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Health and safety: Free assessment tool
Every business needs to involve its people in keeping everyone safe and healthy. The free SafePlus online tool can help.
First you create a short survey to learn what your people think works well and where there’s room for improvement. Then you get a report with advice and guidance links tailored to your business.
Shine a light with SafePlus
The best way to keep people safe and healthy at work is to create a culture where everyone looks out for each other. Health and safety is everyone’s responsibility, not just the business owner and any managers. This is why worker engagement is a key requirement of health and safety laws.
Ask your people about health and safety, and work together on next steps. Try using the free SafePlus online tool to create a health and safety assessment for your business. It’s a simple way to:
- involve your people in health and safety matters
- identify areas you can improve
- spot any gaps in thinking
- get guidance on how to take action, together with your workers.
SafePlus online tool(external link)
The assessments are:
- Repeatable, so you can do follow-ups to check progress and identify new or changing priorities. It’s a good idea to do this each year and when something changes in your business, eg new premises or new ways of working.
- Anonymous and secure, so people feel comfortable about answering honestly.
SafePlus is backed by the government agencies WorkSafe, ACC and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment. No one in government can access your information or results.
If you can show you are committed to health and safety, then your workers will be too.
How to use SafePlus
Start by setting up a profile. This involves a few quick questions so the assessment suits your business, eg location, industry, number of workers.
Next, invite people to take part. These might be your workers, customers or key suppliers. If you work with contractors or freelancers, or share premises with another business, you can invite them to answer too.
Each person will anonymously answer multi-choice questions tailored to their role in your business. The questions will cover three main topics:
- leadership
- worker engagement
- risk management.
You will then get a report with recommendations on what to work on, with links and guidance specific to your situation. You and your people can then plan improvements and take action.
Case study
Wellington Zoo
Among the organisations using SafePlus is Wellington Zoo. As well as risks associated with working with animals, the zoo deals with health and safety matters more familiar to businesses of all sizes, including:
- manual handling
- slips, trips and falls
- moving vehicles
- employee wellbeing.
“The SafePlus tool appealed to me because it wasn’t really looking at systems and processes. It’s more about health and safety culture and asking our people how we were doing,” says Chris Jerram, Wellington Zoo’s general manager of safety, assets & sustainability. “So we got a good 360 degree review from our people telling us how they see it.”
In manufacturing or residential construction? ACC’s workplace injury prevention subsidy helps pay for health and safety advisory services.
Applying for the subsidy involves an assessment to identify your health and safety improvement priorities. Using SafePlus is a good first step.
Health and safety tips for all businesses
Health and safety is all about two-way communication between leaders and workers.
Business owners must:
- ask for and take into account workers’ views when making decisions that may affect their health and safety
- explain to workers the result of any health and safety decision in a timely way
- have clear ways for workers to suggest ideas to improve health and safety.
Workers must have:
- information about any health and safety matter
- time to think about it
- opportunities to freely offer their thoughts on health and safety
- the ability to contribute to health and safety decisions.
Keeping people healthy and safe
Do you have any questions about SafePlus?
Email WorkSafe’s SafePlus team on info@safeplus.nz.
Check out the how-to videos on the SafePlus website.
How-to videos(external link) — SafePlus
