Barbara Strozzilaan 336
1083 HN Amsterdam
The Netherlands
standards@globalreporting.org

Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational
Health and Safety
10 August 2017
Comments to be received by 9 October 2017
This exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety is published for public comment by
the Global Sustainability Standards Board (GSSB), the independent standard-setting body of GRI.
In line with the GSSB’s Due Process Protocol, a multi-stakeholder Project Working Group wasformed to develop content for the review of GRI 403. The explanatory memorandum on thenext pages summarizes the objectives of the review of GRI 403 and the significant proposals
contained within this exposure draft.
This draft is published for comment only and may change based on public feedback before its
official release.
Any interested party can submit comments on this draft by 9 October 2017 via this online
consultation platform. Comments should be submitted in writing, and only comments in English
will be considered.
All comments received will be considered a matter of public record. Comments will be madeavailable on the GRI website along with the name of the individual or organization that submitted
the comment, the country, and constituency group.
For more information, please visit the GRI Standards website.

© GRI 2017

Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety

Explanatory memorandum
This explanatory memorandum sets out the objectives of the review of GRI 403: Occupational Healthand Safety (hereafter ‘GRI 403’), the significant proposals contained within the exposure draft of GRI
403 and a summary of the Global Sustainability Standards Board (GSSB)’s involvement and views on
the development of this draft.

Objectives for the review of GRI 403
The primary objective was to review the content of GRI 403 in order to represent internationallyagreed best practice and to align with recent developments in OHS management and reporting
practice.
Key references for revising the content included international authoritative instruments and relevant
standards and developments. These included, for example, ILO Conventions, the upcoming ISO
45001 standard on occupational health and safety management system requirements, and theSustainable Development Goals, which emphasize the importance of promoting safe and secure
working environments for all workers.
A multi-stakeholder Project Working Group (PWG) was formed to help contribute to the revisionof GRI 403, as outlined in the GSSB’s Due Process Protocol. For more information, consult the
project proposal and terms of reference.

Significant proposals and changes in GRI 403
The content of GRI 403 has been revised in line with the project objectives set out above. Notablechanges in this draft Standard are summarized below:•

New management approach requirements have been developed, covering specific OHS
management components, such as the use of management systems, hazard identification, risk
assessment, hierarchy of controls, and worker participation, consultation, information, andtraining. These are designed to complement the existing generic management approach
disclosures in GRI 103: Management Approach, and include additional management approach
recommendations and guidance. See lines 201-235.

•

New leading indicators have been developed, looking at how many workers are covered by amanagement system and how many have access to occupational health services. Seelines 332-354 and 464-497.

•

Existing Disclosure 403-1 on formal joint management-worker health and safetycommittees has been slightly revised and moved to the ‘Management approach disclosures’section, as a requirement. See lines 222-225.

•

Existing Disclosure 403-4 on agreements with trade unions has been slightly revised andmoved to the ‘Management approach disclosures’ section, as a recommendation. See lines 238239.

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Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety•

With regards to the work-related injury and illness disclosures (existing Disclosures 403-2 and403-3), these have been significantly revised, see lines 355-422 and 423-463. These now include:–

a greater emphasis on measuring impacts on workers, as opposed to measuring loss of
productivity/lost time; the lost day and absentee rates are no longer required;–a greater emphasis on requesting raw data, as opposed to only requiring standardized
rates, since there are different methodologies available to calculate these. In addition,
breakdowns by region and gender are recommended where relevant, but they are nolonger required;–

new proactive measures looking at health and safety hazards identified and highpotential incidents which could have resulted in fatal or non-fatal impairment of workers;–

more narrative explanation required around the causes of incidents and corrective
actions taken to avoid them in the future.

•

A new disclosure on worker health promotion has been developed, looking at whether
workers have access to voluntary programs to address major non-work related health risks,such as smoking or unhealthy diets. This disclosure complements other occupational safety andhealth measures, which remain the primary focus of this Standard. See lines 498-551.

•

The existing scope of workers is maintained (‘workers whose work, or workplace, iscontrolled by the reporting organization’), with additional examples of workers and guidancearound shared control in outsourced activities. See lines 172-191 and 584-597.

