Useful Terms

Approved Code of Practice

BEI (Biological Exposure Indices) are guidance values for assessing biological monitoring results. Biological monitoring measures the concentration of a substance – or its breakdown products – in blood or urine or even exhaled air and the monitoring result is compared to the BEI established for the specific substance.

Best Practice Guidelines have been prepared in association with industry representatives involved in the subject matter. The purpose of these guidelines is to provide practical guidance to employers, contractors, employees and all others engaged in this work on how they can meet their obligations under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 and its associated Regulations. Accordingly, adherence to these Best Practice Guidelines is recommended.

Where multiple PCBUs share a duty in relation to the same matter, they must work with other PCBU’s that have the same duty. This process is to establish which PCBU will be responsible for which duty.

A person who has a duty under HSWA. There are four types of duty holders – PCBUs, officers, workers and other persons at workplaces.

The Duty Holder Review process is designed to enable you to improve your health and safety systems and for the regulator to gain a degree of assurance that systems associated with the incident have been improved. It is an expectation that you will review (investigate) an incident at your workplace as it allows you to examine what caused the incident and to identify and address the causes that contributed to that incident. It doesn’t aim to apportion blame for incidents, but rather for you to improve workplace safety.

To remove the sources of harm (eg equipment, substances or work processes). Remove the hazard.

As New Zealand’s work health and safety regulator, WorkSafes role is to engage, educate and enforce.

Environmental Protection Authority. The government agency responsible for regulating activities that affect New Zealand’s environment. Key industry areas include hazardous substances, new organisms, the Emissions Trading Scheme, Resource Management proposals and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) marine activities.

A formal investigation carried out after a notifiable event or other circumstances as appropriate by trained personnel or other specialist.

General Risk and Workplace Management. Which refers to The Health and Safety at Work General Risk and Workplace Management Regulations 2016.

Anything that can cause harm or illness (for example, equipment, substances or work processes).

Any product or chemical that has explosive, flammable, oxidising, toxic, corrosive or ecotoxic properties: explosive: explodes or causes explosion.

• flammable: ignites easily and burns rapidly.
• oxidising: could be gaseous, solid or liquid and can cause or intensify fire and explosion.
• toxic: can harm people if it enters the body through contact, being inhaled or ingested. The effects can range from mild to life threatening, and can be immediate or long term.
• corrosive: can cause severe skin burns and eye damage.
• ecotoxic: is toxic to the environment.

An inventory is a list of hazardous substances (including hazardous waste) that are used, handled, manufactured, or stored at any workplace. If your business has multiple sites, you must have an inventory for each. For each hazardous substance your inventory must include:

• the substance’s name and UN number (if available)
• the maximum amount likely to be at the workplace
•  its location
• any specific storage and segregation requirements
• a current safety data sheet or a condensed version of the key information from the safety data sheet
• any hazardous waste

Health monitoring is a way to check if the health of workers is being harmed from exposure to substances hazardous to health while carrying out work and aims to detect early signs of ill-health or disease. Health monitoring is not:

• wellbeing checks (eg cholesterol checks) or programmes (eg promoting healthy living)
• fitness to work examinations.
•  Drug testing

The hierarchy of control is a system for controlling risks in the workplace. The hierarchy of control is a step-by-step approach to eliminating or reducing risks and it ranks risk controls from the highest level of protection and reliability through to the lowest and least reliable protection.

A Health and Safety committee (HSC) supports the ongoing improvement of health and safety at work. An HSC enables PCBU representatives, workers and other HSC members to meet regularly and work co-operatively to ensure workers’ health and safety.

Health and safety representatives (HSRs) are workers elected by members of their work group to represent them in health and safety matters.

Health and Safety at Work Act – The key work health and safety law in New Zealand. All work and workplaces are covered by HSWA unless specifically excluded.

Any event or occurrence resulting in, or having a potential for injury, ill-health, damage or other loss

Any injury occurring in the course of work-related activities.

An inventory is a list of hazardous substances (including hazardous waste) that are used, handled, manufactured or stored at any workplace that you, as a person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU), manage or control. It will help you understand the substances you have on site, work out the requirements you must comply with and plan your emergency procedures. Businesses are required to have an inventory of all their hazardous substances. It’s important to know what hazardous substances you have in order to safely manage their risks to your workers and others who may be exposed to hazardous substances in your workplace.

A process of gathering information about an incident to find out why it happened and how to stop it from happening again.

International Organisation of Standardisation. It is an international standard development organization composed of representatives from the national standards organizations of member countries. ISO standards are developed here, for example ISO 45001, which is the ISO standard for occupational health and safety management systems.

Job Safety Analysis; Step-by-step descriptions of how to do a task, job or activity safely.

Mobile Elevated Work Platform. The complete machine including the platform, lifting mechanism, attachments, chassis or vehicle as applicable. Work platforms where the height of the platform can be adjusted by powered scissor mechanisms, telescoping boom or tower, articulation, or any combination of these. They can be vehicle-mounted, self-propelled, towed or moved by hand and used to access work above or below ground level.

To take steps that protect the health and safety of people by reducing the likelihood of an event occurring, reducing the level of harm to people if it does occur, or both. 

An incident which did not result in injury, illness, damage or other loss, but potentially could have.

An observed safe (positive) or unsafe (hazardous) act or condition.

An officer is a person who has the ability to significantly influence the management of a PCBU. Officers must exercise due diligence to ensure the PCBU meets its health and safety obligations.

Provides information on ‘how WorkSafe decides’ – gives detail to support regulatory function policies.

Person conducting a business or undertaking. In most cases a PCBU will be a business entity, such as a company. However, an individual carrying out business as a sole trader or self-employed person is also a PCBU. A PCBU does not include workers or officers of a PCBU, volunteer associations with no employees, or home occupiers that employ or engage a tradesperson to carry out residential work.

Authorisation to carry out high risk work. Involves a permit issuer and a permit receiver. It sets out the additional controls that must be in place for certain high risk work to occur. It also includes the timeframe that the permit is valid for. Permit issuers and permit receivers should be trained and competent.

Personal protective equipment. Anything used or worn by a person (including clothing) to reduce risks to the person’s health and safety. PCBUs have a duty to provide PPE, and also related duties covering selecting, using/wearing, maintaining, repairing and replacing PPE (see Hierarchy of Controls).