Health and safety in The Westpac Group

Transcription

1 Health and safety in The Westpac Group Updated 15 February 2010 We care about your health and safety. And through our health and safety system, we aim to make your workplace safe by removing and managing hazards and preventing incidents and injuries. In this policy, we describe our health and safety system including our health and safety goals, objectives and targets, our health and safety plan and how we aim to implement and review our health and safety system. - Coverage This policy applies to all employees, consultants, contractors and temporary (agency) workers in Australia of Westpac Banking Corporation and the following Westpac group companies: Asgard Wealth Solutions Limited BT Financial Group Pty Limited St.George Bank Limited Westpac Financial Consultants Limited Westpac General Insurance Services Limited Hastings Management Pty Limited Qvalent Pty Limited This policy does not apply to employees of St.George, Asgard or RAMS Financial Group Pty Limited. You should read this policy together with the relevant sections of any Award or Enterprise Agreement that applies to you. - Our commitment to health and safety Our policy commitments and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) endorsement Our Health and Safety Policy Commitments describe our how we are committed to health and safety and the policy has been endorsed by our Chief Executive Officer (CEO) in a special message to you. Our policy is reviewed at least every 3 years. Our health and safety system Our health and safety system consists of: 1

2 The health and safety policy and several other policies which describe our various health and safety goals in more detail Processes and procedures used by our health and safety consultants Other things like forms and tools we develop for you. Our health and safety policies The following policies describe how we are meeting our health and safety commitments: Policy What's in it Health and safety in The Westpac Group Health and safety The Westpac Group describes our policy commitments which have been endorsed by our Chief Executive Officer (CEO). Health and safety responsibilities and accountabilities Describes your general health and safety responsibilities and the additional responsibilities for People Leaders and other people who perform specific health and safety roles. Health and safety consultation Outlines how we involve you to make decisions about health and safety that directly affect you. Health and safety training Shows the training you need to complete to meet your general or additional health and safety responsibilities. Hazards and risk management Describes the risk management program that People Leaders use to manage hazards in their team and the procedures you need to follow to report a hazard, incident or injury. Workers compensation Describes our arrangements for workers compensation which cover you in line with the legislation in your state / territory. If you have a work-related injury / illness. Rehabilitation Describes our rehabilitation program and how we support you to remain at work or return to work after you experience a work-related injury or illness. First aid Outlines the procedures that People Leaders need to implement to provide first aid at work and that you need to 2

3 follow when someone needs first aid. Preparing for emergencies Outlines the procedures that People Leaders need to implement to be prepared for an emergency and that you need to follow to get ready for emergencies like fires or bomb threats. Trauma support Describes how we help you when you experience a trauma at work (e.g. holdup) or other traumatic event (e.g. violence or other event). Flu vaccinations How we help you to stay healthy by offering you flu vaccinations. Counselling support and financial assistance How we support you to deal with issues at work or home and how you can get financial assistance if you experience financial problems. Safety when working alone Describes the procedures People Leaders need to implement when their team members work alone and that you need to follow when you work alone. Smoke free environment How we provide you with a smoke free environment. Review by employee focus group The Health and safety The Westpac Group policy was extensively reviewed in 2008 by the Health and Safety team. We also asked employees across The Westpac Group to take part in a focus group to review drafts. The employees who took part in the focus groups included: Health and safety representatives and committee members Employees across our different business units. At any time, you can provide us with feedback on our policy by using the Feedback form. If you have a health and safety grievance, see the section Giving feedback or raising a grievance. - Objectives and targets Objectives and targets We document our objectives and targets for health and safety in our quarterly reports to the Board. They include: 3

4 Reducing the Australian lost time injury frequency rate (LTIFR) Reducing the Australian duration rate or average lost time rate Positive outcomes from our preventative programs and projects. When we set objectives and targets we must consider: Legal requirements Standards and codes of practice Health and safety hazards and risks Available technology Agreements and guidelines Operational requirements The views of interested parties. Where can I access our health and safety performance reports and how we define LTIFR? You can access our performance reports here - Your responsibilities Health and safety responsibilities Everyone has general health and safety responsibilities. People Leaders and other people who perform specific health and safety roles (e.g. first aid officer, health and safety representative) have additional responsibilities. To comply with the law, you must meet your health and safety responsibilities. We outline the health and safety responsibilities in the Health and safety responsibilities and accountabilities policy. - Consultation Health and safety consultation We aim to involve you in the significant decisions we make for health and safety that directly affect you. And, where relevant, we also consult our contractors and other people. You can ask us to establish a formal arrangement to be consulted on health and safety matters in line with the laws in your state / territory. This can be done through a health and safety committee or health and safety representative. We describe our consultation arrangements in the Health and safety consultation policy. - Implementing risk management Action plan Your People Leader manages risks and hazards by completing a Health and Safety Action Plan in line with 4

