The Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Act 2007 is a landmark in law. For the first time, companies and individuals can be found guilty of corporate manslaughter as a result of management failures resulting from a gross breach of a duty of care.
The renewed political and societal appetite to increase personal accountability for those who put workers’ health and safety at risk and to hold them responsible for such infractions with the threat of criminal penalties - including imprisonment - has predictably resulted in arrangements for Health Safety and Environment (HSE) receiving increased attention at the senior management level of most organisations.
The need to comply with an overwhelming volume of legal requirements and obligations whilst keeping abreast of frequent legislative updates represents a significant challenge for most organisations regardless of size or sector.
Organisations tend to focus on granular detail in a way that is often fragmented. Against this evolving backdrop there is a significant opportunity to 'take stock' and implement a model designed to deliver a desired level of performance that can improve the overall business and enable healthy governance.
A truly effective HSE governance and assurance model brings together as an integrated whole the vital elements of health, safety and environment in a way that increases productivity and protects the business. The key components of an effective and integrated approach to HSE governance will include:
- Leadership behaviour
- Culture & climate
- Risk register
- Legal requirements and obligations registers
- Framework & system
- Assurance & improvement
Given that training and competency are cornerstones of Governance, this is where we are placing our focus during this quarter.
Are you in good shape? Why not take our 2 minute test?
Please take the time to reflect on your answers to the following questions:
· Does your Safety, Health & Environmental policy give clear direction?
· Is there a scheme of delegation for Safety, Health & Environment accountabilities to cover key roles and are they understood?
· Are responsibilities for Safety, Health & Environment explicit and clear?
· Do personnel have all the necessary knowledge and experience to discharge their accountabilities?
· What specific HSE training do they need / receive?
· How do you ensure personnel are clear about what they should know?
· What is the process for ‘learning from experience’ (internal and external to the company)?
· How do you anticipate risks rather than learn after events?
· What information do personnel need to discharge their accountabilities, where do they go for such information and how is it validated?
Risk Management Competence
Since it’s not always a good use of their resources, most companies do
not have the necessary in-house capability to fully manage Health and
Safety training. Yet the consequences (i.e. HSE criminal prosecutions
and civil claims by individuals), as a result of accidents and incidents
due to a failure to provide adequate training, are potentially high and
costly.
Effective risk management depends on the competencies of the
organisation as a whole, of teams and individuals. The necessary
experience and knowledge must be available to enable risks to be
identified and understood and for effective mitigation/control
measures to be established.
The following illustration provides a simple tool for you to assess
competence. It can be an effective way to identify the capabilities of
you and your team have to manage the risks for which you are
responsible.
Risk Management Competence
Since it’s not always a good use of their resources, most companies do
not have the necessary in-house capability to fully manage Health and
Safety training. Yet the consequences (i.e. HSE criminal prosecutions
and civil claims by individuals), as a result of accidents and incidents
due to a failure to provide adequate training, are potentially high and
costly.
Effective risk management depends on the competencies of the
organisation as a whole, of teams and individuals. The necessary
experience and knowledge must be available to enable risks to be
identified and understood and for effective mitigation/control
measures to be established.
The following illustration provides a simple tool for you to assess
competence. It can be an effective way to identify the capabilities of
you and your team have to manage the risks for which you are
responsible.
A competent, trained workforce can dramatically reduce risk and improve bottom line HSE performance and reduce the time and cost for example associated with accident and incidents.
Paradigm have extensive experience in carrying out training needs analysis, developing and delivering health and safety training at all levels of organisations. We can provide you with a quality training service that meets your requirements and budget regardless of your organisational size or geographical location.
Thank you for taking the time to read the blog.
