Category: Safety pages
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Safety Audit Health Check
Poor work health and safety practices can lead to increased workplace injuries, heavy fines and even jail time.
Don’t be caught out by lax safety in your business. A Safety Audit or Gap Analysis is a simple, non-intrusive health check, prepared by our experienced WHS specialists. It gives you a greater insight as to where your safety practices may need improvement, and we all know that knowledge is power (and in the case of safety, knowledge saves you time and money in the long run).
In the Australian 2018-2019 workers compensation reporting period, there were approximately 115,000 serious workers compensation claims (at least one week off work). The occupations with the most serious claims were labourers, community and personal service workers and machinery operators and drivers. The industries with the highest rates of claims were agriculture, forestry and fishing industries, the manufacturing industry and the transport, postal and warehousing industries.
While the report above highlights the most common instances of serious claims, it’s important to highlight that serious injury or illness can occur in ANY industry and ANY occupation. Where an employer hasn’t acted on their obligations in regard to WHS they become exposed to potential claims of negligence which can result in penalties and even jail time in serious cases. That’s why a simple safety audit will place you and your business in the best position to avoid these negative consequences.
What is a Safety Health Check, Gap Analysis or Audit?
Our Safety Gap Analysis is completed by our safety specialist sister company Big Yellow Safety, and considers information about how your business operates, from a health and safety perspective. Our WHS Consultant will conduct a site inspection and also consider any other relevant data that we collect and then compile it into a report which covers the various areas of safety that are relevant to small and medium business. The WHS report you receive will highlight any gap areas and contain some recommendations once the safety audit is complete. As our Health Check method is quick and non-intrusive, your part will not take much time at all – it’s really that easy to get a snapshot of Health and Safety for your business.
What benefits will a simple safety audit provide for my business?
Having a Safety Gap analysis completed will:
- Provide insights into any gaps in your current safety practices
- Highlight what you should focus on in the short term, medium term and long term
- Enable you to look at safety more clearly in your business
- Allow you to focus on improving safety for workers and reduce the risk of injuries and illnesses in your workplace
- Help you to reduce your exposure to breaches of the WHS Act
- Save you time and money as having better health and safety practices will reduce injuries and incidents occurring
- Give you peace of mind that you are taking corrective action in such an important space.
Book in a Free Introductory Call to discuss your general safety situation and learn more about our Safety Gap Analysis. Call 07 5655 4047 or contact Big Yellow Safety here.
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Gold Coast Safety Specialist Free Consultation
Is your business at risk of increased injuries, expensive worker’s compensation claims or penalties from the regulator?
With tougher penalties for WHS breaches, now is the time to get your Work Health and Safety sorted once and for all, with a consult with our Gold Coast Safety Specialist sister company Big Yellow Safety.
Book in a free consultation with one of our Gold Coast Safety Consultants. We service Gold Coast, Tweed Heads, Byron Bay, and Brisbane regions.
Why improve safety in your business?
- To reduce the risk of workplace injuries which lead to workers needing more time off than necessary and in turn impacting the operations of your business;
- To reduce the length of worker’s compensation claims. The larger the injury the more time that may be needed away from work and the more complex the return to work process;
- To save money on worker’s compensation premiums which can be costly and impact you at premium renewal time;
- Protect your business from expensive common law claim payouts as a result of business negligence;
- It’s your obligation to. Under national work health and safety laws, PCBU’s have an obligation to ensure that the health and safety of workers and others is not put at risk by the work carried out by the business or undertaking. You could get heavily fined or even go to jail under industrial manslaughter laws, if you turn a blind eye to safety practices; and
- It makes financial sense to. Your workers are your business’ largest expense so why wouldn’t you invest in keeping them safe?
- It will improve your overall business culture, reputation and profitability. Where your workers know that you care for their safety, they will be more likely to do the right thing, care for others and tell everyone their workplace is a great place to work.
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Get the safety essentials today and book in with Big Yellow Safety – your Gold Coast Safety Specialists.
- Policies and procedures.
- Safe work procedures.
- Safe Work Method Statements (SWMS).
- Risk assessments.
- Chemical registers.
We also offer comprehensive Safety Management Systems if you are interested in investing in a holistic approach to safe systems of work for your business. Safety management systems are not software, but a systemised way to manage your safety so that nothing is missed. All businesses that are exposed to risks should have a safety management system in place (E.g. trade businesses, manufacturers, distributors, tree and landscaping services, NDIS and home care, drivers, etc.)
