Health and safety training: the policies

When you begin your health and safety training at Emcare, you will come to learn about the importance and relevance of the Occupational Health and Safety Act 85 of 1993, and how this applies to your business. Health and safety policies are a necessity for most businesses, but the bureaucracy and heavy terminology involved can make the whole process quite daunting. This guide will calm your qualms and give you everything you need to know about health and safety policies, so that you can make an informed decision on policy for your business/workplace.

What is a health and safety policy?

In health and safety training you will learn that this policy is essentially a written account that details the guidelines, principles, and goals that represent the company’s dedication and plans for health and safety in the workplace. The policy should cover and include a few essential aspects, but it should also be specific to your company and should account for the particulars of your workplace, company, or business. The main reason for implementing a health and safety policy is because it assists in preventing workplace accidents or injuries, and details how the parties involved should move forward during and after the incident.

Health and safety training: Why is it important to manage health and safety?

In health and safety training you will learn that it is important to manage health and safety in the workplace through a policy because it acts to formally protect both employer and employees. Although your business should always be operating at a high standard with safety protocols in place, the reality is that accidents happen, and conflict follows. The best and most efficient way to mitigate any accidents or conflict in the workplace, is to outline a clear framework for all parties on how to resolve, which should be previously agreed upon by all involved in the workplace, as well as officials.

Aside from removing chaos, panic and disorder during and following an incident, there are three key reasons to manage health and safety in the workplace, being financial, legal and moral. For moral reasons, as an employer it is your responsibility to care for those who work for you, and you have a moral obligation to recognise and respect their value, position and need for health and safety. When employees feel respected and protected by their employers, it fosters a more productive and health relationship which is also beneficial for business.

Legally speaking, it is often a requirement for businesses to have a health and safety policy in place, and you could be slapped with a fine if you don’t have one. Having a written policy in place that has been signed by all parties protects both the employer and the employee in the event of an incident and ensures that the process that follows is handled by professionals without any confusion, manipulation or extortion. Ensuring that you meet the legal requirements also assists financially by detailing the specific amounts that an employer can be held liable for, which ensures that the employee is renumerated, and that the employer doesn’t get slapped with a private lawsuit, which you will learn about in health and safety training.

Health and safety training: What are the three main parts of a health and safety policy?

When you begin health and safety training and formulating any health and safety policy you will come to learn that most of these policies are separated into three separate sections:

-A broad statement on general policy for health and safety at the workplace, detailing what it is that you want to achieve and manage and how you plan to go about it.

-The second section in most health and safety policies is the responsibility section, which details and delegates who exactly is responsible for which specific tasks and should detail how these individuals should go about achieving their designated tasks.

-The final section of a health and safety policy is where it all comes together and where you cover how you plan to meet your desired aims. This should cover potential scenarios and facets, and should detail all processes that follow. This final section ensures that your policy is effective and that it can be referred to by staff, employers and legal teams.

Health and safety training: What does the government say about health and safety policies?

If you are operating a business in South Africa, then you may have encountered the Occupational Health and Safety Act 85 of 1993. This is the piece of legislation that South Africa has when it comes to workplace safety and it demands that the employer provides and maintains, within reasonable and practical demands, a safe work environment that poses no health risk/s to any employees. Inside of the act, section 7 goes into detail about health and safety policies and offers guidance for employers.

This section of the act states that while it is not entirely compulsory for all organisations or businesses to implement a health and safety policy, these businesses should still inform all employees of any workplace health and safety concerns. If a chief inspector has instructed the company to implement a policy, then they are obligated to do so and should inform employees on the prevention of workplace health and safety dangers and risks. The act asks that this policy be formally written and stored and should be signed or acknowledged by all parties.

The government defines these policies as a set of documents which describes a business’s/organisation’s policies for operation and the various procedures required to uphold the policy. Without these policies, it would be almost impossible to effectively manage health and safety in the workplace, for both employers and employees. It is also important to recognise when assessing the necessity for a health and safety policy, that if these formal written policies are not in place, then the lack of guidelines means that any of the parties involved could potentially take advantage or extort the situation.

