Occupational Safety and Health Management Systems
ILO Technical Guidelines
The Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) management system comprises five parts: work health and safety policy, organization, planning and implementation, evaluation, and action. This section focuses on planning and implementation:
1. Initial Review
This involves consulting workers and their representatives and includes:
- Identifying legislation
- Hazard identification and risk assessment to determine the adequacy of controls and preventive measures
- Analysis of accidents and occupational diseases
The initial review results will be documented and used to inform OSH policy changes.
2. OSH Objectives
These objectives must be specific and relevant to the organization, aligned with legal obligations or voluntary commitments. They should be communicated to all levels of the organization, documented, and accessible to every member.
3. System Planning, Development, and Implementation
Activities are planned to improve the system and the organization based on the initial review or evaluation results. The measures adopted should contribute to prevention through hazard identification, risk assessment, and control.
4. Hazard Control System
National guidelines must establish a hazard and risk control system, including measures for control, management change, emergency response, procurement of goods and services, and hiring. This system, along with the initial review, objective setting, and planning, forms the basis of the OSH management system.
OHSAS 18001/2007: Hazard Identification, Risk Assessment, and Controls
Implementation and operation should align with the OHSAS (Plan-Do-Check-Act) cycle. Organizations must establish procedures for ongoing hazard identification, risk assessment, and control determination. This proactive approach defines the scope, nature, and timing of risk identification, assessment, and control.
The hazard identification and risk assessment process considers:
- Routine and non-routine work
- Activities of everyone accessing the workplace, including visitors
- Human capabilities, including behavior and personal factors
- Hazards originating outside the workplace that may affect worker safety and health
- Hazards arising near workplace activities under the organization’s control
- Workplace infrastructure, equipment, and materials
- Changes affecting the organization, its activities, or materials
- Changes to the OSH management system
- Applicable legal obligations related to risk assessment and control implementation
- Design of work areas, processes, facilities, machinery, equipment, operating procedures, and work organization
Integrating Prevention Through Process: A Model
Management Responsibility
This is consistent across all three systems. Despite differing goals and objectives, they are achieved through similar management actions.
Resource Management
1. Human Resources:
- Training of prevention staff and organizational arrangements
- Worker training and information
- Training, information, participation, and consultation of worker representatives
- Health surveillance
2. Material Resources:
- Safety, hygiene, ergonomic, and psychosocial hazard identification and risk assessment
- Planning of preventive and corrective measures
- Implementation, review, and evaluation of these measures
3. Economic Resources:
Budgets will include costs related to:
- General prevention
- Personal protective equipment acquisition
- Collective protection equipment acquisition
- Health surveillance
- Overall prevention management
Management Processes/Product Realization
Implementation must consider potential occupational hazards. This involves identifying and developing safe work procedures and preventive practices through risk identification, assessment, control or elimination, and implementation of preventive measures within a prevention plan.
Product
The product itself, as well as its transfer, storage, and disposal, can pose risks. Risk assessment and the adoption of preventive and corrective measures are necessary and should be systematized in relevant planning, along with environmental quality actions.
Measurement, Analysis, and Improvement
Procedures like internal audits, facility and environmental inspections, and accident/incident investigations are used for continual improvement.