Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of bringing forward legislative proposals to ensure that construction companies of all sizes provide at least one employee with occupational health awareness training.

All employers, including construction companies, are already required through existing legislation to ensure employees have appropriate occupational health related training. Employers have a general duty to provide, so far as is reasonably practicable, appropriate information, instruction and training as necessary to ensure the health of their employees. This training must be relevant, proportionate and effective so that employees are aware of the health hazards they face and the measures in place to control the risks arising from them.

This training can be undertaken in several ways, including via an existing national construction industry training framework. The Health and Safety Executive provides further information on training to assist employers in complying with their legal duties: http://www.hse.gov.uk/managing/delivering/do/organising/training.htm.