This article summarises the keyways the ISO 45001 standard helps businesses with occupational health and safety management and to ensure the protection of workers.
There was always a need for introducing an occupational health and safety management system at the organisational level because a majority of workplaces/occupations can be dangerous. Workers need assurance for their safety and good health while spending the majority of the hours of the day at work. Safety assurance helps them perform well and remain productive consistently! Besides, workers may have to endure mental stress, unhygienic circumstances, long working hours, and other severe work-related distresses which can be eliminated with a proper occupational health and safety (OHS) management system.
ISO 45001, which is the specified international standard for OHS management, makes the approach for workers’ protection and wellness easier. It necessitates the organisation’s management to promote best practices or measures for the safety of the workers under a strong, cohesive OHS management system.
Here are some of the best practices mentioned that organisations need to support to implement the ISO 45001 standard and ensure all-round safety of their workers.
Appointing a Competent Team
The organisation needs to choose a team of personnel who can help them meet their OHS management goals and other associated duties. The personnel must have appropriate knowledge of their workplaces, equipment or materials used, and work situations. Only then, will they be able to recognise the risks, hazards or illnesses that are likely to threaten the workers. They need to be proficient on communication with workers at every level to have the best idea of their workplaces and gather opinions from them on risks and prevention of risks.
Preparing a Health and Safety Policy
This is a prerequisite step if you want to have a structured OHS management system as well as the ISO 45001 certification for it. It is fundamental for businesses to have the policy to work in any area! That applies to an OHS management system too. There must be a policy for managing workers’ safety and wellbeing. The policy should define the health and safety goals, the approach of the organisation to meet them, and the role of the OHS management team. It should clearly mention who is responsible for what practices and what they should do support them.
Training and Information to Workers
Because an OHS management system is wholly about the wellness of the workers, they should actively participate and cooperate with the management team to make it successful in its approach. They should know what the best practices are and how to follow them while working without fail. Training is necessary to make workers follow and adopt safety practices. The management team should clearly give them instructions on following every practice to minimise both individual risks as well as hazards. Training should be imparted to everyone, including existing workers, new recruits, and workers appointed on a contractual basis.
Risk Assessment and Monitoring
To protect the workers from risks, the organisation needs to conduct a risk assessment and monitor every workplace, all work equipment, and every process. Thorough risk assessment should be conducted at frequent intervals to determine any risks of injury, sickness, physical strain, or mental disturbances to the workers. On recognising any probable risks, the management should determine the consequences of the risks and how much of an impact they can have. They need to then decide preventive actions or contingency plans to eliminate the risks, or if that is not possible, control them as much as possible.
Effective Incident Reporting
The management team must introduce a speedy, responsive incident reporting procedure for the workers. This is necessary to help workers immediately report an accident or unforeseen event to the right personnel who can undertake necessary actions. Reporting also helps to keep records of the work-related accidents over time and identify the pattern of their occurrences so that the management team can take measures to prevent them from occurring again.
All these must comprise your organisation’s health and safety management system if you want to obtain the ISO 45001 standard certification for it. These are guidelines to implement the most competent OHS management system in your organisation according to the agreed principles or requirements of the standard. They not only simplify your approach to workers’ safety management but also make the approach systematic and continuously improving.
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