where needed |
| Supervisor or manager | Passes on instructions, checks work is done safely and acts on reports |
| Worker (you) | Takes reasonable care, co-operates, follows training and rules, uses equipment and PPE properly, reports problems |
| Principal contractor | Co-ordinates site safety arrangements and welfare during the construction phase |
| Self-employed person | Has duties for their own safety and that of anyone affected by their work |
Your duties do not disappear because someone else is also responsible. If you see something unsafe, you still have to act on it, usually by reporting it or by stopping what you are doing.
Your daily checklist
- I have attended the induction and understand the site rules.
- I know who my supervisor is and how to report a problem.
- I am only doing work I am trained and authorised to do.
- I have checked my tools and PPE before use.
- I have kept my work area tidy and safe for others.
- I have not removed, bypassed or damaged any safety measure.
- I have reported hazards, defects and near misses.
- I am fit to work and have told someone if I am not, for example if I am unwell or impaired.
What can happen if you do not meet your duties
HSE can take enforcement action against individuals as well as organisations when the law is broken, and employers can have their own disciplinary rules that apply to unsafe behaviour. This article does not cover specific penalties because they depend on the circumstances. For the legal text, see the Act on legislation.gov.uk and check the HSE pages for current guidance on enforcement.
The better reason to meet your duties is simple: it keeps you and your colleagues from being hurt.
Practice check
These two questions are original practice items written for this site. They are not official test questions and give no official result. This site is independent and is not affiliated with CSCS or CITB.
Question 1. Which of these is a duty that the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 places on workers?
- A. To write the site risk assessment for the whole project.
- B. To take reasonable care of their own health and safety and that of others affected by their actions.
- C. To supply all PPE for the whole team.
- D. To appoint the principal contractor.
Answer: B. Workers must take reasonable care for themselves and others, and co-operate with their employer. The other options are duties of employers or clients.
Question 2. You see that a guard has been removed from a machine and left on the floor. What is the best action?
- A. Leave it, since it is not your machine.
- B. Use the machine but be careful.
- C. Do not use the machine, keep others away if safe to do so, and report it to your supervisor.
- D. Put the guard back on loosely so it looks right.
Answer: C. You must not misuse or interfere with safety measures, and you should report defects so a competent person can put things right.
More practice is in our free practice questions.
FAQ
Do workers have legal duties for health and safety, or only employers?
Workers have legal duties as well. The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 requires you to take reasonable care for your own safety and that of others, and to co-operate with your employer. Employers have separate and wider duties.
Does the Act apply if I am self-employed?
Self-employed people have duties of their own under health and safety law, including for the safety of others affected by their work. Check the HSE construction pages to see how your role is described.
What if I think a task is unsafe?
Stop and tell your supervisor before you carry on. Explain what you think the hazard is and ask for the task to be reviewed. Do not do the task just because you were asked or because it has always been done that way.
Is this the same as what the CITB HS&E test asks?
The test checks your health and safety knowledge, and understanding your own duties is part of that. The CITB Operatives page gives the test format of 50 questions in 45 minutes with a 90% pass mark, so at least 45 of 50. See our Operatives test format page and check the official CITB pages for current details.
Sources
- HSE: Construction workers, roles and responsibilities
- Legislation.gov.uk: Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974
Independent guide, not affiliated with, authorised by, approved by or endorsed by CSCS or CITB. Last updated 2026-10-08.