Clause 5.2: OH&S policy
Top management sets up, puts in place and keeps an OH&S policy.
What clause 5.2 asks
Top management sets up, puts in place and keeps an OH&S policy. The policy commits the organization to providing working conditions that are safe and healthy so that injury and ill health caused by work are prevented, in a way that suits its purpose, size and context and the particular nature of the OH&S risks and opportunities it faces; gives a framework within which OH&S objectives are set; commits to meeting legal and other requirements; commits to removing hazards and lowering OH&S risks; commits to continual improvement of the system; and commits to consulting workers, and their representatives where they exist, and to their participation. The policy is documented, communicated within the organization, available to interested parties as appropriate, and relevant and appropriate.
The policy is a short public promise that has to match what the organization actually does. Every commitment in the clause has to be visible somewhere else in the system, or the policy is decoration.
Draft 5.2 OH&S policy, from clause 5.2. The draft keeps the policy at 5.2 and, according to the public summaries, adds a commitment by top management to act as a role model and carries the work-related well-being emphasis into the policy commitments.
Evidence for clause 5.2
An auditor will read the policy against the objectives, the consultation records and the hierarchy of controls, and ask where each promise is kept.
- PolicyApproved OH&S policy carrying every required commitment
- PolicyCommunication records to workers and contractors
- PolicyAvailability to interested parties (website, noticeboards)
- PolicyReview records
Where clause 5.2 commonly fails
- Commitment to worker consultation and participation missing
- Policy not communicated to contractors
- Generic policy not tailored to the organization's hazards
What to do about clause 5.2 before the revision
Check each required commitment is present, including consultation and participation. Add the role-model commitment the draft reports, and say what it means in practice. Publish the policy where contractors can see it, and date the last review.
What the record shows for clause 5.2
An auditor working on clause 5.2 will start with Approved OH&S policy carrying every required commitment. The failure this record sees most often is Commitment to worker consultation and participation missing. Both are carried into the kit as row 6, with an owner field and a dated action.
Read across from clause 5.2
Read the next clause in the group, or open the full index. The revision map shows the draft structure.
Source for clause 5.2: ISO 45001:2018, clause 5.2, retrieved 18 October 2026. The draft note rests on the public DIS contents and the two named summaries; the requirement, evidence and gaps are written from the held clause record. Every source.