Part 1:

The Story so far

ISO 45001 is the internationally agreed standard for occupational health and safety (OHS) certification. It was published in March 2018 after five years of debate between OHS professionals from across the world.

Based on OHSAS 18001, ISO 45001 is designed to provide a framework for occupational health and safety management systems, that aligns with other international standards.

Since first being published in 2018, ISO 45001 has been expanded on in the form of ISO 45002 (focusing on small to medium sized businesses) and ISO 45003 (focusing on psychosocial risk).

Future updates are expected to include guidance on the management of infectious diseases (2023) and performance evaluation (2024).

The latest ISO survey in 2021 shows that

ISO 45001 certificates have been awarded globally,

across 369,897 sites in 193 countries.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the survey data shows

Construction as the leading sector for worldwide ISO 45001 certification.

As OHSAS 18001, despite its reputation of originating in British Standards, was widely respected across the world, many organisations questioned the benefit of expending additional time, cost and effort to adopt the new standard. As of March 2021, OHSAS 18001 has been withdrawn as a current standard, with organisations being required to ‘migrate’ to the new standard, or risk losing certification.

For those organisations without an existing OHS standard, ISO 45001 might seem an even bigger mountain to climb, with the benefits as yet unproven.

In this paper we’ll unravel the evidence for benefits – scientific and anecdotal – and consider how the cost, time and effort can be reduced.

Relevant Standards/ Glossary

ISO 45002

“Occupational Health & Safety Management Systems”

First published in 2023. It provides guidance for small to medium size businesses on how to implement ISO 45001.

ISO 45001

“Occupational Health & Safety Management Systems”

First published in 2018. Provides an internationally agreed standard for occupational health and safety management systems, with the same high-level structure as other aligned standards.

ISO 45003

“Psychological health and safety at work”

First published in 2021. Provides guidelines for managing psychosocial risk in systems based on ISO 45001.

OHSAS 18001

“Occupational Health & Safety Assessment Series”

First published in 1999. Developed by representatives from certification bodies in 15 countries across three continents and has been applied internationally. Withdrawn in 2021.

ISO 9001

“Quality Management Systems”

First published in 1979 as BS 5750. Through the next 30 years the standard evolved through ISO 9000 to ISO 9001. Last revised in 2015.

ISO 14001

“Environmental Management Systems”