Safety Matters - Rail, Tram and Bus Union of NSW

Standards
Standards establish acceptable minimum levels or certain requirements, which
must be addressed. These relate to a range of areas including quality, performance,
construction design, endurance, time specificity, systems or processes and
certain hazards and controls. Standards can also arise out of commonly adopted
practices in certain industries, agreements between management and workers,
or as a result of recommendations from advisory bodies.
Specifications for a range of equipment, products and materials state they are
safe and of good quality. If they meet requirements of relevant standards they
carry the ‘standards mark’.
Standards may be developed by Australian and international organisations.
Worksafe Australia, officially called the National Occupational Health and
Safety Commission (NOHSC), and Standards Australia develop standards for
reference by Australian employers and employees. Standards Australia and
Standards New Zealand also develop and jointly review standards for use in
both countries.
Standards developed by Worksafe Australia and Standards Australia use an
abbreviation of their organisation’s name (ie. NOHSC or AS) and an identifying
number, year and title to enable easy access.
Some examples of relevant standards include:
• AS/NZS 4360: 1999 – Risk Management
• AS/NZS 1269.0: 1998 – Occupational Noise Management
• AS/NZS 4804: 1997 – OHS Management Systems – General guidelines on
principles, systems and supporting techniques
• AS/NZS 2293: 1995 – Emergency Evacuation Lighting for Buildings
• AS 4801: 2000 – Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems
– Specification with guidance for use
• AS 1319: 1994 – Safety Signs for the Occupational Environment
• NOHSC: 1001(1990) – National Standard for Manual Handling
• NOSCH: 1010(1994) – National Standard for Plant
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Safety Matters A Guide for Workplace OHS Representatives
SECTION ONE
RAIL
TRAM AND BUS
21
Workplace Health and Safety
U N
I O N