The organization shall establish and maintain an OHS management system, the requirements of which are set out in Clause 4 of OHSAS 18001-1999.
a) Has a program been established?
b) Is the scope of the program clearly defined?
c) How long has the program been established?
d) Is it being maintained the requirements of OHSAS 18001?
There shall be an occupational health and safety policy authorized by the organization’s top management that clearly states overall health and safety objectives and a commitment to improving health and safety performance.
The policy shall:
a) Be appropriate to the nature and scale of the organization’s OHS risks;
b) Include a commitment to continual improvement;
c) Include a commitment to at least comply with current applicable OHS legislation and with other requirements to which the organization subscribes;
d) Be documented, implemented and maintained;
e) Be communicated to all employees with the intent that employees are made aware of their individual OHS obligations;
f) Be available to interested parties; and
g) Be reviewed periodically to ensure that it remains relevant and appropriate to the organization.
a) What is the organization’s policy?
b) Is the policy defined and is it appropriate to the type, size, and OHS impacts of the organization’s activities?
c) Does the policy include a commitment to continual improvement in the organization’s operations?
d) Does the policy reflect the organizations' hazard identification, risk assessment and risk control in the organization’s activities and facilities?
e) Does the policy include a commitment to compliance to legal requirements?
f) Is the policy documented, implemented, maintained (periodically reviewed) and communicated to all employees and are they aware of their responsibilities to the OHS?
The organization shall establish and maintain procedures for the ongoing identification of hazards, the assessment of risks, and the implementation of necessary control measures. These shall include:
a) routine and non-routine activities;
b) activities of all personnel having access to the workplace (including subcontractors and visitors);
c) Facilities at the workplace, whether provided by the organization or others.
d) The organization shall ensure that the results of these assessments and the effects of these controls are considered when setting its OHS objectives. The organization shall document and keep this information up to date.
e) The organization’s methodology for hazard identification and risk assessment shall:
f) be defined with respect to its scope, nature and timing to ensure it is proactive rather than reactive;
g) provide for the classification of risks and identification of those that are to be eliminated or controlled by measures as defined in 4.3.3 and 4.3.4;
h) be consistent with operating experience and the capabilities of risk control measures employed;
i) provide input into the determination of facility requirements, identification of training needs and/or development of operational controls;
j) Provide for the monitoring of required actions to ensure both the effectiveness and timeliness of their implementation.
a) Are there documented and maintained procedures to establish and update hazards, risks and implementation of controls?
b) Does the procedure cover routine and non routine activities?
c) Does the procedure cover all personnel and facilities?
d) What mechanism is used to initiate hazard review/revision when operations change?
e) Do the criteria for the assessment of risk address both likelihood and consequence?
f) Are there records to provide evidence of analysis of hazards, risks and controls?
g) Are there any obvious hazards that should have been considered and were not? If not, why not?
h) Are results of assessments and effects of controls considered when setting OHS objectives and are they documented and up to date?
i) Does the methodology:
· Define scope, nature and timing?
· Ensure proactive rather than reactive assessments?
· Provide for classification of risk tolerability?
· Identify those to be eliminated or controlled?
· Assure consistency with operating experience? (Ref. 4.3.1C of OHSAS 18002-2000)
· Assure consistency with effectiveness of risk control measures?
j) Does the methodology provide input into determination of facility requirements, training needs and operational controls?
k) Does the methodology provide for monitoring of required actions to ensure timeliness and effectiveness of implementation?
The organization shall establish and maintain a procedure for identifying and accessing the legal and other OHS requirements that are applicable to it.
The organization shall keep this information up-to-date. It shall communicate relevant information on legal and other requirements to its employees and other relevant interested parties.
a) Is there a documented procedure for the organization to identify and have access to all applicable legal requirements?
b) Is someone (or more than one) designated to keep current on requirements?
c) What are the resources, references and methods to keep current?
d) How is applicability of new requirements determined?
e) How are requirements communicated to all interested party?
The organization shall establish and maintain documented occupational health and safety objectives, at each relevant function and level within the organization.
NOTE Objectives should be quantified wherever practicable.
When establishing and reviewing its objectives, an organization shall consider its legal and other requirements, its OHS hazards and risks, its technological options, its financial, operational and business requirements, and the views of interested parties. The objectives shall be consistent with the OHS policy, including the commitment to continual improvement.
a) Has the organization established and maintained OHS objectives?
b) Have the documented objectives considered legal and other requirements?
c) Are objectives reasonable and measurable?
d) Is there a documented and maintained procedure for periodically reviewing objectives?
e) Are objectives communicated to the employees that are supposed to achieve them?
