How to successfully implement OHSAS 18001: The Italian case

Effectiveness of Occupational Safety and Health interventions: a long way to go

Background

Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) has become an area of increasing concern for organizations and institutions. As it evolves, it has gradually posed ongoing challenges, becoming more complex, for organizations. Consequently, more comprehensive studies are required to advance academic and institutional research. From this perspective, this study aims to gather research contributions on the effectiveness of existing interventions for OSH improvement and identify areas for further exploration.

Methods

According to the nature of scientific literature, the overall process of a literature review was investigated following an integrative approach, which involved searching for, selecting, and analyzing various literature in a creative and integrated manner, without a predefined structure.

Results

The analysis suggests that there is room for improvement in understanding the effectiveness of OSH interventions and more concrete guidance is still desirable. Based on the literature, some research areas for future developments in OSH interventions are identified. One potential area to explore further is fostering human-centered technological development and a more conscious network of stakeholders, with higher coordination, shared knowledge, and open communication.

Implications

Focusing on the proposed directions will support scholars and practitioners in pursuing continuous OSH improvement through more effective and well-grounded workplace interventions and encourage organizations to be proactive in daily OSH management.

Effect of an occupational health and safety management system based on KOSHA 18001 on industrial accidents

BACKGROUND

Many Korean enterprises have been operating an occupational health and safety management system (OHSMS) based on Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency (KOSHA) 18001 certification standards, which were developed in South Korea.

OBJECTIVE

This study analyzed health and safety performance among enterprises operating KOSHA 18001.

METHODS

Accident rates from 2010 to 2017 of 1,541 enterprises that implemented KOSHA 18001 and those that did not (N = 2,507,363) were analyzed by industry and size. The differences in the accident reduction rate before and after KOSHA 18001 implementation were analyzed in enterprises that implemented the system.

RESULTS

Compared to before implementation, the accident reduction rate was greater after KOSHA 18001 was implemented. The year that an enterprise began operating KOSHA 18001 was defined as T. For industry-specific analysis, the accident reduction rate between T and T + 1 was greater than that between T-2 and T-1 increased among both manufacturing (p = 0.020) and other enterprises (p = 0.011). For size-specific analyses, the accident reduction rate between T and T + 1was greater than that between T-2 and T-1 among enterprises with 299 or fewer workers (p = 0.008) and enterprises with 300 or more workers (p = 0.043). However, the accident rates of enterprises that implemented KOSHA 18001 and those that did not varied by industry and size.

CONCLUSIONS

The findings suggest that enterprises that do not utilize an OHSMS should consider doing so to prevent and reduce industrial accidents, and industry- and size-specific features should be considered to boost safety performance through the implementation of OHSMS.

Implementation of ISO45001 Considering Strengthened Demands for OHSMS in South Korea: Based on Comparing Surveys Conducted in 2004 and 2018

BACKGROUND

According to the previous studies, the work-related accident rate decreased in Korea after the introduction of occupational health and safety management system (OHSMS), but there were several disasters in Korea such as subway worker's death at Guui station in 2016 and the Taean thermal power plant accident in 2018, which escalated the social demand for safety. In 2018, OHSMS became an international standard, as ISO45001 was announced.

METHODS

A survey was conducted to research the implementation status of OHSMS and changes in people's perception, and the results were compared with those of a past survey.

RESULTS

Enhanced social demand and various stakeholders' (not only buyer) needs, and social responsibility are perceived as the motivation for the introduction of OHSMS rather than legal compliance or customer demand. In the questionnaire about problems with the implementation of OHSMS, the factors with higher response rate in 2018 than 2004 were "excessive cost" and "complicated documentation management." In the questionnaire about how to promote OHSMS in organizations, most people answered "reduction of workers' compensation insurance rate" in 2004, but most people answered "exemption from health and safety supervision" in 2018.

CONCLUSION

For the effective implementation of ISO45001, emphasis is placed on social demand, training to recognize health and safety as a part of management, and the reduction of certification and consulting costs to promote the introduction of OHSMS. Incentives such as insurance premium cuts and exemptions from health and safety supervision are needed.

Sustainable Development of Mountain Hotels through the Implementation of International Management Standards: The Romanian Case

This paper aims to identify the current level of implementation of the principles of sustainable development among hotels in the mountain area of Romania, how these standards influence the occupancy rate with the help of communication strategies, and to what extent the implementation of international management standards leads to an increase in the profitability rate. The research was carried out on the basis of questionnaires addressed to the hotels in the mountain areas of Romania, with information being collected from a number of 77 hotels, rated between 2 and 5 stars. The results obtained from the research highlighted the existence of positive correlations, both between the use of a communication strategy on the sustainable development objectives and the occupancy rate, as well as between the implementation of international management standards and the increase of the profitability rate.

Occupational safety and health management in developing countries: a study of construction companies in Malawi

Purpose. Whilst occupational safety and health (OSH) management is recognized as an important mechanism for addressing poor OSH performance, limited empirical insight is available on OSH management by construction companies in sub-Saharan Africa. This study investigated OSH management by construction companies (i.e., contractors) in Malawi in order to unpick implementation issues that need attention. Materials and methods. 46 OSH management practices were probed through a survey of contractors. Results. Implementation of OSH practices amongst contractors is low, particularly for practices related to the policy, organizing, measuring and reviewing, and auditing elements of OSH management. Company size is associated with implementation of nearly half of the 46 OSH practices. Certification of the company to Standard No. OHSAS 1800:2007 is associated with the implementation of fewer practices. Conclusions. OSH management improvement efforts would need to focus on the elements with particularly low implementation of practices as well as include initiatives that focus on helping microenterprises to improve their OSH management. The association between business characteristics and OSH management may be more evident with certain elements, such as the organizing element. Furthermore, certification to Standard No. OHSAS 1800:2007 may not necessarily translate into greater implementation of OSH management practices, especially in developing countries.