Workplace Health Expert Committee (WHEC)

Introduction

It is important that HSE’s work is built on sound science and informed by the best available evidence. To this end, we have appointed the Workplace Health Expert Committee (WHEC) to provide independent, authoritative, impartial and timely expertise on workplace health.

The WHEC will provide independent expert opinion to the Health and Safety Executive, on: 

• New and emerging workplace health issues;
• New and emerging evidence relating to existing workplace health issues;
• The quality and relevance of the evidence base on workplace health issues.

WHEC is a scientific and medical expert committee whose purpose is to consider the evidence linking workplace hazards to ill health. Working under the leadership of an independent expert Chair, it considers chemical and physical hazards, and human, behavioural or organisational factors in the workplace (for example shift work) leading to physiological and psychological ill health. It does not consider wellbeing, sickness absence management or rehabilitation as these issues are dealt with elsewhere in government. Nor is it able to consider individual cases of ill health.

WHEC will assess the evidence base concerning health issues within its remit and will seek to effectively and appropriately communicate the resultant health risk.

There is further information on WHEC and its remit on the WHEC web community site.

Members

The Committee membership is as follows:

Details of the fields of expertise and interests of members can be found on the WHEC web community site.

Secretariat

HSE provides the secretariat for WHEC. You can contact the Secretariat through the WHEC web community site.

Meetings

The WHEC work programme, sessions calendar, agendas and reports are published on the WHEC web community site.