Occupational Health and Safety, Physical Working Conditions & Protection against Hazardous Materials

Business Case

Brand reputation

Major safety incidents in supply chains trigger NGO campaigns, media scrutiny, trade union action and consumer backlash that erode brand value and sales.

Legal and regulatory compliance

Strong OHS requirements reduce legal exposure and ensure alignment with national and international safety standards, helping avoid criminal charges and civil claims that companies may face if workers are hurt or killed in their supply chains.

Operational continuity

Companies with strong OHS requirements across their supplier base maintain more reliable and continuous supply: suppliers operate more efficiently, experience lower turnover and absenteeism and are better positioned to meet volume, quality and delivery expectations, as safety incidents including fires, explosions and building collapses destroy property, halt production and disrupt supply chains, resulting also in costs related to terminating supplier contracts and redirecting sourcing after safety incidents.

Productivity and quality

Strong occupational health and safety practices protect workers from injury, illness and death, which benefits buyers through more productive workforces, fewer production disruptions and reduced risk exposure across the supply chain.

Stronger supplier relationships

Investing in improved OHS conditions fosters stronger, longer‑term supplier relationships built on reliability and reduced operational risk.

Strategy & Planning

Assessment

Initial Action

Identify procurement categories, sourcing regions and supplier sites with elevated risk of occupational health and safety hazards, based on:

  • sectors with high injury and fatality rates
  • regions with weak OHS enforcement or inspection capacity
  • industries involving hazardous materials, dangerous machinery or physically demanding labour
Intermediate Progress

Conduct an annual OHS risk review with risk segmentation based on the following:

  • history of serious incidents, injuries or fatalities
  • types of hazards most prevalent and emerging in identified priority categories
Advanced Practice

Identify gaps in OHS monitoring across high-risk supplier portfolio and develop action plans to address unmonitored categories, regions or supplier groups, with multi‑year OHS risk forecasting, integrating regulatory changes.

Policy

Initial Action

Establish commitment to safe and healthy working environments in supply chains, requiring suppliers to comply with applicable OHS laws and standards, aligning with ILO Convention on Occupational Safety and Health and covering topics such as:

  • identification and assessment of workplace hazards
  • provision and maintenance of appropriate PPE at no cost to workers
  • fire safety and emergency preparedness
  • safe handling, storage, labeling and disposal of hazardous materials or chemicals
  • sanitary and safe working conditions
  • workplace injury and incident reporting, recording and investigation systems
  • OHS training for all workers appropriate to their roles and hazards
  • gender-based violence and harassment as per ILO C190
Intermediate Progress

Integrate OHS risk criteria into sourcing decisions for high-risk categories, requiring enhanced due diligence on health and safety as a condition of supplier approval or contract renewal.

For existing suppliers, while focusing on remediation before termination decisions are made, establish an OHS escalation protocol with:

  • trigger criteria (serious incidents, repeated findings, falsified records)
  • mandatory intensified monitoring
  • defined consequences
Advanced Practice

Set mandatory due‑diligence standards for strategic suppliers, including incident‑analysis root‑cause methodologies and worker‑voice inclusion in hazard identification and require strategic suppliers to implement their own OHS due diligence processes and to cascade health and safety requirements to their suppliers.

Targets

Initial Action

Set targets for percentage of suppliers with a stated OHS policy and hazard management.

Intermediate Progress

Set targets for percentage of high-risk suppliers assessed on OHS management practices.

Advanced Practice

Set targets for percentage of high-risk suppliers with verified OHS management systems in place.

Supplier Selection

Screening

Initial Action

Add OHS and physical safety questions to pre-qualification and RFP processes as relevant, such as:

  • OHS policy and management system
  • hazard identification and risk assessment processes
  • PPE provision and maintenance practices, including whether PPE is appropriate for the hazards of the job
  • sanitary and safe working conditions
  • visibility / accessibility of OHS information
  • fire safety and emergency preparedness
  • incident recording, reporting, investigation procedures and processes in case of workplace accidents
  • hazardous materials management (handling, storage, labeling, disposal)
  • history of serious incidents, fatalities or regulatory enforcement actions
Intermediate Progress

To apply for RFPs, request evidence such as:

