ISO 45001 Published as Joint Australian/New Zealand Standard
AS/NZS ISO 45001 has officially been published by Standards Australia following discussions with industry and regulators across Australia & New Zealand.
AS/NZS ISO 45001:2018, Occupational health and safety management systems – Requirements with guidance for use, has officially been published by Standards Australia following discussions with industry and regulators across Australia and New Zealand.
After the much anticipated ISO 45001 was published in March, Standards Australia begun the process of adapting the Standard for local use in July. At the time, some stakeholders had raised concerns that certain provisions within ISO 45001 were not compatible with existing Australian legislation (see related article).
Standards Australia CEO Dr Bronwyn Evans said the publication of this Standard would bring a systems-based approach to workplace health and safety across every industry in Australia.
“Australian experts contributed heavily to ISO 45001, working with their international colleagues to deliver a standard outlining international best practice in the management of workplace safety. Ultimately, organisations of every size and in every industry have guidance available to achieve a minimum level of workplace health and safety thanks to the publication of this standard.”
“The support this document has received from industry is indicative of the effort Australian organisations have already put into improving safety in their workplaces, which has the potential to be a simple and more effective process thanks to this international standard,”
Standards Australia has previously stressed that AS/NZS 4801 will “remain current until such time as it’s determined by regulators and a broad range of stakeholders to be otherwise.”
It’s believed Australia will now phase out these existing safety standards, giving businesses a three-year transition period to move from AS/NZS 4801 to AS/NZS 45001 (see related article).
Work is also under way to scope what additional guidance could be provided on AS/NZS ISO 45001 to support organisations and individuals adopting the standard.