5 their business unit s risk rating. The Action Plan lists all of the risk management activities that your People Leader needs to complete in their team. For more details, see the policy Hazards and risk management. Business unit risk rating A risk rating shows the level of risk that applies to the activities that are completed in your business unit. There are 2 risk ratings: Level 1 we give this rating to areas that have higher risk (e.g. call centre) Level 2 we give this rating to areas with standard risk. All business units have a Level 2 risk rating unless a health and safety consultant gives them a Level 1 rating. We may give a Level 1 risk rating to a business unit when any of these conditions apply: The area mainly handles calls or cash (e.g. branches, call centres and centralised operational sites) The area completes a high frequency of repetitive tasks The work environment needs extra temporary health and safety risk controls The area has more than 50 employees (reporting to the Head of level or equivalent) and any of the previous 3 conditions apply The health and safety consultant recommends the area is a Level 1 risk rating (e.g. catering). We use risk ratings to identify areas that have more health and safety risk. This then helps People Leaders set up the right Action Plan to manage these risks. For more details, see the policy Hazards and risk management. Business compliance audits We regularly audit each business unit to confirm that: Our health and safety system has been effectively implemented People Leaders understand what they are accountable for. If any changes need to be made in the business unit, we record them in a Health and Safety Improvement plan. People Leaders need to implement this plan in their business unit. We regularly communicate the results from our audit to the people in the area audited and report to the Executive Office as input into their review of our health and safety management system. Health and safety consultants work with the business area to complete the audit. If your business area has a Level 1 risk rating, we complete an audit in sample sites according to a program of audits (from 2002). If your business area has a Level 2 risk rating, we complete an audit in a sample site for each major line of 5

6 business every 3 years (from 2009). - Effectiveness of our health and safety system Effectiveness of health and safety system We regularly review our health and safety system to make sure it is effective. This is done: Each year by the Executive Office Every 4 months by the Board Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability Committee. Executive Office reviews The Executive Office reviews our health and safety system annually to make sure our health and safety system is effective and relevant and that the right level of resources has been allocated to it. They also endorse our plan for the next year. The Executive Office aims to continuously improve our health and safety system in line with things like: Health and safety business compliance audits Results from system audits Internal changes External changes Changes to legislation Workers compensation self-insurance requirements. For more details about the Executive Team, you can visit the Executive Team internet page. Board reviews Every 4 months the Board Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability Committee reviews our health and safety performance to see how we are tracking against our objectives and targets. For more details about the Board, you can visit the Westpac website. - Workplace inspections by external bodies Inspections by external bodies The following people can visit our workplaces to inspect and discuss health and safety matters: Government health and safety inspectors Finance Sector Union (FSU) officials. You should refer any requests to inspect the workplace to your People Leader or their representative on site at the time. Notice requirements 6

7 Government health and safety inspectors can enter our workplace without giving us any notice. The amount of notice an FSU official has to give us to inspect our workplace depends on where the workplace is: In NSW and Victoria an FSU official can enter the workplace without notice if they suspect a health and safety law has been broken. Otherwise, they need to give us at least 24 hours notice In all other states / territories, an FSU official must give us at least 24 hours notice. If an FSU official does not give you the required amount of notice (in most cases, at least 24 hours notice) to inspect our workplace, refuse admission and get help by contacting: People Connect on , or The Employee Relations and Policy team. Checking identification and authority to enter To confirm the person is a government inspector: Ask the person to show you written authority which identifies them, and Contact the state / territory government health and safety authority to confirm the details. To do this, you can use our phone list External health and safety Government authorities. To confirm the person is an FSU official and has authority to enter our workplace: Ask the person for written authority that identifies them as an FSU official, and Contact the FSU Head office on (02) to confirm the details. For entry without notice in: Victoria, ask to see the permit issued by the Magistrate s Court NSW, ask to see the letter issued by the Industrial Registrar. In other states / territories, check that the FSU official did give us notice in writing at least 24 hours ago and also provided details about the issue. If the person does not meet the required checks, refuse admission and get help by contacting People Connect on , or The Employee Relations and Policy team. Process for inspections When an inspector or FSU official meets the required checks, you need to follow these steps: Take them to an interview room and find out the reason for their visit. If an FSU official does not wish to disclose the nature of the suspected breach notify People Connect on who 7

