ISO 45001 - Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems

 

Background

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According to an estimate by the International Labour Organization (ILO), nearly 2.3 million people died in 2013 as a result of work-related activities.

 

The majority of deaths, approx. 2 million, were attributed to health-related issues, including work-related cancers, as opposed to injuries.

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Every organization is:

• Responsible for ensuring that it minimises the risk of harm to the people that may be affected by its activities, such as its workers, managers, contractors, or visitors

• Particularly responsible if the above people are engaged by the organization to perform those activities as part of their “occupation”.

The burden of occupational injuries and diseases is significant, both for employers and the wider economy, resulting in losses from early retirements, staff absence and rising insurance premiums.

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To combat the problem, ISO developed and published a new standard, ISO 45001, Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems - Requirements, to help organizations reduce this burden.

• The above standard provides a framework to improve employee safety, reduce workplace risks, and create better, safer working conditions, all over the world.

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The standard:

• Was developed by a committee of Occupational Health and Safety experts

• Followed the same High Level Structure (HLS) as other generic management system standards, e.g. ISO 9001 and ISO 14001, that were issued earlier.

 

The committee that developed ISO 45001 took into consideration a number of other International Standards in this area, such as:

• OHSAS 18001 (which it has replaced)

• The International Labour Organization's ILO - OSH Guidelines

• The ILO's international labour standards and conventions.

• Various national standards
   

​What ISO 45001 Is

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• International Standard that specifies requirements for an Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S)

      management system, with guidance for its use, to enable an organization to proactively improve its

      OH&S performance in preventing injury and ill-health.

• ​Intended to be applicable to any organization regardless of its size, type and nature

• Part of the ISO 45000 series of standards, namely:

  • ISO 45001:2018 - Occupational health and safety management systems (OH&SMS) -

             Requirements with guidance for use

• ISO 45002-0:2018 - OH&SMS - Part 0: General guidelines for the application of ISO 45001

• ISO 45002-1:2018 - OH&SMS - Part 1: Guidance on managing occupational health

• ISO 45002-3:2018 - OH&SMS - Part 3: Guidance on accident investigation.

 

All requirements of the Standard are intended to be integrated into an organization’s own management processes.

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ISO 45001 enables an organization, through its OH&S management system, to integrate other aspects of health and safety, such as worker wellness/well-being;

• However, it should be noted that an organization can be required by applicable legal requirements to also address such issues.
   

 What ISO 45001 is NOT 

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• Intended to be a legally binding document; it is a management tool for voluntary use by organizations from Small to Medium-sized Enterprises upwards, whose aim is to eliminate or minimise the risk of harm

• Prescriptive about the design of an OH&S management system.

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ISO 45001 does not:

• State specific criteria for OH&S performance.

• Specifically address issues such as product safety, property damage or environmental impacts, and an organization is not required to take account of these issues, unless they present a risk to its workers.

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Organization’s OH&S Management System (MS)

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An organisation's OH&S MS should be specific to meeting its own needs in preventing injuries and ill-health

 

Consequently:

• A small business, with low risk profile, may only need to implement a relatively simple system

• A large organization, with high levels of risk, may need something much more sophisticated.

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Any type of system may be capable of being in conformity with the requirements of the standard, provided it can be shown to be appropriate to the organization and is effective.

Notes:

1. There are a number of ILO conventions and standards (ILS) concerning OH&S that have been adopted by countries around the world, to varying degrees.

2. ISO 45001 is broadly aligned with the provisions of the ILS.

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Certification to ISO 45001

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Checking that the Occupational Health and Safety Management System (OH&SMS) is correctly implemented, and is effective in meeting the set objectives is very important.

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To ensure that the OH&SMS is functioning properly, it is strongly recommended that an organization performs regular internal audits.

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It is a business decision to:

• Invite an independent certification body (Registrar), to verify that the organisation's OH&SMS is in conformity to the ISO 45001 standard; however, this is not a requirement.

• Invite its clients to audit the OH&SMS for themselves.

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Our Training Courses

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The FabAcademy provides training in ISO 45001 at five (5) levels:

• Introduction

• Foundation

• Lead Implementer

• Internal Auditor

• Lead Auditor

 

For course details please follow the above links.

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Prerequisites

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The following are general prerequisites for attending our training courses:

• Proficiency in the English language

• Consideration for other course participants

• Willingness to actively participate during the training sessions, and an open mind to learn.

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Training  Delivery Options

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Although, primarily, we deliver training to corporate clients, we also train small-size (min. 3 delegates) groups of individual learners, who are interested in updating, or upgrading their knowledge and skills, and advancing in their careers. This training is delivered online (virtual classroom) and is instructor-led.

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We do deliver on-site, close group training, as well as online instructor-led training, for corporate/ business clients (B2B).

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Book now to reserve, as applicable, an on-site or online instructor-led training event of your choice.

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For more details about our:

• List of training courses please click here.

• Consulting services please click here

• Workshops please click here.

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For queries, including non-obligation quotes, please contact us.

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