Why is it important to get a compliant health and safety system and WHS prequalification and how do I go about getting one?
Maintaining your health and safety compliance is simply the right thing to do to meet New Zealand’s legal requirements. Your health and safety compliance will actively protect your workers while at work by assessing, controlling, and monitoring the risks of exposure and consequences.
WorkSafe is the government’s regulator of workplace health and safety in New Zealand and will apply its power and responsibilities to enforce any Person Conducting a Business or Undertaking (PCBUs) to comply with the Health and Safety Work Act 2015 (HSWA).
The HSWA sets out the principles, duties and rights in relation to workplace health and safety. The act ensures that everyone is responsible for health and safety (from business directors, and officers to workers themselves).
The act also defines the PCBU’s responsibilities for managing contractor health and safety. When businesses are working together on a project they consult, cooperate, and coordinate their work. This means that everyone needs to work collaboratively to keep anyone (who could be injured by their work) safe. Prequalification is the solution to ensure the contractor is taking all steps as far as reasonably practicable to eliminate or reduce hazards.
Did your client ask for your prequals to hire you? Do you want to get more work coming in? Do you want to build a stronger relationship with your clients? A H&S prequalification can help your business in many ways.
Let’s look at three reasons why it is important to provide your health and safety prequalification certificate and to efficiently maintain your health and safety management system:
- Health and safety prequalification is the best way to prove to your client(s) that you have a good work, health and safety system in place to protect your workers and others at work.
- It shows your health and safety compliance with Health and Safety NZ laws
Which prequal should I go with? First, let us talk about three of the most common prequalifications available in NZ.
SITEWISE
“SiteWise is brought to you by Site Safe New Zealand. A not-for-profit organisation, Site Safe is committed to creating a culture of safety in the New Zealand construction and related industries” Contractor Prequalification System – Sitewise NZ
IMPAC PREQUAL
“PREQUAL was developed in 2011 as a joint initiative between a group of New Zealand businesses and IMPAC to:
- Address industry concerns with approaches to contractor pre-qualification, and
- Deliver a comprehensive service that adds value to the overall contractor management process.”
Click on the link to learn more about Prequal.
“It is a single framework that brings all health and safety pre-qualifications together under one umbrella to make the process cheaper and quicker for everyone.” Tōtika Scheme – NZ Industry Supplier Pre-Qualification
Totika assessment is done by other associated scheme members such as IMPAC, SHE Pre-Qual, or Pegasus Pre-Qual.
Here at Parallaxx, our latest initiative to provide Health and Safety services to our clients, aims to streamline the prequalification process, making it both time and cost efficient. Not only can we help you develop, implement, and maintain your health and safety management system (procedure, policies or audits), but we are also here to support you with your Health and Safety prequalifications as well.
You can grab either a one-off bunch of hours or subscribe to ongoing support services to keep your health and safety management system in tip top shape year-round. Visit our Health and Safety page here for more information on our new subscription service.
A bit about Claire Raoult
Claire is our professional registered HS advisor (HASANZ). She has a Diploma in Occupational Health and Safety and a Degree in Nursing. She is a NZISM professional practitioner member and is experienced in health and safety auditing and consulting for SMEs in New Zealand. She has a practical, down-to-earth approach and will ensure your health and safety management system is functional and compliant.
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