DIVING SUPERVISOR QUALIFICATIONS INSHORE

Our ref: HSR/2/19

Head Office Circular: NP/240/22

27^th October 2022

To: The Secretary

ALL BRANCHES

REGIONAL COUNCILS

 

Dear Colleague,

 

DIVING SUPERVISOR QUALIFICATIONS INLAND/INSHORE

 

Your Biennial RMT Offshore Industrial Organising Conference (BIOC) 2022 carried the following resolution:

 

This Offshore BIOC asks the National Executive Committee to instruct the General Secretary to lobby the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to amend the ‘HSE L104 Approved Code of Practice, Commercial diving projects inland/inshore’ by introducing a ‘qualifications’ sub section into ‘regulation 9 Appointment of Supervisor’ which is currently part of the ‘HSE L103 Approved Code of Practice, Commercial diving projects offshore’ but not part of the ‘L104’.

 

We find it to be an anomaly, in an industry where divers are being asked to show more and more qualifications, some duplicated, that to supervise a dive merely requires a “Letter of Appointment” from a Diving Contractor.

 

This resolution does not seek to foist extra courses onto experienced supervisors that have been operating this way for years, but simply to show by means of assessment that they have sufficient competency, in what is a safety critical industry.

 

It should further be noted that both the HSE L103 (Offshore Air Diving) and the HSE L104 (Inland/Inshore Air Diving) both cover depths to 50 metres and involve construction work, so we see no reason for the differences regarding Supervisors, considering they are both operating life support panels/equipment.

 

A Special Meeting of your National Executive Committee (NEC) on 25^th October 2022 resolved as follows: 

 

That we note the request of the BIOC, therefore we instruct the General Secretary to organise a meeting of relevant reps, the Lead Officer, National Secretary, Health and Safety Department and NEC to discuss the matter further. 

All affected members, Branches and Regional Councils to be informed. 

I am acting in line with these instructions. Please bring the contents of this circular to the attention of relevant members. 

 

Yours sincerely

 

 

Michael Lynch

General Secretary