Providing information
Employees need the right information about how to do their work safely in order to ensure their own health and safety and that of others around them.
The Act promotes health and safety by requiring employers to provide information to employees about:
- hazards in the workplace
- hazards that may arise from the type of work that the employee is doing
- the steps to be taken to minimise the likelihood that the employee or any other person will be harmed by those hazards
- where to find safety clothing and equipment
- how to deal with any emergencies that arise.
Information must be provided in a way that is suitable for the employees - for example, by being in a variety of languages, and in easily understood language or form, eg, use of diagrams may help. It must also be readily available to employees, so they can access it whenever they need it.
To ensure that health and safety representatives can carry out their role effectively, the Act also requires employers to ensure that representatives have ready access to information about health and safety systems and issues in the place of work.