A health and safety (H&S) policy is a written promise from business owners and top management to provide a healthy and safe workplace. The starting point, the basis of Health and Safety at work.
Many occupational health and safety regulations require that a policy be developed, that all workers know and are trained about the policy (document, document, document). The policy is posted in the workplace, reviewed at least annually, and a program is developed and maintained to implement the policy. This statement provides the regulatory requirement for a health and safety management system (HSMS) in the workplace. Check local regulatory requirements. We will review the Health and Safety Management System (HSMS) requirements in more detail later in this article.
Policy examples
A quick Google search can provide thousands of workplace health and safety policy examples for some suggestions to get you started. Note that this exercise is to look at different policies and commitments; We must not only copy, cut and paste. With that said, Google these three policies to see a variety of policies. (No links are allowed in this article, sorry)
Bruce Power Occupational Health and Safety Policy (Nuclear Power Company)
Shell (oil and gas company) Health, safety and environment
IHC Health and Safety Policy Statement (Advocates and Support Services)
You will notice that these policies come from companies around the world and of very different sizes and sectors, but they have many similar sections.
Commitment: Provide a healthy and safe workplace for all its workers, contractors and visitors. Meet or exceed legal requirements.
The goal: eliminate all injuries and illnesses to zero or injury-free.
Responsibility: Management has accepted its responsibility to provide a healthy and safe workplace. Define that safety is everyone’s responsibility – all employees.
The reason for the similarities is partly because most of these sections are defined in various international regulations and standards.
ISO 45001 standard
One of the international standards that will help improve health and safety in the workplace is the new ISO (International Organization for Standardization) 45001. Here is a section taken from the draft standard on the subject of Health and Safety Policies .
Top management must establish, implement and maintain an OSH policy that includes a commitment to provide safe and healthy working conditions for the prevention of work-related injuries and / or illnesses and that is appropriate for the purpose, size and size. context of the organization. and to the specific nature of your OSH risks and OSH opportunities.
The standard provides very similar direction contained in the various regulations and highlights the requirement to ensure that the policy is based on the specific nature of the organization of its OH&S risks and OSH opportunities. While similar in some sections, the workplace health and safety policy should be the specific workplace based on your identified hazards, from your risk assessment.
Health and Safety Management System (HSMS)
In addition to developing a workplace health and safety policy, the employer (in some jurisdictions) is required to have a program to implement the policy. An HSMS is a collection of policies and procedures based on specific workplace hazards.
Common Sections: Worker Orientation, First Aid, Welfare, Fire Prevention, Worker Training, Workplace Inspections, Incident and Near Accident Investigations, Hazard Reports, Indoor Air Quality, Ergonomics, Safe Lifting, Violence, and harassment, safety meetings, etc.
The other sections would be specific to workplace hazards and could include sections on, confined space entry, hot work permits, personal protective equipment (PPE), arc flash, etc.
The expectation would be that a commitment to provide a healthy and safe workplace is made with the policy and the HSMS is the way to achieve this.
Signing authority
The policy is signed by the person or persons responsible for ensuring the health and safety of employees, usually the most senior person, president, chief operating officer, etc. If your company is large with many locations, have the president sign in and the most senior person in the facility. You can also invite union representatives to sign the policy and all your employees.
The policy must be reviewed and signed each year. Review the policy with your employees at least once a year and post it in your workplace where people are most likely to come into contact with it.
Fulfill your promise
Make your health and safety policy as unique as your business, involve your employees in developing the policy, and make it available at your workplace on the Internet. In a tight job market, people want to work for companies that care about them. Proving your commitment in writing and sticking to it will make you a safe employer that people will want to work with.
