Health and safety in small businesses: the interaction of context and organisational/work cultures

Existing evidence indicates that standards of workplace health and safety are poorer in small and medium sized enterprises. Against this background, this paper aims to contribute to the understanding of how health and safety issues and risks are perceived and addressed in small firms. The paper begins by briefly summarising what is known about health and safety awareness and management in small firms, including with respect to the influence of various characteristics of small firms and the people who work in them. In depth interviews conducted with owner-managers, employees and key informants (mainly regulatory officials and business intermediaries), are subsequently utilised to examine the following main issues: owner-manager/employee perceptions of and attitudes towards health and safety issues and risks; approaches to health and safety management; and influences on attitudes and behaviour. The findings are used to shed further light on the dynamics underlying the health and safety behaviour of small firms and to explore how far these dynamics relate to those identified more generally in respect of both the nature of employment relations in small firms and the ways in which such businesses respond to employment regulation.