{"id":134448,"date":"2025-12-13T21:11:45","date_gmt":"2025-12-13T21:11:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ecoonline.com\/?p=134448"},"modified":"2025-12-13T21:11:47","modified_gmt":"2025-12-13T21:11:47","slug":"what-you-need-to-know-about-iso-45001","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ecoonline.com\/en-ca\/blog\/what-you-need-to-know-about-iso-45001\/","title":{"rendered":"What You Need to Know About ISO 45001"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Join us in this two-part blog series all about ISO 45001. In part one, you will learn what is ISO 45001, as well as how it differs from OHSAS 18001. In part two, dive into how to become ISO 45001 certified. Let\u2019s get started with part 1 below! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you know the costs of work-related diseases and accidents in your organization? <\/em>According to the International Labor Organization (ILO)<\/a>, over 7,600 people die each day from<\/strong> work-related accidents or diseases. This adds up to <\/strong> over 2.78 million every year!<\/strong> The human cost is vast, with the economic burden of poor occupational health and safety practices estimated at 3.94 per cent of global Gross Domestic Product each<\/strong> year. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, what is ISO 45001<\/a>? ISO 45001 is an international standard that can help you reduce the number of accidents in your organization. It provides a proven framework to implement effective Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S) management systems. Organizations demonstrate their commitment to protecting the health and safety of employees by implementing this standard. As an added bonus, this will also help to improve your business processes (and who wouldn\u2019t want to be more efficient!). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The bottom line: Implementing the ISO 45001 framework could help you protect your people and your business.<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And this is how to do it.<\/strong> <\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Learn About and Understand the Standard: What is ISO 45001? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Let\u2019s start at the very beginning. If you want to manage health and safety well, you need to start with a systematic framework. The ISO 45001 Standard<\/em> is an ISO international standard<\/a> providing this framework. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

ISO 45001 helps any type of organization prevent work-related deaths, injuries, and illnesses which is every health and safety professional\u2019s top priority. It also helps organizations stay compliant with legal requirements, systematically improve safety performance, and reach set OH&S objectives. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although an external audit of your safety management system isn\u2019t mandatory, it\u2019s the only way to ensure certification. Alternatively, you can choose Self-Declaration of Conformance<\/g>, to avoid the associated costs of certification. But it\u2019s important to note, business partners may require or prefer suppliers and contractors who hold an ISO 45001 compliant OH&S certificate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The main objective of ISO 45001 is to ensure organizations can provide a safe and healthy working environment for their employees.<\/strong> The standard covers areas such as risk assessment, training, emergency preparedness, monitoring and measurement, and more! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It provides guidance on how to design and implement effective OH&S management which aligns with applicable laws and regulations. To gain certification, organizations must demonstrate compliance with all the requirements outlined in the standard. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The standard uses the same high-level structure as the quality management standard ISO 9001:2015 and the environmental standard ISO 14001:2015, as defined in Annex L, formerly known as Annex SL. The high-level structure starts with three introductory information clauses. These clauses are followed by seven clauses based on the Plan \u2013 Do \u2013 Check \u2013 Act cycle<\/strong><\/a> as seen below.<\/strong> The PDCA cycle ensures
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How does the new ISO 45001 differ from OHSAS 18001? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You might be wondering how ISO 45001 is different from OHSAS 18001. ISO 45001 focuses on processes, the organization as a whole, and different<\/strong> stakeholders<\/strong>. It also emphasizes both risks and opportunities,<\/strong><\/em> while<\/strong> OHSAS 18001 is procedure-based, does not consider interested parties<\/strong> outside the organization<\/strong><\/a>, and deals exclusively with risk.<\/strong> OHSAS 18001 was also retired in 2021, so most organizations follow ISO 45001 regulations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

