Most workplaces do not effectively use their Health and Safety meeting minutes. The following are suggestions for what to do with your minutes.
- File them with your Health and Safety Management system.
- Place a copy of your meeting minutes on your bulletin board. You may even ask staff to sign and date that they have read and reviewed it, particularly those who were not present.
- If you have illiterate or 'English as a second language' staff that were away, then ensure that the minutes are read or translated for them. Ask questions to ensure the staff member understands. (Be mindful of your staff. This may need to be done separately to avoid embarrassment).
- Any corrective actions that arise from the meeting should also be signed off once implemented.
Health and Safety meetings are not meant to be hard or overly complicated. It should be a systematic approach to the management of your health and safety systems. Meetings and their associated records are the simplest and easiest way to begin your Health and Safety system. The flow on affect of Health and Safety meetings are employee participation, increased job satisfaction, record keeping, implementation of corrective actions, hazard identification and controls - it couldn't be simpler.