WHS Annual Return Guidelines

Transcription

1 WHS Annual Return Guidelines Version 1.1 TRIM file number Short description Relevant to Approved by Responsible officer Responsible office 08/XXXX Guidelines on completing and submitting a WHS Annual Return Deans, Executive Directors, Directors and managers Executive Director, Division of Human Resources Manager, Work Health and Safety Division of Human Resources Date introduced 18, September, 2008 Date(s) modified Sept 2011, Dec 2014 Next scheduled review date December, 2015 Related University documents Related legislation Work Health and Safety Policy Occupational Health and Safety Objectives and Responsibilities WHS Workplace Inspections Policy Safety Management Plan Policy Work Health and Safety Act, 2011 (NSW & ACT) Work Health and Safety Regulations, 2011 (NSW &ACT) Key words Guidelines, occupational health and safety, WHS, workplace inspections, safety management plans, action sheets, key performance indicators, annual return.

2 1. PURPOSE 1.1 This guideline describes how to complete and submit an annual return from a Unit to their respective Dean or Executive Director, or how to collate a consolidated response from Units to the Division of Human Resources from Deans or Executive Directors. 2. ELIGIBILITY 2.1 These guidelines apply to all management employees of Charles Sturt University (CSU). 3. BACKGROUND 3.1 The purpose of using WHS Annual Returns is twofold. Firstly to enable senior executive staff to gain a clear insight into the performance of the Units within their area of accountability, enabling leadership in addressing both positive and negative results and secondly in reducing the reporting workload placed upon Units through a once yearly annual return, rather than supplying a range of individual reports. 3.2 The timing of these returns is based on providing the required information to go into the WHS section of the University s Annual Report. This usually commences late November each year. The WHS Annual Return consists of two types of forms. One form is for Units to report their WHS performance to their Dean or Executive Director. The other form is for the Dean or Executive Director to report the performance of their units to the Division of Human Resources. These forms are available from the WHS website and also come bundled with safety management plan and WHS workplace inspection materials. 4. DELEGATION OF RESPONSIBILITY 4.1 The Vice Chancellor through the WHS Policy, the OHS Objectives and Responsibilities Policy has responsibility for ensuring health and safety standards are set and maintained. Responsibility for WHS is passed from the Vice-Chancellor through the Deans and Executive Directors to Heads of School and Unit Directors or managers. To ensure that executive staff are kept informed in relation to health and safety issues within their area of accountability, the University has adopted the following WHS performance indicators as measures that health and safety is being managed effectively. 5. WHS KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS 5.1 Negative WHS performance indicators consisting of accident/ incident data and workers compensation claims information is supplied to Faculty/ Divisions and Units by the Division of Human Resources. Eventually this material will be available to all relevant managers through an online WHS Management system. 5.2 Key OHS positive performance indicators at CSU consist of: H&S Workplace Inspections completed for each unit as per procedures; An annual Safety Management Plan for each unit, inclusive of training program completed per procedures, with List of new risk assessments for that reporting period; List of new administrative control of risks for that reporting period, e.g. SOPs; Percentage of WHS Online Inductions completed within timeframes, by each unit;