  • documented hazard identification and risk assessment procedures
  • basic engineering controls (machine guarding, ventilation, chemical storage)
  • recent audit reports including OHS findings
  • incident and injury records, investigation reports and grievance data related to health and safety
  • fire safety inspection records, emergency drill logs and fire safety compliance (extinguishers, alarms, evacuation plans)
  • hazardous materials inventories, safety data documents and exposure monitoring records
Advanced Practice

To respond to RFPs, request documentation on:

  • OHS due diligence policy covering own supply chain
  • evidence of OHS monitoring at sub-tier level
  • OHS management system certification such as ISO 45001 or assessment of OHS system integrity

Selection

Initial Action

Select only suppliers confirming compliance with applicable OHS laws and demonstrating basic hazard management.

Intermediate Progress

Allocate points in selection criteria for suppliers demonstrating:

  • oHS management with documented hazard identification and controls
  • low and improving injury and incident rates
  • proper hazardous materials management with documented controls
  • iSO 45001 certification
Advanced Practice

Select suppliers demonstrating:

  • independently verified OHS management systems
  • sustained low injury and incident rates over time
  • cascaded OHS standards to sub-suppliers
  • evidence of worker‑voice validation (committee minutes, anonymous safety reports, survey results)
  • comprehensive engineering controls for high‑risk hazards

Contracts

Initial Action

Include clauses on:

  • compliance with OHS laws and applicable standards
  • requirement for suppliers to manage hazards and hazardous materials, provide PPE at no cost and address incidents
  • right to audit
Intermediate Progress

Include the following clauses:

  • enforceable corrective action requirements for OHS findings
  • notification in case of any serious incidents or fatalities
  • submission of a corrective‑action plan in case of repeated high‑risk issues
  • escalation protocol for red‑flag suppliers (multiple severe findings, fatality, unreported incidents), outlining intensified audits or commercial restrictions
Advanced Practice

Require cascading of OHS clauses to their own suppliers and include multi‑year improvement commitments tied to commercial outcomes (longer-term contracts, preferred status, volume incentives).

Supplier Engagement

Goal Setting

Initial Action

Work with suppliers to understand their current OHS practices and, where issues are identified, determine appropriate goals for improvement.

Intermediate Progress

Set goals with suppliers on specific strategies to address identified OHS issues, such as reducing injury rates, implementing systematic hazard identification, improving hazardous materials controls or addressing specific hazards identified through audits.

Advanced Practice

Set goals with Tier 1 suppliers on cascading OHS management programs to their own suppliers (Tier 2+) and establish multi-year targets for verified compliance across the extended supply chain.

Capacity Building

Initial Action

Sponsor basic training to suppliers on OHS legal requirements, hazard identification basics, sanitary working conditions, fire safety and emergency preparedness, safe handling of materials, safe use of machinery, heat stress, violence / harassment.

Intermediate Progress

Train suppliers on analyzing OHS data to identify patterns and root causes of incidents and developing OHS improvement roadmaps.

Advanced Practice

Provide detailed training on conducting OHS due diligence within their own supply chains and identifying health and safety risks at sub-supplier level.

Data

Initial Action

Request baseline data from suppliers on topics such as: injury and incident rates, types of hazards present, OHS management system existence, hazardous materials inventories and any history of serious incidents or regulatory actions.

Intermediate Progress

Support suppliers in developing structured OHS management systems to enable tracking of incidents, near misses, hazard reports and corrective actions.

Advanced Practice

Work with suppliers to develop integrated reporting systems that capture OHS data across their own supply chains.

Certifications

Initial Action

Support suppliers with obtaining OHS management system certification such as ISO 45001.

Intermediate Progress

Financially sponsor suppliers to pursue recognized OHS management system certification.

Advanced Practice

Require certification for strategic suppliers in high-risk categories and support Tier 2 suppliers in achieving certification.

Advisory

Initial Action

Provide guidance to suppliers on identifying the most critical hazards in their workplace and implementing systems to prevent issues.

Intermediate Progress

Consult and work with suppliers on how to assess OHS risks in their own supply chains, including screening their own suppliers.

Advanced Practice

Consult and work with suppliers in embedding OHS due diligence and supplier engagement into their own procurement practices, including developing their own supplier codes, screening processes and engagement programs.

Financial Support

Initial Action

Identify funds to support supplier access to OHS assessment tools and renovations to create safe and sanitary working conditions.

