According to safety management software specialist, myosh, organisations need to implement effective contractor management to avoid exposure during the execution of a project.
Organisations use contractors for flexibility as they can quickly scale their workforce up and down to meet changing operational requirements. However, once the initial insurance and certification checks are conducted at the point of employment of the contractor, very few actually track the expiration and renewal of insurance or certificates, leaving these companies exposed financially and their reputations damaged significantly.
The absence of effective contractor management by a contracting company can potentially mean working with an uninsured contractor with lapsed training or certification. Companies have in fact, lost large contracts as a result of the mismanagement of contractors, according to Adrian Manessis, spokesperson for myosh.
According to the new OHS harmonisation laws, the term ‘employee’ has been changed to ‘worker’, requiring contractors and volunteers to be included in safety plans.
Mr Manessis recommends the use of management systems for the contractor administration process, allowing contractors to maintain their own records while the contracting company stays in control. He points out that compliance, meeting legislation and demonstrating due diligence will be difficult for firms of any size without the use of safety management software to automate the processes.
myosh, which is recommended by the National Safety Council and The Industrial Foundation for Accident Prevention is the principal corporate sponsor and one of more than 150 exhibitors at the upcoming WA Safety Show.
The WA Safety Show is organised by
Australian Exhibitions & Conferences and will be held from Tuesday 7 August to Thursday 9 August at the Perth Convention Exhibition Centre, 21 Mounts Bay Road, Perth.
