Safety Evaluation of Potential Contractors

UPDATE: NEW ”Health and safety in construction procurement – A handbook for the public sector” published by Worksafe Victoria AVAILABLE HERE

Purpose

This procedure aims to ensure that all services supplied to the organisation by contractors meet both external and internal health, safety and environmental standards.

Definitions

Services include any service which is provided by individuals who are not direct employees of the organisation such as cleaners, gardeners, maintenance, electrical work, building etc.

Procedure

1.         When it is proposed to use contractors to provide services to the organisation, the Contract Manager must determine the health and safety requirements that are to be incorporated into the works.  Consultation with end users, internal consultative structures and those with specialist expertise may be required to help define these requirements for each contract.

2.         If tenders are called the potential contractors will be required to submit details of their health and safety management system with their tender.

3.         As part of the selection process, the Contract Manager shall complete a review of the potential contractors’ health and safety management system (See OHS-014/1 attached) to ensure that they are capable of performing the work safely and meeting the requirements specified.

4.         Any site specific health and safety requirements are to be determined when the formal contract is being prepared and attached to the contract documents.  (See OHS-014/2 attached)

5.         Regular checks are to be conducted to confirm that the contractor is conforming with the health and safety requirements of the contract.

6.         The Contract Manager may develop a list of approved/preferred contractors to call upon at short notice for minor contract works, without the need to conduct a separate evaluation of their health and safety management system for each new contract.  Contractors on the approved/preferred list shall be subject to periodic reviews of their health and safety systems and actual performance.

Responsibility (Note: A person/job title should be allocated overall responsibility for the implementation of this procedure)

Procedure Owner

Note: An individual or position should be assigned ownership to ensure the procedure is maintained and updated.

Form OHS-014/1

This document has been adapted from “Managing Contractor Health and Safety Risks.  Guidelines for Local Government” published by the Victorian WorkCover Authority in 1997.  DOWNLOAD DOCUMENT HERE It can be used to help evaluate the status of a potential contractor’s health and safety system prior to engaging them to perform work on behalf of your organisation.

The contents can be modified to include items that are required for a specific contract, especially those involving major works.  Organisations that use a preferred or approved contractor list for minor works may also use this document as part of their contractor evaluation.  It may be necessary to accommodate the informal management systems that are used by some smaller contractors.

The contractor should be asked to show evidence that systems exist in order to verify their status.

Occupational Health and Safety : SITE SAFETY REQUIREMENTS & CONTRACTOR    PERFORMANCE REVIEW   OHS-014/2

Project or Job Number:                                                      Date of Report:

Project Description:

Target Completion Date of Project:

Contractor:

Contractor’s Representative:                                              Signature:

Principal’s Representative:                                                 Signature:

This document can be used to confirm that the health and safety requirements for each contract have been defined and that the outcomes correspond to the agreement between the parties.  All items are to be completed by the Contractor and verified by the Principal’s Representative.  Items are to be marked N/A if Not Applicable.  The frequency of these reports will depend on the duration of the project and the terms of the contract.

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