Structure, Roles and Responsibility within OHSMS

An OHSMS or Occupational Health and Safety Management System is meant to ensure that health and safety standards are maintained in the workplace. These aid businesses in consistently improving their safety and health compliance policies and standards. By doing this, OHSMS ensure a safer work environment that can protect workers and prevent debilitating workplace accidents.
An OHSMS or Occupational Health and Safety Management System is meant to ensure that health and safety standards are maintained in the workplace. Click To Tweet
Some of the common benefits that an OHSMS offers businesses of all sizes include the following:- Ensuring that there is a safe work environment for all employees in a company
- Reducing workplace injuries and fatalities via preemptive measures that can help business owners save money on medical expenses and increase insurance premiums at the same time.
- Improving the company’s image as a responsible entity
- Offering measurable criterions that can help businesses meet legal obligations and avoid hefty fees.
Role of top management
If there is no commitment at the topmost levels of a company that wishes to implement an OHSMS, no health and safety policy will work. Top management is responsible for ensuring that workers have a safe workplace to come to and ensure that there are enough resources to maintain it. This includes making sure that health and safety policies are not violated and implementing effective strategies to prevent this. To ensure compliance across verticals, the management’s role should include the following:- Ensuring that enough resources are available to maintain the safety and health program
- Determining the status of the OHSMS in the business to maintain its integrity
- Figuring out the responsibilities and accountabilities for the program among personnel
- Coordinating plans and following up on them
- Determining performance and making necessary changes
- Responsibilities of Management
- Management should be responsible for the following tasks:
- Carrying out tasks that are detailed in health and safety policies in the OHSMS
- Ensuring that those policies are implemented correctly.
- Determining risks pertaining to health and safety and consulting professionals to mitigate them
- Ensuring that all risk control measures are monitored on a regular basis and standards are maintained as well
- Ensuring that workers are consulted when changes are to be proposed in policies, workplace practices and other procedures that may impact their health and safety.
Responsibilities of Supervisors
Workers who are tasked with supervisory roles should have the following responsibilities:- Ensuring that they carry out their roles as per relevant health and safety policies.
- Ensuring that health and safety procedures are being implemented correctly in areas which they control.
- Ensuring that the personnel who they are responsible for have all of the information and instruction they need to do their jobs safely.
- Ensuring that risks are controlled in areas which they are responsible for and those are monitored on a regular basis.