This National Safe Work Month, NatRoad is reminding workers this October how important safety in the workplace is and how to proactively manage risks.
NatRoad says employers have a duty to eliminate or minimise health and safety risks, by reviewing and assessing the hazards and risks that may be present in the workplace.
New hazards and risks may occur from time to time especially if there’s a changed process or new system in place.
Doing this gives employers an opportunity to put control measures in place before an issue arises.
NatRoad has provided some quick tips:
- Identify hazards: Do a walk-around the workplace and talk to the employees about any concerns or issues they may have.
- Assess the risk: Use the information gathered from the walk-around and consultation to assess and determine the level of risk. This is essentially undertaking a risk assessment. It will help to work out:
- how severe a risk is
- if the control measures are effective
- what action should be taken to control the risk, and
- how urgently action needs to be taken.
(This step may not need to be undertaken if the hazards, risks and control measures are well known.)
- Control the risk: Once the hazards are known, employers need to put in place measures to eliminate or manage the risk so far as is reasonably practicable by using the hierarchy of controls.
- Review the control measures: Review the measures put in place to make sure they are suitable and working as needed. If they aren’t, change the control measure to one that is more suitable.
Remember, risk management should be used for both physical and psychological (mental health) risks in the workplace.