All workplaces have at least some level of risk. Enquire about a Safety Health Check, conducted by a Gold Coast Safety Specialist which identifies gaps and provides recommendations on what needs improving in your workplace. It’s often a good starting point for those businesses that simply don’t know where to start with their Work Health and Safety.
Free Introductory call with a Gold Coast Safety Specialist.
Book in a Free Introductory Session with Big Yellow Safety’s experienced health and safety consultants either over the phone or at our Palm Beach, Gold Coast HQ. We will explore your health and safety needs and provide you with a free no obligation quote. Or call 07 5655 4047. We work with all industries.
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WHS Policies
WHS policies outline your business’s workplace health and safety obligations to people who interact with you and your company.
WHS policies apply to staff, contractors, and customers and outline the objectives and duties of the business as well as the duties of all: staff and contractors. Even if you run a small business and employ only a handful of workers, you can’t afford to assume everyone knows what is required with workplace health and safety. You should never assume that safety is ‘common sense’— a workplace that relies solely on ‘common sense’ is likely to be unsafe and serious workplace incidents could lead to heavy fines and even jail time under new industrial manslaughter laws.
Why have work, health and safety policies?
Safety policies show your business is serious about people’s safety: about preventing work-related injury and illness. They put your business’s commitment down on paper and out in your workplace once it is displayed on walls and noticeboards.
Workplace health and safety is the responsibility of every business and any individual with controlling power over a work area. Safety policies assist workers and organisations fulfil their legislative responsibilities under the Workplace Health and Safety Act.
Safe work starts with effective, known, and understood policies.
What are the essential WHS policies?
Unlike off the shelf products, our policies are tailored to your workplace, offering better protection for you and your business. Included in all packages is complimentary advice on how to successfully and compliantly introduce new policies to staff. We recommend policies on:
- Workplace Health and Safety
- Workplace Health and Safety Roles and Responsibilities
- Alcohol and Other Drugs
- EEO Bullying and Harassment
- Ergonomics Management
- Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
- Psychological Health and Wellbeing
- Workplace Health and Safety Training
- Noise
- Remote and Isolated Work
- Stress and Fatigue
- Plant and Equipment
- Site Environmental
Enquire about our Freedom Membership which includes access to our full suite of WHS policy templates! OR Contact us to arrange a free 30-minute Introductory Call with our sister company Big Yellow Safety – speak to a safety specialist today.
Gold Coast WHS Consultants – 07 5655 4047.
Our Safety Services cover Gold Coast, Tweed Heads, Byron Bay, Brisbane, Darling Downs and the Granite Belt.
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WHS Documents
Unlike off the shelf products, our WHS documents are tailored to your workplace, offering better protection for you and your business.
Managing your Work Health and Safety (WHS) responsibilities and ensuring safe work environments can be challenging for most business owners. Creating your own WHS documents can also seem overwhelming, not knowing where to start, creating all the documents, and keeping up with the changes in work health and safety legislation, codes of practice, and standards.
Industryus Safety can assist businesses that lack the time and resources to research and prepare their own safety documents. Industryus Safety aims to reduce the time, money, and effort you have to invest in developing and maintaining your safe work documents to the specific needs of your business.
You decide what safe work documents would benefit your business, and we develop the documents for you. Some of the WHS documents we recommend include:
Safe Work Method Statements (SWMS)
Under a range of state OHS and WHS legislation, certain High-Risk work tasks, require Safe Work Method Statements (SWMS). Furthermore, some companies require sub-contractors to prepare SWMS for the work that they are going to do for them.
SWMS are not intended to be a procedure but rather a document that is prepared in consultation with all relevant persons.
Safe Work Procedures (SWP) or Safe/Standard Operating Procedures (SOP)
A safe work procedure (SWP) is a written document that provides step-by-step instructions on how to safely perform a task or activity in the workplace. It can also be referred to as a standard operating procedure (SOP), or a safe work instruction (SWI). The main purpose is to standardise a production or work task. By doing so employers can improve efficiency, quality, and prevent safety incidents.
Safe work procedures are a practical and consistent way for everyone to commit to safety. They clearly:
- document the sequence of steps for doing the task safely;
- incorporate the appropriate risk control measures into those steps.
