The Essential Guide to Workplace Health and Safety: Why Regular Audits Are a Must for Every Business
What does it mean to show care for your employees? By its definition, the act of caring is displaying a concern for others. What better way to show concern for your employees than to prioritize their health and safety.
The importance of workplace safety is more than just meeting basic compliance requirements; it is an opportunity to invest in your team’s well-being and show you value a safe and secure workplace. Employers have a duty to ensure employees return safely home each day. This responsibility extends beyond a written policy or workshop and requires a proactive system that is both effective and engaging.
What is a Health & Safety Audit?
A Health & Safety Audit observes the work environment, its operational processes and procedures, the behaviour of workers, and other details to ensure a compliant (and effective!) workplace safety plan is in place. An audit also identifies any areas of concern and highlights opportunities for improvement.
Three types of health & safety audits exist, depending on what is being reviewed:
Compliance audits are focused on reviewing an employer’s safety policies and rules to ensure compliance with standards set out by the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) and other relevant regulatory bodies.
Program audits evaluate your health & safety program directly by inspecting operations and observing worker behaviours, with the purpose of ensuring your program rules and processes are effective.
Management system audits is a combination of both compliance and program audits where the entire health & safety system is reviewed, observed and analyzed in greater detail. This audit is a lot more comprehensive involving interviews, observations and documentation reviews.
Once an audit is complete, results and findings are then compiled into an audit report. The report provides a high-level overview of what is currently compliant and outlines recommendations and a priority list to correct any gaps discovered.
The Benefits of Regular Audits
An audit is a great way to ensure your process or system is effective and ultimately doing what it is meant to do. The benefits of regular audits are endless, including preventing accidents, ensuring legal compliance, and boosting morale by reducing risks in the workplace. A continuous improvement mindset can result in smoother operations and a safer environment for your teams to thrive in.
Common Misconceptions about Safety:
Safety is expensive: A proactive, effective health & safety program actually reduces costs for your organization, including savings on WorksafeBC premiums, fewer lost time accidents, and creating efficiencies in your operations. You get way more out of what you put in.
Our team is small, so we don’t need a program: Safety regulations and compliance are applicable to all employers regardless of size. In fact, WorksafeBC has regulations set out specifically for smaller employers with 19 or fewer employees. It is critical to be aware of your responsibilities whether you are a small, medium or large employer in order to protect your employees.
People don’t get hurt here: Just because an accident or injury hasn’t occurred at your workplace doesn’t mean you have zero risk. Building a proactive program identifies and assesses all risks and potential hazards, allowing you to put controls in place.
I don’t need training: Proper training and equipment can save lives. No matter the industry or workplace, there is an overwhelming amount of risk associated with working in a new, unfamiliar environment, especially for new hires and young employees. Having an effective training program is not only a critical safety control but it also helps employees to perform their jobs to the best of their ability and in an effective, safe manner.
Reimagine Your Audit Process
Need support with an audit? Here’s a quick rundown of what you can expect from an initial health & safety audit performed by one of our People + Culture Business Partners.
Kick-Off + Interview – Meet your auditor to discuss your current and future health & safety goals. Establish an action plan and timeline for the audit.
Document Review – The auditor will review all documented H&S programs, policies and procedures and identify any gaps and opportunities in your paperwork.
Worksite Inspection – This includes an in-person walkthrough of the physical worksite alongside your H&S representative. Observations are noted and any focused areas of concern are discussed in greater detail during the inspection.
Audit Results + Wrap-Up – A meeting is held to review the audit report which provides an overview of the findings and results. Recommendations, quick wins and a priority list are discussed in addition to a proposed corrective action plan.
Quick Tips for Immediate Safety Improvements
Document, document, document. Ensure all H&S programs, policies and procedures are clearly documented, reviewed and made available to employees.
Enlist your team in safety training. Training is the key to ensuring your team comprehends and can apply the policies and procedures outlined in your H&S program. Keep records and certificates to provide proof of training, and maintain a record of training renewal dates.
Talk about safety, more often. Whether you have a joint health & safety committee or an on-site representative, it is important to talk about health & safety more often with your team. These conversations reinforce safe behaviours and proactively manage any risk that may be present in your workplace.
Show your employees how much you truly care about their health & safety by taking a more proactive role in your workplace H&S operations. Safety is everyone’s responsibility and can help to avoid costly injuries and other incidents that may occur in your workplace.
Continuous improvement is the key, and regular audits are the way to ensure corrective action is taking place. Schedule your next audit today.