Work Health and Safety in New Zealand

Work Health and Safety in New Zealand

Safety Makers - Work Health and Safety - New Zealand
Work Health & Safety

Work Health and Safety is important for your business. Did you know that all businesses must make sure, so far as reasonably practicable, the health and safety of all workers, and this includes any other worker who are influenced or directed by the business under the Health and Safety at Work Act NZ(2015) ?

WorkSafe NZ released its work-related health estimates with these figures…

  • Work-related health deaths are estimated at 750-900 a year.
  • There are an estimated 5,000-6,000 hospitalisations each year due to work-related incidents.
  • A worker is 15 times more likely to die from a work-related disease than from a workplace accident.

That is why a business is required by law to look after people whose health and safety could be at risk by the work conducted by their business, i.e. customers, visitors, or even the general public. There is a need to protect workers and anyone else in the workplace by eliminating or minimising risks.

Health and safety begins with businesses identifying and understanding their risks from the specific work activities that they carry out. This is especially important to those business whose processes have the potential to cause people serious injury or illness. Once the risks have been assessed, it is vital that businesses decide what to do about them.

So, the first thing a business must decide is what they can do to eliminate or reduce the risks to health and safety. If eliminating the risk entirely, is not possible, then the business must work through a series of methods and controls to decide on how to minimise or reduce that risk. Checklists, Safe Work Procedures and Safe Work Method Statements can help with this task.

Workers also have obligations under the Health and Safety at Work Act (2015). They are expected to take reasonable care of their own health and safety in the workplace and must also take reasonable care to make sure that they do not cause harm to anyone else in the workplace. They also must comply with any reasonable instructions, follow the policies or procedures that their workplace has in place on how to work in a safe and healthy way and this includes using the right tools and equipment and following safety procedures such as reporting problems and turning equipment on and off.

Managing health and safety in the workplace is everyone’s responsibility. People often get hurt because nobody has thought about how dangerous a job or workplace might be. Sometimes people get hurt because they have not been trained to do their job in a safe manner. There is danger in all kinds of jobs, even in the office. Risks and hazards exist in all types of workplaces and reducing those risks is vital.

At Safety Makers, our specialists provide a comprehensive range of Work Health and Safety consultancy services, training courses and workshops, systems, and tools, individually designed to build your capacity to meet both the needs of your business and compliance with WHS legislation. Our team are dedicated and passionate about reducing the number and severity of injuries and illnesses in workplaces across a wide range of industries and occupations.

Visit our online shop where you can purchase instantly downloadable, fully editable, affordable safety documents for your business. Our range includes simple, individual forms through to complete Safety Management Systems, to suit business owners from sole traders to small/medium enterprises.

https://safetymakers.com.au/shop