Club Management Issues: Outsourcing
First published in The Golf Club Secretary Newsletter

The use of contractors was once confined to highly specialised activities but this now embraces every conceivable activity including the provision of services. When Golf Clubs appoint such contractors they will need to engage a health and safety management regime that will prevent the Club being subjected to civil or criminal action caused by the contractor’s misdemeanours.

The most important thing is to ensure that the Club has adequate public liability and employer’s insurance. This should already be in place. In addition the Club should ensure that the chosen contractor (in whatever field) also has adequate insurance. If the Club is in any doubt about this it should ask to see proof of the contractor’s up to date insurance before entering into a contract with the contractor.

The latest legislation determines the mutual obligations that the contractor and employer are to have for employees and non-employees and the risk assessments that need to be drawn up for that particular type of work. It is therefore suggested that an annex be prepared to the contractor’s contract specifying the job description, the safety standards required and the degree of risk associated.

Once the contract is in place, the contractor’s work will need to be closely and regularly monitored by a competent person, as the Club may be held responsible for any work that is part of the employer’s undertaking. Where no competent person exists this too may have to be outsourced. The law demands that the employer protects people from the risks associated with all his undertakings, including that which is carried out by a third party.

It will be essential for the Club’s Secretary/Manager, or his appointee, to have regular communication with the contractor and to take an on-site interest in all aspects of their work. A prepared checklist is often a sensible way of carrying out this on-site audit. Where the contractor will be bringing other personnel onto the Club’s premises, a list of all names and a means of visual identification by staff and members will avoid much misunderstanding. The competence of the contractor’s employees will also need to be checked in advance, e.g. requiring plant operator’s certificates prior to the commencement of work. Likewise any materials, plant or equipment brought in by the contractor should be carefully recorded and care taken to ensure that it complies with the Club’s recommended specification and is within their maximum levels for noise and pollution.

Contractors must be made aware of the Club’s health and safety policy and the need to carry out risk assessments as required in relation to any new hazards encountered. They must also be made aware of the need to report all incidents and accidents to the Secretary/Manager, or his appointee, as and when they occur.

Successful outsourcing will only be possible if the Golf Club accepts the responsibilities that their engagement entails. Golf Clubs will need to consider the specific risks to which contract ors will be exposed whilst working on Club premises and take steps to provide them with the necessary information, training and details of control measures in place for their protection, such as, closing holes and designated haul routes across the golf course. They should also be made aware of emergency evacuation procedures and the location and identity of the Club’s first aiders. Members should also be made aware of the contractors location and areas of their work within the boundaries of the Club’s premises.

Finally, before any contractor leaves it is good practice to conduct an overall review of the work undertaken and record key elements for future reference. The Club should also record whether they would use that contractor again - if not, why not ? - and give reasons.

One of the benefits of using contractors has always been the avoidance of strict employment controls. That can no longer be said to be the case. More and more employment rights are benefiting ‘workers’ rather than ‘employees’ and in some circumstances the Golf Club can have obligations to these workers even though they are not directly employed by the Club. The most obvious examples of this are in the areas of discrimination. These obligations will also apply to term contractors, franchise caterers, window cleaners, etc. The Golf Club, as Principal, can be held responsible for acts of race, sex, and disability discrimination directed against contract workers by the Club (or its staff). Not only is it therefore important to monitor the activities of the contractor but the Golf Club should ensure that its own directions to the contractor or treatment of the workers cannot be considered to be discriminatory.

The Government and the EU are constantly considering improved rights for contractors and the Golf Club’s obligations are only likely to increase in this and other employment areas.

In conclusion the financial considerations do not always outweigh the risks associated !