July 14, 2011
Over half Queensland companies intend to review their occupational health and safety (OHS) policies following his year’s natural disasters a study finds:

The survey of OHS and risk managers by ASX-listed IT company ComOps reveals 78 percent of organisations have gaps in their OHS policies following the disasters and as a result, risk management strategy is now a greater priority overall. The survey of 65 senior business managers also highlights key barriers faced by OHS and risk managers with 32 percent indicating a legally compliant OHS strategy is not a high enough priority within their organisation.

In addition 29 percent say they can’t afford the investment at the current time. A similar ComOps survey last year found proactive risk management and the need for accurate reporting would be the two most important issues to OHS and risk managers in 2011.
However ComOps Safety, Risk and Claims Management Solutions Manager Moshe Woods says it appears the Queensland disasters have accentuated the need for these requirements. “Thirty four percent of managers believe the average organisation is under greater pressure than ever to invest heavily in OHS policies and procedures,” Woods says.
“In fact, just under a quarter plans to invest more resources in safety policies and procedures as a result of the Queensland disasters.”

When it comes to deploying effective OHS strategies within their organisations, 35 per cent say that they are frustrated by the behaviour of their workforce colleagues in assisting with policy and procedure compliance. Meanwhile 14 percent don’t believe they are given adequate time to dedicate to the overall issue of safety. “The survey suggests the Queensland floods have been a wake-up call for a comprehensive review of OHS strategies,” Woods says, "from design and formulation through to incident reporting, risk mitigation and management. “At the same time, the data would suggest that while the will is there to dedicate more resources to OHS, managers are still hindered by slack budget allocation and the perception that other business requirements have a greater priority. Woods adds it is reassuring to note the survey also finds more than a third of organisations are currently planning to deploy an OHS and risk management system. “A quarter of these are planning to do so within the next year,” Woods says.
“This OHS policy overhaul should place Queensland in a better position at times of natural disaster in the future.”

Respondents represented both public and private organisations ranging from less than ten through to more than 1,000 employees
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