If you have been working in a corporate, a manufacturing firm, or any other reputed company you would have definitely heard about Health & Safety policies or manuals. Yes, safeguarding the Health & Safety of employees has become an utmost priority for organisations and it is not just a good-to-have sort of policy rather a mandate that defines the standards set by an organisation.
Employers have responsibilities to ensure a safe and healthy workplace. Managing safety and health is an integral part of managing a business. Creating a health and safety policy to make all staff aware of the relevant procedures is a legal requirement for all businesses. The policy should be documented if there are more than five employees, cover all health and safety procedures in the workplace, including fire safety and first aid, and be readily accessible by your employees, on-site contractors and other interested parties.
Businesses need to do a risk assessment to find out about the hazards and risks in their workplace(s) and put measures in place to effectively control them to ensure these hazards and risks cannot cause harm to workers.
Employers need to consider the health and safety of everyone on the premises or who could be affected by their operational activities. This includes all employees, contractors, part-time staff and people with specific requirements, such as pregnant women or those with disabilities.
Companies are expected to have the ISO OSHAS 18001 certification. OHSAS 18001 focuses on controlling hazards. It provides a framework for the effective management of occupational health and safety including all aspects of risk management and legal compliance.
As an employee, you have rights and you also have responsibilities for your own wellbeing and that of your colleagues. Your rights as an employee to work in a safe and healthy environment are given to you by law and generally cannot be changed or removed by your employer.
As far as possible, your employer needs to take measures to control any risks associated with your health & safety:
You should be provided with any personal protective and safety equipment free of charge
You should be able to stop work and leave your work area, without being disciplined if you have reasonable concerns about your safety
You should be in a position to tell your employer about any health and safety concerns you have
You should have rest breaks during the working day and time off from work during the working week and also you should be eligible days of annual paid holiday.
Overall, the setting of safety objectives and targets is driven by the business strategy and is supported and developed by the MD and/or organisational officers in consultation with all the workers in an organisation. When establishing and reviewing the objectives and targets, a firm needs to consider the legal and other requirements, WHSE hazards and risks, technological options, operational and business requirements, alignment with WHS Management System policy and procedures, effective communication mechanisms for objectives and targets and the participation from the management board and officers in the review process. These objectives and targets are mostly reviewed on a bi-annual basis or quarterly basis in most firms. Safety targets and objectives are derived from a variety of documents, including, legislation, the WHS Management System, duty statements, position descriptions, and workplace agreements. Employers are responsible for carrying out both generic and specific risk assessments (for example, coronavirus risk assessment, manual handling operations risk assessment, etc) to ensure that employees have all the information they need about the hazards, risks and relevant controls in their workplace. Carrying out a risk assessment involves inspecting the workplace to determine all significant hazards and putting measures in place to eliminate, reduce, or control identified risks. Risk assessments should highlight how employees are protected and are designed to instruct and inform employees on how to manage the risks.
If you have concerns about health and safety at work, you should first discuss them with your employer or immediate boss. If you have a safety representative, they might be your first point of contact. If you have an employee representative, such as a trade union official, they may be able to help you as well. Ultimately, it is important to remember that maintaining Health & Safety is the responsibility of both an employer and an employee. After all, everyone needs a safe and hazard-free place to work.