The principal law concerned with protecting the health and safety of employees and members of the public is the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 (HSWA) in Great Britain. This Act is the primary piece of legislation covering occupational health and safety, setting out general duties for employers to ensure the health, safety, and welfare of employees and others affected by work activities, as far as reasonably practicable

. Key features of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 include:

• Employers must provide a safe working environment, safe equipment, adequate training, and welfare facilities.
• It applies to all workers, including permanent, temporary, self-employed, and visitors.
• It places duties not only on employers but also on employees to cooperate with safety measures.
• It is enforced by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), which oversees compliance and prosecutions

In other jurisdictions, similar principal acts exist, such as the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 in the United States, which governs workplace health and safety federally, requiring employers to maintain safe conditions and comply with standards

. Australia has the Work Health and Safety Act 2020 , which also aims to protect workers and others from risks arising from work

. Thus, the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 is widely recognized as the principal act for protecting employee and public health and safety in the workplace in the UK, with analogous legislation serving this purpose in other countries