3 Percentage of occupied buildings that have had at least one (1) annual trial evacuation inclusive of responses to false alarms, by each location; and Evidence that regular WHS consultation and where required, specific WHS consultation has taken place by each unit. 6. COMPILATION OF SAFETY MANAGEMENT PLANS 6.1 Units are required to notify the Division of Human Resources once per year of the completion of their safety management plan. The preferred method is to include all WHS key performance indicator material, including safety management plan details into the Annual Return form that is sent to their Dean or Executive Director for collating a consolidated response to go to the Division of Human Resources. The use of annual returns should decrease the reporting load placed upon units and provides executive staff with an overview of the WHS performance of their Units. The annual return form is now bundled with the required inspection forms. It is also a good idea to forward a copy of this documentation to your campus H&S Committee. 7. WHS CONSULTATION AND COMMUNICATION 7.1 Employees usually have the greatest awareness of any gaps in workplace safety management and of hazardous work practices. Effective consultation with employees and their representatives is crucial to the success of WHS, and needs to be integrated into every stage of the workplace management system. 7.2 Consultation allows for shared ownership of the process and prepares the way for successful implementation. Successful consultation needs to occur when: reviewing the current WHS management performance; developing, implementing and evaluating related programs, policies, procedures and management systems; identifying, assessing and controlling workplace risks; determining training needs; planning changes to, or introducing new work practices; designing and/or purchasing new equipment; refurbishing facilities or planning new facilities; and investigating incidents. 7.3 The type of formal communication method to be established between management and staff to cover the consultation requirements of the WHS Act 2011 largely depend on the level of risk inherent in that Unit's operations and the management style of the senior manager. 7.4 Units with intrinsically low levels of risk, such as office environments, the incorporation of their WHS communication into their regular meetings should suffice. Units with higher levels of risk may wish to establish an WHS Group to assist management to control these risks and provide a formal consultation mechanism. 7.5 An important element of successfully implementing WHS workplace inspections and Safety Management Plan involves both meaningful consultation and effective communication aimed at achieving commitment from all areas and levels within each organisational unit. Managers need to plan for how consultation will be achieved and how ideas and actions will be communicated.

4 8. WHS INDUCTION AND TRAINING 8.1 There is a legislative requirement for the University to provide both general and sitespecific WHS information and training to all existing and every new member of staff. An WHS Online Induction and Training program has been developed using external consultants and is deemed suitable to provide the information required by staff to understand and interact with the University s WHS management system and with its policies, guidelines and procedures. 8.2 This program enhances staff knowledge of work, health and safety, and provides a valuable information resource. The package also promotes the values of a safety culture and CSU s commitment to providing a safe work environment that will be incident free. Completion of this program will satisfy the requirements of quality and record maintenance for audit purposes. 8.3 The developed training program contains the following modules and components: Safe U at CSU WHS for Managers Fire and Emergency Procedures 8.4 The online training program will provide a base level of work health and safety induction for all staff and for those postgraduate and post doctoral students working in laboratories or areas of risk. The program is designed to record those parts of the program viewed and the names and unit details of the users. This information will be electronically recorded within Alesco, the Human Resources Information System (HRIS). Site specific inductions will still be the responsibility of the Unit manager or supervisor. A guideline on WHS Induction and Training that provides details, including access information to the WHS Online Induction and Training program is available from the WHS website. This guideline also provides detail of the site specific induction requirements for both permanent and casual staff. 8.5 All staff newly appointed to continuing and fixed term positions of the University are required to complete all modules of the ELMO online induction program within one month of commencing duties at the University. 8.6 CSU online induction completed within 1 month of commencement that includes the following modules: Safe U at CSU Fire and Emergency Procedures WHS for Managers 9. EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS 9.1 Staff complete at least 1 emergency evacuation trial per year inclusive of responses to false alarms 10. CONDUCT OF WHS WORKPLACE INSPECTIONS 10.1 Managers / Supervisors of facilities that are shared need to arrange for the assignment of investigation responsibilities to ensure that duplication of effort does not occur. Using a joint team with members from each area, or rotating the responsibility for the conduct of the inspection between areas are possible methods for managing shared facilities.

5 10.2 Where workplaces are geographically large or where there are a large number of facilities, then it may be prudent to carry out inspections on the separate locations and then combine them into a single report. This approach can be carried out over a number of months and still meet the recommended reporting schedule The use of annual returns should decrease the reporting load placed upon units. The annual return form is now bundled with the required inspection forms. It is also a good idea to forward a copy of this documentation to your campus H&S Committee. DEFINITIONS Unit is a Faculty, Division, School or section that has cost centre management and is geographically contained. A Division and related section sharing the same geographical location can be seen as one Unit for the purpose of management systems. ATTACHMENTS 1. Unit Annual Return Form 2. Faculty or Division Annual Return Form Table of amendments Version number Date Short description of amendment 1.1 Dec 2014 Update to Legislative references, Change OHS to WHS.

