ISO 45001 Migration Webinar – Your Questions Answered
NQA considers ISO 45001:2018 to be a significant development primarily due to changes in structure, and the introduction of additional concepts and themes.
It is our goal to ensure that we perform value added audits that establish an organization’s level of conformity to the standard and in doing so, help our clients understand both the intent and the philosophy behind the changes. Our goal is to provide you with the guidance and tools to make the migration from OHSAS 18001:2007 to ISO 45001:2018 as smooth and cost-free as possible.
If you have a question that isn't covered below feel free to send it to marketing@nqa.com and we can add it in.
Q: Can Context change over time?
A: Yes – it most certainly can and does, this is exactly why it is important to understand these changes, so that the organization can respond to those changes and needs of interested parties with the risks and opportunities that they can include. The context of many organizations will be changing for the current global virus situation. Other changes in company structure, strategy, needs of customers, workers on holiday, legislation and numerous other elements all contribute to ‘Context’. It is a very important dynamic element of the management system.
Q: Clause 5.1/K – Reprisals, how do you audit that?
A: This would be covered in the discussion with workers and representatives during the general operational and process audit elements – Direct discussions with workers who have participated in accident investigations. A great deal of information on company culture and how things are done is gained during these elements of the audits. Other indicators can include the level of worker participation in hazard and risk assessments, the level of reporting overall including suggestions and hazard reporting.
Q: Do you still do preventative action?
A: Yes – the whole of the management system is designed to be pro-active and not just reactive, and although the standard has dropped using that phrase – if clients want to retain the use of it they can.
Q: What is the expiry date for OHSAS 18001 and can an organization retain it after that or are obliged to migrate to ISO 45001?
A: The expiry date is 30th September 2021 for OHSAS 18001 and the standard will be withdrawn from that point. It is replaced by ISO 45001 and therefore OHSAS 18001 cannot be used for registration after that date.
Q: Can you give hints and tips on how we combine multiple system eg; 9001,14001 and 45001 in to one manual?
A: NQA have recently presented another webinar presentation (after the 45001 migration webinar) on exactly that topic, and a Q and A blog is being completed for that as well, the slides and recording of the webinar are also available - the recording of that webinar can be seen here.
Q: How is NQA approaching auditing the requirements of clause 5.4d?
A: The ‘Consultation and Participation’ of Workers can be demonstrated in a variety of ways including;
Documentation:
Sampling of meeting minutes and records with information of attendees/job titles which may include Consultation meetings for a particular need/ review of policy, changes in company structures, Update briefings, official revisions to documented arrangements and agreements, records of risk assessments, documented participation in audits and programming. Action and improvement logs and project updates and Performance reviews.
As well as documented information there is always direct confirmation from individuals involved in the activities confirmed during interviews and process tour discussions etc.
Q: What is the best place to buy the 45001 standard?
A: NQA do not sell the standard, but it can be purchased from a number of sources; the obvious place being - the ISO organization itself and it also available in a number of languages.
So that concludes the summary of the questions from the May 2020 webinar, as always there is a range of support information on our website - click here for the client migration guidance.
Author: Terry Fisher, NQA Occupational Health & Safety Prinicipal Assessor
