ISO 45001 Guide
Learn more about how to achieve the benefits of ISO 45001 certification.
ISO 45001: Time to Look Closer at Your Occupational Health & Safety Plan?
As we move into the middle of the year, many organizations are beginning to reevaluate the process and procedures they have in place to keep their employees and the community around them protected in the event of a crisis. In many prudent companies, the Occupational Health & Safety Systems currently in place for standard day-to-day operations are carefully reviewed.
Businesses want to be ready, assuring that the protective equipment is on hand, training invest in, testing options, and practices in place are the correct ones.
In some instances, this motivation has nudged organizations to circle back to looking deeper into the Occupational Health & Safety Standard – ISO 45001:2018.
What is ISO 45001?
In our earlier article, 5 Ways ISO 45001 Helps Solidify Occupational Health and Safety, we referenced ISO.org to help us answer this question: “According to www.iso.org, ISO 45001 is the world’s first international standard that deals directly with occupational health and safety, offering a single and clear framework for organizations looking to provide a healthy workplace for employees and potential visitors. This standard was built to help companies address all the factors that might contribute to injuries, sickness, and even the possible death of their team members within their work environment.”Additionally, Vic Toy, U.S. Technical Advisory Group Chair, had this to say about the standard in a statement: “ISO 45001 is one of the most significant developments in workplace safety over the past 50 years, presenting an opportunity to move the needle on reducing occupational safety and health risks.’ ‘The goal was to create a widely accepted standard that can produce a highly effective safety and health management system for an increasingly interconnected world, regardless of an organization’s size, location, supply chains, or nature of work. It becomes a minimum standard of practice and a good one at that.”
After this statement, it makes sense that companies would take a closer look at incorporating or updating to the ISO 45001 standard to address their broader concerns surrounding their employees’ health and their communities’ well-being.
Why ISO 45001?
Considering our current circumstances, three significant benefits arise from investing in ISO 45001:2018:Risk Prevention - Working to prevent potential hazards before they happen is the ultimate in maximizing the potential for avoiding disasters. A dedicated OH&S management system provides the framework for an “early warning system” to help identify potential threats before they occur.
Enhanced Reputation/Social Responsibility - This tells your customers and interested parties that the company is on the path to supporting transparency and corporate social responsibility, both of which are critical in the modern era.
Decreases in Overall Costs – From a purely financial perspective, lower insurance premiums become a real possibility due to a demonstrated commitment and plan in place for employee health. Additionally, due to accidents or near misses, costs can be reduced through process efficiency and less time lost due to accidents or near misses.
Occupational Health and Safety should always be near top of mind, and we look forward to playing our part in this process in helping organizations reach their goals of becoming as safe as possible.