> Disclaimer: SiteKiln gives you plain-English information, not legal or health and safety advice. Always follow your site-specific risk assessments and talk to a qualified professional.
The short version
You do not have to work in serious and immediate danger, and your boss (or the main contractor) is not allowed to punish you for backing off unsafe work if your belief is reasonable.
You also have a legal duty not to put yourself or others at risk, so walking away from genuinely dangerous work can actually be you doing your job properly.
Why it matters
On small sites, people often "just crack on" with dodgy ladders, live electrics or missing edge protection because they don't want to be seen as awkward or lose the job. If something goes wrong, it's you that gets hurt -- and you can still end up blamed for ignoring obvious risk -- even though the law says you should not be forced to work in serious and imminent danger.
Knowing your rights lets you push back calmly, explain the risk, and give the firm a chance to fix it before anyone gets hurt or HSE gets involved.
Explainer: what the law actually says
The core rights (ERA 1996 s44 / s100)
Under the Employment Rights Act 1996:
You have the right not to be treated badly (no pay docking, no worse shifts, no threats) because you:
- Raise health and safety concerns about your work, or
- Leave, refuse to return to, or refuse part of your work where you reasonably believe there is serious and imminent danger that you cannot reasonably avoid, or
- Take appropriate steps to protect yourself or others from that danger.
If you are an employee and you are sacked mainly for this, the dismissal is automatically unfair -- there is no minimum service needed to claim.
Key phrase: "reasonably believed there to be serious and imminent danger". That means a tribunal later looks at what things looked like at the time, not with perfect hindsight: your knowledge, training, what you could see, and what guidance was in place.
Who is covered -- employee, worker, self-employed
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Employees: have full protection under s44 (detriment) and s100 (automatic unfair dismissal).
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"Workers" (casuals, zero-hours, many agency / umbrella setups): later changes extended s44 protection against detriment to workers, not just employees.
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Genuine self-employed: you're not covered by s44/s100 as an employee, but you still have rights under contract and under health and safety law -- and a duty not to put yourself or others at risk. On CDM jobs, the client and contractor still have duties to you as a self-employed worker on site.
Most people reading this will be either:
- Directors on the books of their own LTD (so technically employees of their company), or
- Self-employed trades working under main contractors.
You can also wear more than one hat at once -- e.g. director/employee of your own LTD and "worker" on a labour-only gang.
Your duty to work safely (HSW Act 1974)
The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 says:
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Every employer must protect workers' health, safety and welfare so far as reasonably practicable -- things like safe systems of work, training, and proper kit.
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Every worker must take reasonable care of their own health and safety and that of others, and cooperate with the employer so they can meet their duties (this is section 7).
That duty on you cuts both ways:
- You should use the right kit, follow method statements, wear PPE, and not mess about.
- You should not climb scaffolding that is visibly incomplete, use a saw with no guard, work in a trench with no shoring, or walk under unsecure loads -- because that is not "reasonable care".
So refusing blatantly unsafe work is not being awkward -- it's actually you complying with your own legal duty.
Quick tests: is this "serious and imminent" danger?
Use these as rough guides. Real life is messy, but if you're ticking these boxes, you're probably in s44 territory.
Test 1 -- what could happen, and how fast?
Ask yourself: "If this goes wrong, how bad, and how quickly?"
- Serious: risk of death, major injury (fractures, spinal injury, crushing), long-term illness (asbestos exposure in a confined space, fumes with no ventilation).
- Imminent: the danger is live now or in the immediate future, not just something that might hurt you in 20 years if you use PPE wrongly every day.
Examples likely to be serious and imminent:
- Working at height with no proper edge protection, fragile roofs with no crawling boards or harnesses, or a tower that is visibly unstable.
- Deep excavation with no shoring or battering, and signs of ground movement or water ingress.
- Live electrics exposed, no isolation, and you're asked to work right next to them.
- Lifting operations with slings in poor condition, overload, or no one in charge of the lift.
- Confined space with possible fumes or low oxygen and no proper controls.
Examples usually not serious and imminent on their own (but still worth raising):
- Minor housekeeping issues (bit of messy cabling, small trip risk) where you can reasonably tidy or control them.