The organization shall establish and maintain (an) OHS management program(s) for achieving its objectives. This shall include documentation of :
a) the designated responsibility and authority for achievement of the objectives at relevant functions and levels of the organization; and
b) the means and time-scale by which objectives are to be achieved.
The OHS management program(s) shall be reviewed at regular and planned intervals. Where necessary the OHS management program(s) shall be amended to address changes to the activities, products, services, or operating conditions of the organization.
a) Are there programs to achieve all the identified objectives?
b) Do the programs include schedules for completion and resources necessary to achieve the objectives?
c) Do the programs assign responsibilities for completion of tasks in achieving objectives?
d) Are all procedures that supplement the OHS management program available to the appropriate personnel and current?
e) Are the management programs reviewed at planned intervals and amended as required?
The roles, responsibilities and authorities of personnel who manage, perform and verify activities having an effect on the OHS risks of the organization’s activities, facilities and processes, shall be defined, documented and communicated in order to facilitate OHS management.
Ultimate responsibility for occupational health and safety rests with top management. The organization shall appoint a member of top management (e.g. in a large organization, a Board or executive committee member) with particular responsibility for ensuring that the OHS management system is properly implemented and performing to requirements in all locations and spheres of operation within the organization.
Management shall provide resources essential to the implementation, control and improvement of the OHS management system.
NOTE Resources include human resources and specialized skills, technology and financial resources.
The organization’s management appointee shall have a defined role, responsibility and authority for:
a) ensuring that OHS management system requirements are established, implemented and maintained in accordance with this OHSAS specification;
b) Ensuring that reports on the performance of the OHS management system are presented to top management for review and as a basis for improvement of the OHS management system.
All those with management responsibility shall demonstrate their commitment to the continual improvement of OHS performance.
a) Are roles and responsibility, and authorities defined, documented and communicated?
b) Has management provided the necessary resources (people, technology, money) to implement this OHS program?
c) Has the organization appointed an OHS management appointee from top management?
d) Does the R2A2 of the OHS management appointee document sufficient authority to accomplish a & b above?
Personnel shall be competent to perform tasks that may impact on OHS in the workplace. Competence shall be defined in terms of appropriate education, training and/or experience. The organization shall establish and maintain procedures to ensure that its employees working at each relevant function and level are aware of:
a) the importance of conformance to the OHS policy and procedures, and to the requirements of the OHS management system;
b) the OHS consequences, actual or potential, of their work activities and the OHS benefits of improved personal performance;
c) their roles and responsibilities in achieving conformance to the OHS policy and procedures and to the requirements of the OHS management system, including emergency preparedness and response requirements (see 4.4.7);
d) The potential consequences of departure from specified operating procedures.
Training procedures shall take into account differing levels of:
a) responsibility, ability and literacy; and
b) Risk.
a) Are procedures established and maintained to make employees aware of a – d above?
b) How do you ensure personnel are competent to perform tasks that impact OHS?
c) Has the appropriate training been done and, where required, by qualified trainers?
d) Do the training procedures take into account the differing levels of responsibility, ability, literacy and risk?
e) Are there specific, documented minimum requirements for each person performing a task that can cause significant OHS impact?
The organization shall have procedures for ensuring that pertinent OHS information is communicated to and from employees and other interested parties.
Employee involvement and consultation arrangements shall be documented and interested parties informed.
Employees shall be
a) involved in development and review of policies and procedures to manage risks
b) consulted where there are any changes that affect workplace health and safety;
c) represented on health and safety matters; and
d) Informed as to who their employee OHS representative is and specified management appointee (see 4.4.1).
a) Are there procedures that are maintained for communications to and from interested parties regarding the organization’s pertinent OHS information?
b) How are communications to and from interested parties documented?
c) How are internal communications between different levels and different functions documented? How do you have feedback to management?
d) How are employees involved in the development of policies and procedures to manage risks?
e) How are employees consulted for changes that affect workplace health and safety?
f) How employees are represented on OHS matters?
g) Do people know who their employee OHS representative and/or management appointees are?
h) How are OHS representatives involved in communication mechanisms with management?
i) What initiatives do you have to encourage OHS consultations and improvement activities?
The organization shall establish and maintain information, in a suitable medium such as paper or electronic form, that:
a) describes the core elements of the management system and their interaction; and
b) Provides direction to related documentation.
