A health and safety (H&S) policy is a written promise by business owners and senior management to provide a healthy and safe workplace. The starting point, the basis of Safety and Health at work.

Many occupational health and safety regulations require that a policy be developed, all workers are aware of, and are trained in, the policy (document, document, document). The policy is posted in the workplace, reviewed at least annually, and a program to implement the policy is developed and maintained. This statement provides the regulatory requirement for a Health and Safety Management System (HSMS) in the workplace. Check local regulatory requirements. We will review the Health and Safety Management System (HSMS) requirements in more detail later in this article.

Policy Examples

A quick Google search can provide thousands of sample workplace health and safety policies for some suggestions for starting yours. Please note that this exercise is to look at different policies and commitments: we should not just copy, cut and paste. With that being said, google these three policies to see a variety of policies. (No links allowed in this article – sorry)

Bruce Power (Nuclear Power Company) Occupational Health and Safety Policy

Shell (oil and gas company) Health, safety and environment

IHC Health and Safety Policy Statement (Advocates and Support Services)

You’ll notice that these policies are from companies around the world and of very different sizes and industries, but they have many similar sections.

Commitment: Provide a healthy and safe workplace for all its workers, contractors and visitors. Meet or exceed legal requirements.

The goal: to eliminate all injuries and illnesses toward zero harm or no injuries.

Responsibility: Management has accepted its responsibility to provide a healthy and safe workplace. Define that safety is everyone’s responsibility – all employees

The reason for the similarities is partly because most of these sections are defined in the various international regulations and standards.

ISO 45001 standard

One of the international standards that will help improve health and safety in the workplace is the new ISO (International Standards Organization) 45001. Here is a section taken from the draft standard on the subject of Health and Safety Policies .

Top management must establish, implement and maintain an OH&S policy that includes a commitment to provide safe and healthy working conditions for the prevention of work-related injuries and/or illnesses and that is appropriate for the purpose, size and the context of the organization. and to the specific nature of its OH&S risks and opportunities.

The standard provides very similar direction contained in the various regulations and highlights the requirement to ensure that the policy is based on the organization’s specific nature of its OH&S risks and opportunities. While similar in some sections, your workplace health and safety policy should be specific based on your identified risks, from your risk assessment.

Health and Safety Management System (HSMS)

In addition to developing a workplace health and safety policy, the employer is (in some jurisdictions) required to have a program to implement the policy. An HSMS is a collection of policies and procedures based on the specific hazards of the workplace.

Common sections: worker orientations, first aid, wellness, fire prevention, worker training, workplace inspections, incident and near miss investigations, hazard reporting, indoor air quality, ergonomics, safe lifting, violence, and bullying, safety meetings, etc.

The other sections would be specific to workplace hazards and could include sections on Confined Space Entry, Hot Work Permits, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), Arc Flash, etc.

The expectation would be that a commitment to provide a healthy and safe workplace is made with the policy and the HSMS is how you will achieve this.

signing authority

The policy is signed by the person or persons responsible for ensuring the health and safety of employees, typically the most senior person, president, chief operating officer, etc. If your company is large and has many locations, have the president and the most senior person at the facility sign off. You can also invite union representatives to sign the policy and all your employees.

The policy must be reviewed and signed each year. Review the policy with your employees at least once a year and post it in your workplace, where people are most likely to come into contact with it.

Fulfill your promise

Make your health and safety policy as unique as your business, involve your employees in developing the policy, and make it available in your workplace online. In a tight job market, people want to work for companies that care about them. Putting your commitment in writing and sticking to it will make you a safe employer that people will want to work with.