Assessment 1: Presentation and policy/procedure development

You are required to prepare a presentation for the management team on the importance and requirements of WHS. In addition to this, you need to develop a policy or procedure on the identification, implementation and monitoring of workplace health and safety

Part 1

You have been consulted to prepare a 60 minute presentation for the management team for 'Jeans for Jam Pty Ltd' a small clothing manufacturing business. Jeans for Jam has recently taken over a smaller manufacturing business as part of an expansion plan and due to its larger size and separate locations has realised that they are not as compliant as they first thought. You notice that whilst they have some WHS policies and procedures in place these are limited and not complete. In particular you notice that there is very little information on how to deal with the following issues;

• Confined Spaces,
• Forklifts,
• Fatigue,
• Hazardous Substances,
• Manual Handling,
• Noise,
• First Aid,
• Fire,
• Evacuation,
• Incident investigation and Reporting

You have been asked to brief the new management team on the legislative requirements they need to adhere to with regards to WHS over both locations. You have been told they are receptive to implementing things but are simply unaware of what they require.

To ensure you cover all the relevant points, the HR manager has asked you to address the following points;

• What is WHS and why is it important?
• What are the relevant provisions of the WHS acts, regulations and codes of practices applicable to this business?
• What WHS policies, procedures and programs should this manufacturing business have and how should this be communicated/available to staff?
• What is a hazard? What is a risk assessment and how does this relate to identified hazards?
• How communication is the key component in managing health and safety risks in the workplace and what the advantages are of consulting with all parties about this.
• Outline what the consultation procedures should be to encourage participation by staff in managing hazards in the workplace. (You will need to include how issues should be raised and resolved as well as the legislative and regulatory requirements).
• Detail how and when, outcomes from the consultation process on WHS issues, should be communicated back to all staff.

Part 2

Following the training session you realise that some additional training will need to be undertaken, firstly with the managers and then with the staff, on WHS and its regulatory requirements. Develop a policy or procedure for the business to address the identification, implementation and monitoring of WHS training. You should consider;

• How you will identify what training needs to take place and how this will support the individuals/groups identified. The importance of including the following in supporting the training;
  • Workplace learning opportunities
  • Coaching
  • Mentoring
  • How you would identify who should attend the training (you may consider using surveys, observation, periodic training, part of induction, after instances of injury etc).
  • Selecting two of the WHS issues mentioned in the case study and cost the training associated with running a session for 10 staff. At least one issue will need to be conducted by an external provider. Management will need to see the full break down of costs to be incorporated into the budget. You should also consider the frequency of this training with regards to organisational needs and currency.