Three letters – OH&S – yet they carry so much weight. What do they stand for?
Occupational safety and health is a cross-disciplinary area concerned with protecting the safety, health and welfare of people engaged in work or employment. The goal of all occupational safety and health programs is to foster a safe work environment. As a secondary effect, it may also protect co-workers, family members, employers, customers, suppliers, nearby communities, and other members of the public who are impacted by the workplace environment. It may involve interactions among many subject areas, including occupational medicine, occupational (or industrial) hygiene, public health, safety engineering / industrial engineering, chemistry, health physics.
Where do you fit and where does OH&S fall into your daily life at home , at work and at play?
O = Occupational
adj – of, relating to, or caused by an occupation
H = Health
n = Soundness, especially of body or mind; freedom from disease or abnormality.
& = and
n = The character or sign (&) representing the word and
S = Safety
n = The condition of being safe; freedom from danger, risk, or injury.
Creating a safe work environment is critical to the success of your business, and is one of the best ways to retain staff and maximise productivity. Though it may cost to implement safe practices and install safety equipment, the effect of not taking action can be severe.
As a business owner you have responsibilities regarding health and safety in your workplace. You need to ensure that your business doesn’t create health and safety problems for your employees, customers or the public.
Knowing and understanding the occupational health and safety (OH&S) laws will help you avoid unnecessary costs and damage to your business caused by workplace injury and illness. It will also provide your business with a strong foundation to achieve long-term success.
Under OH&S legislation you are obliged to provide:
- safe premises
- safe machinery and materials
- safe systems of work
- information, instruction, training and supervision
- a suitable working environment and facilities.
Complying with these duties can prevent you from being prosecuted and fined, and help you to retain skilled staff.
It is important that you gather information about your OH&S obligations to yourself and to your employees.
For more information please email us and we will give you some pointers to get you headed in the right direction to ensure the health and safety of your employees.