By John Darcy, Head of OHS

The OHS department was engaged recently for a safety audit on a member’s site following a serious workplace incident. The member had previously engaged an independent OHS consultant to deliver safety audits on his sites. The differences between the detail included in the two audits was staggering, and, for the member, alarming.

When members engage the OHS department to conduct a safety audit they receive a detailed written report that will not only focus on hazards that might need to be attended to, but also compliance with duties under the OHS Act and Regulations.

We frequently see safety audits produced by consultants on ‘tick-and-flick’ checklists that include little detail– only a few words scribbled.

It is deeply concerning that members who are receiving these types of audits may be under the belief that they are fully compliant with OHS law. They engage the consultant with the ambition of achieving compliance, and take the audit report they receive as being evidence without knowing what compliance actually looks like.

Master Builders’ OHS department prepares detailed written reports with the approach that the report could be read by a CEO who has never been to the site in question and immediately know whether the site is safe and if his company is achieving legal compliance. We prepare reports that will highlight what we term the ‘three Ss’:
• Safety issues on the site or related to the activities of the subcontractors;
• Gaps in the member’s OHS systems;
• Gaps in OHS supervision

Tick-and-flick audits frequently do not capture this level of detail. In 2016, we delivered more than 200 safety audits on members’ sites.

Having assisted many members over the years to comply with WorkSafe improvement and prohibition notices, the we look at site-related hazards with the mindset of finding what we believe an inspector would pick you up for.

Master Builders OHS audits also focus on SWMS, OHS Coordination Plans, inductions, consultation, plant and chemical safety, emergency procedures, first aid and housekeeping.

True story:

I once had an independent OHS consultant suggest to me that they would not tell a client everything that they needed to know because if they did, they would be out of a job. I have seen members who have been at increased risk of prosecution after incidents because of the advice they were given, or rather not given, by their OHS consultant.

If you are using an independent OHS consultant to undertake safety audits why not engage the services of Master Builders, even just once, for peace of mind and to compare the quality of service?

The OHS department consists of three fully qualified safety professionals (plus one currently on maternity leave) with more than forty years of combined experience. We are involved at the coal face with WorkSafe in terms of drafting of the laws and codes, and we engage regularly with WorkSafe on their strategic focus campaigns.

Use the services of service providers you can trust– a provider that definitely has your interests in mind and will tell you exactly what you need to hear, not what they think you want to hear.

To engage the OHS department for a site safety audit call (03) 9411 4569.