What is Workplace Health and Safety (WHS)
Workplace Health and Safety (WHS) is a set of processes and methods that create or improve health and safety working conditions for people in companies. The goal of WHS is to reduce or eliminate potential risks at the workplace associated with injuries and health issues, both for employees and for other people, such as contractors or visitors.
- The purpose of WHS is to prevent possible work-related injuries, illnesses and other similar risks.
- The aim of WHS is therefore to prevent threats to or damage to the health or loss of life of workers
- Measures can be technological, technical, legal, organizational or administrative in nature.
- WHS uses and includes all means, tools, equipment, measures and methods that can reduce health risks.
WHS is a continuous activity. Implementing WHS means implementing these areas:
- Develop WHS guidelines and operational documentation
- Ensure initial and regular employee training in the area of work safety
- Ensure a safe workplace and personal protective equipment and other work tools and equipment for workers
- Monitor problems and incidents in the workplace and eliminate their causes
- Carry out regular subsequent regular inspections and controls of WHS compliance
- Keep all WHS documentation of the above in order
Employer Responsibilities (For USA taken from Dept of Labor website)
- Establish or update operating procedures and communicate them so that employees follow safety and health requirements.
- Employers must provide safety training in a language and vocabulary workers can understand.
- Employers with hazardous chemicals in the workplace must develop and implement a written hazard communication program and train employees on the hazards they are exposed to and proper precautions (and a copy of safety data sheets must be readily available). See the OSHA page on Hazard Communication.
- Provide medical examinations and training when required by OSHA standards.
- Post, at a prominent location within the workplace, the OSHA poster (or the state-plan equivalent) informing employees of their rights and responsibilities.
- Report to the nearest OSHA office all work-related fatalities within 8 hours, and all work-related inpatient hospitalizations, all amputations and all losses of an eye within 24 hours. Call our toll-free number: 1-800-321-OSHA (6742); TTY 1-877-889-5627. [Employers under federal OSHA's jurisdiction were required to begin reporting by Jan. 1, 2015. Establishments in a state with a state-run OSHA program should contact their state plan for the implementation date].
- Keep records of work-related injuries and illnesses. (Note: Employers with 10 or fewer employees and employers in certain low-hazard industries are exempt from this requirement.
- Provide employees, former employees and their representatives access to the Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses (OSHA Form 300). On February 1, and for three months, covered employers must post the summary of the OSHA log of injuries and illnesses (OSHA Form 300A).
- Provide access to employee medical records and exposure records to employees or their authorized representatives.
- Provide to the OSHA compliance officer the names of authorized employee representatives who may be asked to accompany the compliance officer during an inspection.
- Not discriminate against employees who exercise their rights under the Act. See our "Whistleblower Protection" webpage.
- Post OSHA citations at or near the work area involved. Each citation must remain posted until the violation has been corrected, or for three working days, whichever is longer. Post abatement verification documents or tags.
- Correct cited violations by the deadline set in the OSHA citation and submit required abatement verification documentation.
- OSHA encourages all employers to adopt a safety and health program. Safety and health programs, known by a variety of names, are universal interventions that can substantially reduce the number and severity of workplace injuries and alleviate the associated financial burdens on U.S. workplaces. Many states have requirements or voluntary guidelines for workplace safety and health programs. Also, numerous employers in the United States already manage safety using safety and health programs, and we believe that all employers can and should do the same. Most successful safety and health programs are based on a common set of key elements. These include management leadership, worker participation, and a systematic approach to finding and fixing hazards. OSHA's Safe and Sound page contains more information.
- For more information, refer to the following online publications and resources.
- All About OSHA
- OSHA Inspections
- Top Ten OSHA Standards Cited
Workplace Health and Safety (WHS) Documentation in Companies
Companies must maintain appropriate WHS documentation demonstrating compliance with all legislative requirements. WHS documentation primarily includes the following:
- WHS policies and operational documentation
- Records of employee health, occupational diseases, and job risk assessments
- Records of employee qualifications and training
- Training materials and evidence of employee training
- Records of workplace injuries, incidents, near misses and other workplace safety incidents or emergencies
- Records of issued work equipment, especially PPE (personal protective equipment)
- Documentation of the conformity of work equipment and the workplace with safety requirements, such as manuals and declarations of conformity
- Records of workplace safety inspections and audits
What does implementing OHS mean?
Implementing OHS and complete workplace safety management means implementing the following ten points:
- implement work risk assessment and management
- implement workplace safety guidelines, including job categorization
- ensure work procedures and organization that do not endanger health, and improve overall work hygiene,
- ensure workplace and work environment safety, signage, ergonomics, safety signs and signals,
- ensure the provision of suitable work equipment, tools, instruments, equipment and personal protective equipment to employees
- ensure the safety and compliance of technical equipment, tools and their compliance with manufacturer requirements
- ensure worker training in occupational health and safety
- implement record keeping, resolution and reporting of work accidents, incidents and near misses
- fire protection, crisis management and, to a very limited extent, corporate ecology (environmental protection at the employer).
- ensure improvement of the above, checks and audits of compliance with safe work principles
How Aptien Simplifies Implementing and Documenting Workplace Safety
Aptien helps you manage many of your workplace safety obligations and documentation, specifically:
Managing Workplace Safety Policies and Operational Documents
Employee Records
- Record employee health information, occupational diseases, and job classifications in the employee file
- Requirements for employee qualifications
Planning and Managing Employee Qualifications
- Planning employee qualifications
- Training plans
- Training materials and proof of employee training
- Planning employee qualifications
- Workplace safety training plans, deadline reminders
Familiarizing Employees with Manuals and Operational Documentation
- Familiarizing employees with workplace safety policies and operational documents
- Documentation of trained workers
Issuing Work Equipment to Employees
Recording Workplace Safety Incidents
- Reporting near misses, accidents, and work-related injuries
- Record of work-related injuries,
- Reporting and recording safety incidents at the workplace or extraordinary events
Workplace, Work Equipment, and Compliance
- Documentation of work equipment and workplace compliance with safety requirements
- Maintaining manuals and, for example, manuals, declarations of conformity
Managing and Planning Regular Maintenance of Equipment, Machinery, and the Workplace
- Maintaining prescribed documentation for equipment, machinery, and the workplace (manuals, declarations of conformity, etc.)
- Documentation of work equipment and workplace compliance with safety requirements, such as manuals, declarations of conformity
Inspections and Audits
- Records of workplace safety inspections and audits
- Documentation (including photo documentation) for workplace safety inspections