Introduction to ISO 45001:2018 OH&SMS

1. Occupational Health and Safety Management System

(OH&SMS) :
is a collaborative and systematic approach to effectively managing occupational health and safety
risks. 

OH&SMS helps companies to improve their occupational health and safety performance
continually. Moreover OH&SMS provides a framework for companies to comply with health and
safety ordinances, regulations, state laws and compliance obligations.

2. OH&SMS systems primarily direct organizations in the following ways:

1. Identify occupational health and safety hazards.

2. Examine the risks associated with the identified hazards.
3. Establish controls to minimize the risks.
4. Define goals for health and safety performance.
5. Create a plan to achieve the goals.
6. Monitor performance against the targets and goals.
7. Report performance results.
8. Review OHSMS results and continuously improve.
3. National standards used for implementing OH&SMS, before the
introduction of ISO 45001:2018 include:

• BS OHSAS 18001
• ANSI/AIHA Z10
• CSA Z1000

4. Comparing Standards

BS OHSAS 18001 (Occupational Health & Safety Assessment Series) is a globally

recognized British Standard for occupational health and safety management systems. Its
purpose is to assist different types of organizations who endeavour to perform well in aspects
of occupational health and safety.

Companies worldwide recognize the need to monitor and enhance their health and safety
performance. To do so, they need to implement an occupational health and safety
management system (OH&SMS). 

OHSAS 18001 helps companies to develop a healthy and safe working environment, by
providing a framework to achieve the following:

• Determine health and safety risks and minimize them to an acceptable level
• Minimize the likelihood of accidents
• Establish a framework to assess legal compliance
• Improve overall health and safety performance

ANSI/AIHA Z10 is the American National Institute standard. The American Industrial
Hygiene Association (AIHA) serves as its Secretariat. The Accredited Standards Committee,
Z10, approved the standard in 1999. 

• The standard’s scope is “minimum requirements of occupational health and safety

management systems”. 
• The standard’s purpose is “[as a] Management tool to minimize the risk of illnesses, injury
and fatalities in the workplace.”
• The application of the standard includes organizations of all types and sizes, including
contractors.
CSA Z1000-06
While making the standard, the Z10 Committee adopted inputs from OSHA, US industry, ISO
Quality and environmental systems and the International Labor Organization.  
The Canadian Standard Association (CSA), published a standard for Occupational Health and
Safety Management Systems in 2006, known as CSA Z1000-6. This standard lays out the
conditions for the creation, enforcement and improvement of a Health and Safety
Management System.

The elements are similar to those outlined in other management systems and include the
following:

• Management Commitment and Participation

• Health and Safety Planning
• Implementation of Controls
• Performance Evaluation 
• Management Review 
• Continuous Improvement
Requierment
The need for a globally recognized standard for occupational health and safety management
systems, has always been felt. Professionals have had the ISO 9001 - quality management
system and ISO 14001 - environmental management system, since the early 2000s. However
different systems for occupational health and safety, were being followed in different
countries. 

Experts claim that the development of the new ISO 45001 OHSMS standard, is well timed,
because it matches the recent publication of the newly revised ISO 9001:2015 (quality
management system) and the ISO 14001:2015 (environmental management system). Both
employ a risk-based structure. 

The shared common requirements of the three most widely used international standards,
should empower organizations to incorporate them more easily into their organizational
processes.
 OHSAS 18001:2007 has been the most important standard for occupational health and
safety management systems and has been adopted by many companies, operating in countries
other than the UK. Since it has been employed and observed in multiple organizations, it is
important to compare the two standards (OHSAS 18001 and ISO 45001). This will serve as
an aid, to help organizations transition.
What are the major differences between OHSAS 18001 and ISO 45001? The primary
difference is that ISO 45001 focuses on the interface of an organization and its business
environment; OHSAS 18001 concentrates on managing OH&S hazards and internal issues.
However the standards differ in other ways. Click on the tab below to learn more.


1. History

2. ISO 45001 was initially created on 25th October 2013. The committee responsible for
its development is known as ISO/PC 283. It is estimated that a minimum of seventy
countries worked on the drafting process of its development. 

Planning the standard and the drafting of issues continued until December 2015. From
this period until the first draft of its development in 2017, it failed to achieve adequate
support from ISO members. In 2017, a revised second draft was approved and this was
made into the final draft. The standard was published on 12 March 2018.

1. Plan-Do-Check-Act
o PLAN
o DO
o CHECK
o ACT

PLAN

The ISO 45001 standard comprises the Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) model. This
model offers a mechanism for organizations to plan what they require, so as to
mitigate the probability of OH&S damages. 
 The “Plan” part of the model, should reflect concerns relating to health problems in the long
term and absenteeism at work. The measures used, should address the factors that contribute
to accidents at work. 

