Occupational Health and Safety Management System

Since 1 September 2003 all businesses that employ less than 20 staff have been legally required to have an Occupational Health and Safety Program, just as bigger businesses have had for some time. Penalties for non-compliance can be very high.

Fully Revised and Updated

Lisa Ginns from Living Rooms has joined with Andrew Watters and Matt Cutajar from Off The Tools to form a new business dedicated to Occupational Health and Safety Systems for trades business. The new business is called Occupational Safety Solutions and has it's own dedicated website. Our Occupational Health & Safety management system can be purchased as complete systems or as individual documents. The OHS management system is generic although it has been developed for trades people in the workplace and on worksites. The Work Method Statements and Safe Work Instructions are written specifically for each particular trade such as the Horticulture, Landscape and Construction Industries. These documents are current as of February 2011. 

First Hand Experience

Lisa Ginns, the founder and proprietor of Living Rooms Landscape Designs, knows firsthand the devastating impact a workplace injury can have on both a business and its staff. In early 2001 Lisa seriously injured her lower back in a preventable workplace accident. It took 18 months for her to recover. Her previous employer had to go through the time consuming and expensive process of finding a replacement for Lisa and is now paying a higher premium for insurance because of the claim made against their workers compensation insurance. The total cost to both Lisa and her previous employer to date has been many thousands of dollars.

Her own experience has made Lisa passionate about the prevention of workplace accidents. However she also has a pragmatic approach to business and understands that a cumbersome, time consuming and expensive risk management system is not a viable solution for small business.

How Our System Helps You

Setting up an OHS Management Plan for your business can take an enormous amount of time for both you and your staff. The alternative is to use an OHS consultant to do the work for you but the cost of employing a consultant to create a complete system can be too high for many small businesses.

 

Our experience is that most trades for example landscapers pave, build and plant in pretty much the same way with only slight differences in tools and techniques.  As a result the OHS management plan will also be pretty much the same from one landscaper to the next.

What our system does is provide you with an OHS management plan framework that allows you to concentrate on the "differences" in how you and your staff approach a job rather than forcing you to develop your own program from scratch. Usually this means much less effort and cost for your business because you don't have to redo things that others have already done (in other words we are applying the good old 80/20 rule to help you).

At the heart of the system is our OHS Procedures Planning and Instruction Manual. Instructions in the manual guide you through the processes required to develop an effective OHS management plan for your business - what to fill in, how to manage consultation with your employees and how to show that you are implementing safe work practices. Included with the instructions are templates, forms and policy documents required to manage the OHS risks faced by most business. The manual together with the forms and templates are supplied as Microsoft word documents sent electronically so you can customise the system to produce an OHS Management System that reflects your business procedures. Once you have completed each element of the system it can be saved and printed out on your own stationery. Having your own electronic copies of each document and forms makes it much easier for you to update them when your processes and policies change in the future.

Our system addresses the important compliance areas of:

  • Policies and Guidelines
  • Statement of Responsibilities
  • Risk Management
  • Site Safety Management Plan
  • Occupational Health and Safety Training
  • Incident and Injury Management
  • Site Safety Rules
  • Safe Work Method Statements
  • Safe Work Instructions

Compliance

Our systems have been developed to help employers comply with AS/NZS 4801:2001 Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems. They were produced in consultation with NSW Government officers involved in assessing the Occupational Health & Safety procedures required for Government tenders. No system can provide you with a guarantee that your business will comply with Occupational Health & Safety legislation. What our system aims to do is reduce the time, money and effort that you will have to invest in developing and maintaining an OHS system that covers the specific needs of your business.

Our systems have been designed to help the construction, landscaping and horticulture industries in NSW. The systems may be suitable for businesses operating outside NSW but you should consult with the government authority in your state to make sure that it covers all of the elements required for compliance.

Testimonials

We have found the manual to be thorough, practical and most informative.  The manual covers all landscape activities, their associated hazards, personal protective equipment and includes 'do and don't list' - easy.  The OHS Manual comes complete with all required forms from sub-contractor agreements, safety checklist right through to injury forms.  We have no hesitation in recommending Living Rooms' OHS Manual.

Jim C Roustas - Glorious Gardens