Intermediate Progress

Provide commercial incentives to suppliers for improvements in OHS performance, such as price, volume, duration and preferred supplier status.

Advanced Practice

Link commercial incentives (contract extensions, volume increases, pricing adjustments) to verified progress on eliminating OHS hazards and reducing incidents across the supplier's own supply chain.

Audits

Initial Action

Require suppliers to complete self-assessment questionnaires on OHS practices, covering the following topics:

  • hazard identification process and reports of existing hazards
  • incident reporting process and history of incidents
  • machine equipment and safety, PPE provision, first aid systems in place
  • fire safety, evacuation plans, emergency preparedness
  • hazardous materials management, including chemicals
  • sanitation, cleanliness, heat stress, lighting and ventilation
  • gender-differentiated hazard assessment in OHS audit protocols, covering reproductive health risks, sanitary facility adequacy for women and harassment and violence prevention systems as per ILO C190
Intermediate Progress

Include OHS checks in supplier audit programs (on-site checks or third party on-site assessments) as part of human rights due diligence, including verification on topics such as:

  • inadequate machine guarding, fall protection or electrical safety
  • unsafe building structures
  • no system for reporting, recording or investigating workplace injuries
  • failure to provide or maintain appropriate PPE
  • denial of access to first aid or medical treatment
  • lack of fire safety systems (alarms, extinguishers, emergency exits, evacuation plans)
  • unsafe handling, storage or disposal of hazardous materials, including exposure to hazardous chemicals without proper controls or safety documents
  • lack of access to clean drinking water, sanitation and hygiene facilities
  • inadequate ventilation, lighting, temperature control or noise management
  • grievance systems and procedures related to health and safety
  • in heat environments: lack of adequate fluids, adequate rest periods/breaks, no identification of heat illness symptoms
Advanced Practice

Work with strategic suppliers to conduct their own supplier audits on OHS and share audit findings.

Project Partnerships & Innovation

Initial Action

Launch pilot projects with suppliers to test practical tools and technologies that improve visibility into workplace safety, such as digital incident reporting platforms, wearable safety monitoring devices or mobile-based hazard identification tools that enable workers to flag risks.

Intermediate Progress

Co-invest with suppliers in implementing technologies and approaches that strengthen workplace safety, such as predictive analytics tools that identify safety risks before incidents occur.

Advanced Practice

Lead industry collaborations with suppliers, technology providers and sector peers to develop and scale solutions for improving workplace safety across shared supply chains, such as creation of standards or tools for workplace hazard monitoring.

Continuous Improvement

Metrics

Initial Action

Track:

  • percentage of suppliers assessed and/or trained on OHS practices
  • percentage of suppliers with OHS policies and hazard management systems
  • percentage of suppliers that implemented required corrective actions
Intermediate Progress

Track percentage of suppliers engaged in OHS supplier engagement programs.

Advanced Practice

Track percentage of suppliers cascading OHS policies and due diligence to their own supply chains.

Scorecards

Initial Action

Introduce basic OHS criteria into yearly supplier evaluation forms:

  • self-assessment on OHS management
  • checklist for existence of basic OHS programs (hazard identification, incident reporting, PPE provision, fire safety, hazardous materials management)
Intermediate Progress

Include OHS metrics in category business reviews and track progress on OHS improvement plans, using results to influence sourcing decisions and renewal discussions.

Advanced Practice

Weigh OHS performance in supplier scorecards, with top performers receiving preferential weighting in tenders with commercial incentives and bottom performers required to submit improvement plans.

Impact Verification

Initial Action

Gather feedback from suppliers on effectiveness of buyer's engagement programs.

Intermediate Progress

Assess whether supplier engagement initiatives are improving OHS outcomes, cross-checking supplier-reported outcomes with additional independent data source such as worker reported safety perception surveys, grievance channel data or third-party assessment.

Advanced Practice

Measure improvement in OHS outcomes attributable to engagement programs. For example, consider:

  • comparing injury and incident rates before and after interventions
  • tracking remediation outcomes and recurrence rates over time
  • monitoring hazardous materials compliance improvements
  • worker‑voice data (anonymous grievance channels, safety‑committee inputs) to validate outcomes

Sources consulted

Working Time Living Wage