What is a Workplace Visitor Policy
Workplaces may be unaware of certain obligations when receiving visitors into their workplace. Recent changes to the health and safety Act does not differentiate between employees, contractors, or visitors. This is to maintain the safety of all personnel on site.
A workplace visitor policy is an ideal way to set out a list of requirements, or rules in which all who are working on site must adhere to. The policy is to help maintain the safety, as well as the expected conduct when in the workplace.
A workplace visitor is a person who arrives on site that is not an employee. It’s best that your workers and contractors be familiar with your company’s safety requirements and at a minimum be aware of any industry based safety laws. Many of your visitors may not be aware of this, so remember to ensure visitors do not inadvertently cause harm to your personnel or to your employees.
Let’s explore the top 5 reasons why you’ll need a effective workplace visitor policy:
1. Meet your legal requirements as a business owner/operator
As a business owner/operator you are required to provide a safe workplace for both employees and visitors. The WHS Act clearly states that any person in a workplace, including visitors must take reasonable care of their own health and safety and that of others who may be affected by their actions or omissions.
The Act also clearly states that any person, worker or visitor at a workplace can be prosecuted by law for failing to comply with their duties.
2. Help clarify and convey any conditions of entry
In collaboration with employees and safety representatives, employees are required to create effective procedures to demonstrate compliance. These procedures need to be displayed in writing to all parties involved. This includes visitors, contractors and other guests. As visitors enter your workplace, they must be directed to read through or be presented with a set of instructions, which then adequately inducts them into your site.
3. Obtain agreement of entry by the Visitor
As a visitor enters your workplace it’s best practice to, once inducted, get confirmation that the visitor has been informed of any safety concerns, and that they agree with any terms of entry. In other words, you are confirming the visitor is in full agreement with conditions of entry and that they will do their best to ensure they are safe whilst in the facility or site. For example, this may mean having the visitor read through the policy, and then provide their signature for confirmation.
4. Provide evacuation procedures in the case of an emergency
As part of presenting your workplace policy for entry, ensuring you communicate what to do in the event of an emergency is paramount. Clearly notifying exit and entry points, as well as meeting points is required under law to comply with the Act.
In the case when you implement a digital visitor solution, you can notify all visitors, no matter where they are located, by an instant text message. This is advantageous as it’s immediate, and does not necessarily rely on a more analogue way of notification which can be unreliable and ineffective.
5. Convey special conditions of entry based on Visitor type. i.e Contractor
All workplaces are different, and they are also industry specific. Office based businesses have different requirements for a manufacturer when it comes to accepting visitors, thus a different policy will be required. However most organisations have third party contractors who attend their workplaces. As per the WHS Act, a contractor is no different from other visitors, in that they will also be required to review your workplace policy, however there may be aspects that are specific to them, and not to others. Things like any personal protection equipment (PPE) requirements when entering hazardous areas will need to be provided as special conditions of entry.
How a Digital Visitor Management solution can help you implement an effective visitor policy
In any case, accepting visitors and making sure they are across your workplace policy is a basic requirement. The WHS Act does not provide detailed instructions on how to execute on this requirement, and most organisations run with a paper based solution.
Log books require to be physically signed and a visitor policy can be displayed on the wall at reception, along with any emergency evacuation procedures. In many cases, visitors walk past these instructions, which places them and others at risk. Using these methods is limited due to the very nature of it being analogue based.
Using technology in visitor management will help reduce mis-communication, improve clarity, improve workflow and help you ensure you’re compliant with the WHS Act. That’s a better outcome for all.
Visitors and Contractors
Using a visitor management system means your visitors are forced to read through policies, procedures and any specific requirements you have for entry to the workplace. Ezy Sign-in provides the following to ensure you’re compliant with minimal effort:
- Displays your workplace visitor policy upon entry and optionally captures their signatures
- Present screening questions to ensure the safety of your employees, such as questions about their health i.e Covid related questions.
- The system can send alerts to internal staff if any screening questions are not met.
- Alerts can be also sent to hosts as well as visitors to provide proof of entry and a record of their visit.
- Contractors that require specific instructions can be presented with an induction, to ensure they are across all safety requirements of the site. For example, where to meet in the case of an emergency, or who and where to report any incident.
- Contractors can also upload any documents required to conduct work, such as workplace certificates i.e a working with children certificate.
Enhanced features that will save you time and improve workflow
Some additional features that will enhance the experience your visitor or contractor experiences are:
- Self Serve check in or Mobile App check In
- Providing a way to check in via a kiosk helps maintain records and ensures everyone is going through a visitor procedure. A kiosk will also reduce your reliance on having a receptionist sign people in.
- Using a mobile app reduces the spread of germs by signing in using a QR Code. This is probably the most effective way to ensure visitors are seeing and acknowledging your workplace policy as it’s presented right there on their smartphones.
- Pre-approvals for contractors
- Giving contractors who know where they are going, but need to be signed in, a way to check in or provide documentation even before they arrive on site reduces time and increases accuracy for everyone involved.
In summary, implementing a visitor management solution like Ezy Sign-in will ensure that every visitor you receive will have read your visitor workplace policy. You will be able to record this by capturing it electronically. This information will be retrievable if and when required to prove to authorities that you have done all that is possible to ensure your visitors and employees are safe in their place of work.
To get in touch with one of our team you can visit our contact page or call us on +613-8319-0976. Alternatively, you can trial our solution by signing up online at https://online.ezysignin.com/signup.
