The U.S. Department of Labor estimates that 2.2 million workers worldwide lose their lives each year due to workplace-related accidents, injuries, and diseases, and that another 4.1 million workers in the United States suffer serious work-related illnesses or injury. These and other sobering statistics and news headlines about workplace deaths and injuries underscore the importance of programs to protect the health and safety of workers. They also explain the growing interest among organizations in occupational health and safety (OH&S) management systems, and their potential to reduce workplace-related accidents.
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In an effort to address this interest, the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is involved in a multi-year process to develop a recognized international standard detailing the requirements of OH&S management systems. The standard development process, which began in October 2013, is expected to result in the publication of ISO 45001 in late 2016 or early 2017. When published, ISO 45001 will likely become the primary standard for OH&S management systems, supplanting OHSAS 18001 and other national standards addressing OH&S issues.
The origins of ISO 45001
Currently, the most widely accepted standard addressing OH&S management systems is OHSAS 18001. That standard was originally developed in the late 1990s through a collaborative effort of national standards and accreditation bodies known as the Occupational Health and Safety Advisory Services (OHSAS) Project Group. Published in 1999, the OH&S requirements presented in OHSAS 18001 have since been adopted by organizations around the world and more than 50,000 OHSAS 18001 certificates have been issued.
However, the tragic workplace fires in Pakistan and Bangladesh in 2012 brought increased attention to substandard working conditions in factories and facilities operating as supply chain partners for major international consumer product brands. Among the many solutions considered was the development of a standardized and unified management system framework to address OH&S issues that would be recognized and accepted by standards groups, regulators, and organizations worldwide. Proponents also hoped that an OH&S management system certified to a recognized international standard was more likely to be accepted by manufacturers, retailers, and consumers as evidence of a company’s commitment to the health and safety of its employees.
The structure of ISO 45001
ISO 45001 is intended to specify requirements for OH&S management systems. Similar to other ISO management systems standards, ISO 45001 is expected to provide a framework that will enable organizations to design and implement an OH&S management system that addresses their unique processes and requirements. As a result, the standard will not state specific OH&S performance criteria or contain detailed specifications for the design of an OH&S management system.
At the same time, the requirements of ISO 45001 are expected to provide a context for worker safety that extends beyond traditional boundaries. Within the proposed scope of the standard, the “context of the organization” requires an organization to evaluate safety risks throughout its entire supply chain, as well as safety concerns that might affect the communities in which it operates. Appropriately, the ultimate responsibility for safety can no longer be delegated to a safety manager but will instead rest with an organization’s senior management. Indeed, under ISO 45001, worker safety becomes an integral part of a company’s overall operation.
Although the development process for ISO 45001 is still in its earliest stages, the following table of contents has been proposed as a starting place for discussion by stakeholders:
Forward
Introduction
1. Scope
2. Normative references
3. Terms and definitions
4. Context of the organization
4.1 Understanding the organization and its context
4.2 Understanding the needs and expectations of interested parties
4.3 Determining the scope of the OH&S management system
4.4 OH&S management system
5. Leadership
5.1 Leadership and commitment
5.2 Policy
5.3 Organizational roles, responsibilities, accountabilities, and authorities
6. Planning
6.1 Actions to address risk and opportunities
6.2 OH&S objectives and planning to achieve them
7. Support
7.1 Resources
7.2 Competence
7.3 Awareness
7.4 Information, communication, participation, and consultation
7.5 Documented information
8. Operation
8.1 Operation planning and control
8.2 Management of changes
8.3 Outsourcing
8.4 Emergency preparedness and response
9. Performance evaluation
9.1 Monitoring, measurement analysis, and evaluation
9.2 Internal audit
9.3 Management review
10. Improvement
10.1 Incident, nonconformity, and corrective action
10.2 Continual improvement
Annex A (informative)
The above structure follows the so-called “high-level structure” format detailed in Annex SL, which is also being applied in the current revisions of ISO 9001 and ISO 14001. As a result, it is expected that approximately 30 percent of the content of ISO 45001 will be identical to that of ISO 9001 and ISO 14001, as well as the content of future revisions of other management systems standards. The eventual use of a common high-level structure in all management systems standards is expected to ease efforts by organizations to implement and simultaneously maintain multiple management systems where appropriate.
Timeline for ISO 45001 development and publication
ISO Project Committee 283 (PC 283) is responsible for the development of the content of the new ISO 45001 standard. The committee held its initial meeting in London in October 2013, which was attended by 83 delegates from 27 ISO member bodies. At that time, the committee developed a first working draft (WD1) of the new standard, and originally agreed on the following timeline for further development:
• May 2014—Release of Committee Draft (ISO/CD 45001)
• February 2015—Release of Draft International Standard (ISO/DIS 45001)
• March 2016—Release of Final Draft International Standard (ISO/FDIS 45001)
• October 2016—Publication of Final Standard (ISO 45001)
However, perhaps more than any other management system standard, the development of ISO 45001 has proceeded on a path that could hardly be categorized as straightforward. To date, reviews of working drafts of the standard have produced extensive and often contradictory comments, which have resulted in subsequent revisions and further reviews. It is hoped that a second Committee Draft (CD2) will be released later this year, further extending the originally scheduled release dates for a DIS and FDIS. Of course, future progress is subject to change based on the nature and extent of recommended changes received during upcoming comment periods.
When finally published, ISO 45001 will replace OHSAS 18001 as the primary international standard for occupational health and safety management systems. It is expected that organizations currently holding OHSAS 18001 certifications will have a minimum of two to three years to recertify to the requirements in the new standard.
Conclusion
Although its publication is at least a year or more away, ISO 45001 is likely to expand interest in the adoption of OH&S management systems and streamline their acceptance by third parties. An internationally recognized OH&S management system standard may also increase the demand for ISO 45001 certification in procurement considerations, especially for organizations that depend on global supply chains to meet production requirements. Ultimately, organizations that implement an ISO 45001-certified OH&S management system will be better positioned to control risks related to occupational health and safety issues, improve their overall safety performance, and provide solid evidence of their commitment to the health and safety of their employees.
James W. Melloni is the EHS technical product manager and a lead auditor for TÜV SÜD America, a Quality Digest content partner.
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