•

The Background context section, the References list, and the list of defined terms anddefinitions have been revised. See lines 98-161, 552-579 and 580-682.

GSSB’s involvement and views on the development of thisdraft
The GSSB appointed two of its members as sponsors for the review of GRI 403. The GSSB sponsors
observed the PWG process and attended most of their meetings.
A rough draft of GRI 403 was discussed by the GSSB on 29 June 2017, who expressed overall
support for the changes in the draft. The draft was later revised based on PWG and GSSB feedback.
The GSSB confirmed its support for the revisions to GRI 403 when it voted to approve the draft for
public exposure at its meeting on 19 July 2017.
Meeting minutes and recording of the meetings can be accessed on the GSSB website here.

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Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety

GRI 403: OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH
2
AND SAFETY 2018
1

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Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety

3

Contents

4

Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 6

5

GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety ....................................................................... 86

1. Management approach disclosures .............................................................................................................97

2. Topic-specific disclosures ........................................................................................................................... 13

8Disclosure 403-1 Workers covered by an occupational health and safety management system . 139Disclosure 403-2 Work-related injuries ..................................................................................................... 14

10

Disclosure 403-3 Work-related illnesses ................................................................................................... 17

11

Disclosure 403-4 Workers’ access to occupational health services .................................................... 19

12

Disclosure 403-5 Worker health promotion ............................................................................................ 21

13

References ......................................................................................................................... 23

14

About this Standard
Responsibility

This Standard is issued by the Global Sustainability Standards Board(GSSB). Any feedback on the GRI Standards can be submitted tostandards@globalreporting.org for the consideration of the GSSB.

Scope

GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety sets out reporting requirementson the topic of occupational health and safety. This Standard can be usedby an organization of any size, type, sector or geographic location thatwants to report on its impacts related to this topic.

Normative references

This Standard is to be used together with the most recent versions of thefollowing documents.
GRI 101: Foundation
GRI 103: Management Approach
GRI Standards Glossary
In the text of this Standard, terms defined in the Glossary are underlined.

Effective dateThis Standard is effective for reports or other materials published on orafter [to be determined]. Earlier adoption is encouraged.

Note: This document includes hyperlinks to other Standards. In most browsers, using ‘ctrl’ + click will
open external links in a new browser window. After clicking on a link, use ‘alt’ + left arrow to return tothe previous view.

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Introduction
A. Overview
This Standard is part of the set of GRI
Sustainability Reporting Standards (GRI
Standards). These Standards are designed to
be used by organizations to report about
their impacts on the economy, theenvironment, and society.
The GRI Standards are structured as a set ofinterrelated, modular standards. The full set canbe downloaded atwww.globalreporting.org/standards/.
There are three universal Standards that apply
to every organization preparing a sustainability
report:GRI 101: Foundation
GRI 102: General Disclosures
GRI 103: Management Approach
GRI 101: Foundation is the starting
point for using the GRI Standards. It
has essential information on how to
use and reference the Standards.

33 Figure 1 Overview of the set of GRI Standards

41
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43
44
45

Each topic Standard includes disclosures
specific to that topic, and is designed to be
used together with GRI 103: Management
Approach, which is used to report the
management approach for the topic.
GRI 403: Occupational Health and
Safety is a topic-specific GRI Standard
in the 400 series (Social topics).

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B. Using the GRI Standards and making
claimsThere are two basic approaches for using the
GRI Standards. For each way of using theStandards there is a corresponding claim, or
statement of use, which an organization isrequired to include in any published materials.
1. The GRI Standards can be used as a set toprepare a sustainability report that is inaccordance with the Standards. There are
two options for preparing a report inaccordance (Core or Comprehensive),
depending on the extent of disclosures
included in the report.
An organization preparing a report inaccordance with the GRI Standards uses
this Standard, GRI 403: Occupational Healthand Safety, if this is one of its material
topics.
2. Selected GRI Standards, or parts of theircontent, can also be used to report specificinformation, without preparing a report inaccordance with the Standards. Any
published materials that use the GRI
Standards in this way are to include a ‘GRIreferenced’ claim.
See Section 3 of GRI 101: Foundation
for more information on how to use
the GRI Standards, and the specificclaims that organizations are required
to include in any published materials.

