Lesson 2 – Legislation

There are three Principal acts governing the transportation of dangerous goods

The Occupational Health and Safety Act 85 of 1993 stipulates:

Duty of employer

The employer has a ‘duty to inform’ the employees of any possible risk they might come in contact with.
The employer must provide and maintain safe work environment.
The employer must not allow employees to be exposed to health and safety risks
The employer must provide an emergency procedure, first aid equipment & emergency equipment.

Duty of Employee

The employee must abide by the rules and report unsafe acts or situations.
The employee is responsible for his / her own safety and the safety of others around you.

The Mine Health and Safety Act 29 of 1996 stipulates:

Duty of Employer

The employer must provide and maintain a safe work environment.
The employer must not allow employees to be exposed to health and safety risks.
The employer must provide an emergency procedure, first aid equipment and emergency equipment.

Duty of Employee

Employees must abide by rules and report unsafe acts and situations.
Employees are responsible for their own safety and the safety of others around them

The National Road Traffic act 93 of 1996 stipulates:

Duty of the Operator (Owner of the transport company)

The operator is responsible for suitability and roadworthiness of the vehicle.
The operator is responsible for driver training and must ensure he executes the task safely without incident.

Duty of Consignee (Customer)

The customer is responsible for the off-loading process.
The customer is responsible to control the off-loading process.
The customer is responsible to provide procedures for first aid & emergency equipment to mitigate incidents of cyanide exposure.