OH&S Risk Management

OHS Risk Management is a practical way of finding and fixing workplace health and safety problems before they cause damage to people, product or property and cost a business money and lost productivity.

While most people will have heard about OHS risk management, many managers are still unsure how it relates in practical terms to themselves or their workplace.
OH&S History
In the years leading up to 2000, OH&S legislation was very prescriptive and told us how &  what to do to control hazards. This meant that it was relatively simple to comply with legislation - you simply did as you were told and that was that. Unfortunately, time and again, the 'one solution for all' approach was proven to be non effective in preventing injury to workers that could have been avoided if the right controls were in place.
With the introduction of the NSW Occupational Health and Safety Act 2000 and Occupational Health & Safety Regulations 2001 employers are now responsible for assessing the OHS risks created by hazards in their specific workplace and then determining how to either effectively eliminate or control these risks.
The new OHS laws require all employers to make certain that workplace hazards are identified and procedures are in place and used to identify, assess and control the hazards:
    •    Before setting up and using a workplace;
    •    When planning work processes;
    •    Before installing, commissioning or erecting plant;
    •    Whenever changes are made to:
–      the workplace;
–      the system or method of work;
–      the plant used;
–      the chemicals used;
    •    Whenever new information regarding work processes becomes available.
This responsibility can be managed in house by qualified individuals or outsourced to OH&S consultants familiar with the particular hazards and OH&S challenges of your specific industry. Effective consultation can not only improve management decisions due to sourcing ideas with employees, but it can also provide healthier working environments, reduce injuries, increase productivity and gain greater employee commitment  due to a better understanding of OH&S principals and practices.

Costs
Costs range from company to company but are a small investment compared to the cost associated with an accident should one happen regardless of who is at fault. While every employer has a legal obligation to provide a safe workplace, any accident will cost you money in lost productivity and possible workers compensation. Consider the recent case of Fosters brewing company where the right plan could have saved the company 1million dollars.
Case Studies
GLOBAL brewing giant Foster's has been fined $1.1 million over a safety breach that killed a worker.
"This problem was known and it wasn't fixed until a man died”
Machine operator Cuu Huynh, 58, died from injuries he suffered as he performed maintenance on a beer bottling machine at the company's Abbotsford brewery in Melbourne in 2006.
Mr Huynh's head had become jammed between an automated door on a beer bottling machine and a railing at the brewery. He later died in hospital.
A worker had been injured in almost identical circumstances four years earlier, but the company had not improved safety since.
Judge Jane Compton said no fine she imposed could compensate for the family's loss.
The court heard many workers at the factory were unable to read the company's standard operating procedures because they did not speak adequate English.
Outside court, John Merritt, executive director of health and safety at WorkSafe Victoria, said the fine was the second biggest in Victorian history.
"The reason this fine is so high is that sadly the company was warned about this matter, there had been a similar incident some time before, the problem had been identified and the problem wasn't fixed," Mr Merritt said.