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40

An organization then selects from the set of
topic-specific GRI Standards for reporting on
its material topics. These Standards areorganized into three series: 200 (Economic
topics), 300 (Environmental topics) and 400(Social topics).

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C. Requirements, recommendations andguidance
The GRI Standards include:
Requirements. These are mandatory
instructions. In the text, requirements arepresented in bold font and indicated withthe word ‘shall’. Requirements are to beread in the context of recommendations
and guidance; however, an organization is
not required to comply withrecommendations or guidance in order toclaim that a report has been prepared inaccordance with the Standards.

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Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety

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Recommendations. These are cases wherea particular course of action is encouraged,
but not required. In the text, the word
‘should’ indicates a recommendation.

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102

D. Background context

Guidance. These sections include
background information, explanations andexamples to help organizations better
understand the requirements.
An organization is required to comply with allapplicable requirements in order to claim thatits report has been prepared in accordancewith the GRI Standards. See GRI 101:
Foundation for more information.
In the context of the GRI Standards, the social
dimension of sustainability concerns anorganization’s impacts on the social systems
within which it operates.

103 GRI 403 addresses the topic of occupational
104 health and safety.
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112

A healthy and safe workplace is recognized asa human right and is addressed in authoritativeintergovernmental instruments. This includes
key instruments of the International Labour
Organization (ILO), the Organisation for
Economic Co-operation and Development(OECD) and the World Health Organization(WHO): see References.

113
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116

A healthy and safe workplace is also a targetof the Sustainable Development Goals,
adopted by the United Nations as part of the2030 agenda for sustainable development.1

117 Health and safety at work involves both the
118 prevention of harm and the promotion of
119 workers’ health.
120
121
122
123

The prevention of harm involves addressing
workplace hazards and risks. These can
include the exposure of workers to unsafe or
unhealthy:
•

124
125

1

126
127

•

chemicals, physical, and biologicalsubstances and agents;

128•

psychosocial and physiological factors.

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The prevention of harm, and the promotion ofworkers’ health, require organizations todemonstrate commitment to workers' healthand safety, and to engage workers in thedevelopment, implementation andperformance of an occupational health andsafety management system that is appropriate
for the organization’s size and activities.

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It is essential that workers are consulted in
the development of occupational health andsafety policy and participate in the processes
necessary to plan, support and operate themanagement system; and in continual
performance evaluation.

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Hazard identification and risk assessment,
worker training, and the identification andinvestigation of incidents are all key to theplanning, supporting and operating of amanagement system.

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In addition to effectively addressing workplace
hazards and risks, organizations can also
promote workers’ health through offering
voluntary health programs; for example, tohelp workers improve their diet or stopsmoking. Such health promotion programs are
expected to respect workers’ right to privacy
and cannot become criteria for employment,
promotion, compensation or other favorable
treatment towards workers. Healthpromotion programs are not a substitute for
effective systems that prevent workplace
hazards and risks, and protect workers fromwork-related injuries and illnesses.

equipment, machinery, processes,
practices or conditions;

See Target 8.8 ‘Protect labour rights and promote
safe and secure working environments for all
workers, including migrant workers, in particular
women migrants, and those in precarious

employment’ within Goal 8 ‘Promote sustained,
inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full andproductive employment and decent work for all’.

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GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety

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164

This Standard includes disclosures on the management approach and topic-specific disclosures.
These are set out in the Standard as follows:

165•

Management approach disclosures (this section references GRI 103)

166
167

•

Disclosure 403-1 Workers covered by an occupational health and safety management
system168•

Disclosure 403-2 Work-related injuries

169•

Disclosure 403-3 Work-related illnesses

170•

Disclosure 403-4 Workers’ access to occupational health services

171•

Disclosure 403-5 Worker health promotion

172

The scope of ‘workers’ in this Standard

173
174

In the context of the GRI Standards, the term ‘worker’ is a broad term for a ‘person that
performs work’. In some GRI Standards, the particular subset of workers to be used is specified.

