Introduction
Occupational Health and Safety (OH&S) Management Systems play a vital role in protecting employees, reducing workplace incidents, ensuring legal compliance, and enhancing organizational performance. Internal auditing is a key element of ISO 45001:2018, enabling organizations to evaluate the effectiveness of their Occupational Health and Safety Management System (OHSMS), identify improvement opportunities, and maintain compliance with regulatory and organizational requirements.
This comprehensive training course provides participants with the knowledge and practical skills required to plan, conduct, report, and follow up on internal audits of Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems in accordance with ISO 45001:2018 and ISO 19011 auditing guidelines. Participants will learn how to assess conformity, identify nonconformities, evaluate workplace controls, and contribute to continual improvement initiatives.
Through practical exercises, audit simulations, workshops, and case studies, participants will develop the competence required to perform effective internal audits and support a proactive health and safety culture within their organizations.
Course Objectives
By the end of this course, participants will be able to:
- Understand the principles and requirements of ISO 45001:2018.
- Interpret the clauses of an Occupational Health and Safety Management System.
- Apply auditing principles based on ISO 19011.
- Plan and manage internal audit programs.
- Conduct effective Occupational Health and Safety audits.
- Evaluate workplace hazards, risks, and controls.
- Gather and assess objective audit evidence.
- Identify conformity and nonconformity against ISO 45001 requirements.
- Prepare professional audit reports and corrective action plans.
- Verify compliance with legal and regulatory requirements.
- Support continual improvement of Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems.
- Contribute to organizational certification readiness.
Course Outline
Day 1: Introduction to ISO 45001 and Internal Auditing Principles
- Overview of Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems.
- Structure and requirements of ISO 45001:2018.
- Occupational Health and Safety principles and objectives.
- Organizational context and interested parties.
- Leadership commitment and worker participation.
- Introduction to ISO 19011 auditing guidelines.
- Principles and ethics of auditing.
- Roles and responsibilities of internal auditors.
- Auditor competence and professional conduct.
- Workshop on understanding ISO 45001 requirements.
Day 2: Audit Planning and Preparation
- Establishing audit objectives, scope, and criteria.
- Developing internal audit programs and schedules.
- Reviewing OHSMS documentation and records.
- Understanding workplace hazards and operational risks.
- Risk-based audit planning methodologies.
- Preparing audit checklists and working papers.
- Organizing audit teams and audit resources.
- Communicating with auditees and management.
- Preparing for opening meetings.
- Practical exercise on audit planning and preparation.
Day 3: Conducting the Internal Audit
- Conducting effective audit interviews.
- Observation techniques and workplace inspections.
- Reviewing safety records and documented information.
- Collecting objective audit evidence.
- Evaluating operational controls and risk management measures.
- Assessing legal and regulatory compliance.
- Reviewing incident reporting and investigation processes.
- Identifying audit findings and observations.
- Recording audit evidence and conclusions.
- Case study on conducting an OH&S internal audit.
Day 4: Reporting Audit Findings and Corrective Actions
- Classifying audit findings and nonconformities.
- Major and minor nonconformities.
- Root cause analysis techniques.
- Evaluating corrective and preventive actions.
- Preparing professional audit reports.
- Conducting closing meetings.
- Communicating audit results to management.
- Monitoring corrective action implementation.
- Verifying effectiveness of corrective actions.
- Workshop on audit reporting and follow-up activities.
Day 5: Continual Improvement and Certification Readiness
- Using audit results to support continual improvement.
- Management review and performance evaluation.
- Measuring Occupational Health and Safety Management System effectiveness.
- Monitoring health and safety performance indicators.
- Preparing for external audits and certification assessments.
- Understanding certification audit stages.
- Best practices in Occupational Health and Safety auditing.
- Integrating OH&S audits with other management systems.
- Building a culture of safety and compliance.
- Comprehensive audit simulation and final assessment.
Why Attend this Course
- Gain practical skills to perform ISO 45001 internal audits.
- Improve understanding of Occupational Health and Safety Management System requirements.
- Strengthen auditing, interviewing, and reporting capabilities.
- Enhance workplace safety and risk management practices.
- Support continual improvement initiatives.
- Improve organizational readiness for certification audits.
- Contribute to stronger health and safety governance.
- Develop professional competence as an OH&S Internal Auditor.
- Learn through practical exercises and real-world case studies.
- Support organizational safety and compliance objectives.
Conclusion
Internal auditing is a critical component of an effective Occupational Health and Safety Management System. It helps organizations evaluate compliance, identify improvement opportunities, strengthen workplace controls, and enhance safety performance.
This course equips participants with the practical knowledge and auditing skills necessary to conduct internal audits in accordance with ISO 45001:2018 and ISO 19011. Through hands-on exercises and real-world applications, participants will be prepared to support continual improvement, regulatory compliance, and successful certification outcomes.
