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ISO 45001

Occupational Health and Safety

ISO 45001 is an internationally recognised standard that specifies requirements for an Occupational Health and Safety Management System (OHSMS), along with guidance for its use. The standard enables an organisation of any size or type to improve its OH&S performance.

In 2022, there were over 397,000 certificates issued for ISO 45001:2018 around the world, covering over half a million sites across 179 countries.

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What is ISO 45001?

ISO 45001:2018 is a globally recognised standard for occupational health and safety management. It aims to enhance employee safety, reduce workplace risks and create better, safer working conditions. This standard demonstrates an organisation’s commitment to controlling health and safety risks by implementing processes and procedures to minimise work-related incidents.

ISO 45001 certification provides a framework for organisations to:

  • Provide an effective process for improving workplace health and safety.
  • Control the risk of accidents in the workplace.
  • Ensure compliance with relevant health and safety regulations.
  • Foster continuous safety and risk management practices to satisfy interested parties.
Work safety. Construction site protective equipment on wooden background, flat lay, copy space, top view

What are the benefits?

Hazard Identification and Mitigation

Cost Reduction

Cost

Reduction

Improved Safety

Awareness

Performance Evaluation & Improvement

Performance Evaluation & Improvement

Regulatory

Compliance

Attracting New Clients

Attracting New

Clients

Employee Engagement

Worker Engagement & Improved Morale

Minimising Downtime

Minimising

Downtime

Lower Insurance Premiums

Lower Insurance

Premiums

Continuous Improvement Culture

Enhanced

Reputation

Operational Risk Management

Operational Risk Management

Global Recognition

Global

Recognition

Key Requirements of ISO 45001

The ISO 45001 standard outlines a number of requirements that organisations must meet to demonstrate their commitment to Occupational Health and Safety. These include

Organisational Context: Understanding the organisation’s external and internal context.

Leadership: Leadership commitment to occupational health and safety and continuous improvement, including aligning policies to the organisation’s strategic objectives.

Hazard Identification & Risk Management: Identifying and mitigating workplace hazards and risks to ensure the safety of employees and others.

Operational Risk Controls: Implementing controls and procedures to manage health and safety risks associated with day-to-day operations, as well as emergency preparedness and response.

Safety Awareness Enhancement: Promoting a culture of heightened awareness regarding occupational health and safety risks among all personnel.

Continuous Performance Evaluation: Regularly assessing and improving the performance of the occupational health and safety management system.

Worker Engagement: Encouraging active participation of employees in health and safety initiatives and decision-making.

Regulatory Compliance Readiness: Preparing the organisation to effectively respond to and comply with health and safety regulations and requirements.

Implementing ISO 45001

Ensuring your Occupational Health & Safety Management System is ready for ISO 45001:2018 certification involves commitment from the whole organisation. You may wish to have a Certification Body conduct a Gap Analysis to review the readiness of your OHSMS before going through the Certification Assessments.

As well as a Gap Analysis, Training Courses are also a good way to ensure your teams are prepared and understand what ISO 45001 certification involves. Certification Europe provides ISO 45001 Internal Auditor & Implementation training courses to support you. These are led by experts in the field of occupational health & safety, cater to diverse organisational requirements, encompassing implementation strategies, internal auditing techniques and continuous improvement practices.

To find out more, click the course titles on the right or get in touch with our training team by filling out this form.

Becoming Certified to ISO 45001

Stage One

The initial assessment determines if the mandatory requirements of the standard are being met and if the management system is capable of proceeding to Stage 2.

1

Stage Two

The second assessment determines the effectiveness of the system, and seeks to confirm that the management system is implemented and operational.

2

Recommendation for Certification

At this point in the process we review any corrective actions taken to address findings raised at Stage 1 & 2. Certification may be recommended.

3

Certification Review & Decision

The organisations files are reviewed by an independent and impartial panel and the certification decision is made.

4

Certification Achived

Successful certification is communicated to the client. Certificates are issued.

5

Becoming Certified to ISO 45001

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ISO 45001 FAQs

We’re accredited by the INAB and meet rigorous international certification standards, delivering ISO expertise to assess and certify ISO standards. Accreditation is the process by which a certification body is recognised to offer certification services.

To become accredited, Certification Europe is required to implement a Quality Management System which is assessed by an Independent Authorised Body to determine that it meets International Standards. We’re audited annually to ensure our services meet the exact requirements of the relevant accreditation standards.

ISO 45001 certification by Certification Europe is accredited by INAB (Irish National Accreditation Board). This accreditation is crucial to ensure we provide the highest quality of certification assessments to our clients, with full trust and recognition of our competency from INAB. Registration Number: 5006.

ISO 45001:2018 is the updated version of the standard for occupational health and safety. It was updated in March 2018 from its predecessor OHSAS 18001. Read more about ISO 45001 here.

ISO 45001 follows the high-level structure approach (Annex SL) applied to other ISO management system standards, such as ISO 9001 (quality) and ISO 14001 (environment). In developing the standard, consideration has been given to the content of other international standards.

Those adopting the standard should find its requirements consistent with the other standards. This allows for relatively easy alignment and integration with the requirements of other ISO management system standards into an organisation’s overall management processes.

To find out more about integrated standards, click here.

The simple answer is all industries! If your organisation has people working on its behalf or who may be affected by its activities, then using a systematic approach to managing health and safety will prove beneficial. The standard can be used by small, low-risk operations and by high risk and large complex organisations.

While the standard requires that OH&S risks be addressed and controlled, it also takes a risk-based approach to the OHSMS to ensure that it is effective and improved to meet an organisation’s ever-changing needs. This risk-based approach is consistent with the way organisations manage other business risks and encourages the integration of the standard’s requirements into organisations’ overall management processes.

According to the 2022 ISO survey, the Construction industry had the highest number of ISO 45001 certificates, closely followed by Wholesale & Retail Trade, Electrical Equipment and Engineering Services. Recently, we have seen an increase in organisations within the pharmaceuticals and food industries opting for ISO 45001 certification.

ISO 45001:2018 certification will last for three years and is subject to mandatory surveillance assessments to ensure compliance. At the end of the three years, your organisation will need to complete a recertification assessment to become recertified to the standard.

Would you like a quote for ISO Certification Services?

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Download our Free ISO 45001 Key Requirements Checklist today!​

This checklist contains a high-level overview of the key requirements to support your journey to ISO 45001 certification.