175
176

This Standard covers the following subset of workers, for whom an organization is expected tobe responsible for their occupational health and safety:

177
178

• all workers performing work that is controlled by the organization, including outsourced
work;

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• all workers whose workplace is controlled by the organization, whether or not their work isunder the control of the organization.

181
182

Whenever the term ‘worker’ is used in this Standard, it refers to ‘workers whose work, or
workplace, is controlled by the organization’.

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185

This includes not only the organization’s employees but also other workers whose work, or
workplace, is controlled by the organization, such as contractors, sub-contractors, self-employedpersons, outworkers, interns, apprentices, or volunteers.

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189

This also includes workers for whom the organization does not have full control of the work
activity or workplace where work is performed. This is often the case when an organization
outsources activities or functions to a supplier: the organization still has responsibility for thehealth and safety of the workers concerned, and is expected to cover them in its reporting.

190
191

See the definitions of ‘worker’, ‘employee’ and ‘control of work and/or workplace’ in the GRI
Standards Glossary.

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1. Management approach disclosures

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Management approach disclosures are a narrative explanation of how an organization manages amaterial topic, the associated impacts, and stakeholders’ reasonable expectations and interests.
Any organization that claims its report has been prepared in accordance with the GRI Standards
is required to report on its management approach for every material topic, as well as reporting
topic-specific disclosures for those topics.

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200

Therefore, this topic-specific Standard is designed to be used together with GRI 103:
Management Approach in order to provide full disclosure of the organization’s impacts. GRI 103
specifies how to report on the management approach and what information to provide.

201

Reporting requirements

202
203

1.1

The reporting organization shall report its management approach foroccupational health and safety using GRI 103: Management Approach.

204

1.2

The reporting organization shall:

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208

1.2.1

report whether it has developed and implemented an occupational
health and safety management approach using a recognizedoccupational health and safety management system standard, and thename of the standard;

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1.2.2

describe the scope of workers, activities and workplaces covered by its
occupational health and safety management approach, and explain why
any workers, activities or workplaces are not covered;

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1.2.3

describe the processes used to identify hazards and to assess risks on aroutine and nonroutine basis, and to apply the hierarchy of controls,
including:

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1.2.3.1

how the organization ensures the quality of the processes,
including the competency of those who carry it out;

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218

1.2.3.2

how the results of the processes are addressed in its
management of occupational health and safety;

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221

1.2.4

1.2.4.1

222
223
224
225
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227
228

describe its processes for worker participation and consultation, andfor communicating and providing access to relevant information toworkers, in relation to occupational health and safety;

1.2.5

where formal joint management–worker health and safetycommittees exist, describe their mandate, frequency of
meetings, decision-making authority, and whether any
workers are not represented by these committees;

describe the processes for workers to report about hazards andhazardous situations, and how the processes protect them from
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1.2.6

describe the processes for workers to exercise the authority to remove
themselves from exposure to hazards or hazardous situations which
they have reason to believe will cause injury or ill health, and how theprocesses protect them from reprisal;

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235

1.2.7

describe the occupational health and safety training provided toworkers, including generic training and training on specific hazards or
hazardous activities or situations.

236

Reporting recommendations

237

1.3

The reporting organization should:

238
239

1.3.1

report whether occupational health and safety is covered in local or global
formal agreements with trade unions, and the topics covered;

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241

1.3.2

report the leading indicators used to measure the performance of its
occupational health and safety management approach;

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243
244

1.3.3

describe its approach to preventing or mitigating negative occupational healthand safety impacts that are directly linked to its operations, products or services
via business relationships, including with entities in its value chain.

245

Guidance

246

Guidance for clause 1.2

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248

The overall description of the reporting organization’s management approach for occupational health andsafety is required by Disclosure 103-2-a in GRI 103: Management Approach.

