Occupational health & safety
Employers have a duty of care to provide a safe working environment for their employees, this includes providing:
- Safe systems of work
- Safe plant, equipment and substances
- Adequate training, information and supervision
- Adequate monitoring of work conditions
- Reasonable safety policies and procedures
Not only does this contribute to job satisfaction and employee tenure, it is a legal obligation under individual state or territory legislation.
OH&S Management Systems
The foundation of a safe working environment rests on a well documented, communicated, understood and implemented OH&S Management System (OHSMS). An OHSMS is a set of plans, actions and procedures, actively endorsed by the employer, to systematically manage health and safety in the workplace.
Ultimately, if some mishap occurs due to an OH&S oversight, the property owner can be liable. In order to mitigate the risk of an injury, lawsuit or even a death, it is imperative that the property owner implements a comprehensive and effective OHSMS.
The development, review and maintenance of an OHSMS should be addressed in the property's overall business plan. All people involved, from employee to management, need to understand and fully support the OHSMS.
Employees must be trained and regularly monitored to ensure they have the knowledge and capability to make the system work effectively.
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