Procedures provide workers, supervisors, and officers with steps that they must follow in specific environments or situations, or when utilising pieces of equipment for work tasks. When trained on how to use a safe work procedure, everyone in the workplace will know the safe way to do their job and will work the same way. They won’t need to guess or make things up as they go along.
WHS Risk Register
A risk register is a central tool for businesses to use to monitor and reduce risks, both those identified during initial safety assessments and those emerging during operations. A risk register contains a list of potential hazards and associated risks that are rated before and after controls have been implemented.
A risk register is useful for providing a snapshot of all of the risks at a location or in a business and tracking the risk controls. When populated with information on each risk, including risk ranking, the risk register can be analysed to present the risk profile for different aspects of the business.
WHS Chemical Register
A hazardous chemical register is a list of all hazardous chemicals stored, handled, or used at a workplace. The hazardous chemicals register should be accompanied by the current Safety Data Sheet (SDS) for each of those chemicals.
The risk register should be readily accessible to all workers involved in the use, storage, and handling of the hazardous chemicals at the workplace and to anyone else who is likely to be affected by a hazardous chemical at the workplace. The register must be updated as new hazardous chemicals are introduced to the workplace or when the use of a particular hazardous chemical is discontinued.
Under the Model WHS Regulations businesses using hazardous chemicals must prepare a register and keep it up to date so workers can easily find information about chemicals stored, handled, or used at the workplace.
Contact us to arrange a free introductory call with our sister company Big Yellow Safety. We can help you with the development of WHS documents for your business. Or give us a call on 07 5655 4047 for more info.
Our safety services cover Gold Coast, Tweed Heads, Byron Bay, Brisbane, Darling Downs and Granite Belt areas.
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Big Yellow Safety
Safe systems of work combine different elements in the workplace that need attention to ensure your organisation provides a safe working environment. Our sister company, Big Yellow Safety can assist you to get it right.
In Australia, businesses, no matter what size they are, have the primary duty of care for workplace health and safety.
Business owners, PCBUs or those who make decisions that affect the business must exercise due diligence and ensure they are complying with health and safety obligations. There are many aspects to creating and maintaining a compliant safe working environment, and this can be overwhelming for inexperienced business leaders. Reaching out to a professional can often be far more cost-effective, safe and time-smart than trying to muddle through yourself.
What is a Safety Management System?
Safety management systems make health and safety an integral part of the business’s core operations. By designing, developing and implementing an effective safety management system, your business will have methods for managing reporting, responsibilities, planning and resourcing to create a safer workplace.
A safety management system must be tailored to your workplace. This includes the size of your business, the type of work that you do and the workers that are working for you. Buying a cheap off-the-shelf package often leads to disaster, so it’s always recommended that a fit for purpose safety system is operating in your workplace.
The elements of a safety management system include:
- management commitment and safety policy;
- training and supervision;
- risk management;
- incident and injury management;
- monitoring and auditing.
Remember, it is not enough to simply adopt a safety management system and “set and forget”. You must also actively implement that system in your workplace and maintain it. To do this, you must ensure that:
- workers comply with procedures and instructions;
- workers are appropriately trained; and
- workers are subject to ongoing supervision
and ultimately, your workplace needs to be doing the things that your safety system documents say they are doing.
Read more on what Comcare says about Safety Management Systems here.
Why does your business need one?
Yes, all businesses must have a safe system of work in place – it’s the law! Safety management systems help businesses to continually improve their safety performance and compliance to meet health and safety legislation and standards. In doing so, businesses establish safer working environments that protect people at work by eliminating, or better managing, health and safety hazards.
Benefits of using the Safety Consultant team at Big Yellow Safety.
There are several benefits to having an effective safety management system. These include:
- complying with Australian legislative requirements and standards and avoiding fines;
- creating a safer work environment so that your employees don’t get injured as often;
- lower absenteeism rates, such as sick days;
- fewer business disruptions, by keeping your production going;
- more motivated and productive workers, because they feel safe and valued;
- improved bottom line by lowering your compensation costs; and
- a more successful business by improving your reputation.
Business Owners, CEOs and Senior Managers have a vital role to play when it comes to leading safety. When workers know their employer places high importance on workplace health and safety, they are more likely to be motivated to follow safety procedures and raise safety issues.
You can book your Free 30-minute Consultation directly with Big Yellow Safety here. Or call 07 5655 4048.