249

When describing its management approach for occupational health and safety, the organization can:

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252

•

explain how responsibility for occupational health and safety is integrated into its business processes
and governance structure, including which position has overall responsibility for occupational healthand safety;

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255

•

specify how it achieves the continual improvement of its occupational health and safety management
approach. A process for continual improvement is the ‘iterative process of enhancing the management
system to achieve improvements in overall occupational health and safety performance.’2

256

Guidance for clause 1.2.1

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258

Recognized standards and guidelines for occupational health and safety management systems include ILOOSH 2001, OHSAS 18001, ISO 45001, industry-specific standards, and national standards.

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260

If the organization uses an internally-devised system or protocol, which is therefore not a recognized
standard, it can explain this.

261

Guidance for clause 1.2.3

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263

In the context of this Standard, ‘risk’ means the combination of the likelihood of an occurrence of ahazardous event and the severity of injury or damage to the health of workers caused by this event.

2 International Labour Organization (ILO), Guidelines on Occupational Safety and Health Management Systems (ILO-OSH

2001), 2001.

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The hierarchy of controls seeks to protect workers by ranking the ways in which hazards can becontrolled. Each control is considered less effective than the one before it. The priority is to eliminate thehazard, which is the most effective way to control it. For guidance on control measures, see section
3.10.1. ‘Prevention and control measures’ of ILO-OSH 2001.

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When describing the processes to identify hazards and assess risks on a routine and nonroutine basis, andto apply the hierarchy of controls, the organization can:270•

specify whether recognized standards or guidance are used for these processes;3271•

describe the frequency and scope of processes undertaken on a routine basis;

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276

•

for processes undertaken on a nonroutine basis, describe the process and triggers. Triggers can
include, for example, changes in operating procedures or equipment, incident investigations, worker
complaints or referrals, changes in workers or workflow, health surveillance and monitoring, and theresults of workplace exposure monitoring (e.g., exposure to noise, dust and any other chemical,
physical or biological hazards).

277

Guidance for clause 1.2.4

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A common form of workers’ participation in occupational health and safety is through joint managementworker health and safety committees. In addition to direct worker participation at all levels, health andsafety representatives, where they exist, may be involved in these joint activities or may be authorized tomake other workplace decisions.

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When describing processes for workers’ participation in occupational health and safety, the organization
can describe:284•

formal participation, based on legal requirements;

285•

participation through engagement with formally recognized workers’ representatives;

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287

•

direct participation by workers, in particular by affected workers (for example, in small organizations
with few workers, where all participate in occupational health and safety decisions);288•

the use of workers’ representatives or committees, and how committees are established;

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291

•

workers’ participation in the occupational health and safety management system (for example, inhazard identification and risk assessment, and their elimination and control, incident investigation,
audits, use of contractors and outsourcing);292•

how it identifies and removes obstacles to workers’ participation, including fear of reprisal.

293

Guidance for clause 1.2.4.1

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296

Where formal joint management–worker health and safety committees exist, the organization can also
describe the level at which each committee operates within the organization, its dispute resolution
mechanism, its chairing responsibilities, and how committee members are protected against dismissal.

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Clause 1.2.4.1 requires a description of whether any workers are not represented by these committees. It
does not require information on which workers are members, or not, of such committees.

3

Examples of these standards include, but are not limited to, ISO 31000:2009 series (Risk management – principles
and guidelines), IEC 31010:2009 (Risk management – risk assessment techniques), BS 18004:2008 (Guide to achieving
effective occupational health and safety performance), and ILO’s ‘A 5 step guide for employers, workers and theirrepresentatives on conducting workplace risk assessments’ and ‘Training package on workplace risk assessment andmanagement for small and medium-sized enterprises’.

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Guidance for clause 1.2.7

300

When describing the occupational health and safety training provided, the organization can describe:

301•

how training needs are assessed;

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304

•

how training is designed and delivered, including the content or topics addressed, the competency of
trainers; the recipients, the frequency, and whether it is provided free of charge and during paid
working hours;

305•

how the effectiveness of the training is evaluated.