While there are guidelines to follow when formulating the policy, the primary aim is to provide a written statement of goals and principles that embody the company’s/business’s commitment to workplace health and safety. The policy should be long enough that is covers all relevant aspects of the company in relation to the size and activities of the company. This policy should be specific to the company and should address the specified health and safety needs of the company and all employees. According to the South African Labour Guide, a general health and safety policy should include or cover the following:

1: A description of the company/business and what functions it carries out.
2: Include recognition of compliance with the minimum legislation detailed in the Occupational Health and Safety Act 85 of 1993.
3: Acknowledge that safety is a priority among other goals and policies set out by the company/business.
4: Recognise and acknowledge that it is the right of every employee in the workplace to work in a healthy and safe working environment.
5: Acknowledge and oblige business management to be accountable for occupational health and safety as well as managements responsibility and commitment to eliminate and/or minimise potential health and safety risks so as to provide a health and safe workplace for all employees.
6: The essential health and safety philosophy of the company/business/organisation, this includes a statement of health and safety goals and principles.
7: What the general responsibilities and duties are of all employees.
8: Emphasise that workplace health and safety should not be ignored or sacrificed because of inconveniency or expediency.
9: Clearly state that if any health and safety duties/requirements/obligations are not met, that it will not be tolerated, and steps will be taken until these aspects are upheld.
10: The policy should clearly encourage workers to co-operate with unions and to involve all employees in the implementing of the health and safety policy.
11: The date that the policy was formulated and agreed upon.
12: The policy should be signed by the chief executive officer.
13: The policy should be displayed in a clearly visible place in the workplace where all employees can see it and refer to it.
14: The date that the policy was last reviewed.

Health and safety training: What are the five elements of safety in a health and safety policy?

Implementing a health and safety policy will be primarily orientated around safety, which has five main elements, being leadership, responsibility, accountability, clear expectations and ethics. The first element, leadership, refers to the supervisors and managers of the organisation or business, who should be setting an appropriate safety example for all employees. Leadership is essentially a framework for employees to follow.

The second aspect of safety, responsibility, is largely focused on safety culture and the generally accepted consensus that all individuals are ethically and morally bound to act responsibly, for the company, themselves and other employees. The third element of safety is accountability, which refers to holding leadership accountable for their actions and detailing consequences. The main factor to keep in mind here is that it is calling for upper management to hold middle and lower management accountable for their actions, and not to dismiss any misdemeanours just because production goals are being met.

The fourth aspect of safety is clear expectations, which means that there should be no confusion regarding safety expectations and all parties should be in clear communication. This communication needs to take place by management and leadership setting a clear example by following their specific designated requirements, so that employees will follow suit. The fifth and final aspect of safety relates to ethics and the social contract of society, which should be largely focused on fostering a culture of safety. Seeing individuals for more than their ability to meet targets, and seeing their ethical and moral decision-making capabilities, ensures that you are hiring the appropriate people for the job.

Health and safety training: What health and safety policies should your business have in place?

While it is recommended that all companies have some form of a health and safety policy in place, you will learn in health and safety training that companies can have numerous policies in place that all aim to target specific aspects of the business and staff structure. Here are 5 basic common policies that health and safety training recommends to have in place for your workplace:

1. Workplace Health and Safety: As extensively discussed, this policy guides the occupational health and safety of a workplace.
2. Employee Code of Conduct Policy: An employee code of conduct policy is a great policy to have in place that details how employees should conduct themselves while in the place of work. The duties and responsibilities, relating to their position as well as to their presence in the workplace, should be clearly outlines. Misdemeanours should also be discussed here.
3. Equal Opportunity Policy: As taught in health and safety training, this policy is a legal requirement in many countries and ensures that no company can discriminate against any employee on the basis of age, gender, race, medical conditions etc.
4. Employee Disciplinary Action Policy
5. Leave of Absence policy