Safetrac’s online course provides your employees with the training to understand how health and safety laws operate in the workplace, assisting your business in minimising potential risk. It is fully compliant with New Zealand law, and was authored by the Health and Safety team at MinterEllisonRuddWatts.
All businesses should be aware of their obligations and responsibilities under Health and Safety legislation. Breaching these requirements can be costly for organisations, not only in a financial sense but also in terms of the commercial and reputational fallout.
2013 saw the start of a series of legislative and policy developments that have culminated in the most comprehensive reform of New Zealand’s health and safety system for over 20 years. The overhaul impacts all New Zealand workplaces, organisations and individuals. While many aspects of the new regime are already in force, others will be introduced on a staged basis. While many aspects of the new regime are already in force, others will be introduced on a staged basis. The new Health and Safety at Work Act – and key associated regulations – came into force on 4 April 2016. Other regulations will be phased in as they are developed.
At Safetrac and MinterEllisonRuddWatts we’re committed to helping New Zealand businesses big or small, keep their employees as safe as possible.
We have put together 10 key questions to help see if you comply with the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015.
Are your Board and Leadership team fully conversant with the new Health and Safety legislation?
Have your Directors signed off on the new Health and Safety strategy and targets for your organisation?
Does your CEO / MD job description have appropriate Health & Safety responsibilities and accountabilities?
Are your organisations Board and Leadership teams receiving the right new Health and Safety information?
Do your Board and Leadership team review your organisations new Health and Safety performance on an annual basis?
Has your new Health and Safety management system recently been audited to ensure its fit for purpose?
Does your company have a robust process for identifying the significant risks and review this on a regular basis?
Can you verify that Directors and Officers within your company have been trained on their duties under the new Health and Safety at Work Act?
Does the Board and Leadership Team receive information on incident investigations and follow-up actions?
Do your Board and Leadership teams understand their personal liabilities under this new legislation?
If you can’t answer yes to all of these questions, then your Directors and Officers may be exposed to personal liabilities under the Health and Safety at Work Act.
We have compiled this Short guide to help workplaces and individuals navigate the reforms and to highlight the main steps that need to be taken to ensure compliance with the current regime and with the upcoming changes. More importantly we hope it helps you to develop safer workplace practices.
Rangiora Carpets Limited has been sentenced to a fine of $157,500, reparation of $20,000 and costs in one of the first reported sentencing decisions under the new Health and Safety at Work Act 2015.
On 23rd May 2017 we witnessed the first sentencing under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 (HSW Act). In a judgment released the next day the court fined the company $100,000 and ordered reparation of $37,500. With this backdrop of increasing fines ahead, what steps can you take now to help safeguard your organisation?
An article by John O’Rourke from our partners at MinterEllisonRuddWatts talking about the three core strategies to ensure a safe and healthy workplace.
