What are individual OH&S responsibilities?

Health and safety is the joint responsibility of management and workers. Management is accountable for non-compliance to health and safety legislation. All health and safety activities are based on specific individual responsibilities, most of which can be found in the pertinent legislation. However, often these duties are not well known. This situation can be improved by including details of specific individual responsibilities in the safety program.
Responsibility may be defined as an individual's obligation to carry out assigned duties. Authority implies the right to make decisions and the power to direct others. Responsibility and authority can be delegated to subordinates, giving them the right to act for superiors. It is important to note that, while some responsibilities can be delegated, the superior remains accountable for seeing that they are carried out.
Individual responsibilities apply to every employee in the workplace, including the Chief Executive Officer. When a safety coordinator has been appointed, it is best to spell out his/her responsibilities as well. All employees will then know exactly what is expected of each individual in health and safety terms.
To fulfil their individual responsibilities, the people must:

• know what these responsibilities are (communication required)
• have sufficient authority to carry them out (organizational issue)
• have the required ability and competence (training or certification required)

Once all these criteria have been met, safety performance can be assessed by each individual's supervisor on an equal basis with other key job elements. Health and safety is not just an extra part of an employee's job: it is an integral, full-time component of each individual's responsibilities.