NOTE: It is important that documentation is kept to the minimum required for effectiveness and efficiency.
a) How has the organization documented the core elements of its OHSAS 18001 system?
b) How does the organization show linkage between all upper and lower level documentation?
c) Does the system document how the related documentation, both internal and external, [regulations, permits, forms, etc.] are to be used?
The organization shall establish and maintain procedures for controlling all documents and data required by this OHSAS specification to ensure that:
a) they can be located;
b) they are periodically reviewed, revised as necessary and approved for adequacy by authorized personnel;
c) current versions of relevant documents and data are available at all locations where operations essential to the effective functioning of the OHS system are performed;
d) obsolete documents and data are promptly removed from all points of issue and points of use or otherwise assured against unintended use; and
e) Archival documents and data retained for legal or knowledge preservation purposes or both are suitably identified.
a) Are there procedures for controlling and maintaining all documents (e.g., procedures and instructions) and/or data (e.g., engineering drawings and MSDS) required by this standard? Are the documents/data accessible (e.g., can the employee access the documents/data they need), including during an emergency?
b) Are the documents/data periodically reviewed, revised and approved for adequacy by authorized personnel?
c) Are latest versions of documents/data available in all areas and by all personnel that perform tasks essential to the effective functioning of the OHS?
d) Are obsolete documents/data removed from use and assured from unintended use? Are historical copies maintained & labeled?
e) Are those obsolete documents/data that are retained for legal or knowledge reasons clearly identified?
f) Are documents/data dated with the latest revision, orderly, legible and retained for a specified period?
The organization shall identify those operations and activities that are associated with identified risks where control measures need to be applied. The organization shall plan these activities, including maintenance, in order to ensure that they are carried out under specified conditions by:
a) establishing and maintaining documented procedures to cover situations where their absence could lead to deviations from the OHS policy and the objectives;
b) stipulating operating criteria in the procedures;
c) establishing and maintaining procedures related to the identified OHS risks of goods, equipment and services purchased and/or used by the organization and communicating relevant procedures and requirements to suppliers and contractors;
d) Establishing and maintaining procedures for the design of workplace, process, installations, machinery, operating procedures and work organization, including their adaptation to human capabilities, in order to eliminate or reduce OHS risks at their source.
a) Have the operations and activities, including maintenance, been identified that are associated with the identified OHS risks where control measures need to be applied?
b) Have procedures been established and maintained for the above operations that, if they are not followed for these situations, could lead to deviations from the OHS policy and the objectives?
c) Are operating criteria clearly established and document/data in the procedures for the operations and activities identified above?
d) Have the identified OHS risks of goods, materials, equipment and services used in the above operations and activities been identified?
e) Are there procedures for handling goods, materials, equipment and services used in the activities associated with identified risks where controls need to be applied?
f) Are relevant procedures and requirements communicated to the appropriate suppliers and contractors (are operational controls in place and working as expected)?
g) Are records of operational controls and performance indicators managed and retained per plans?
h) Are there procedures to reduce OS&H risks in design and workplace processes (Ref. d above)?
The organization shall establish and maintain plans and procedures to identify the potential for, and responses to, incidents and emergency situations, and for preventing and mitigating the likely illness and injury that may be associated with them.
The organization shall review its emergency preparedness and response plans and procedures, in particular after the occurrence of incidents or emergency situations.
The organization shall also periodically test such procedures where practicable.
a) Are there maintained procedures to identify potential for accidents and emergency situations?
b) Are there maintained procedures to respond to accidents and emergency situations?
c) Are there maintained procedures to prevent and minimize the OHS risks that may be associated with the identified accidents and emergency situations?
d) Are there reviews and revisions of the emergency preparedness and response procedures, particularly after an incident?
e) Are there periodical tests of the above procedures?
The organization shall establish and maintain procedures to monitor and measure OHS performance on a regular basis. These procedures shall provide for:
a) both qualitative and quantitative measures, appropriate to the needs of the organization;
b) monitoring of the extent to which the organization’s OHS objectives are met;
c) proactive measures of performance that monitor compliance with the OHS
d) management program, operational criteria and applicable legislation and regulatory requirements;
e) reactive measures of performance to monitor accidents, ill health, incidents (including near-misses) and other historical evidence of deficient OHS performance;
f) Recording of data and results of monitoring and measurement sufficient to facilitate subsequent corrective and preventive action analysis.
