MSS027012A
Implement and maintain the site OHS management system

This unit of competency covers the ability to implement and maintain the enterprise occupational health and safety (OHS) management system for a site or work group. Personnel work in accordance with enterprise OHS management policies, plans and procedures which incorporate all relevant aspects of OHS legislation and the codes, guidelines, regulations and Australian standards that apply to the site. This unit assumes that personnel have access to an enterprise manager and internal or external expert OHS advice.

Application

This unit of competency is applicable to environmental site coordinators, environmental managers and senior environmental officers working in a range of industry sectors, such as:

environmental monitoring, sampling and field testing (e.g. air, water, soil and noise)

geotechnical services

natural resource management

occupational hygiene monitoring (e.g. air, noise and radiation)

water supply and treatment, storm and wastewater management

solid and hazardous waste management

site remediation

resource efficiency (e.g. energy, water and waste auditing).

Note that the term ‘manager’ is used to refer to management of a function, project and /or program and does not necessarily imply line management.


Prerequisites

MSL944001A

Maintain laboratory/workplace safety


Elements and Performance Criteria

1

Implement requirements for OHS management system

1.1

Ensure OHS responsibilities and duties are documented and accountability processes are in place

1.2

Ensure OHS policies and procedures are documented and that documents are accessible to all relevant personnel

1.3

Recognise limits of own expertise and consult manager and/or OHS specialists as necessary

2

Implement and maintain participative arrangements for OHS management

2.1

Implement and maintain appropriate participative processes with site personnel and their representatives in accordance with relevant OHS legislation and standards

2.2

Provide information to site personnel in a format that is accessible and readily understood

2.3

Deal with and resolve issues raised through participation and consultation promptly and effectively

2.4

Provide information about the outcomes of participation and consultation to site personnel

3

Implement and maintain OHS risk management processes

3.1

Ensure hazard, incident and injury reporting and investigation processes are in place to meet prevention and legislative requirements

3.2

Implement a process of hazard identification and risk assessment

3.3

Ensure risk controls and hazard specific procedures for risk control comply with legislation and the hierarchy of control

4

Implement and maintain OHS training programs

4.1

Conduct a training needs assessment for site personnel that takes account of legislative requirements, enterprise policies and procedures, and risk control requirements

4.2

Develop and implement training programs to meet the OHS training needs of site personnel

5

Implement and maintain OHS record keeping system

5.1

Identify and address the legal requirements for record keeping

5.2

Ensure that records are accurately completed, collected and stored

5.3

Identify and access sources of OHS information

6

Initiate and maintain OHS management system improvements

6.1

Collect and analyse information to regularly evaluate OHS management system performance

6.2

Recognise instances of non-conformance/non-compliance and identify opportunities for improving performance

6.3

Initiate authorised improvements in consultation with appropriate personnel and update system documentation

6.4

Monitor the effectiveness of system modifications in consultation with site personnel

7

Keep management informed about OHS performance

7.1

Provide regular reports about OHS performance, instances of potential/actual non conformance and incidents and the actions taken in each case

7.2

Report opportunities and recommendations for system improvements in accordance with enterprise procedures

7.3

Report implementation and effectiveness of system modifications

Required Skills

Required skills

Required skills include:

accessing and interpreting OHS legislation, regulations, codes of practice and updates

analysing the work environment and assessing the need for OHS interventions

consulting site personnel about safety issues, hazard identification, risk assessment, selection and implementation of control measures and their review

raising issues related to concerns with safety of work systems and work environment through consultation with management and site personnel

addressing OHS management issues within scope of responsibility

developing and implementing improvements in work practices and procedures

providing appropriate supervision, support and information in accordance with enterprise procedures

keeping complete, current and secure OHS records

communicating effectively with site personnel, managers and OHS specialists

preparing OHS reports for site, section or work area

working safely for the protection of self and others

Required knowledge

Required knowledge includes:

roles and responsibilities of employers and employees under OHS legislation, including managers/supervisors and contractors

legislative requirements for OHS information and consultation

standards relating to OHS management systems

regulator’s guidelines for OHS management systems

enterprise record keeping requirements that address OHS, privacy and other relevant legislation

enterprise OHS and management policies and procedures, plans, housekeeping, inspections, audits

key personnel within enterprise management structure and OHS management systems

participative consultation processes relating to OHS management systems

enterprise purchasing policy and procedures for safety related supplies and equipment

sources of OHS management information, including specialist advisors

principles and practices of effective OHS management (e.g. hazard identification, risk assessment and risk control) and the hierarchy of control

definition of risk as the chance of something happening that will result in injury or damage measured in terms of consequences and likelihood

definition of risk management as the whole systematic process that is directed towards identifying hazards, assessing the risk, developing controls to minimise the risk, monitoring the effectiveness of the controls and taking action as required

nature of site safety hazards and risks and existing control measures

how the characteristics and composition of the workforce impact on OHS management

Evidence Required

Overview of assessment

Competency must be demonstrated in the ability to perform consistently at the required standard.

Critical aspects for assessment and evidence required to demonstrate competency in this unit

Assessors must be satisfied that the candidate can competently and consistently apply the skills covered in this unit of competency in new and different situations. Critical aspects of assessment and evidence include:

accessing and interpreting relevant sections of OHS legislation, regulations, codes of practice and updates

analysing the work environment and assessing the need for OHS interventions

consulting employees and other stakeholders on safety issues, hazard identification, risk assessment, selection and implementation of control measures and their review

raising issues related to concerns with safety of work systems and work environment through consultation with management, employees and contractors

promptly addressing OHS management issues within their area of control

developing and implementing improvements in work practices and procedures to reduce the risk of illness and injury and meet OHS legislative requirements

providing appropriate supervision, support and information in accordance with enterprise procedures

keeping OHS records complete, current and secure

communicating effectively with personnel at all levels of the organisation and OHS specialists

preparing reports for a range of target groups, including OHS committee, OHS representatives, managers and supervisors.

