What an assessor wants to see against ISO 45001:2018, and the mistake that gets firms bounced, for every criterion in the check above. Readiness only. The assessor makes the call, never us.
1
Context of the organisation
Have you written down what your health and safety management system covers, and the internal and external issues and the needs of your workers that shape it?
What good looks like: A documented scope and boundaries, a review of the issues that affect health and safety, a register of interested parties including workers, and a map of your core processes.
Watch out: No documented scope, or one copied from another company that does not match the work and sites you actually run.
2
Leadership and worker participation
Do you have a health and safety policy signed by your most senior person, with roles assigned and a real way for workers to take part?
What good looks like: A signed, dated policy, visible leadership engagement, a roles and responsibilities matrix, and defined routes for workers to consult and raise concerns.
Watch out: A policy not signed by top management, roles left unassigned, or no genuine worker participation in how safety is run.
3
Planning
Have you assessed your health and safety risks and legal duties, and set measurable safety objectives with plans to meet them?
What good looks like: Hazard identification and risk assessment, a register of legal obligations, measurable objectives, and plans with named owners to achieve them.
Watch out: No objectives, objectives that cannot be measured, or risk assessments that miss the hazards that really matter to your work.
4
Support
Do you control your documents and records with version control, and keep a record of the safety competence, training and awareness your people need?
What good looks like: A competence matrix, a procedure for controlling documents and records, and a plan for how health and safety matters are communicated.
Watch out: Documents with no version control or approval, or gaps where people lack the training or awareness for their work.
5
Operation
Are the activities with a health and safety risk planned and controlled, including emergencies, contractors and the suppliers you rely on?
What good looks like: Documented operational controls, safe systems of work, emergency preparedness, contractor and supplier control, and change control with records.
Watch out: Work with a safety risk carried out with no documented control or record that the day-to-day hazards are managed.
6
Performance evaluation
Do you monitor your health and safety performance and legal compliance, run internal audits, and hold a management review?
What good looks like: Monitoring of leading and lagging measures and legal compliance, an internal audit programme with recorded results, and management-review minutes.
Watch out: An audit programme, compliance check or management review named on paper that clearly never actually runs.
7
Improvement
Do you record incidents and nonconformities, take corrective action with a look at the root cause, and show your safety performance improving over time?
What good looks like: An incident and nonconformity log, corrective actions with root-cause analysis, and evidence that health and safety performance improves over time.
Watch out: Corrective actions raised but never closed out, or no record of incidents and nonconformities at all.