8 may transfer you to a member of the Employee Relations and Policy team Notify your health and safety representative or committee member (this is an employee who was elected and trained as a health and safety representative) Give the inspector and / or FSU official information on what was done to resolve the issue Escort the inspector and / or FSU official during the visit and make sure you only show them the area they asked to inspect Make a file note of what happened during the visit Implement any agreed relevant changes to address the issues raised Give your health and safety consultant a copy of the documents the inspector and / or FSU official gave you and your notes of the changes you implemented to resolve the issue. Getting help If you need advice when someone visits our workplace or for any other issues, contact the following areas: General enquiries, contact People Connect on Health and safety matters, contact the Health and Safety Team Union matters, contact the Employee Relations and Policy Team - Providing health and safety information Providing health and safety information We provide information about health and safety to you and other relevant stakeholders such as contractors and visitors in: Our employee policies these policies provide procedural information about our health and safety system and how we meet our health and safety commitments. They are used by all employees for more details see the section Our health and safety policies Health and safety intranet page The health and safety management system manual this manual has detailed information about the procedures our health and safety consultants and rehabilitation consultants follow. However, anyone who is interested in health and safety can access this manual from the on-line manuals library Training modules, checklists and other tools. We communicate health and safety information through the following ways: People Leader communication Westpac Group News 8

9 St George This Week Operational Bulletin ( St George Bank) My Weekly Updates (Westpac Retail & Business Banking) Group s and voic s Team meeting guides Intranet and broadcast messages Change management and project management tools and procedures The health and safety intranet site. The Health and Safety Team have the authority to prepare health and safety information. They have to meet strict standards for document control so you must not copy or produce health and safety documents without their approval. In Westpac workplaces, you need to display: First aid and emergency poster. Refer to the policy First aid ACCESS brochure. Refer to the policy Counselling support and financial assistance The extract of the Workers Compensation Act in NSW and ACT. You can get this from the worker s compensation consultant in NSW. St George Bank workplaces have a Health and Safety Noticeboard to display information. Refer to HRXpress / H&S Tools / H&S Information Display Requirements. You can read all of our other information on the intranet or we may provide you with other with other information when it is relevant for specific issues such as rehabilitation and workers compensation. Is this the first version of Westpac Group'sWestpac's health and safety policy? No. Previous versions of the health and safety policy including our supporting policies have been archived in the Employee Guidelines which has been superseded by the Employee Policies online manual. - Giving feedback or raising a grievance Your feedback We welcome your feedback. If you have any ideas or suggestions about this policy or any other health and safety policies you can: Complete the Feedback form Call People Connect on or extension

10 Raising a grievance If you need to report: A property issue, you must contact Serviceline on or x23333 for Westpac workplaces and Property Helpline for St.George Bank workplaces A hazard or an incident or an injury, you must use the Safety Incident Report. If you have followed the proper procedures for reporting the above issues or if you have any other health and safety issue you want to raise with us, raise it with the following people. Escalate it to the next level if you think it has not been adequately addressed. The person you raise it with must provide you with feedback about how they are resolving your issue: Your People Leader Health and safety representative or health and safety committee member (if you have one) Your People Leader s manager The health and safety consultant. You should only refer the issue to your health and safety consultant after you have approached the other people in this list. If you have exhausted all these options you have a right to refer your grievance to the state / territory government authority. - Keeping health and safety records Why we keep records Your People Leader needs to keep health and safety records (e.g. hazard / injury reports, workers compensation claim forms, completed checklists, team meeting minutes) so that we can confirm that they have met their health and safety responsibilities in compliance with the law. External parties (e.g. the government health and safety authority) may audit the records if they are investigating an issue or need to confirm that we are complying with the law. How you keep the records is up to you. However, you need to keep the records: Tidy and easy to access In a file which shows a date range for the relevant records Confidential, so you need to store them in a secure place For the time periods we specify. You must keep the health and safety records according to the Enterprise Records Management policy. Archive these with your other records for the specified period. For more details on personnel records, refer to the Employment files policy. - Access to health and safety legislation and government authorities 10

11 Health and safety legislation and government authorities We must comply with the health and safety laws, standards and codes in each state / territory. The principal laws are commonly called the Occupational Health and Safety Act and Regulation (or similar). There may also be supporting legislation that deals with specific hazards or processes. If you want to find out more about the health and safety legislation that applies where you work, you can visit the government health and safety authority website: NSW see WorkCover NSW ACT see ACT WorkCover VIC see WorkSafe Victoria TAS see Workplace Standards Tasmania SA see SafeWork SA WA see WorkSafe WA NT see NT WorkSafe QLD see Workplace Health and Safety Queensland You can also access other health and safety information by going to the corporate intranet page. Under My Job > Business Information Centre > Search Our Stash and search for: OHS Solution finder OHS Manager Australian Standards. - Policy owner Policy owner Health and Safety Contact name People Connect Version control Date of change Content changes 11

12 15 February 2010 First version in peoplexpress replacing Employee policy of same name and associated change history. 12