Workplace Health and Safety

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Lesson 9: Policies and Procedures

You should now understand that health and safety in the workplace is everyone’s responsibility and that there is a risk- assessment process that should be followed to identify, assess and control hazards in the workplace determined.

In most workplaces, groups of employees, management and union representatives jointly develop occupational health and safety policies and procedures. Training will often be provided as part of the policy so that all staff are aware of their rights and responsibilities.

You should make yourself familiar with policies and procedures for occupational health and safety in your workplace.

WHS representatives, officers, committees, rehabilitation coordinator.

While workplace health and safety is everyone’s responsibility in the workplace, there are certain workers who hold key positions in this area. Here you will learn about the role and functions of:

• Workplace health and safety representatives
• Workplace health and safety officers
• Workplace health and safety committees.

WHS representatives

Under the Queensland Workplace Health and Safety Act, workers are entitled to elect one workplace health and safety representative (WHSR). If the employer and employees wish, more than one WHSR may be elected.

As well as acting as a representative of the employees with the employer on matters of occupational health and safety, the role of the WHSR may include:

• attending occupational health and safety meetings regularly
• carrying out workplace inspections
• reporting any unsafe acts and conditions to the WHS committee or to the employer
• taking ideas and suggestions of colleagues to the WHS committee
• promoting safety in the workplace
• carrying out or promoting health and safety training with colleagues

Workplace health and safety officer

A workplace health and safety officer (WHSO) in Queensland, is a worker who has undergone training in workplace health and safety issues and passed an examination which is recognised by Workplace Health and Safety (Queensland Department of Industrial Relations). These people are issued with a certificate and become accredited or qualified WHSOs

Workplace health and safety committee

A workplace health and safety committee represents the employer and employees and carries out the following role in the workplace:

• develops and implements health and safety procedures
• ensures all staff have access to information about occupational health and safety
• ensures management and staff cooperate on occupational health and safety matters
• performs any duties to ensure workplace health and safety.

A workplace health and safety committee must have at least two members: the WHSO and any WHSRs. The employer and employees negotiate to decide who (if any) the other members will be.

A committee member must be a worker, an employer or principal contractor at the workplace. The committee must meet at least every three months and at any other time requested by the WHSO. Staff should pass on any concerns they would like raised at these meetings through a committee member.

Minutes of meetings are taken and distributed to all staff. An extract from the minutes of a workplace health and safety committee meeting are as follows. (minutes of the meeting)

 

Workplace rehabilitation

The Work Cover Queensland Act 1996 states that employers with more than 30 workers must have a trained workplace rehabilitation coordinator and a workplace rehabilitation policy in place. This legislation emphasises the need for organisations to recognise the role injury prevention and rehabilitation management pays in reducing occupational health and safety costs.