15th July 2005, 12:13 AM
Having read the earlier mails in this strand, I wouldn't get to hung up about the SCAUM H&S manual. The SCAUM manual is surely only a guidance document and is not in itself a workable Health and Safety policy with accompanying procedures. Every employer has a legal duty to ensure that an appropriate H&S policy (with accompanying procedures) is in place. There is no such duty to possess the SCAUM manual.
What archaeologists need to know is that their employer is taking their H&S responsibilities seriously; that there is demonstrable evidence of those responsibilites in terms of written risk assessments; that copies of those risk assessments are available for consultation [u]at the workplace</u> and that those assessments have been undertaken by a competent person. Many of the problems outlined earlier suggest that some/all of the above conditions are not being fulfilled.
A free downloadable H&S guidance document is available at
http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/law.pdf