If monitoring equipment is required for performance measurement and monitoring, the organization shall establish and maintain procedures for the calibration and maintenance of such equipment. Records of calibration and maintenance activities and results shall be retained.
a) Do the procedures address qualitative and quantitative measures?
b) Are procedures document/data and maintained to monitor and measure OHS performance on a regular basis?
c) Are monitoring of OHS objectives performed?
d) Does the OHS management program include proactive measures to address operational criteria, legal requirements and regulatory standards?
e) Are there reactive measures of performance to monitor accidents, ill health, incidents (including near-misses) and other historical evidence of deficient OHS performance?
f) Are OHS performance indicators evaluated for corrective and preventative action?
g) Are the indicators of OHS performance communicated to management?
h) Is OHS monitoring equipment required for performance measurement and monitoring calibrated? If so, is there a documented calibration and maintenance procedure(s)?
The organization shall establish and maintain procedures for defining responsibility and authority for:
a) the handling and investigation of:
· accidents;
· incidents;
· non-conformances;
b) taking action to mitigate any consequences arising from accidents, incidents or nonconformance’s;
c) the initiation and completion of corrective and preventive actions;
d) Confirmation of the effectiveness of corrective and preventive actions taken.
These procedures shall require that all proposed corrective and preventive actions shall be reviewed through the risk assessment process prior to implementation.
Any corrective or preventive action taken to eliminate the causes of actual and potential nonconformances shall be appropriate to the magnitude of problems and commensurate with the OHS risk encountered.
The organization shall implement and record any changes in the documented procedures resulting from corrective and preventive action.
a) Are procedures documented and maintained for defining responsibility and authority for handling and investigating of accidents, incidents and nonconformances?
b) Are procedures documented and maintained for initiating and completing corrective and preventive action? Is a risk assessment conducted for these actions?
c) Are appropriate corrective and preventive actions taken?
d) Are the results of the corrective and preventive actions implemented and recorded?
The organization shall establish and maintain procedures for the identification, maintenance and disposition of OHS records, as well as the results of audits and reviews.
OHS records shall be legible, identifiable and traceable to the activities involved. OHS records shall be stored and maintained in such a way that they are readily retrievable and protected against damage, deterioration or loss. Their retention times shall be established and recorded.
Records shall be maintained, as appropriate to the system and to the organization, to demonstrate conformance to this OHSAS specification.
a) Are procedures documented and maintained for the identification, maintenance and disposition of OHS records?
b) Are the records legible, identifiable and traceable to the activities involved?
c) Are the records stored and maintained such that they are readily retrievable and protected against damage, deterioration or loss?
d) Are there specified retention times for all of the records identified?
e) Are the records maintained in a manner to demonstrate conformance with the standard and appropriate to the system and the organization?
f) Is consideration given to confidentially?
OHS management system audits to be carried out, in order to:
a) determine whether or not the OHS management system:
1) conforms to planned arrangements for OHS management including the requirements of this OHSAS specification;
2) has been properly implemented and maintained; and
3) is effective in meeting the organization’s policy and objectives;
b) review the results of previous audits;
c) Provide information on the results of audits to management.
The audit program, including any schedule, shall be based on the results of risk assessments of the organization’s activities, and the results of previous audits. The audit procedures shall cover the scope, frequency, methodologies and competencies, as well as the responsibilities and requirements for conducting audits and reporting results.
Wherever possible, audits shall be conducted by personnel independent of those having direct responsibility for the activity being examined.
NOTE: The word “independent” here does not necessarily mean external to the organization.
a) Are procedures documented and maintained for periodic OHS audits?
b) Does the procedure for OHS audits include the scope of the audit, frequency, methodologies used, responsibilities, requirements, and method of reporting results?
c) Does the OHS audit determine whether their OHS has been implemented and maintained and conforms to this standard and organization’s OHS policy and objectives?
d) Does the OHS audit provide results of the audits to management?
e) Is the audit program and schedule based on risk assessments and the results of previous audits?
The organization’s top management shall, at intervals that it determines, review the OHS management system, to ensure its continuing suitability, adequacy and effectiveness. The management review process shall ensure that the necessary information is collected to allow management to carry out this evaluation. This review shall be documented.
The management review shall address the possible need for changes to policy, objectives and other elements of the OHS management system, in the light of OHS management system audit results, changing circumstances and the commitment to continual improvement.
Has top management performed a review of the OHS management system on a periodic basis? Is it documented?
Does the review address the system's:
a) continued suitability
b) adequacy
c) effectiveness
Does the review address possible need to change its policy, objectives and other elements of the OHS management system? Has this been conducted in light of OHS management system audit results, continual improvement and changing circumstances?
Good guideline
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