Starting point for Local Councils

One of the most frequent questions asked from Councils in regards to safety is: “Where do we start?”

Safety starts from evaluation and assessment of the existing documents and practices. So, to begin the movement to safety culture, a Council has to assess the following:

1. Health and safety policy (Does a policy exist? Are employees aware of it? Is it explained at induction training?)
2. Health and safety representatives/committees (How much training do they receive? How active they are? How often do they meet with CEO and other management?)
3. Training (Is health and safety training provided as part of induction? Are all employees aware of the health and safety requirements of their position? Have all employees received sufficient training?)
4. Risk management (Have hazards been identified and risks assessed? Have risks been controlled in accordance with the hierarchy of risk control?)
5. First aid (What first aid facilities are available? Do they comply with legislative requirements?)
6. Incident investigation (What is the system for incident investigation? What follow-up action has resulted from incident investigation? Have unsafe situations been remedied to avoid recurrence?)
7. Incident records and statistics (Is there incident recording system? What trends do statistics demonstrate?)
8. Workplace inspections (How often are inspections conducted? How is information from inspections used?)
9. Housekeeping practices (Are there instances of rubbish being left at the workplace? Are slip and trip hazards present?)
10. Ergonomics and other hygiene factors (Are workstations designed in according with ergonomics principles? Is lighting suitable for the tasks performed? How often is air-conditioning equipment inspected and cleaned? What levels of noise exposure do employees experience?)
11. Protective equipment (What protective equipment is used? Is it possible to make use of solutions further up the hierarchy of risk controls to remove the need for the protective equipment?)
12. Fire safety (What fire fighting equipment is available? Is a fire fighting team trained?)
13. Emergency plans (Is a plan in existence? Have regular evacuation drills been held?)
14. Injury management program (Has the program reduced the costs of injuries? Are the injured employees satisfied with the services provided?)
15. Chemical safety (What chemicals are kept at the workplace? Are MSDSs readily available? Is labelling adequate?)
16. Manual handling (Have manual handling risks been assessed? What instances of back or other injuries occurred?)
17. Plant safety (Are proper maintenance routines in place? Are machine guards provided?)
18. Electrical safety (Does all electrical installation comply with the relevant Australian standards? Is equipment inspected or tested?)
19. Work Health and Safety Act (Are policies and procedures compliant with the Act? Are employees informed about their roles and responsibilities under the Act?)

Local council’s employees can use these questions to assess the safety level of their workplace.

However, if there are any questions or you wish to order free evaluation by Local Government Safety, please contact us.

References

The list is based on Audit checklist presented in Planning Occupational Health & Safety a Guide to OHS Risk Management (CCH Australia)