- PPE argument where all other controls are okay and the risk is low (e.g. someone not wearing a hi-vis in a quiet internal fit-out) -- still worth fixing, but not usually a s44 refusal scenario.
Test 2 -- can I reasonably avoid it?
s44 expects that you refuse work only where you could not reasonably be expected to avert the danger.
Ask: "Can I safely change how we're doing this, or is the setup itself fundamentally unsafe?"
If all of these are true, refusal is more likely justified:
- You've raised the issue and been ignored or fobbed off.
- There is no safe method, kit or supervision available right now.
- Doing the job as asked means putting yourself or others in obvious danger.
If you can reasonably solve it yourself (e.g. quickly isolating a circuit you're trained to isolate, moving materials blocking a fire exit) then s44 is less likely to apply -- but you should still report the issue.
What to do if work looks unsafe
Think raise -- record -- remove -- report.
Stop and take a breath
Don't just refuse in anger. Quickly check: am I looking at a serious and imminent danger, or just something annoying? Think about what could actually happen, to who, and how quickly.
Raise it clearly, on the spot
Tell the person in charge (site manager, supervisor, or client if you're on a small domestic job).
Use simple language:
"I'm not happy to do this. There's a serious risk of [fall / collapse / electrocution] because [specific reason]. It's not safe as it is."
If there is a RAMS / method statement, point to it: "That's not how it's written up."
Propose a safer way
Suggest a fix where you can: proper access, edge protection, isolation, shoring, more labour, temporary works, etc.
This shows you're trying to get the job done, not avoid work.
If they push you to crack on
Stay calm. Repeat the key message: "Under health and safety law I have to take reasonable care for my own safety and others. I believe this is serious and imminent danger, so I'm not going ahead until it's made safe."
Do not change your mind because someone shouts or mocks you.
Remove yourself from danger
If the risk is live, move to a safe area. Don't stay under a dodgy load or on a bad scaffold "just to talk about it".
Record it
Make a quick note on your phone: time, what you refused, who you told, what they said.
If you can, send a brief text / email / WhatsApp:
"Just to confirm, I've stopped work on [task] because of [risk]. As discussed, I'm waiting for [guardrails / isolation / shoring] before continuing."
Escalate if needed
On larger sites: go up the chain -- site manager, project manager, H&S manager. Use the company's "stop work" or "yellow card" procedure if they have one.
On domestic or small commercial: explain to the client that you're ready to work once it's safe. If the main contractor won't act, you may need to walk away from the job.
If you're punished for it
Keep all messages, diary notes and any witnesses' names.
For employees and workers: this can be an unlawful detriment under s44 or automatically unfair dismissal under s100.
Get advice quickly -- from a union, ACAS or a solicitor -- especially if your pay, work allocation or contract has been hit right after you raised safety concerns.
What your employer/contractor is risking
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If an employee is dismissed mainly because they raised health and safety issues or refused serious and imminent danger, that can be an automatically unfair dismissal under s100 ERA -- no minimum service needed and compensation is uncapped (no usual unfair dismissal cap).
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If they cut your hours or pay, move you to poor jobs, or otherwise penalise you for raising safety, that can be an unlawful detriment under s44 ERA, again with no service requirement and potentially significant compensation.
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If the danger was real and they ignored it, they're also risking HSE enforcement -- improvement or prohibition notices, fines, and in serious cases criminal prosecution of the company and its directors under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.
What to do next
- Read your site's risk assessments and method statements so you know what the agreed safe way of working is before you push back.
- Save the "raise -- record -- remove -- report" steps on your phone so you've got them when things kick off.
- Put ACAS and your union rep's number in your contacts now, not when you're already in a row.
- If you're self-employed, check your contract for any dispute or safety clauses so you know where you stand before refusing work.
- Talk to the rest of your team -- if everyone knows the basics, it's harder for one person to be singled out.
Sources
- Employment Rights Act 1996 -- s44 and s100: health and safety detriment and automatically unfair dismissal for refusing dangerous work or raising safety concerns.
- Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 -- general duties of employers (section 2) and employees (section 7) to protect health and safety.
- Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 -- risk assessment duties.
- HSE -- "The law on workplace safety" and risk assessment guidance.
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