For instance, many workers undergo stress, which is classed as a psycho-social risk. Stress is
considered to be one of the main problems at work in the current economy. Plans can also
include measures to deal with stress management.

DO

The ISO 45001 standard directs top management to "own" the workplace and the hazards
associated with it. Top management must prove their commitment through leadership, to
make sure that workers have the sufficient skills, knowledge and expertise. 
Moreover top management should put in place effective controls in the “Do” phase of the
PDCA model; these are known as operational controls. Encouraging workers' participation
and advice is necessary, in order to be able to enforce better occupational health and safety
measures. 

check
The “Check” part of the PDCA model, lists all of the main constituents that should be resolved, to
make sure that the system is operational. This includes opportunities for enhancement and
improvement in the “Act” phase.

ACT
The “Act” part of the PDCA model is the improvement part of the process and is referred to,
in the standard, as “Continual Improvement”. 

It is a recurring activity that needs to be maintained, in order to enhance performance.

Migration and Features

MIGRATION

Companies need to migrate from OHSAS 18001 to ISO 45001. As part of this migration,
numerous steps must be followed, in order to upgrade the existing management system to the
new standard. The following sequence is recommended:

1) Analyze interested parties (i.e. individuals or organizations that can influence or be

influenced by your organization’s activities). Moreover, analyze internal and external factors
that might influence the organization’s business; then check how the risks can be managed
with the help of the management system.
2) Recognize the scope of the system, while reflecting what your management system is
bound to deliver.
3) Utilize the data and information to: institute the organization’s processes, for risk
evaluation and assessment and to develop the key performance indicators (KPIs) for the
organization’s activities.
Once the organization has resolved the knowledge and tools of OHSAS 18001, the
organization can re-utilize most of what it already has, in the new management system. Thus,
even if the approaches of the two management systems are different, the fundamental tools
are identical.

FEATURES
What is new in ISO 45001, compared with other Occupational Health and Safety (OHS)
standards? How will its migration influence small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs)? The
short answer is: a preventive approach is upgraded with risk-based thinking.

Risk-based thinking, to manage health and safety risks and opportunities in ISO 45001 is not
new, nor does it contradict earlier OHS standards. However, the preventive action of the
management system is upgraded with a risk management approach. 

The Focus is the workplace. The standard does not interact with products or product quality,
or how they should be utilized or sustained. The focal point of the ISO 45001 standard is the
workplace. There is a requirement to list significant hazards in the workplace, in order to
eradicate or mitigate them.

PROACTIVE

Organizations need to be proactive. In a rapidly growing and creative world, the requirement
is felt for organizations to be proactive rather than reactive. Organizations should foresee
actions, instead of waiting for regulations and codes of practice to be instituted.

Most organizations are small or medium-sized enterprises and ISO 45001 is applicable to
them, just as it is to larger enterprises. The easy-to-follow risk oriented approach in ISO
45001 is highly implementable for SMEs and is well matched with the approaches used in
OHSAS 18001.

Certification and Advantages

Certification
 It is expected that a large number of organizations will employ ISO 45001 to build an
effective occupational health and safety management system. In addition, significant numbers
of organizations will want to receive the recognition that comes with having ISO 45001
certification. Certification exhibits to external parties that an organization has attained
compliance with a particular standard.

The potential dividends of implementing the ISO 45001 OHSMS is enormous, if the standard
is implemented effectively. The standard mandates that Occupational Health and Safety risks
in an organization, be identified and managed. For the risk management approach to be
effective, it is important that the system is continually improved, to surpass the organization’s
ever-changing objectives. 

The enforcement of the standard ensures compliance with current legislation. The activities
envisioned by the ISO 45001 standard can help to develop an organization’s reputation as a
“safe place to work”. There are many advantages, ranging from minimizing insurance costs to
elevating workers’ morale, together with the improved ability to meet the organization’s
strategic targets.
Advantages
How will the new ISO 45001 standard perform for users of, for example OHSAS 18001? It is
expected that users of OHSMS standards, such as OHSAS 18001 and the ILO-OSH
Guidelines, will easily be able to take up ISO 45001, as it does not contradict these standards.
In addition, ISO 45001 empowers organizations with the opportunity of incorporating
OHSMS into their integrated business processes.

The advantages of implementing ISO 45001, aside from the fact that it is now the accepted
new international standard by consensus, is that it will naturally integrate with earlier
management approaches, especially in the area of business risks. It will thus act as an added
advantage to SMEs, when opting to have more than one standard.

Module 3 Publication of ISO 45001:2018

Illness and Injury

The awaited international standard for occupational health and safety management systems
(OH&SMS), is envisioned to modify workplace practices globally. 

ISO 45001:2018 OH&SMS, offers a vigorous and effective set of processes, for improving
work safety in global supply chains. 

