Recruiters who supply staff who are not 'fit for purpose' could be prosecuted under new corporate manslaughter laws due to come into effect on 6 April, according to a legal expert on health and safety in the workplace.

Ron Reid, a partner at law firm Shoosmiths and head of its regulatory law practice, told Recruiter that one scenario for a prosecution could be where a client asked for a fork lift truck driver with relevant experience and external qualifications.

If the candidate subsequently turned over the truck and killed someone, and it was then discovered that the agency had no systems in place to verify that the candidate actually met the specified criteria, a successful prosecution could follow, he said.

Reid said that prosecutions would only be successful where there was negligence which fell "far below the standards expected". He said that recruiters who supplied staff who used dangerous equipment such as forklift trucks were more at risk than those "supplying shelf stackers to Sainsbury's".

Jason Silk, HR and safety director at construction recruiter Hill McGlynn, agreed that the new law 'raised the bar' for recruiters. However, he told Recruiter that he was confident that his agency met its responsibilities.

Silk said that while "ultimate responsibility" for setting and enforcing health and safety lay with end users, as a recruiter Hill McGlynn also had certain obligations. These included checking for hazards on clients' sites, informing candidates of any dangers, and ensuring they were medically fit to do the job.



Key points: Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2008

• There must be evidence of gross negligence

• Focus on the way that organisations' activities are run rather than on the actions of any one individual

• Penalties: unlimited fine, a 'remedial order' (requiring the organisation to take specified steps to remedy the breach) and a publicity order (requiring the organisation to publicise the conviction in a specified manner).