Work Health and Safety

Policy

Our Policy:

Safety Direct Solutions (SDS) is committed to providing a safe workplace to achieve high standards in health and safety for its employees, contractors, and visitors. We will take all reasonably practicable measures to eliminate or minimise risks to the health, safety and welfare of workers, contractors, visitors, and anyone else who may be affected by our operations.

SDS will comply with health and safety legislative and regulatory requirements and will develop and implement safe systems and work practices that reflect its commitment to health and safety.

Our commitments will be achieved by:

providing and maintaining a healthy and safe work environment through the implementation of safe work practices, safe systems of work and the provision of safe plant and equipment.
ensuring that workplaces under the control of SDS are safe, without risk to health, and have safe means of access and egress.
routinely consulting in order to maintain effective and co-operative relationships between SDS and its employees, contractors, and visitors, and with other duty holders, on health and safety matters in the workplace.
reviewing, through appropriate mechanisms, the effectiveness of the safety measures taken.
providing relevant, up-to-date health and safety information to all employees, contractors, and visitors on matters such as workplace safety and their responsibilities.
providing expert assistance in health and safety matters where necessary.
providing instruction and/or training in work processes where appropriate.
developing and implementing strategies which include workplace assessment, hazard identification, and appropriate remedial action to eliminate or control hazards.
implementing and maintaining appropriate information, reporting and statistical systems.

SDS is responsible for:

ensuring the health and safety of its employees, contractors, and visitors.
ensuring the health and safety of other persons is not put at risk from work carried out as part of its operations.
providing and maintaining a work environment that is without risks to health and safety.
providing and maintaining safe plant and structures.
providing and maintaining safe systems of work.
ensuring the safe use, handling and storage of plant, structures, and substances.
providing adequate facilities for the welfare of employees, contractors, and visitors.
providing information, training, instruction, and supervision.
monitoring the health of employees, contractors, and visitors and the conditions of our workplaces.

Employees, Contractors, and Visitors are responsible for:

using protective clothing and equipment provided, or provided for, by the employee in the manner in which he or she has been properly instructed to use it.
taking reasonable care for their own safety and health at work.
avoiding adversely affecting the safety and health of others at work.
following all instructions and safe working procedures established to protect their safety and that of others.
wearing personal protective equipment as required and avoiding misuse or damage to any equipment provided in the interests of health and safety.
behaving in a professional manner that reflects the importance of health and safety.
reporting all identified hazards and accidents/incidents in the workplace to their line manager and/or SDS representative.

If an employee has a reasonable concern about a serious risk to their health or safety from immediate or imminent exposure to a hazard, or the health and safety of any other person, they may cease or refuse to carry out work that would expose them, or any other person, to that hazard.

The employee must contact their Line Manager immediately to report their concerns and follow the Hazard/Incident Reporting Procedure.

The employee may be redirected to suitable alternative work at the workplace or at another site until they can resume normal duties.

The employee will not be discriminated against in their engagement for exercising their right to cease unsafe work under the WHS Act.

Managers are responsible for:

modelling health and safety leadership.
demonstrating a commitment to good health and safety performance, by:
• talking about safety at regular meetings.
• ensuring safe work procedures are followed.
• reporting incidents, hazards, and safety concerns promptly.
• assessing task risk and not allowing an activity to continue until it can be controlled adequately.
fostering a strong work health and safety culture where worker input is valued.
promoting and implementing the HSEQ Integrated Management System.
actively support the identification of hazards and risks and the management of these.
understand and monitor safety performance objectives.
proactively manage other duty holders (e.g., contractors), when required.

SDS promotes health and safety activities and applies a consultative approach to health and safety reporting and investigation to promote a positive safety culture, in which a team-based approach is adopted to the resolution of problems and prevention of recurrences.

People are our most important asset and health, and safety is everyone’s responsibility.