Five key elements of an effective COVID-19 Risk Assessment

As your employees, customers and vendors return to the workplace, it is crucial that a safe environment is created to protect the wellbeing of your people, the productivity of the workforce and ultimately the reputation of your organisation.

The exposure of COVID-19 to staff, customers and others that may be on your premises is now a foreseeable risk that needs to be assessed and managed appropriately in the context of the organisation’s operating environment, and in accordance with relevant state legislative requirements for Australian organisations.

Further, the nature of the workplace looks very different today than it did six months ago. Flexible working arrangements have extended the traditional workspace beyond the confines of an organisation’s premises to now becoming a hybrid of the office/workplace, home and public spaces.

It is therefore timely for organisations to conduct COVID-19 risk assessments to ascertain the level and scope of risk pertinent to their unique situation, and also to meet their regulatory obligations.

The assessment involves identifying where there are risks of people (first and third party) being infected with COVID-19, what could happen if someone is exposed, and the likelihood of it happening. A COVID-19 risk assessment will help an organisation determine:

• Where the potential vulnerabilities are in the workplace and which workers or visitors are at risk of exposure,
• What sources and processes are causing the risk,
• The effectiveness of current control measures,
• What action should be taken to control the risk, and 
• How urgently the action needs to be taken.

The Marsh COVID-19 risk assessment includes the following five key elements:

1. Review of the current policies, processes and risk controls
2. Interview with key stakeholders
3. Workplace inspection
4. Review and application of state and national legislation requirements for COVID-19
5. Creation of a COVID-19 risk register

An initial report will be produced detailing our findings from the risk assessment and recommendations. The report will be presented to the organisation, and then updated with any amendment/clarifications following review from the business. A final report will then be issued.

In addition to conducting the COVID-19 risk assessment, we can also work with the business to train staff and develop/oversee implementation plans to assist with the adoption of any recommendations throughout all levels of the organisation.

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NEED HELP NOW? If you would like a tailored COVID-19 risk assessment for your organisation, please contact us here and one of our consultants will be in touch shortly.

LEARN MORE: If you would like to learn more about other considerations and immediate actions to take as you prepare, implement and manage a return to on-site work, download a copy of our free guide: Practical Guide to Returning People to the Workplace Safely (AU Edition) .

_{The information contained in this publication provides only a general overview of subjects covered, is not intended to be taken as advice regarding any individual situation and should not be relied upon as such. Statements concerning legal matters should be understood to be general observations based solely on our experience as insurance brokers and risk consultants and should not be relied upon as legal advice, which we are not authorised to provide. All such matters should be reviewed with your own qualified legal advisors.}

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