What is ISO 45001? Overviwe of ISO 45001

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) asserts that 563600 individuals experienced work-related injury or illness in Australia in 2017-2018. The ISO 45001 standard aims to reduce this number by creating a framework that enhances workplace safety. Acquiring the ISO 45001 certification allows organisations to demonstrate that their business has an efficient occupational health and safety (OH&S) management system.

As a result, organisations reduce the likelihood of accidents and breaches of legislation while improving their overall performance. Moreover, since the standard is developed by a community of occupational health and safety experts, it surpasses many existing standards. With the help of the ISO Council, you can get complete information about ISO 45001.

Benefits of ISO 45001

In addition to workplace safety, here are some benefits of adhering to the ISO 45001 framework:

Increased health and safety awareness

As one of the critical components of the ISO 45001 framework is employee participation, it helps to increase employee awareness of OH&S risks. The framework also ensures that workers take an active role in health and safety matters.

Establishment of controls to ensure legal compliance- The ISO 45001 framework helps organisations establish operational controls. The operational controls are designed to consider not only the risks and opportunities but also the legal and contractual requirements.

Enhanced brand reputation

By achieving ISO 45001 certification, organisations achieve an international benchmark, getting them noticed by socially responsible customers.

Reduced absenteeism

According to the ABS, 60% of the individuals who suffered a work-related injury or illness required time off in 2017-2018. By better managing their health and safety concerns in the workplace, organisations can protect their employees. As a result, absenteeism and turnover rates are reduced.

Reduced insurance premiums

According to the ABS, 27% of the workers who suffered from a workplace incident received compensation for their illness or injury. With reduced incidences, organisations have to pay little to no worker compensation. The insurance premiums reduce as the OH&S management system effectively reduces safety hazards.

Better management of risk- The ISO 45001 standard helps organisations to determine hazard and risk associated activities. The standard either places controls or eliminates the risks to minimise their effect on the organisation.

Requirements of ISO 45001

The ISO 45001 standard utilises a structure of 10 clauses to list the recommendations. In order to acquire certification, the organisation needs to consider the following requirements:

Context of the organisation

The organisation’s context refers to internal and external factors that impact the safety of the business. In order to effectively implement the OH&S management system, relevant and practical people need to determine these internal and external factors. Additionally, to meet the requirements of the standard, organisations also need to consider who will be affected by these issues. Hence, this section not only focuses on the employees of an organisation but also on visitors and sub-contractors. 

Leadership

To work towards achieving the OH&S objectives practically, organisations need to communicate responsibilities clearly. The management can showcase its commitment and responsibility for the OH&S management system by ensuring that the staff has adequate tools and resources to run it successfully.

Planning

This requirement highlights the organisation’s need to adapt and react to changes. In order to do so, organisations must set out a clear plan for identifying, evaluating and managing OH&S risks. Additionally, a crucial part of the planning process is communication. Organisations need to demonstrate and document how the risk identification, evaluation and management would be communicated to key personnel. Planning should also include specifications about the documentation process.

Support

To meet this requirement, organisations must provide the necessary tools and resources needed to implement and maintain the OH&S management system. Examples of resources include training programmes, provision of personal protective equipment, posters or ergonomic chairs.

Operation

To meet the requirements of the standard, organisations must assess existing procedures and list their legal obligations and shareholder expectations. Once they have obtained the knowledge about legal compliance, they need to create a plan to respond to emergencies, risks and opportunities. This is because creating plans without considering legal obligations and stakeholder expectations may be a waste of time. Hence, this section provides a template that can be utilised to ensure that nothing important is being overlooked. Additionally, regular risk assessments need to be conducted.

Performance evaluation- To evaluate the performance of the OH&S management system, it is essential to create criterions for measuring it. These unique measuring criterions are helpful in not only identifying the progress of the OH&S management system but highlighting inadequacies in the expected performance. In other words, these metrics are quick to discover any deviation from the plan. 

Improvement

One of the key requirements of the standard is continued improvement. By integrating the desire for continual improvement, organisations can show that they have an eye on the future and are always pursuing better performance. This can be achieved through regular assessments that monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of the OH&S management system. Additionally, by integrating the findings from the performance evaluation, the company demonstrates its commitment to continual improvement. In cases where inadequacies are discovered, appropriate corrective actions are outlined in Annex L of ISO 45001.