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Guidance for clause 1.3.1

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309

Agreements at the local level typically include such topics as personal protective equipment; theparticipation of workers’ representatives in health and safety inspections, audits, and incident
investigations; the provision of training and education; and protection against reprisal.

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312

Agreements at the global level typically include such topics as compliance with International Labor
Standards promulgated by the ILO; arrangements or structures for resolving problems; and commitments
regarding target performance standards, or levels of practice to apply.

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Guidance for clause 1.3.2

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316
317

Leading indicators measure an organization’s performance regarding the actions it takes to prevent workrelated injury and ill health. They are important because organizations cannot rely solely on lagging
indicators, which may not give a true picture of their occupational health and safety risk management due
to issues such as long-latency diseases and underreporting.

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320

While leading indicators are often unique or tailored to a specific organization, examples may include thenumber of workers trained in hazard identification; the number of new assessments for changes inprocesses or equipment; or response times for the investigation and remediation of hazards.

321

Guidance for clause 1.3.3

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325

An organization is expected to be responsible for the occupational health and safety of workers whose
work or workplace it controls. Beyond that, organizations might also be involved with occupational healthand safety impacts as a result of their business relationships with other entities, such as entities in thevalue chain.

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330

Even though in these cases an organization does not have control over the work or the workplace, it has
a responsibility to make efforts, including exercising leverage it may have, to eliminate and minimize
negative occupational health and safety impacts it causes or contributes to, or that are caused orcontributed to by entities with which it has a business relationship, when these harms are directly linked
to the organization’s activities, products or services.4

4

For more guidance, see Principles 13 and 19 of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.

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2. Topic-specific disclosures

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Disclosure 403-1 Workers covered by an occupational health and safety
management system

334

Reporting requirements
Disclosure 403-1
The reporting organization shall report the following information:a. The percentage of workers that:i.

are covered by an occupational health and safety management system;ii.

are covered by an occupational health and safety management system
which has been internally audited;iii.

are covered by an occupational health and safety management system
which has been audited or certified by an external party.

b. An explanation of how the data have been compiled, including why any
workers have been excluded, and any standards, assumptions, andmethodologies used.

336

Guidance

337

Guidance for Disclosure 403-1

338
339

This disclosure covers occupational health and safety management systems implemented by the reportingorganization, whether based on recognized standards or internally-devised systems.

340

The reporting organization can explain:

341
342

•

whether the management system uses a recognized standard, and the name of the standard, orwhether it is internally-devised;343•

the auditing or certification standard used.

344

Background

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350

Occupational health and safety management systems are widely accepted as an effective approach to
managing and continually eliminating and controlling occupational health and safety hazards and risks. It is asystems-based approach that seeks to integrate occupational health and safety management with overallbusiness processes. Typically, a system moves through a ‘plan-do-check-act’ cycle, promoting leadershipand practice through the meaningful consultation and participation of workers at all levels of anorganization.

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A systems-based approach can be a significant advance on an approach that considers hazard identification,risk assessment and their control, and incident investigation as isolated activities. Focusing on system
deficiencies can enable an organization to identify deficiencies in its overall management of occupational
health and safety, addressing resources, policy, operational controls, and continual improvement activity.

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Disclosure 403-2 Work-related injuries

356

Reporting requirements
Disclosure 403-2
The reporting organization shall report the following information:a. For employees, report:i.

The number of fatal work-related injuries;ii.

The number and rate of work-related injuries that were fatal and nonfatal impairments;iii.

The number and rate of recordable work-related injuries;iv.

The number of hours worked.

b. For workers (excluding employees), report:i.

The number of fatal work-related injuries;ii.

The number and rate of work-related injuries that were fatal and nonfatal impairments;iii.

The number and rate of recordable work-related injuries;iv.

The number of hours worked.

c. The number of high potential incidents.
d. The causes of and action taken, using the hierarchy of controls, in response towork-related injuries that were fatal and non-fatal impairments, and to highpotential incidents.
e. A list of safety hazards identified that pose significant risks, an explanation of
how the list has been decided on, and action taken using the hierarchy ofcontrols.
f.

