Hazard Assessment, Analysis and Control
In this article we are focusing on Element 2: Hazard Assessment, Analysis and Control, of the current COR audit program. We are presenting the reader with guidance regarding implementation for hazard mitigation and control strategies.
Hazard Assessment, Analysis and Control is a process that is used by organizations to develop written instructions for their workers to use while performing the tasks of their job. There are three facets of risk management:
Pre-task hazard assessment: a process designed to help workers understand the hazards that may be encountered in the work they are about to perform.
Quantitative risk assessment: a method which analyzes and considers long-term site activities that could have a major impact on the workers or organization if acute and/or chronic hazard exposure occurs. This type of assessment assigns a numerical or quantitative rating to an activity to define a probabilistic analysis of the risk.
Qualitative risk assessment: a tool that examines the critical level(s) of risk that would have a detrimental impact on the organization’s reputation, revenue stream, continuing operation, and in the extreme, result in loss of life.
Under the current COR, an organization needs to clearly establish it has a program that details training requirements, defines the processes and procedures to be used, and describes the implementation of appropriate controls.
The current COR audit tool checks to confirm that any organization undergoing audit meets the implementation requirements of its risk management program. A COR Auditor will undertake the following actions to evaluate the viability of a functional risk management program:
Ensure that hazard assessments are conducted, documented and approved for all operational activities. These assessments must be clearly documented and maintained as records;
Confirm the existence of a cross-functional team that collaborates in the development of the assessments. This team must include some of the workers and the health & safety representative;
Verify all specific job hazards are properly identified in the associated job assessment documentation;
Ensure the risks priorities associated with each hazard are correctly documented (from low to high on the likelihood scale, and negligible to catastrophic on the consequence scale);
Confirm the organization develops and maintains documentation identifying all critical risks, along with the appropriate controls that mitigate the risks to an acceptable level;
Verify that all workers are aware of the controls and are given reasonable access to documentation which describes each one.
How would you rank your organization’s current level of implementation on risk assessments, analysis and control? Are your work teams developing appropriate controls to mitigate the risks of your work activities?
Presented by Roger Belair and Jason Colucci - Approved COR Associate Auditors.
