Hazard Reporting - Legal Requirements for Reporting and Acting on

Hazard and Near Miss reporting systems and procedures are an essential component of any safety management system, but were you aware that there are legal requirements contained in the OSH Act [ (23K.(1)(2) a, b and 20(2)(d)(1) ] which state that:

• employees must report hazards 
• employers must investigate the hazard report within a reasonable time and provide the person reporting the hazard with feedback.

The maximum penalty that can be imposed for failing to comply with these sections of the Act is $25,000 for an employee and $50,000 for the employer. However, I’m not a lawyer and this is not legal advice but the intention of the legislation would appear to be that employees are required to report hazards, near misses and “situations” that “could constitute a hazard” to the employer. 

And, having received a hazard report from an employee, “the employer must, within a reasonable time, investigate the matter that has been reported” and, “notify the employee of the determination so made.”

To help you comply with the requirements I suggest that you consider:

·         formally training your people in their obligation to report hazards and the penalties for failing to do so

·         actively encourage employees to report hazards and near misses

·         implement a hazard/near miss reporting system

·         make sure that hazard report forms are available for anyone to use at any time (e.g. keep a supply of forms in the lunch room, as well as in the supervisor’s office)

·         when hazard reports are received investigate and, if necessary, take corrective action

·         involve and provide feedback to the person submitting the report

As I’ve said elsewhere, effective hazard and near miss reporting can be used as an early warning system for things going wrong in your workplace. 

Apart from the legal requirements mentioned above, many accidents can be prevented by taking prompt action to prevent a hazardous situation from continuing or developing into something worse.  Therefore, use Near Miss reports as your early warning system - waiting for the injury to happen before acting just doesn’t make sense.

©  Applied Safety & Risk Management                          www.appliedsafety.com.au

The views expressed in this article are those of the author who is not a lawyer and is not qualified to provide legal advice therefore before acting professional legal advice should be obtained.

Budget for Safety - an Easy Way

Apart from the fact that it is good management to reserve the funds for your OSH needs for the next 12 months, it is also a requirement under the WorkSafe Plan (Indicator 1.6)

Your budget doesn’t have to be complicated.  Use a single sheet of paper.  On the left hand side write down the main expenditure headings e.g. 

1. First Aid Equipment and Materials 
2. Personal Protective Equipment and Clothing 
3. Signs  (safety and hazard signs, floor marking etc)
4. OSH Training (Managers and Supervisors, fork lift operator certification, first aiders, general safety training)
5. Audit fees (external, independent, third party certification against WorkSafe Plan or AS 4801) 
6. Inspection and Servicing (fire extinguishers, pressure vessel/crane inspection and certification) 
7. Safety Advisor fees (noise reports, OSH management system and documentation, inspections, monitoring and specialist advice) 
8. Publications and Subscriptions
9. Miscellaneous - anything else you can think of.

Having written down the main expenditure items (and any more you think of) estimate how much each is going to cost you based on your past experience and what you plan to do and achieve over the next 12 months - put these estimates on the right hand side of the page against each heading.

Now, add “Safety Budget” to the agenda of your next OSH Committee meeting so you can discuss it and make any adjustments necessary.  If you are the boss all you have to do is approve the budget at the meeting.  If not, it’s up to you to get approval (and I’m sure you won’t have any difficulty with that!)

Visit www.appliedsafety.com.au for more information.

©  Applied Safety & Risk Management                          www.appliedsafety.com.au

The views expressed in this article are those of the author who is not a lawyer and is not qualified to provide legal advice therefore before acting professional legal advice should be obtained.

Why Don’t Government Agencies go for WorkSafe Plan Awards?

I noticed that about a month ago the Department of Commerce (which includes WorkSafe WA) has secured a Gold WorkSafe Plan Safety Achievers Award and it is good to see that they, the Regulator, are setting the example for the other government agencies.

What I have also noticed is that over the last five years only 13 agencies out of approximately 138 (9.4%) have won silver, gold or platinum awards whilst in comparison, 105 organisations from the private sector have been award winners.

This discrepancy between the public and private sectors is puzzling especially as there is a strong recommendation contained in the Public Sector Code of Practice for OSH (bottom of page 48) which states that agencies should, “showcase the agency’s excellent leadership and innovation in OSH by applying for an award.” i.e. a WorkSafe Plan Award.

What I would like to see is more agencies applying for awards from WorkSafe to provide Top Management with some confidence that they are meeting the WorkSafe guidelines for their safety management systems.

I am also aware that some agencies do carry out their own internal self-audits and that in some cases they are using unqualified and unaccredited WorkSafe Plan assessors to do the task. However, in my opinion, internal audits performed by unqualified auditors do no meet Top Management’s due diligence requirements and may be of little value.

As I am an accredited WorkSafe Plan assessor (I have helped government agencies obtain 9 awards) and to encourage agencies get on board with the WorkSafe Plan.

I am offering a free, no obligation, one hour consultation to discuss how the WorkSafe Plan works and how your agency may be able to apply for an award.

If you would like to know more please ring me on 9381 1743