There is “no reason” why young people cannot undertake work experience placements in environments where scissors are present, a Health and Safety Executive panel has ruled.
The decision came after a mother, who enquired about work experience for her daughter at a fabric store, was informed they could not employ students “due to health and safety as there are scissors around”.
Concerns around insurance meant the mother would have to look elsewhere.
The HSE’s panel quickly unpicked the fabric of the store’s assertion, finding that employers’ liability insurance policies already covered work placements. This meant that the fabric store wouldn’t have had to seek out additional cover.
“It is unclear whether the local fabric warehouse is misinformed or was simply using health and safety as an easy excuse for not offering a placement,” reads the HSE’s website.
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