Every business, no matter its size, has a primary duty to maintain a healthy and safe workplace by exercising due diligence and ensuring compliance with workplace health and safety (WHS) legislation.
A common mistake regarding small business WHS is the lack of a clear and effective safe system of work. This is known formally as a Safety Management System.
To minimise costs, small business owners may resort to using random policies, procedures, and checklists found online for free. This approach often leads to a fragmented, ineffective, and non-compliant safety system that lacks cohesiveness. Subsequently , there are significant gaps as these documents typically come from unreliable sources. In the long run, having a disjointed safety system fosters a poor safety culture with an increased likelihood of injury or accident which ultimately ends up being even more costly.
Severe consequences exist for small business owners whom are non compliant with the relevant legislation.
Implementing a high-quality Work Health and Safety Management System in your small business should be seen as an essential investment, not just an expense. Effective safety practices not only enhance your business’s reputation as a safe workplace but also offer other benefits. These include attracting quality employees, improving safety culture and retention, reducing workers’ compensation claims and premiums, and increasing your ability to secure work.
What is a Safety Management System?
A Safety Management System (SMS) is a comprehensive framework designed to help businesses manage workplace health and safety effectively. It’s all about having a structured approach to identifying, assessing, and controlling risks to create a safer work environment.
A SMS includes:
Policy and Commitment: It starts with a clear health and safety policy that outlines your business’s commitment to maintaining a safe workplace. This policy sets the tone and direction for all safety activities and demonstrates management’s commitment to safety.
Planning: This involves identifying potential hazards in the workplace and assessing the risks associated with them. Once these risks are understood, the SMS helps to develop strategies to either eliminate or control these risks.
Implementation: This is where the safety plans are put into action. It includes training employees, establishing safety protocols, providing the necessary equipment, and ensuring everyone understands their responsibilities when it comes to safety.
Monitoring and Evaluation: Regular monitoring and evaluation are crucial for a successful SMS. This step involves checking that safety measures are effective and working as intended. It also includes investigating incidents and near misses to learn from them and improve safety practices.
Review and Improvement: A good SMS is not static; it’s a continuous process of improvement. A living document. Regularly reviewing and updating the system ensures it stays relevant and effective as the workplace, technology, and industry standards evolve.
By implementing a Safety Management System, businesses can proactively manage workplace health and safety, reduce the likelihood of injuries and incidents and create a positive safety culture that benefits everyone.
Remember, it is not enough to simply adopt a safety management system. You must also actively implement that system .