The lines of communication within an organisation need to be open and effective so that health and safety messages can be given efficiently and accurately.
What you can do
Use a range of formal and informal ways of communicating to ensure that health and safety activities are well understood.
You can:
- include injury prevention issues in regular communications at all levels of the organisation – eg meetings, newsletters and emails
- ensure that there is consultation with workers about injury prevention matters.
How to do it
Choose appropriate communication channels to make sure health and safety initiatives are coordinated and well understood. The channels may be:
- formal – audits, workplace inspections, health and safety committee meetings, training, incident investigations and reports, or hazard registers
- informal – tool box meetings, a suggestion box, verbal reports, day-to-day interactions, and leading by example.
What actions to include
The right approach will help ‘sell’ health and safety strategies, and bridge gaps in knowledge. Necessary actions include:
- consulting with workers, management, and contractors
- listening to the issues when health and safety issues are raised
- giving information through talks, publications, training sessions, or as immediate feedback
- facilitating group learning
- mediating to reach solutions.
Good communication within a workplace supports people in healthy and safe practices and is integral to the ACC WorkSafe cycle.
Last updated: 20April2009