ISO 45001:2018 - Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems

Standard
iso-45001
Organizations Certified (Tracked)
542,527
Certification Cycle
3 years (surveillance annually)

Introduction

Primary Aim

Establish, implement, maintain and continually improve a management system aligned to ISO-45001.

Process Focus

Risk-based thinking, process approach, and performance evaluation.

Outcome

Consistent, effective, and evidence-based results.

ISO 45001:2018 specifies requirements for an Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S) Management System to enable organizations to provide safe and healthy workplaces by preventing work-related injury, ill health, and proactively improving OH&S performance.

It emphasizes worker participation, leadership commitment, and a systematic approach to hazard identification, risk assessment, and control.

Major Requirements Mapped to Clauses:

- Clause 4: Context – OH&S opportunities/risks, worker needs, scope definition.

- Clause 5: Leadership – Policy, roles, worker consultation/participation.

- Clause 6: Planning – Hazard identification, risk/opportunity assessment, legal requirements, OH&S objectives.

- Clause 7: Support – Resources, competence, awareness, communication, documented info.

- Clause 8: Operation – Hazard controls, emergency preparedness/response.

- Clause 9: Performance evaluation – Monitoring, compliance audit, management review.

- Clause 10: Improvement – Incident investigation, nonconformity/CAPA, continual improvement.

Major Requirements (mapped to clauses)

  • Clause 4 — Context of the organization
  • Clause 6 — Planning (risks & opportunities, objectives)
  • Clause 8 — Operation (operational planning & control, change, outsourced processes)
  • Clause 10 — Improvement (nonconformity, corrective action, continual improvement)
  • Clause 5 — Leadership
  • Clause 7 — Support (resources, competence, communication, documented information)
  • Clause 9 — Performance evaluation (monitoring, internal audit, management review)
Context & Leadership Planning & Risks Support & Operations Performance & Improvement

Certification Expectations (for auditees)

  • Establish documented OH&S policy, objectives, and programs aligned with risks; hazard register with controls for significant risks (e.g., hierarchy of controls).
  • Evidence of worker participation mechanisms (e.g., safety committees, consultations); competence training records, communication plans, and procurement controls for contractors.
  • Legal compliance register with evaluation evidence; emergency drills/logs; incident reporting/investigation processes with root cause analysis.
  • Performance indicators (e.g., LTIR, near-miss rates) monitored and reviewed; internal audits covering all clauses.
Themes: leadership commitment, competence, documented info, operational control, monitoring & measurement, internal audit, management review.

How ACSGP conducts the audit

Aligned to ISO/IEC 17021-1 (requirements for bodies providing audit and certification) and ISO 19011 (guidelines for auditing management systems).

  1. ACSGP audits align with ISO/IEC 17021-1 for certification body requirements and ISO 19011 for audit execution, ensuring ethical, competent, and risk-focused assessments.

  2. Process: Stage 1 review of OH&S manual and risk assessments; Stage 2 on-site verification of implementation via worker interviews, site tours, and record reviews; surveillance emphasizing incident trends and worker feedback.

  3. Auditors hold OH&S-specific qualifications (e.g., NEBOSH, IOSH); findings follow ISO 19011 grading, with certification granted post-resolution of major nonconformities by impartial review.

Value Addition Auditing: We assess both efficiency and effectiveness, ensuring your management system becomes an asset, not a liability—while maintaining impartiality, competence, and evidence-based principles.

Benefits of conformity with the standard

  • Significantly reduces workplace incidents and injuries, with certified organizations seeing 40-50% drops in lost-time rates.
  • Builds a proactive safety culture, boosting employee morale, retention, and productivity through inclusive participation.
  • Ensures legal and regulatory compliance, avoiding fines and disruptions while enhancing insurer premiums reductions (up to 20%).
  • Minimizes operational downtime from accidents, supporting business continuity and cost savings estimated at 5-10% of payroll.
  • Improves stakeholder confidence, including suppliers and communities, fostering sustainable operations.

Benefits of ACSGP Certification

  • IASCB-accredited certification ensures international validity, with ACSGP's network spanning 50+ countries for seamless recognition.
  • Integrated audit options with other standards (e.g., ISO 9001) to reduce time and costs by 30%.
  • Expert guidance on OH&S tools, like digital hazard tracking, and free annual compliance check-ins.
  • Customized training for auditors and workers, enhancing internal capabilities post-certification.
  • Access to ACSGP's global benchmark reports for benchmarking safety performance.