A guide to survival when someone else is managing work health and safety on your behalf!
Let’s assume you are an observer in a magistrate’s court and watch as the CEO of a company approaches and settles himself in the witness box.
He is there because a work place injury occurred in the company’s workplace. The ‘Safe Work’ authority investigators are alleging negligence and a breaching of the relevant Work Health & Safety Act and Regulations.
The magistrate asks the CEO these four questions:
‘At the time of the accident, had you identified all of the reasonably foreseeable hazards associated with your workplace?’
‘Had you conducted a risk assessment of those indentified hazards and implemented such controls and procedures that could be considered reasonable and practical for the effective mitigation of those hazards?’
‘Had you provided adequate information, training and instruction to those workers who might have reason to be exposed to those hazards?’
‘Can you provide the court with documentation supporting your answers?’
It’s about now that you are very pleased it’s not you in the witness box, and vow and declare that, as soon as you return to your office, you are going to do something to ensure you never are!
So, how can you assure yourself of the diligence of your staff in their quest to ensure your business is absolutely WHS compliant?
Ask them the four questions!
Don’t be at all surprised if you are disappointed with their responses. After twenty years experience in working very closely with hundreds of companies to develop, implement and manage compliant WHS management systems, we at EQAS reasonably estimate that only some 55%-60% of those companies who claim to be ‘absolutely WHS compliant’, are!
What went wrong with the remaining 40%-45%?
In almost every instance, it’s very much a case of ‘they don’t know what they don’t know’.
What you now know, if you were disappointed, is that expert and professional help is available which can absolutely guarantee a compliant Work Health and Safety Management System for your company
Contact EQAS Business Development to discuss OHS Consulting and many tailored solutions when it comes to Work Health & Safety issues.
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