ISO45001: The New Role of Managerial Oversight in Health and Safety

ISO 45001, the long-awaited international standard for occupational safety and health, was published in March 2018 following a five-year development process. It gives organisations of any size a universally accepted framework for improving employee health and safety.

Tens of thousands of businesses around the globe are already certified to ISO 45001, and it’s expected that over 500,000 organisations will take up the standard internationally over the next decade.

The Standard aims to reduce workplace risks, and creating healthier, safer, working conditions. There are, however, some key differences between the new global standard and existing standards such as OHSAS 18001, and AS/NZS 4801.

One key difference is the need to incorporate health and safety throughout all levels of an organisation, from top to bottom. This requires upper management to take on a stronger leadership role in respect to OHS management.

Under ISO 45001, health and safety initiatives fall under the overall management system of an organisation. This means top management are required to demonstrate their engagement with OHS rather than merely delegating responsibilities to safety personnel.

Bureau Veritas lead auditor Andy Holmes said ISO 45001 made it clear that top management was “required to demonstrate leadership and commitment.”

“There’s always been an expectation of management involvement. But the way ISO 45001 runs it is to say ‘rather than hoping top management get the idea of what they are supposed to be doing, were going to write a specification for top management so that there’s no argument’ – it lays out exactly what they’re supposed to do.”

So who is top management? Under the Standard, top management is defined as “the person, or group of people, who control or direct an organisation at the most senior level.”

And what is expected of them? ISO 45001 requires top management to:

• Ensure policy and objectives are established
• Ensure integration of OHS into business processes
• Align policy/objectives with strategic direction
• Ensure active participation of workers
• Ensure OHS achieves intended outcomes
• Systematically take action on risks, non-conformities, and opportunities
• Develop and promote a culture supporting OHS

Businesses should treat the implementation of ISO 45001 as a strategic move that will allow them to obtain significant OHS-related benefits. The standard represents a holistic approach to health and safety that will only strengthen the notion that OHS investments produce a positive return on investment.

Improved managerial oversight in health and safety will also allow management to make better, more informed decisions that keep workers healthy and safe.

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ISO 45001 officially superseded AS/NZS 4801 in 2019