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358

2.1

An explanation of how the data have been compiled, including why any
workers have been excluded, and any standards, assumptions, andmethodologies used.
When compiling the information specified in Disclosure 403-2, the reportingorganization shall:

359
360

2.1.1

include fatal work-related injuries in the calculation of the number andrate of recordable work-related injuries;

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362
363

2.1.2

calculate the rates of work-related injuries that were fatal and nonfatal impairments and of recordable work-related injuries using thefollowing formulas:

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364

Rate of work-related injuries that were fatal and non-fatal impairments =365

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤−𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐣𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐧𝐨𝐧−𝐟𝐚𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬

366

Rate of recordable work-related injuries =367

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤−𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧𝐣𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐝

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐝

368

Reporting recommendations

369
370

2.2

x 1,000,000

x 1,000,000

When compiling the information specified in Disclosure 403-2, the reporting organization
should:

371
372

2.2.1

use data from Disclosure 102-7 in GRI 102: General Disclosures to identify the total
number of employees;

373
374
375

2.2.2

if the numbers and rates reported are significantly higher for certain countries,
business lines, or workers’ demographics, provide a breakdown of thisinformation;

376

2.2.3

break down the number of recordable work-related injuries by type of incident;

377

2.2.4

if chemical hazards have been identified, report the chemicals.

378

Guidance

379

Guidance for Disclosure 403-2

380
381

This disclosure covers work-related injuries. Work-related injury data are a measure of the extent ofharm to workers; they are not a measure of safety.

382
383
384

An increase in the number or rate of reported incidents does not necessarily mean that there have been agreater number of incidents than previously recorded and reported: it can indicate an improvement in therecording and reporting of incidents.

385
386
387
388

If an increase in the number or rate is the result of actions by the organization to improve the reporting
and recording of fatalities, injuries or illnesses, or because it has expanded the scope of its management
system to cover more workers or workplaces, then the organization can report on those activities andtheir results.

389

Guidance for Disclosure 403-2-d

390
391
392

If there are a high number of work-related injuries that are fatal and non-fatal impairments, theorganization can describe the causes and corrective actions for the fatal ones and the most severe nonfatal impairments.

393

Guidance for Disclosure 403-2-e

394
395

This disclosure covers uncontrolled safety hazards that pose a significant risk or that are known toincrease the risk of work-related injury.

396
397

The processes to identify hazards and assess risks, and to apply the hierarchy of controls, are covered inclause 1.2.3.

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Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety
398

Guidance for Disclosure 403-2-f

399
400

In situations where the organization follows the ILO Code of Practice on Recording and Notification of
Occupational Accidents and Diseases (Code of Practice), it can state this.

401
402

In situations where the organization does not follow the ILO Code of Practice, it can indicate which
system of rules it applies and their relationship to the ILO Code of Practice.

403
404
405
406

If the organization cannot calculate the number of hours worked by employees and/or workers (excluding
employees), it can calculate this on the basis of normal hours of work, taking into account entitlements toperiods of paid absence from work, such as paid vacations, paid sick leave and public holidays, and explain
this in its report.

407

Guidance for clause 2.1.2

408
409
410

Standardized rates allow meaningful comparisons of statistics, for example between different periods, ororganizations, to take account of the differences in the number of workers in the reference group, as wellas in the hours worked by those in the reference group.

411
412
413
414

These rates indicate the number of work-related injuries per 500 full-time workers over a one year
timeframe, based on the assumption that one full-time worker accounts for 2,000 work hours per year.
For example, a rate of 1.0 means that, on average, there is one work-related injury for every 500 full-timeworkers over a one year timeframe.

415
416
417
418

This methodology is based on the ILO ‘Resolution concerning statistics of occupational injuries (resulting
from occupational accidents), adopted by the Sixteenth International Conference of Labour Statisticians in
1998’. This instrument proposes additional rates that the organization may wish to report: the incidence
rate and the severity rate.

419
420

In addition to standardizes rates, this disclosure requires the absolute data to be reported, to allow
information users to calculate these rates with other methodologies if needed.

421
422

An organization may choose to use a different methodology for calculating the rates and can explain this in
its report.

