ISO 45001 Health and safety at work

ISO 45001

Since March 2018, ISO 45001 is the new international standard for occupational health and safety management systems. The new standard replaces OHSAS 18001, which, while serving the same purpose, is not a standardized international standard.

The differences between ISO 45001 and OHSAS 18001

Like OHSAS 18001, ISO 45001 contains requirements for a management system for healthy and safe working in an organization. An important difference between ISO 45001 and OHSAS 18001 is that ISO 45001 is in line with other ISO standards that are used in many organizations for management systems. But there are more differences:

• The concept of "worker" is introduced.
• More attention is paid to leadership and culture with regard to working conditions management.
• More attention is paid to "persons working under the control of the organization".
• More attention is paid to commitment in relation to the "hierarchy of control".
• The starting point "training needs" has been replaced by the starting point "competences".

New in ISO 45001: High Level Structure (HLS)

The new ISO standards for management systems use High Level Structure (HLS). The HLS is a "broad outline structure" that is the same for all standards. High Level Structure includes the following:

• Context analysis.
• Establishing the requirements of interested parties.
• Influence of internal and external changes on the organization.
• Integration with other business processes.
• Risks and opportunities.
• Control of outsourced processes.
• Documented information. 

For whom?

ISO 45001 is suitable for all organizations who want to demonstrate that they meet the legal obligations to ensure safety and health of their employees.

When is ISO 45001 required?

Kiwa recommends ISO 45001 to every organization because by implementing a management system for healthy and safe you reduce the chance of errors and complaints and you get better process control. Responsibilities and powers are clear to everyone, so that you bring transparency into your organization.

Continuous improvement principles

As an independent certification body, Kiwa tests whether your current management system for safety and health at work meets the requirements set in the ISO 45001 standard. The standard is based on the same continuous improvement principles as ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and other ISO certification schemes. This makes it possible to combine audits, which results in a reduction in audit time and costs. We can apply this one-stop shop formula (integrated audits) in various industries.