You have a health and safety platform, but should you have an HR system, too?
To oversee health and safety in the workplace, many businesses use digital software to help identify and manage risks, report incidents, and track compliance with occupational health and safety (OHS) laws.
Health and safety systems typically have a tight focus on providing the features that help businesses keep their workforce (and other stakeholders) safe and healthy.
Human resources (HR) platforms are broader in their focus, providing tools to handle key employment documentation and processes over the course of an employee’s tenure, from recruitment and onboarding to performance management, payroll, and tracking leave and sick days.
For many small businesses, HR software can be seen as a “nice to have” whereas an OHS platform is essential. The truth is that the combination of both provides a full suite of tools to manage operational safety and people procedures, synchronizing employee data, automating document acceptance, and improving reporting and the tracking of training and development tasks.
This post breaks down the key elements of health and safety and HR software, how they differ and how they complement each other.
What is included under the health and safety umbrella?
Managing occupational health and safety is a key part of running a business. Not only are employers legally responsible for promoting safe and healthy workplaces and preventing accidents, no company can afford to have people getting injured or developing illness because of the work environment.
Occupational health and safety typically covers the policies, procedures, and practical actions required to protect workers and others (e.g. customers, visitors) from physical and mental harm at any site where work is carried out. It involves identifying and mitigating risks, maintaining safe equipment, training workers, and ensuring the overall welfare of staff and the public.
What is covered under the HR umbrella?
HR covers the management of employees over the course of the employment lifecycle, from the day a worker applies for a job until the day they leave the organization, managing their employment records and pay, resolving conflicts, and ensuring the business complies with employment laws.
Some of the key HR processes are:
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Hiring and onboarding - finding and selecting new hires, welcoming them to the team, and setting up training.
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Pay and benefits - setting fair remuneration structures, processing wages, managing pension plans, workers' compensation, employment insurance, and other entitlements.
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Leave management - tracking leave entitlements and balances, approving leave requests.
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Performance and development - role design, running performance reviews, setting goals, providing training programs.
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Employee support and relations - conflict resolution, disciplinary procedures, building employee engagement and company culture.
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Compliance - adhering to national employment and safety laws, maintaining company policies, keeping records, e.g. pay and employment history.
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Offboarding - managing resignations, terminations, and exit interviews.
Where HR and health and safety overlap
There are significant overlaps between OHS and HR functions, especially in managing worker wellbeing, meeting legal obligations, and overseeing workplace culture.
Key areas of overlap are:
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Policy and procedure - HR is often involved with drafting OHS policy (with input from employees and health and safety representatives), and ensuring staff have read, understood, and accepted the policy.
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Managing mental health and psychosocial risks - combining hazard reduction and wellbeing programs, e.g. Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) to help address workplace stress, burnout, bullying and harassment etc.
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Onboarding and training - instilling safety protocols, training, and safe work expectations from the beginning of a worker’s employment.
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Injury and return-to-work management - managing leave when an employee is injured or ill, making workplace adjustments, and managing a smooth transition back to work.
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Workplace culture - shaping leadership responsibility, reporting incidents and near misses, and taking proper disciplinary action for OHS breaches.
How MyHR can help
MyHR works with Canadian businesses every day and our powerful platform and integrated advisory services ensure each and every workplace is set up to effectively manage health and safety and HR.
Using the MyHR platform streamlines management of all employment documentation and OHS policies from a single, powerful system with centralized employee dashboards and accurate, real-time reporting. All staff training and document acceptance can be easily tracked, with built-in reminders and alerts for workers so you can be sure your team has the right instruction when they need it. With employee notes you can build a precise picture of safety adherence, performance, and conduct.
When does health and safety become an HR issue?
Health and safety typically becomes an HR issue as soon as an incident or hazard involves managing people and their conduct or there are legal implications. While workplace safety measures typically sit with health and safety representatives, HR involvement is required when safety rules guide or regulate employee actions, performance, or overall company culture.
A good example is when company OHS policy sets the rules around drug or alcohol impairment on the job or the use of protective equipment, while enforcing the rules or taking disciplinary action for any breach usually involves HR staff.
Another example is when workplace bullying or harassment is alleged and needs to be addressed (if left unresolved it could have an affect on employee morale and productivity, and could also trigger a legal complaint).
HR should also understand all new and existing legislation that covers employees and ensure the company has measures in place to meet its legal obligations.
How MyHR can help
MyHR ensures your company’s OHS policy and processes meet all requirements under local OHS regulations and that your employees are a key part of your OHS program. If issues arise, our experienced team of HR advisors is on-call to guide you through tricky conversations or disciplinary action, with personalized supporting scripts and documents delivered through the platform.
When OHS or employment laws change, MyHR automatically delivers updates to your business’s policies and documentation.
Why businesses choose to use an OHS and HR platform
Like any digital service, health and safety and HR platforms can save businesses time on administrative tasks, improve oversight and compliance with local employment and OHS laws, and increase employee engagement.
Key benefits for businesses include:
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Reduced admin - digital forms replace paper files; employee records are securely stored in one place so data only needs to be entered once.
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Time savings - automation handles routine tasks like employee onboarding, leave requests, and incident reports.
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Improved safety - mobile apps allow accurate reporting of hazards in real-time and speed up response times.
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Easy tracking: Managers can easily check employee training records, document acceptance, working hours, and sick leave balances.
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Reduced legal risks - up-to-date records and policies help companies demonstrate they comply with legal requirements.
How MyHR supports health and safety compliance for Canadian businesses
MyHR is the complete HR system for Canadian employers, with built-in features and human expertise to ensure the safety and wellbeing of every worker:
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Risk registration and incident tracking made easy with Notes.
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Expert advisory services to ensure comprehensive H&S policy creation.
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Automated health and safety onboarding for every new hire.
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Deliver OHS documentation directly to employees and track acknowledgement and acceptance.
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Health and safety performance tracking and improvements via the digital performance review feature.
