What a health and safety statement and a risk assessment is, what they relate to and what they entail is explained.
Health and Safety Risk Assessment
SafetyWallet's Blog and Articles about Health and Safety compliance and other related topics.
When would you review a Health and Safety Risk Assessment
It is crucial for employers to realise when they must review a health and risk assessment and where some may rely on an annual review, there are, however, times when risk assessments must be reviewed much sooner.
This article serves as a guide for employers on why and how often they must review their risk assessments.
Generic Health and Safety Risk Assessment
It is imperative to keep in mind that different types of risk assessment can be used in conjunction with one another with some parts of each that may be present in a single assessment.
A health and safety risk assessments considers the hazards in a specific task or an activity. It considers the likelihood that harm may occur, the severity of the harm, and what can be done to prevent it.
General Health and Safety Risk Assessment
General health and safety risk assessment forms an integral part of effectively managing health and safety within the organisation
Basic Health and Safety Risk Assessment
Basic Health and Safety Risk Assessment
Overview
A basic health and safety risk assessment involves employers considering the risks in the workplace followed by implementing control measures to control and minimise them. The following handy guide will run through the rules and provide employers with the help they need to conduct an effective risk assessment for their organisation.
When must a risk assessment be done?
The purpose of a health and safety risk assessment is to identify sensible measures to control the risks in the workplace. The Occupational Health and Safety Act, 85 of 1993 requires that employers provide a workplace which is healthy, safe, and free of harm.
The easiest way to ensure this, is for employers to conduct a risk assessment. Those who are self-employed and work on their own are not held to such stringent requirements if their work does not pose a risk to the health and safety of other workers, or members of the public.
However, risk assessments must be done, and it is imperative to ensure that record is kept as it proves that the necessary steps were taken to ensure health and safety. Risk assessments must be done whenever there is change in the working environment, even if it is just a shift change that took place.
Health and Safety 5 Steps to a Risk Assessment
Health and Safety 5 Steps to a Risk Assessment
Overview
A risk assessment is a systematic method that involves the evaluation and observation of work activities while considering what could go wrong, deciding on suitable control measures, and implementing them.
These control measures are designed to either eliminate the risk, or to reduce or minimise it as far as it is reasonably practicable. It is a legal requirement for employers to ensure that they provide a healthy and safe working environment for employees and visitors to the premises, and by doing a risk assessment and ensuring effective control measures, employers are complying to the law.
The health and safety 5 steps to a risk assessment which are provided below can serve as a guide for employers who have never done a risk assessment, or those who wish to brush up on the procedure to do so.
Health and Safety Risk Assessment Legislation and Risk Management
Risk Assessments are a crucial part of an effective health and safety management system and there are numerous health and safety regulations that have explicit requirements for risk assessment.
Health and Safety Risk Assessment in South Africa
Employers in South Africa are bound by the Occupational Health and Safety Act 85 of 1993 (OHSA) and other relevant regulations to ensure that they provide a safe and healthy work environment which is free of hazards.
Health and Safety Risk Management
Health and Safety Risk Management
What is a risk assessment?
When correctly used, a risk assessment forms part of effective health and safety risk management to ensure the health and safety of workers as well as others. A risk assessment, when simply defined, is a systematic process that involves the identification of hazards, evaluating associated risks within the workplace, and implementing reasonable control measures to remove or reduce them.