Context of and specific resources for assessment

This unit of competency is to be assessed in the workplace or a simulated workplace environment.

Assessment should emphasise a workplace context and procedures found in the candidate’s workplace.

This unit of competency may be assessed with units dealing with communication, supervision and training, for example:

MSS027001A Coordinate environmental management activities.

The competencies covered by this unit would be demonstrated by an individual working alone or as part of a team.

Resources may include:

relevant OHS legislation and regulations

codes of practice

enterprise procedures.

Method of assessment

The following assessment methods are suggested:

review of OHS information developed by the candidate and provided to the site personnel

review of OHS records and reports prepared by the candidate

feedback from site personnel and managers regarding provision of information and the candidate’s ability to implement and monitor established OHS management systems

written and/or oral questioning to assess underpinning OHS knowledge and likely response to simulated incidents.

In all cases, practical assessment should be supported by questions to assess underpinning knowledge and those aspects of competency which are difficult to assess directly.

Where applicable, reasonable adjustment must be made to work environments and training situations to accommodate ethnicity, age, gender, demographics and disability.

The language, literacy and numeracy demands of assessment should not be greater than those required to undertake the unit of competency in a work-like environment.

Guidance information for assessment


Range Statement

Codes of practice

Where reference is made to industry codes of practice, and/or Australian/international standards, it is expected the latest version will be used.

Standards. codes, procedures and/or enterprise requirements

Standards. codes, procedures and/or enterprise requirements may include:

Australian and international standards, such as:

AS 1678 series Emergency procedure guide - Transport

AS 1940:2004 Storage and handling of flammable and combustible liquids

AS 3780:2008 The storage and handling of corrosive substances

AS/NZS 1269 Set:2005 Occupational noise management set

AS/NZS 1337 series Eye protection

AS/NZS 2161 Set:2008 Occupational protective gloves set

AS/NZS 2210:1994 Occupational protective footwear

AS/NZS 2865 Set:2005 Safe working in a confined space set

AS/NZS 4452:1997 The storage and handling of toxic substances

AS/NZS 4501 Set:2008 Occupational clothing set

AS/NZS ISO 14000 Set:2005 Environmental management standards set

HB 9-1994 Occupational personal protection

Australian Dangerous Goods Code

Australian Radiation Protection and Nuclear Safety Agency (ARPANSA) Codes of Practice

contractor and employee handbooks

emergency, fire and incident procedures

environmental incident procedures

hazard policies and procedures

hazardous goods manifest and substance register

maintenance schedules

manufacturer operating manuals

National Code of Practice for the labelling of workplace substances [NOHSC:2012 (1994)]

national environment protection measures

National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Guidelines

OHS national standards and codes of practice

personal protective clothing and equipment procedures

safety procedures

standard operating procedures

work instructions

Site personnel

Site personnel may include:

managers and supervisors

health and safety and other employee representatives

contractors, consultants and visitors

OHS committee members

operations personnel

external OHS agency representatives

Participative processes with site personnel and their representatives

Participative processes with site personnel and their representatives may include:

committees:

OHS

consultative

planning

employee and supervisor/manager involvement in OHS activities, such as inspections, audits and risk assessments

procedures for reporting hazards and raising and addressing OHS issues

identification of hazards

assessment of level of risk

implementation of risk control measures and review of effectiveness

injury and incident investigations

development of policies and procedures

review of OHS records and statistics

review of registers of hazardous substances and dangerous goods

audits and workplace inspections

job safety analysis

consultation with site personnel

Characteristics and composition of the workforce which have an impact on OHS and environmental management

Characteristics and composition of the workforce which have an impact on OHS and environmental management may include:

language and literacy

communication skills

cultural background

gender

workers with special needs

part time, casual or contract workers

Hazard identification processes

Hazard identification processes include:

review of hazard and incident reports

workplace inspections

pre-purchase risk assessments

review of relevant internal documentation, including material safety data sheets (MSDS), manufacturer manuals and minutes of meetings

review of legislation, codes of practice, standards and guidelines

review of publications, such as:

OHS regulators

industry bodies

journals

newsletters

Risk assessment

Risk assessment is a process that involves analysing the risk to identify factors influencing the risk and the range of potential consequences and assessing:

effectiveness of existing controls

likelihood of each consequence considering exposure and hazard level

combining these in some way to obtain a level of risk

A complete risk assessment will also include comparison of the determined risk with pre-established criteria for tolerance (or as low as reasonably achievable) and the subsequent ranking of risks requiring control

Hierarchy of control

Hierarchy of control, also referred to as the ‘safety decision hierarchy’ describes the preferred order of risk control measures from most to least preferred, that is:

elimination, or where this is not practical

substitution with a lesser hazard

isolate personnel from hazard

engineering controls

administrative controls, such as enterprise procedures and training

personal protective equipment

Information for evaluation of the OHS management system

Information for evaluation of the OHS management system may include:

hazard, incident and injury reports

site inspections

audit reports

formal and informal input of employees and contractors

OHS and environmental management requirements

OHS and environmental management requirements:

all operations must comply with enterprise OHS and environmental management requirements, which may be imposed through state/territory or federal legislation - these requirements must not be compromised at any time

all operations assume the potentially hazardous nature of samples and require standard precautions to be applied

where relevant, users should access and apply current industry understanding of infection control issued by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) and State and Territory Departments of Health


Sectors

Environmental


Employability Skills

Not applicable.


Licensing Information

Not applicable.