What Is ISO 45001?
ISO 45001 is an international management system standard for organisations to systematically manage occupational health and safety (OH&S) risks, create safer working conditions for workers and other relevant persons, and continually improve occupational health and safety performance.
ISO 45001:2018 was published by ISO in March 2018 and is the current basic standard. According to ISO's official records, the standard was reviewed again in 2024 and the current edition was confirmed. In addition, the amendment entitled ISO 45001:2018/Amd 1:2024 – Climate Action Changes has been added to the standard.
ISO 45001 is based on the organisation identifying its occupational health and safety risks, establishing the processes needed to control those risks, supporting worker participation, tracking legal and other applicable requirements and continually improving the performance of the system.
Purpose of the ISO 45001 Occupational Health and Safety Management System
The basic purpose of ISO 45001 is to create a systematic management approach to preventing occupational accidents and work-related injury and ill health within the organisation.
In this context, the organisation:
- Identifies OH&S hazards and risks,
- Establishes methods for assessing and controlling risks,
- Sets occupational health and safety objectives,
- Tracks legal and other applicable requirements,
- Supports worker participation in OH&S processes,
- Establishes emergency preparedness and response processes,
- Monitors and evaluates OH&S performance,
- Analyses nonconformities and incidents,
- Carries out corrective actions,
- Continually improves the occupational health and safety management system.
ISO 45001 is designed so that it can be applied together with the organisation's existing management system structure. For this reason, it can be integrated with other ISO management system standards such as ISO 9001 and ISO 14001.
Benefits of the ISO 45001 Certificate
Depending on the organisation's field of activity, number of employees and risk structure, the ISO 45001 Occupational Health and Safety Management System can contribute to:
- Systematic management of occupational health and safety risks,
- Proactive assessment of hazards and risks,
- Developing work to prevent occupational accidents and work-related health risks,
- Strengthening worker participation in OH&S processes,
- Measuring and monitoring OH&S performance,
- Tracking legal and other applicable requirements,
- Improving the level of emergency preparedness,
- Making OH&S-related processes more orderly and measurable,
- Supporting corporate risk management,
- Increasing corporate trust among customers, workers and other interested parties
Implementing ISO 45001 helps the organisation create a systematic management approach to occupational health and safety. However, holding an ISO 45001 certificate does not by itself mean that all occupational accidents or OH&S risks have been eliminated; the purpose of the standard is to manage risks systematically and to continually improve performance.
ISO 45001 and Risk Management
One of the important elements of ISO 45001 is identifying hazards and managing occupational health and safety risks.
Depending on the organisation's activities, the following approach can be applied:
Hazard Identification → Risk Assessment → Control Measures → Implementation → Monitoring → Performance Evaluation → Continual Improvement
With this structure, the aim is to transform OH&S work from an activity in which action is taken only after an accident has occurred into a systematic structure based on identifying and controlling risks in advance.
For Which Companies Is ISO 45001 Suitable?
ISO 45001 can be applied in organisations of different sectors and sizes.
In particular, it can be used to make occupational health and safety management systematic for:
- Machinery and metal industry,
- Automotive and supplier industry,
- Construction and contracting companies,
- Food and textile businesses,
- Chemical and plastics industry,
- Energy and production facilities,
- Logistics and warehousing businesses,
- Mining and heavy industry,
- Electrical and electronics sector,
- Technical service and maintenance organisations,
- Engineering and project companies,
- Public and private sector organisations
The scope of ISO 45001 is determined by taking into account the organisation's activities, working environments, processes and the relevant conditions it controls or can influence.
ISO 45001 Certification Process
The ISO 45001 certification process starts with an assessment of the organisation's activities and existing OH&S practices.
In general, the process can be planned as follows:
- Determining the organisation and the certification scope
- Assessing existing OH&S practices
- Identifying hazards and risks
- Establishing the OH&S policy and objectives
- Assessing legal and other applicable requirements
- Creating the OH&S management system documentation
- Carrying out worker participation and awareness activities
- Establishing operational controls
- Assessing emergency preparedness
- Carrying out the internal audit and management review
- Conducting the certification audit
- Certification following the conformity assessment
- Maintaining and continually improving the system
Organisations implementing the ISO 45001 standard are not additionally required to obtain certification; organisations can implement the standard to improve their own management systems or obtain certification services from an independent certification body.
ISO 45001:2018/Amd 1:2024 and Climate Change
The Amd 1:2024 amendment was added to the ISO 45001:2018 standard in February 2024. This amendment is part of the updates to ISO management system standards requiring organisations to assess whether climate change is a relevant issue for their own management system.
For this reason, the requirements of ISO 45001:2018 and Amd 1:2024 must be taken into account when establishing a new ISO 45001 system or reviewing an existing one.
ISO is also working on a new ISO/DIS 45001 edition. However, this new edition is not yet a published final international standard.
ISO 45001 Certification and Consultancy Service
At Istanbul Certificate Office, we assess organisations' ISO 45001 Occupational Health and Safety Management System needs in line with their field of activity, workforce structure, working environments and risk profile.
As part of the work, support can be provided on:
- Assessment of ISO 45001 requirements,
- Analysis of the existing OH&S system,
- OH&S management system documentation,
- Structuring risk and process management work,
- Integration with ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 systems,
- Internal audit preparations,
- Management review preparations,
- Preparation for the certification audit,
- Process coordination with the certification body
To Obtain an ISO 45001 Certification Quotation
To receive a quotation and preliminary assessment for the ISO 45001 Occupational Health and Safety Management System for your company, you can share with us:
- Your company's field of activity,
- Your number of employees,
- The nature of your workplace/facility,
- Your certification scope,
- Your existing ISO certificates,
- Any customer, tender or supplier requirements
By assessing your company's existing structure, we can draw up an appropriate work plan for ISO 45001 system set-up, certification and audit preparation.
