Hand Tools
Hand tools are used in all workplaces, every day of the year. Many tasks cannot be completed without the use of hand tools; yet simple hand tools can cause serious injuries through misuse or poor maintenance.
(Note: The following information is restricted to hand tools. Power tools using electrical, pneumatic or hydraulic power, those fuelled by liquid fuel such as petrol and cartridge operated tools are excluded.)
The safe use of hand tools is the joint responsibility of both the employer, for the supply of suitable and safe tools and the employee, for safe use and maintenance. In some trades it is commonplace for employees to supply their own hand tools but this does not change responsibilities. And whilst employees may be expected to supply simple hand tools such as hammers, chisels and spanners they may also make special tools, for example for carrying out certain tasks.
But does the employer have any responsibility for the safe condition and use of employee's own tools? The answer is yes! Where an employee's tools or equipment cause injury to a fellow employee it is quite likely that the employer will be held to be responsible as a result of what is known as vicarious liability. The fact that the employer could be held liable means that they should introduce procedures and policies to reduce the risk of accident and so limit their potential liability.
- Vicarious Liability
- Employee's Tools - Types
- Safe Use of Tools
- Tool Policy
- Key Action Points
- Case Study
What is Vicarious Liability?
Vicarious liability is the situation where one person is held to be responsible for the acts and omissions of another. An employer is generally regarded as being vicariously liable for the negligent acts or omissions of his employees. Thus the employer is held liable for the actions of their employees in the course of their employment whether or not such act or omission was specifically authorised by the employer. It is possible for an employee's tools to cause injury to another employee through;
- wrongly using the right tool
- deliberate using the wrong tool
- failing to properly maintain a tool.
Employees Tools - Types
Employee's tools can be considered under a number of headings:
- Hand Tools: For example simple tools such as hammers and chisels, spanners, wrenches etc
- Special Purpose Tools: This would include tools that have a specific and unique function, for example tools issued by (or purchased from) equipment suppliers for work on their machinery or equipment
- "Homemade Specials": This description refers to special tools made by employees in order to carry out specific tasks or jobs. Such tools will be jealously guarded since they will often make difficult jobs much easier or quicker.
Safe Use of Tools
The safe use of tools is dependant upon a number of features
Selection: Safe use of tools often depends on the selection of the correct tool for the job. A screwdriver is designed for driving screws into timber, and is not intended for levering or prying.
Some circumstances require the use of special tools e.g. non-sparking or non-magnetic tools
Proper Use: This aspect is closely allied to the above. There is a correct method of use for most tools and failure to follow it will increase the risk of injury. Driving nails should be done with a hammer and not a spanner.
Proper use may extend to include the use of suitable personal protective equipment when tools are used e.g. eye protection when hammering metal chisels, pins etc or when using masonry nails.
Inspection: All tools must be subject to regular inspection. Users of tools should ideally inspect them before each occasion of use although a tool in continuous use throughout the working day e.g. a hammer could be inspected at the start of the day. The purpose of this inspection is to detect faults and damage and to ensure that the defects are fixed quickly. Employees should carry out such inspections regularly and routinely.
However, it is advisable for employers to carry out more formal inspections e.g. weekly or monthly. The frequency should be established by means of risk assessment taking into account the nature of the tools that employees are expected to provide and the frequency of use. Employer inspections should ideally be carried out by shop floor supervisors and should ideally be recorded.
Maintenance: Some tools will require routine maintenance on a regular basis. For example:
- Cutting tools such as wood chisels will need regular sharpening
- Cold chisels, drift pins and wedges must have mushroomed heads ground off regularly
- Wooden handles on hammers should be free of cracks and splinters and should be a tight fit in the hammer head
- Adjustable tools such as wrenches may need lubricating and adjusting
- Where tools can not be repaired e.g. spanners with "sprung" jaws they should be discarded and replaced
Training: Employers should consider what training might be necessary. This could take the form of simple publicity e.g. posters warning of the dangers associated with poor tools or by means of "tool box talks".
Tool Policy
It is essential that employers have in place a formal policy regarding employee's tools. Such a policy should clearly state:
- What tools are supplied by the employer and thus need not be provided by employees
- What tools employees are expected to provide at their own cost
- What standards are in place e.g. the employer may set minimum standards regarding the type and quality of tools that are permitted or may prohibit "home made specials"
- Rules and procedures regarding the purchase of employee's tool e.g. assisted purchase schemes to ensure that tools of a suitable quality are purchased
- Employees' responsibility for inspection, maintenance and repair of all tools - not just those they have supplied
- Employer's procedures for inspection
Key Action Points
Employers should:
- Have a clear policy regarding employees tools
- Consider a policy of assisting with the purchase of tools (to ensure suitable tools are purchased)
- Carry out inspections of all tools
- Keep written records of such inspections
Case Study
A mechanic at a garage was using his own hammer and chisel to free a bearing from an axle. The task was difficult and he was swearing as he hammered the chisel. His supervisor walked over to see what the matter was - he was not fully aware of what task the employee was undertaking and did not appreciate that he should be wearing safety spectacles. As he drew near a chip flew off the mushroomed head of the employee's chisel striking the supervisor in the eye. The supervisor is now blind in one eye.
More details can be obtained from HSE's leaflet on work equipment safely.
