How To Create a Safety Policy

Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems (OHSMS) require an organization to create a safety policy that meets certain requirements. The safety policy must be endorsed by the CEO or the top leader in the organization and documented appropriately. Some CEO’s make the message personal or add language about safety as a company value or a precondition of employment. Here’s a template to ensure that your company’s safety policy is meetings international OHSMS requirements:

ZERO will implement an occupational health and safety management system which will cover operations and maintenance activities. Our goal is to strive for zero work-related injuries and illnesses, regulatory violations and reportable environmental releases. We will tailor the OHSMS to the hazards and risks associated with the work activities of our organization.

ZERO is committed to the prevention of injuries and illnesses.

• We will identify hazards, quantify the risks of our work activities and develop effective control strategies.
• We will plan work activities on the principle of safety first, in order to pursue the goal of zero harm.

ZERO will strive to continually improve the performance of ZERO’s OHSMS.

ZERO will provide the necessary training, equipment, and work instructions to ensure a safe work environment.

ZERO is committed to effective employee participation:

• We are committed to empowering and encouraging workers to effectively communicate about safety through hazard reporting, risk analyses, procedure development, safety committees, surveys and interviews.
• Every worker, contractor or subcontractor holds the responsibility of intervening in highly hazardous situations and to refuse work if they believe that a situation is unsafe. It is an expectation of all employees and contractors to report safety, health and environmental concerns, interventions and work refusals immediately to ZERO management, so they we can take prompt and appropriate corrective/preventive action.

ZERO will conform to the organization’s self-imposed safety policies and procedures. Every employee, contractor, or subcontractor on ZERO premises or projects is accountable and responsible for adhering to this commitment to comply with policies and procedures in effect.

ZERO will comply with the federal, state and local safety, health and environmental regulations and we will make every effort to exceed those standards whenever possible to further enhance safety, health and environmental stewardship.

ZERO will act as an environmentally responsible neighbor in the communities where we operate, and always strive to prevent or correct conditions that pose concern for the public.

ZERO will conduct our operations in a manner that prevents pollution and conserves natural resources, by pursuing available recycling, reclamation, waste minimization and source reduction opportunities.

ZERO will conduct periodic reviews of compliance with this policy, measure progress of the company’s safety performance to ensure that results demonstrate continual improvement, and report periodically to the CEO on our performance.

ZERO will maintain this documented information and communicate it with all workers in the organizations, while making it available to interested parties like contractors, suppliers, vendors and the local community.

ZERO’s top leadership will review the safety policy and management system annually to set and review safety, health and environmental objectives and targets. The CEO will ensure that policies are in place and actions are taken to achieve this commitment, including providing the resources to effectively implement the OHSMS.

Top Leader (CEO) signature

Printed Name of Leader, Official Title

Date, Version/Revision number of safety policy