6 Form 43 : Version : 2.1 December 2014 WHS ANNUAL RETURN FACULTY / DIVISION Next Review : December 2015 This WHS Annual Return Form needs to be with the Human Resources Office by the third week of November each year otherwise your responses may NOT be included in the University s Annual Report. To: From: Division of Human Resources Directorate of Workplace Relations and Policy (Bathurst) Name of Faculty/ Division: Year of Return: The following Schools/ Units have met all of CSU s key WHS performance indicators for the reporting period: The following Schools/ Units have not completed the following key WHS performance indicators as shown: Name of School/ Units WHS Key Performance Indicators Safety Management Plan Y/ N WHS Workplace Inspections Y/ N OHS Induction Training (ELMO) Y/ N Emergency Procedures Y/ N WHS Consultation Y/ N/ or (NA this period only) Dean/ Executive Director Printed Name: Telephone Ext.: Signature: Submission Date:

7 Form 42 : WHS ANNUAL RETURN Version : 1.6 December 2014 Next Review : December 2015 This Annual Return Form needs to be with the Faculty/ Division Office by the first week of November each year otherwise your Faculty/ Division responses may NOT be with Human Resources to be included in the Annual Report. To: Copy: From: Name of Faculty/ Division: Campus H&S Committee: Name of School/ or Section: Name of Campus: Year of Return: The CSU key WHS performance indicators consist of: WHS Workplace Inspections completed for each unit as per procedures Safety Management Plan for each unit, inclusive of training program completed per procedures, with o List of new risk assessments for that reporting period o List of new administrative control of risks for that reporting period, e.g. SOPs Percentage of WHS Inductions completed within timeframes, by each unit Percentage of occupied buildings that have had at least one (1) annual trial evacuation inclusive of responses to false alarms, by each location Evidence that regular OHS consultation and where required, specific WHS consultation has taken place by each unit. WHS Workplace Inspections and Safety Management Plan Details Tick box if completed Safety Management Plan (formerly OHS Action Plan) 1 st WHS Inspection (Period January April) 2 nd WHS Inspection (Period July October) OR Exemption for 2 nd Inspection Granted Date Completed: Date Completed: Date Completed: Exemption Authority: Committee Resolution Number Enter details as appropriate for new items completed this year. (attach additional pages if insufficient room on this sheet) WHS Risk Assessments (Titles/Areas)

8 Standard Operating Procedure (Title) WHS Induction Training The number and the percentage of staff who have completed the required WHS online training modules and local induction programs within the prescribed timelines is as follows: Details of Training No. Complete Total New Staff Percent Introduction to Safety at CSU WHS for Managers Fire and Emergency Procedures Local Unit Induction Emergency Procedures Building/ Facility Evacuations Evacuations: The number of evacuations undertaken during this reporting period (inclusive of trials and false alarms) for each occupied building or facility. Enter building or facility details followed by the total number of each building evacuation in this reporting period. Enter zero if no evacuation carried out. WHS Consultation Consultation Methodology Reasons WHS Consultation and Communication: The type and level of consultation required may be determined by the overall level of risk within units. Indicate within the appropriate boxes whether consultation occurred and if so the methods used and reasons for the consultation. Methods may include OHS Groups, Standing agenda item, Individual meetings, specific meetings. Reasons may be from general OHS recommendations/ management to specific issues. Yes Not this period (Delete One) This is to certify that the preceding OHS information is a true reflection of activities undertaken by this Unit within the reporting period. HOS/ Director/ Senior Manager Printed Name: Telephone Ext.: Signature: Submission Date: