Guidance on occuPaTionaL HeaLTH and SaFeTY in GoVeRnMenT

FOREWORD
The Australian Safety and Compensation Council (ASCC) leads and coordinates national efforts to prevent
workplace death, injury and disease in Australia and to improve occupational health and safety (OHS),
workers’ compensation arrangements and return to work of injured employees.
The National OHS Strategy 2002-2012 (National Strategy), which was endorsed by the Workplace
Relations Ministers’ Council on 24 May 2002, records a commitment by all Australian, state and territory
governments, the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) and the Australian Council of
Trade Unions (ACTU) to share the responsibility of ensuring that Australia’s performance in work-related
health and safety is continuously improved.
The National Strategy sets out five national priorities to achieve short-term and long-term improvements.
The priorities are to:
1. Reduce high incidence/severity risks
2. Improve the capacity of business operators and workers to manage OHS effectively
3. Prevent occupational disease more effectively
4. Eliminate hazards at the design stage, and
5. Strengthen the capacity of government to influence OHS outcomes.
<strong>Guidance</strong> on OHS in Government Procurement has been developed to support Priority 5 of the National
Strategy which focuses on strengthening the capacity of government to influence OHS outcomes. As
governments are major purchasers of goods and services, and as such can influence safety outcomes
through their procurement arrangements, they have the potential to decrease the number of workplace
injuries and fatalities.
The model, tools and information offered in this guide aim to encourage governments and suppliers to
incorporate OHS and safe design considerations into their procurement policies and practices. They were
developed in consultation with Comcare and the Department of Finance and Administration.
The principles of eliminating hazards at the design stage (safe design) are an important consideration
where design is part of a procurement. For the period 1 July 2000 to 30 June 2002 a minimum of one in
four workplace fatalities were related to poor design . Priority 4 of the National Strategy aims to promote
health and safety at the source by eliminating hazards at the design stage, which involves designers,
manufacturers, constructors and suppliers. Procurement decisions need to consider the safe design
of products, systems and buildings so that potential hazards can be eliminated before they enter the
workplace.
If governments, at all levels, integrate OHS requirements into all stages of the procurement process,
suppliers will need to demonstrate their ability to meet these requirements.
Building and Construction
As a major procurer of building and construction services, the Australian Government is committed to
working with the building and construction industry to improve its OHS performance.
In procuring building and construction services, agencies are subject to the specific requirements of the
Federal Safety Commissioner (FSC), as defined in the Building and Construction Industry Improvement
NOHSC (2004), The role of design issues in work-related injuries in Australia 1997-2002
<strong>Guidance</strong> on OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY IN GOVERNMENT PROCUREMENT