Effectively managing occupational health and safety (OHS) risks is a key requirement for all organisations. The expectations of the community and statutory authorities continue to grow, demanding higher levels of performance in maintaining a safe and injury-free workplace. Marsh's Workforce Strategies consulting team works with organisations to enhance and develop effective OHS systems and practices to solve complex safety issues, and to provide training in safety risk management.

The OHS legislation, which should be the minimum level of an organisation's performance, imposes various obligations depending on the nature of your business and business relationships. These obligations vary between States and Territories, but may include the following groups of people:

• Employees
• Employers
• Contractors
• Members of the public
• Designers, manufacturers, installers and suppliers of plant and materials used in the workplace.

The impact of poor OHS programs is often measured only in terms of the injury rate and workers' compensation costs. However, the real impact extends further to include:

• A diminished industrial relations environment
• Significant fines and penalties for the organisation and management team
• Contractual impediments
• Possible associated environmental risks
• Diminished shareholder, community and consumer confidence
• Negative media coverage

The traditional approaches of hazard inspection and work instructions fail to provide organisations with adequate mechanisms to prevent injury-related incidents.