Small Businesses OHS
Small businesses have less than 20 workers and will often be single director companies and family businesses. Business owners are likely to be part of the day-to-day work and workplace. Small businesses account for more than 95% of all Australian businesses and are responsible for the health and safety of approximately 4.8 million workers. Small business owners have all the same OHS duties and obligations as large corporations and a fraction the resources to use.
We understand that all of this can seem daunting, especially on top of everything you need to do for the day to day operations involved in running a successful small business. That’s why we’ve developed the S.A.F.E Ignition System. A simple to use, step by step process to get your safety system up and running and easy to manage. Contact us to find out how simple it can be for you.
Read on to find out some of the ways your can improve OHS in your business today.
Safety Leadership in Small Business
Small business owners have a vital role to play when it comes to leading safety. When your workers see you setting a good example and putting a high importance on OHS they will be motivated to follow procedures and raise safety issues.
You will improve the culture of your business when you support and encourage positive workplace health and safety practices. Creating a positive workplace culture has many benefits such as improving OHS, avoiding costly incidents and injuries, minimising mistakes due to complacency and reducing overheads.
Demonstrate Your Commitment
Show you are serious about OHS through your everyday actions. Spending the time, money and resources needed to provide a safe and healthy working environment will clearly show you are committed to safety.
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Have a strong safety policy and follow it
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Engage your staff in safety planning
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Know what safety risks exist and do something about them
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Show your commitment to safety by making it public
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Make safety visible through signs, posters and regular meetings
Promote Engagement
By encouraging your staff to get on board and actively engage in the OHS systems it will not only improving the safety culture within your business, it will improve the overall moral and culture across your entire business.
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Schedule regular paid time for workers to talk about and act on health and safety issues
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Reward and recognise good OHS practices
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Make sure you induct new staff in your OHS practices and procedures
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Attend and actively contribute to safety management practices.
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Walk around the business and speak with your staff about safety.
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Ask for input on planned equipment or machinery purchases.
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Promote an open, positive environment for dealing with health and safety concerns.
Embed OHS in Everyday
Make OHS part of your everyday business activities. Allocate OHS responsibilities to staff across your business activities and ensure they have the resources they need to manage OHS risks.
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Allocate time to check if OHS tasks are being done
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Discuss safety with staff as part of regular performance reviews
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Ask staff to explain OHS procedures to you to ensure everyone is on same page
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Give regular updates to staff on OHS information and safe work practices
Review Performance
Once you have all your systems in place and a positive culture embedded within your workplace, you will need to conduct regular checks to make sure your improvements are maintained.
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Document the OHS risks in your business and review your documents regularly.
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Check control measures are implemented and working as planned.
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Review your reports into safety performance and issues and act on any trends you see emerging.
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Include safety in your business planning and make sure you consider safety during times of change for your business
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Be aware of what is happening on the ground including activities carried out internally or by contractors.
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Share relevant OHS data and information with your workers.
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Address any health and safety problems when they are identified from your review.
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Encourage your workers to report incidents and near misses and learn from these.
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Take a personal interest in staying up-to-date on safety issues relevant to your business.
We know all the requirements for OHS can be overwhelming when you already have so much responsibility to keep on top of your day to day business needs. That’s why we’ve developed the S.A.F.E Ignition System. A simple to use, step by step process to get your safety system up and running and easy to manage. Contact us to find out how simple it can be for you.