Auditing occupational health and safety in Ballito and Dolphin Coast

As a result of this, organisations based in Ballito and Dolphin Coast must determine the reason for the OHS audit and what they hope to achieve when conducting an audit. The purpose of an audit, simply explained, is to identify strengths and weaknesses in the workplace’s OHS programme. Several areas must be considered during an OHS audit, including but not limited to:

• Accountability
• Policies
• Hazard identification
• Controls
• Training, and others.

This is done effectively by assessing and examining how well the OHS programme complies with the relevant and applicable legislation, regulations, guidelines and other well-established practices. Apart from this, OHS audits work to achieve the following:

• Identifying areas where improvement is needed to protect workers from both injury and illnesses.
• Ensuring legislative compliance with the Occupational Health and Safety Act, and other legislation.
• Benchmarking OHS practices, and
• Determining the rewards and penalties administered by regulatory and certification bodies.

When an audit is conducted, another crucial factor that deserves substantial consideration is that the OHS audit must be conducted in a manner that proves to be effective. To achieve this, the audit must be both systematic and constructive. This can be ensured by taking the points discussed below into consideration.

Audit preparation

Basic details

Before the auditing process can start, some basic information must be collected. This includes the audit programme manager’s information and the information of the auditee, or the employer being audited. Detailed notes must be made to indicate whether previous audits were conducted and what the findings of such were. A reason must be provided for the audit and if there is an audit team, their details must also be captured.

OHS audit context

The OHS audit context involves the following factors:

• Business goals as well as objectives of the organisation.
• Relevant external and internal issues that exist in the organisation.
• The needs and expectations of interested parties.
• Information security and confidentiality requirements of the OHS program.

OHS audit objectives

The objectives for the audit must be consistent with the context provided and will involve some of the following factors for consideration:

• The extent of the OHS programme that must be audited.
• The capacity of the OHS programme to assist the organisation to meet relevant regulatory requirements.
• The effectiveness of the OHS programme in producing intended results.
• Opportunities for improvement in the OHS programme, and
• The sustainability of the OHS programme regarding overall strategic context as well as the business objectives of the employer being audited.

OHS audit scope

The OHS audit scope must also be consistent with the context provided and to define the scope, the following can be considered:

• Audit location.
• Audit function.
• The activities to be audited.
• Processes to be audited.
• The timeframe associated with the audit or the duration thereof.

OHS audit criteria

Where individual audits are conducted, the criteria thereof must be clearly defined. It must also be used as reference when compliance is determined. Criteria identified can include any of the following factors:

• Relevant policies.
• Processes and standard operating procedures.
• Performance objectives and key performance indicators (KPI).
• Statutory and other relevant requirements.
• Management system requirements such as ISO standards, and
• Internal codes of conduct.

OHS audit monitoring systems

The auditor must ensure relevant tools and OHS systems are in place, ensuring adequate monitoring of both the audit and relevant activities. Numerous activities can be monitored, including but not limited to:

• Audit timeline and whether details and schedules are adhered to.
• Performance of the audit team members.
• Successful implementation and effectiveness of action plans.
• Feedback from the employer and other key participants.
• Documentation of audit activities.

Document review

All involved, required and relevant documentation concerned with the OHS programme must be reviewed. It is considered a task where approval or rejection of the documentation with or without notes, is concerned. The audit cannot proceed until all documentation has been approved. It assists in the preparation for individual activities and is a high-level overview to identify and understand areas of non-compliance. Documented information may refer to:

• Processes
• Management system documents
• Previous audit reports.

Audit preparation

The following components can be considered during preparation:

• Roles and responsibilities of each member of the audit team.
• Risk-based approach to planning the audit.
• Scheduling and coordination of audit activities.
• The scope and complexity of the audit.
• Sampling techniques to be used in collecting evidence.
• Opportunities for improvement.
• Risks of inadequate planning, and
• Impact of the audit on the employer’s activities.

Conducting the audit

When conducting the audit, the following must be considered:

• Arrangements with the employer.
• Open meetings with the employer and relevant parties.
• Accessibility of relevant information.
• Collecting evidence.
• Assessing the organisation’s understanding and context, the expectations of interested parties, and the scope of the OHS programme.
• Collecting evidence on leadership, planning, support, operations, performance evaluation and improvements.

Audit findings

All evidence provided and collected must then be reviewed, with the auditor noting their findings on each component.

Audit conclusion

OHS audit report

Once the audit has been concluded and all findings noted, the audit report must be compiled. It must either be sent to the employer within 24 hours or presented to the employer and the audit team. The audit report is a high-level document that must clearly outline a complete, concise and clear record of everything that transpired during the audit.

Report presentation

During the presentation, the auditor must pay special attention to the following:

• Address special occurrences that may have an impact on the reliability of audit conclusions.
• Ensure those in attendance have access to the audit report.
• Ensure the employer is familiar with the audit process.
• Confirm the timeframe of audit follow-up actions.
• Provide findings, feedback, recommendations and all opportunities for improvement.

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