Risk Management
Business owners or a person conducting a business undertaking (PCBUs) have a primary duty of care to ensure that other persons are not put at risk whilst at work.
If you are a PCBU you must eliminate risks in the workplace. If that is not possible, you must minimise the risks, so far as is reasonably practicable.
In deciding how to control risks, you must consult other duty holders and your workers who will be directly affected by this decision.
The risk management process
Risk management is an ongoing, proactive process that helps you respond to any change in your work processes, procedures or the work environment.
The risk management process generally involves four steps:
- Identify hazards
- Assess risks
- Control risks
- Review hazards and control measures.
Source: SafeWork Australia
The hierarchy of control measures
The hierarchy of control measures is an effective tool to help you minimise the risks to health and safety where it is not reasonably practicable to eliminate the hazard and the associated risk. It ranks control measures from the highest level of protection and reliability (eliminating the hazard) to the lowest (personal protective equipment). The hierarchy of control measures can be applied in relation to any risk. The WHS Regulations make it mandatory for duty holders to work through this hierarchy when managing certain risks, including risks from hazardous atmospheres or chemicals, noise, asbestos, confined spaces, plant, falls or falling objects and hazardous manual tasks.
Source: SafeWork Australia
Do I have to apply the risk management process for all of my activities?
Where hazards and their associated risks are well known and have well established and accepted control measures, you do not need to formally assess the risk. However, you should still continually review the control measures to ensure they are effective and that the risk has been eliminated or minimised to the extent that is reasonably practicable. This must be done in consultation with other PCBUs sharing the same duty, as well as workers and any health and safety representatives.
What if I don’t have time to conduct a risk management process?
Doing nothing is not an option. Your WHS duties, as a PCBU, require that you take the time and resources necessary to manage the risks. The process can be undertaken to varying extents depending on the hazard type and the information and resources you have available. It can be as simple as a discussion with your workers or may involve using specific risk management tools.
For more information or training on this subject, MTA Members are encouraged to contact our Senior Workplace Relations Advisors via email: wr@mtasant.com.au or phone 8291 2000.