The Health and Safety (Consultation with Employees) Regulations 1996

Persons to be consulted

4.—(1) The consultation required by regulation 3 is consultation with either—

(a)the employees directly; or

(b)in respect of any group of employees, one or more persons in that group who were elected, by the employees in that group at the time of the election, to represent that group for the purposes of such consultation (and any such persons are in these Regulations referred to as “representatives of employee safety”).

(2) Where an employer consults representatives of employee safety he shall inform the employees represented by those representatives of—

(a)the names of those representatives; and

(b)the group of employees represented by those representatives.

(3) An employer shall not consult a person as a representative of employee safety if—

(a)that person has notified the employer that he does not intend to represent the group of employees for the purposes of such consultation;

(b)that person has ceased to be employed in the group of employees which he represents;

(c)the period for which that person was elected has expired without that person being re-elected; or

(d)that person has become incapacitated from carrying out his functions under these regulations;

and where pursuant to this paragraph an employer discontinues consultation with that person he shall inform the employees in the group concerned of that fact.

(4) Where an employer who has been consulting representatives of employee safety decides to consult employees directly he shall inform the employees and the representatives of that fact.