What is a risk assessment?
Risk assessment is a systematic process of evaluating potential risks or hazards associated with a particular situation, activity, or environment. Its primary goal is to identify, analyze, and prioritize risks in order to make informed decisions about how to mitigate or manage them effectively. Risk assessments are crucial in various fields, including workplace safety, environmental protection, financial planning, and more.
Risk assessment is a term used to describe the overall process or method where you:
- Identify hazards and risk factors that have the potential to cause harm (hazard identification).
- Analyze and evaluate the risk associated with that hazard (risk analysis, and risk evaluation).
- Determine appropriate ways to eliminate the hazard, or control the risk when the hazard cannot be eliminated (risk control).
A risk assessment is a thorough look at your workplace to identify those things, situations, processes, etc. that may cause harm, particularly to people. After identification is made, you analyze and evaluate how likely and severe the risk is. When this determination is made, you can next, decide what measures should be in place to effectively eliminate or control the harm from happening.
The CSA Standard Z1002 “Occupational health and safety – Hazard identification and elimination and risk assessment and control” uses the following terms:
Risk assessment
The overall process of hazard identification, risk analysis, and risk evaluation.
Hazard identification
The process of finding, listing, and characterizing hazards.
Risk analysis
A process for comprehending the nature of hazards and determining the level of risk.
Notes:
- Risk analysis provides a basis for risk evaluation and decisions about risk control.
- Information can include current and historical data, theoretical analysis, informed opinions, and the concerns of stakeholders.
- Risk analysis includes risk estimation.
Risk evaluation
Risk control
Why is a Risk Assessment Important
Top 5 Reasons Why Risk Assessments Are Important
It’s the law!
Plain and simple, if you are not conducting risk assessments at work, you are breaking the law. Ensuring that “suitable and sufficient” risk assessments are conducted is a mandatory requirement under the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations (MHSWR) 1999. If your business has five or more employees, you are also legally required to keep a detailed record of all risk assessments conducted at work.
In addition to that, industry-specific legislation dictates that your risk assessment should cover specific risks related to the nature of your work. For example, if your work involves handling hazardous substances, you need to comply with the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) regulations and if your workers are exposed to vibrations you have to take into account The Control of Vibration at Work Regulations. This is also applicable to the corporate environment where the Display Screen Equipment (DSE) Regulations apply.
Risk assessments ensure that no one gets hurt at work
The reason why risk assessments are considered important enough to be so rigorously required by the law is that they are designed to keep people safe. Every workplace has its risks. Sometimes, those risks are more obvious than others. For example, if you work at heights there’s the danger of falling, if you work with heavy machinery, there’s the danger of harm due to a machine failure and if your work involves lifting heavy loads, you could develop serious back issues. In other environments, the risks are less visible. Take office work, for example. Sitting in front of a computer all day long may not seem that dangerous but it can cause a number of health problems including eyesight deterioration, migraines, chronic fatigue, as well as back pain. Dangers can be hidden in the smallest things, such as tripping on loose cables or burning your skin as you reach over a boiling kettle placed under the paper towel dispenser.Either way, it’s the primary role of the risk assessment to uncover all of these potential risks. Once you are aware of them and who could get hurt, you can take action to remove or minimise the hazards and protect the health and wellbeing of your employees, as well as anyone else who enters your workplace.
Risk assessments can prevent fatal accidents
In high-risk work environments, being unaware of the potential hazards people are exposed to can have fatal consequences. In 2020 -2021, 142 employees and 60 members of the public in Great Britain died in workplace accidents, with the top causes being attributed to a fall from a height, being struck by a moving vehicle or being struck by a moving object. It’s impossible to say how many of these deaths could have been prevented if risks had been managed differently.
At the end of the day, occupational health and safety is about much more than just compliance. Facing a deadly accident at work is an extremely traumatic event. This is why it’s important to assess health and safety risks in the workplace – it gives you peace of mind knowing that you have done everything in your power to prevent tragedies from happening.
You can protect yourself from legal liability
You can improve the health and safety culture at work
Providing adequate health and safety training is a fundamental part of any successful risk management strategy. How can risk assessments help with that? Well, they are a great source of learning material. Health and safety training are often generic which can make them inefficient. Also, if the material covered isn’t particularly relevant to the audience, the employees in attendance could feel disinterested which could then impact the results of the training. Using the learnings gained from a risk assessment at work can help you build a health and safety training plan that targets specific problems faced by your employees on a daily basis. This can not only increase engagement in the training process but also its perceived value by the attendees, which could then contribute to building a positive safety culture in the workplace.
Steps in Conducting a Risk Assessment
Identify Hazards
The first step is to identify potential hazards in the workplace. This involves a thorough inspection of the environment, processes, equipment, and materials used.
Assess Risks
Once hazards are identified, the next step is to assess the risks associated with each hazard. This involves evaluating the likelihood of an incident occurring and the potential severity of the consequences.
Implement Controls
After assessing risks, measures must be taken to control or mitigate them. This may include modifying processes, providing personal protective equipment (PPE), or implementing safety procedures.
Monitor and Review
Risk assessments are not a one-time process. They should be regularly reviewed and updated as conditions change or new hazards emerge.
Communication
It is essential to communicate the results of the risk assessment to all relevant parties, including employees, contractors, and visitors. Clear communication ensures that everyone is aware of the risks and the controls in place.
Example of Risk Assessment
| Task | Hazard | Risk | Priority | Control |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delivering product to customers | Drivers work alone | May be unable to call for help if needed | ||
| Drivers have to occasionally work long hours | Fatigue, short rest time between shifts | |||
| Drivers are often in very congested traffic | Increased chance of collision | |||
| Drivers have to lift boxes when delivering product | Injury to back from lifting, reaching, carrying, etc. |
Knowledge Base
- What is OSHA Compliance
- How to Become Compliant
- Understanding Complaints Against You
- Why is a Risk Assessment Important
- Why are Policies & Procedures Important
- What is Joint Responsibility
- Common Violations