OHSAS 18001:

Occupational health and safety

management systems -
Specification

Karen Lawrence
 OHSAS 18001 vs HSG 65

OHSAS 18001: HSG 65:

Policy – Planning – Policy – Organisation –
Implement & Operate – Check & Correct Plan & Implement – Measure Perf.
– Man. Review – Continual Improvement - Review Perf. - Audit
 1. Scope
• This OHSAS specification gives
requirements for an occupational health
and safety (OH&S) management system,
to enable an organisation to control its
OH&S risks and improve its performance
• It does not state specific OH&S
performance criteria, not does it give
detailed specifications for the design of a
management system
 This OHSAS Specification is applicable to
any organization that wishes to:
• establish an OH&S management system
• implement, maintain and continually improve an
OH&S management system
• assure itself of its conformance with its O&HS
policy
• demonstrate such conformance to others
• seek certification by an external organization
• make a self-determination and declaration of
conformance
 Policy (4.2)
• Authorised by top management
• Overall objectives clearly stated
• Commitment to continual improvement of H&S
performance clearly stated
• Legal compliance as a minimum
• Relevant and appropriate
• Communicated with intent to make all
employees aware of their responsibilities
• Documented, implemented and maintained
• Available to interested parties
• Reviewed
 Planning 4.3
• Planning Inputs
– Hazard identification (4.3.1)
– Risk assessment (4.3.1)
– Meets legal and other requirements (4.3.2)
• Planning Outputs
– Risk control measures (4.3.1)
– H&S Objectives (4.3.3)
– H&S management programme (4.3.4)
Implementation and Operation (4.4)
• Structure and Responsibility (4.4.1)
– Define, document and communicate roles and
responsibilities which effect H&S
– Responsibility rests with top management
• Training, Awareness and Competence
(4.4.2)
– Training should take account of levels of
responsibility, ability, literacy and risk
– Procedures should ensure H&S awareness
and competence at all levels
• Consultation and Communication (4.4.3)
– Procedures in place to communicate pertinent
info to and from employees and others
– The procedures should be documented
– Employees consulted on arrangements,
changes, review of policies etc
– Employees should know who their H&S rep(s)
and who the H&S management appointee is
• Documentation (4.4.4)
– Maintained and stored in a suitable medium
– Describes management system
– Directs to other documentation and how to
use it
• Document and Data Control (4.4.5)
– Procedures will be in place to ensure all
documents can be found and are reviewed
– Current versions should be available where
needed and obsolete versions removed
• Operational Control (4.4.6)
– Plan to control operations and activities
associated with identified risks
– Procedures where required which stipulate
operating criteria
– Procedures related to risks of goods and
services and for communication with suppliers
– Procedures for workplace and process design
in order to eliminate or reduce risks at source
• Emergency Preparedness and Response
(4.4.7)
– 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
– They shall be reviewed, particularly after
incidents
– They shall be tested periodically where
practicable
 Checking and Corrective Action
(4.5)
• Performance measurement & monitoring
(4.5.1)
– Procedures should be in place to monitor how
well H&S objectives are met
– Quantitative and Qualitative
– Proactive (compliance with law, man sys etc)
– Reactive (accident, ill health etc)
– Equipment required for monitoring should be
maintained and calibrated
• Accidents, incidents, non-conformances
and preventative action (4.5.2)
– Procedures, responsibilities and authority for:
– handling & investigating accidents, incidents
and non-conformances
– taking action to mitigate consequences
– ensuring prevent / correct actions are taken
– confirming the effectiveness of the actions
• Records and Record Management (4.5.3)
– Procedures should identify & maintain H&S
records
– H&S records should be legible, identifiable,
traceable and stored in a retrievable way
• Audit (4.5.4)
– Audit programme should determine;
– if the H&S system conforms to planned arrangements
& the std.
– if it has been implemented and maintained properly
– If it is effective in meeting policy and objectives
– It should review the results of previous audits
– It should provide information to management
– It should be based on previous audit and risk
assessment results
– If possible, the auditor should be independent of the
audited activity
 4.6 Management Review
• Senior management should regularly
review the H&S management system
• Review should determine if the system
delivers policy, objectives and operational
control
Simplified Model of OHSAS 18001
CONTINUAL IMPROVEMENT IN OHS PERFORMANCE

POLICY OBJECTIVES PROGRAMME

REVIEW
MONITOR
Legal & Other
requirements
Tolerable
Control
Identify or
Assess Risks Measures
Hazards Intolerable
Corrective &
Eliminate Residual Preventitive
Risk Risk Action

INTERNAL AUDIT