Following more than 3 years of development, the new occupational health and safety standard, ISO 45001, has been approved as a Final Draft International Standard (FDIS). The new standard aims to improve employee safety and working conditions and to create greater global consistency.
ISO/FDIS 45001 will go to a final vote by the ISO member National Standard Bodies (NSBs) and if the result is positive, publication of the standard is expected in March 2018.
ISO 45001 is based on the same High Level Structure as the quality and environmental management system standards, ISO 9001 and ISO 14001, which will make the structure and common features familiar to organisations using those standards. ISO 45001 will replace OHSAS 18001, which has been widely adopted alongside a number of other national standards. The International Accreditation Forum (IAF) is developing the migration requirements to help certified organisations, certification bodies, accreditation bodies and other interested parties prepare. We expect that there will be a three-year migration period from the publication of ISO 45001.
Commenting on the FDIS, Steve Williams, LRQA System and Governance Manager and a member of the project committee ISO/PC 283, which responsible for developing ISO 45001; “Many elements that were implied in OHSAS 18001 will become explicit requirements in ISO 45001 – making it a more robust standard that will be equally applicable to both SMEs and multinational corporations. Greater top management involvement and easier integration with other management systems will embed occupational health and safety even further into organisations; reducing the workplace risks for people all over the world.”
With all the major ISO standards being revised, we are at the forefront of communicating the changes. We offer a range of ISO 45001 training courses to support organisations worldwide with their migration to the new standard.
Please note that as of January 2018, we have moved to the LRQA brand and retired the LRQA name.