Eiffage Energía, in its process of continuous improvement towards excellence in health and safety, is adapting the OHSAS 18.001 standard to the new standard “ISO 45.001 Occupational Health and Safety Management System”.
One of the various changes that have occurred due to this adaptation has been the updating of the Health and Safety Policy, which reflects the organisation’s commitment to the culture of health and safety, the support of senior management, and the improvement of communication and coordination among all departments, processes and involved parties.
Among the main improvements, with respect to the OHSAS 18001 standard are:
– Increasing the importance of developing the context of the organisation.
– More effective risk management, taking into account both positive and negative impacts, taking advantage of the resulting opportunities.
– Reinforcement in the business strategy and the leadership of Senior Management in Health and Safety.
– Promotion of preventive culture throughout the group, at all levels and hierarchies.
– Obligation of compliance with legal requirements, having to provide evidence to prove it.
– Generation of records of indicator management to demonstrate that the objectives of continuous improvement are met.
– The new standard has the high-level structure, which makes it easily integrated with the main standards implemented such as ISO 9001:2015 or ISO 14001:2015.
Among the main advantages of this update should be highlighted:
– Work absenteeism is reduced by a high percentage, as is staff turnover: they are more comfortable in their workplace.
– Productivity increases: a safe worker is a happy worker. And as a result, they are more productive (improving working conditions).
– With regard to the above, by increasing productivity economic benefits also increase.
– Reduction of number of workplace accidents (whether incidents or accidents), thanks to the planning of preventive activity, which includes specific measures for each of the identified risks.
– Insurance premiums will also be lower.
– Involvement of the entire organisation in the culture of Health and Safety, through employee participation measures, to encourage their involvement.
– All this is summed up in greater employee confidence in the company.
– Greater access to the market due to the improvement of the company’s brand image, as well as its reputation vis-à-vis others that have not implemented the ISO 45001 standard.
– By combining legal requirements into a single unit and promoting training and information for staff, legal compliance is facilitated.
The completion of this first phase will take place with the certification process to be carried out at the end of this year. This is one more step of the COMMITMENT of this business group in achieving excellence in Health and Safety for and with all employees of the EIFFAGE ENERGÍA group.