The standard is designed to help organizations and industries of all sizes. It is also expected to
reduce workplace injuries and illnesses globally.

STATISTICS
The International Labor Organization (ILO) calculated workplace injuries and fatalities in
2017. According to the ILO data, 2.78 million fatal accidents happen at workplaces annually.
In other words, seven thousand, seven hundred people die each day because of work-related
illness and injury. 

Moreover, there are approx. 374 million incidents of non-fatal, work-related illness and
damage each year. Most of these incidents cause loss-of-time injuries, meaning absenteeism
from work. These facts are a sober reflection of the contemporary reality of workplace
damage and illness. Moreover people and businesses run the risk of experiencing illness and
damage, as a consequence of merely doing their job to earn a living.

Global Solution

SOLUTION
Is ISO 45001 the answer to the problem of occupation health and safety performance
globally? ISO 45001 is expected to change the situation by empowering companies to
perform better. It offers legislative and regulatory bodies, industry and other interested parties,
practical management solutions for ensuring worker safety across all industries. 

The recognized ISO standardization framework can be utilized to promote better health and
safety conditions. Moreover it is a practical solution for original equipment manufacturers,
contractual partners and production houses. This management system can assist everyone to
achieve a safer workplace, irrespective of their nationality and regional dynamics.

INTERNATIONAL
What makes ISO 45001 internationally important? International experts and writers worked
together to produce the standard. It is the result of a close collaboration from contributors
from more than seventy nation states. 

As discussed, the ISO 45001 OH&SMS has been produced by the ISO committee ISO/PC
283. Also, the British Standards Institution (BSI) served as the committee’s secretariat for the
development of the standard.

SUITABILITY
Why is ISO 45001 better than OHSAS 18001? ISO 45001 was developed in collaboration
with other ISO management systems. 
Developers tried to ensure it is an easy-to-use framework, compatible with the latest versions
of the ISO 9001 QMS and the ISO 14001 EMS. Companies who have already implemented
other ISO standards, will find it easy to implement ISO 45001.

Substituting OHSAS 18001

Substitution
ISO 45001 works as a substitute for OHSAS 18001, the world’s most widely used reference
for occupational health and safety standards. 

Companies already compliant with and certified by OHSAS 18001, will have a 3 year
migration period to comply with the new ISO 45001 standard. However certification is not a
requirement of the ISO 45001 standard.

Gaps analysis
If your organization is currently using the OHSAS 18001 standard, migrating to ISO
45001:2018 is a beneficial solution, as multiple clause requirements of ISO 45001:2018 are
equivalent or analogous. Note however, that clauses may utilize different terminology or be
arranged in a different order.

Guide to existing OHSAS 18001 users:

• Get  a copy of the standard from the ISO Store at: www.iso.org/iso/iso45001 or from your
national ISO representative.
• Examine the changes in the standard, or use the comparative matrix in this course as a free
resource.
  Employee Participation

CLAUSES
The internal and external issues of organizations need to be addressed, in a business context
analysis perspective, with occupational health and safety in mind, as per Clause 4.1 of the
ISO 45001:2018 standard. This mandates the company to recognize systematically and study
the various issues which effect their business operations, as well as the management system.

Clause 4.2 focuses on the need for organizations to address workers’ needs and expectations,
as well as the needs and expectations of other effected parties, in the matter of workplace
health and safety. The company is required to address these issues through a verifiable
occupational health and safety management system. Clause 4.3 relates to scope. Unlike in
OHSAS 18001, scope should only be defined when clauses 4.1 and 4.2 have been adequately
addressed.
RESPONSIBILITY
Similar to ISO 9001 and ISO 14001, there is a high stress in ISO 45001:2018, on the
responsibility top management has, to enforce consultation with and participation from
workers, as per clause 5.2. In addition, top management must encourage workplace safety and
employee health and monitor health and safety performance, ensuring the effectiveness of the
OHSMS.

Organizational leadership is accountable for developing health and safety policy. Moreover,
policy should be agreed with the organization's labor union representatives and health and
safety personnel, where applicable. As per clause 5.3 of the standard, all roles, responsibilities
and authorities must be properly defined, communicated and documented. However the
accountability of top management for the overall OHSMS system cannot be delegated.
PARTICIPATION
Clause 5.4 of the ISO 45001:2018 OH&SMS, is a much improved clause, compared with
OHSAS 18001. It documents information related to assisting the participation, involvement
and communication of all workers, at every level in an organization, with the occupational
health and safety management system. 

Many organizations do not have a management representative or a health and safety

representative. If there is no union representative in an organization, the ISO 45001:2018
OH&SMS standard will not mandate this on companies. However top management must
ensure worker participation and consultation by other means.