Design - Safe Working Practice

PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY ACT

The South African Government recently proposed changes to the Occupational Health and Safety Act. Time was given for public comment and this Act is now in the review phase. These changes can have a significant impact on your company and the way we conduct business.

Some of the key

proposed changes are:

Requirements for a workplace specific Risk Assessment and a Risk Management Plan

- Must be conducted for all company activities by a competent person
- Proof of communication to employees must be available
- Proof that the control measures were implemented must be available

Requirements for a Safety Management System

All companies conducting listed work must have a Safety Management System Policies are not efficient

Submission of incident statistics to Deportment of Employment and Labour (DoEL)

All companies must submit a report by 1 March

Introduction of administrative fines

An inspector can issue a fine for administrative non-conformances

This change will take time to implement. As Health and Safety specialists we would appreciate the opportunity to do a short introductory presentation on the proposed changes and possible solutions. You can read more on our website https://safepractice.co.za/2022/03/28/changes-to-the-south-african-occupational-health-and-safety-act/