Entries Categorized as 'Resources & Tools'

Out with the Old – In with the New

January 15, 2010

The start of the New Year is good time to pause, reflect and clean out. Many organizations use the start of the year as a time to review their OH&S management system objectives and set new ones.  If their OH&S programs are lagging in their implementation, new approaches or new assignments are considered.  This is [...]

Ban the Blame

December 15, 2009

One of the key requirements of the OHSAS 18001 standard is establishing a procedure for taking corrective and preventive action (section 4.5.3.2).  Both corrective and preventive action need to include identifying the underlying causes – often called root causes – of whatever it is that is or went wrong.  This is not easy.  Often, the [...]

Should I Write a Procedure?

November 6, 2009

One of the difficult questions that OH&S managers face is – “Do we need a written procedure for [some process]?”  The dilemma is that although written procedures are a necessary part of an occupational safety and health management system – if you create too many formal procedures your OHSMS becomes complex, cumbersome and unwieldy.  I just got done reading an article in [...]

What are you going to STOP doing?

February 25, 2009

Many OHS management systems and programs have a major problem – they are bloated with paperwork, inefficient in their operation and filled with busywork.  These programs are often focused on the achievement of arbitrary metrics rather than improved OH&S performance. As a result, the managers of these programs are often fed-up, burned out and overwhelmed.  [...]