ISO 45001 requires organizations to identify the potential hazards in the workplace and then develop strategies to mitigate those risks. This includes assessing the risk level associated with each hazard. Additionally, procedures must be developed to reduce or eliminate that risk. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Organizations that have achieved ISO 45001 certification will have improved processes for risk management. This will result in fewer accidents, injuries, and fatalities in the workplace. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Interaction with the Outside World <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Clause 4 of the ISO 45001 standard contains a requirement related to the context of the organization. The context of the organization refers to the elements that are relevant to the organization\u2019s purpose.<\/strong> These elements can either positively or negatively impact the intended results of your OH&S management system. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Examples of these elements include the legal, political or competitive environment, changes in this environment, suppliers, partners, new technologies and\/or resources. Not only should the<\/strong> needs and expectations of workers be determined, but also the requirements of other interested parties such as clients, shareholders, suppliers, and people affected by the organization\u2019s activities.<\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Certification involves implementing the requirements outlined in the standard across all aspects of an organization\u2019s operations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This includes: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2714 identifying risks <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2714 training employees on safety protocols <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2714 and much more. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Internal audits must be conducted periodically to ensure the organization remains compliant with the standard\u2019s requirements over time. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What\u2019s the Worker\u2019s Role <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The definition of workers in OHSAS 18001 and ISO 45001 also differ. While OHSAS 18001 focused in practice on the employees, contractors, and visitors at the workplace, ISO 45001 includes workers from external providers, contractors, agency workers, and others.<\/strong> This is the extent the organization shares control over their work or work-related activities (Clause 3.3). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contractors, hired personnel, and even suppliers must be included in safety management as part of the scope. Top management is also defined as workers in the standard. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

OHSAS 18001 required that employees only be informed about the organization\u2019s safety policy, legal and other safety requirements, consequences, and their own role. ISO 45001 requires consultation and participation of non-managerial workers. Employers must consider their needs and expectations as well. <\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

ISO 45001 specifies in detail where consultation and participation of workers is required: see clause 5.4. of the standard. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What Opportunities Exist? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

OHSAS 18001 only covers negative risks. Risk in OHSAS 18001 is defined as the combination of probability and consequences of a hazardous event. On the other hand, ISO 45001 defines risk as the effect of uncertainty, which can be both positive and negative. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s why ISO 45001 introduces the term occupational health and safety opportunity.<\/em> This term includes circumstances that can lead to improvement of occupational health and safety performance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Outside the Scope <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

ISO 45001, like OHSAS 18001, doesn\u2019t include product safety, property damage or environmental impact. These elements are beyond the risks to workers and other relevant interested parties. The focus of ISO 45001 remains on occupational risks and opportunities. (See clause 1 of the standard.) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The following are some new or considerably modified clauses in ISO 45001 compared to OHSAS 18001: <\/strong> <\/p>\n\n\n\n


Clause 4: The context of the organization<\/a> <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Clause 4.1: Understanding the organization and its context
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Employers must identify all relevant internal and external issues. These issues influence the organization\u2019s ability to achieve its intended performance of the OH&S management system. See Annex A.4.1 for a large list of examples. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Clause 4.2: Needs and expectations of workers and other interested parties <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The organization shall identify in addition to workers, the other interested parties relevant to the organization\u2019s OH&S management system. Interested parties can be defined as people or organizations that can affect, be affected by, or even perceive themselves to be affected by a decision or activity (Clause 3.2). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Next, identify the needs and expectations of the workers and those parties. Additionally, existing or potential future legal requirements related to those needs and expectations need to be identified. This results in a set of requirements.<\/em> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Clause 4.3: The scope of the OH&S management system <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The next thing required is documentation. This documentation should include products, services and work-related activities (operations) that can impact the organization\u2019s OH&S performance. Based on the issues, requirements, and operations, the actual scope of the OH&S management system must be documented. The scope must be factual and representative of the organization. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Clauses 5.1, 5.2 and 5.3: Leadership <\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Senior leadership commitment to OH&S management is still more emphasized in the new ISO 45001 standard compared to the OHSAS 18001 standard. A list of senior leadership duties can be found in clause 5.1. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is summarized as follows: <\/p>\n\n\n\n