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Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety423

Disclosure 403-3 Work-related illnesses

424

Reporting requirements
Disclosure 403-3
The reporting organization shall report the following information:a. For employees, report:i.

The number of fatal work-related illnesses;ii.

The number of recordable work-related illnesses;iii.

A list of the main types of work-related illness.

b. For workers (excluding employees), report:i.

The number of fatal work-related illnesses;ii.

The number of recordable work-related illnesses;iii.

A list of the main types of work-related illness.

c. A list of health hazards identified that pose significant risks, an explanation of
how the list has been decided on, and action taken using the hierarchy ofcontrols.
d. An explanation of how the data have been compiled, including why any
workers have been excluded, and any standards, assumptions, andmethodologies used.

425
426
427

2.3

When compiling the information specified in Disclosure 403-3, the reportingorganization shall include fatal work-related illnesses in the calculation of thenumber of recordable work-related illnesses.

428

Reporting recommendations

429
430

2.4

When compiling the information specified in Disclosure 403-3, the reporting organization
should:

431
432

2.4.1

use data from Disclosure 102-7 in GRI 102: General Disclosures to identify the total
number of employees;

433
434

2.4.2

if the numbers reported are significantly higher for certain countries, businesslines, or workers’ demographics, provide a breakdown of this information;

435

2.4.3

if chemical hazards have been identified, report the chemicals;

436
437

2.4.4

report the number of workers that are exposed to each health hazard identified
that poses significant risks.

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Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety
438

Guidance

439

Guidance for Disclosure 403-3

440
441
442

Work-related illnesses are acute, recurring or chronic health problems caused or aggravated by work
conditions or practices. They may include, but are not limited to, musculoskeletal, skin, and respiratory
diseases, malignant cancers, noise-induced hearing loss, and mental illnesses.

443
444
445

This disclosure covers both short and long-latency work-related illnesses detected during the reporting
period, where this information is available. Latency means the time period between exposure and theonset of illness.

446
447
448
449

Many long-latency work-related illnesses are not detected; and when they are, it may not necessarily be
due to exposures with one employer. For example, a worker may be exposed to asbestos while working
for different employers over time. For this reason, data on work-related illnesses is to be complemented
with information on work-related health hazards.

450
451

The reporting organization may report separately any work-related illnesses that were detected during
the reporting period among former workers. This may apply for long-latency work-related illnesses.

452

Guidance for Disclosure 403-3-c

453
454

This disclosure covers uncontrolled health hazards that pose a significant risk or that are known toincrease the risk of work-related illness.

455
456

It includes exposures to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) Group 1 (Carcinogenic
to humans) and Group 2A (Probably carcinogenic to humans) agents.5

457
458

The processes to identify hazards and assess risks, and to apply the hierarchy of controls, are covered inclause 1.2.3.

459

Guidance for Disclosure 403-3-d

460
461

In situations where the organization follows the ILO Code of Practice on Recording and Notification of
Occupational Accidents and Diseases (Code of Practice), it can state this.

462
463

In situations where the organization does not follow the ILO Code of Practice, it can indicate which
system of rules it applies and their relationship to the ILO Code of Practice.

5

See the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks
to Humans, http://monographs.iarc.fr/ENG/Classification/.

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Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety464

Disclosure 403-4 Workers’ access to occupational health services

465

Reporting requirements
Disclosure 403-4
The reporting organization shall report the following information:a. The percentage of workers that have access to occupational health services.
b. An explanation of how the data have been compiled, including why any
workers have been excluded, and any standards, assumptions, andmethodologies used.

467

Reporting recommendations

468
469

2.5

When compiling the information specified in Disclosure 403-4, the reportingorganization should describe:

470
471

2.5.1

how it maintains the confidentiality of personal information related to workers’
health;

472
473
474

2.5.2

how it ensures that personal information related to workers’ health is not used
for discriminatory purposes or in any other manner prejudicial to workers’
interests.

475

Guidance

476

Background477

Occupational health services aim to protect the health of workers in relation to their work environment.

478
479
480
481
482
483

ILO Convention 161 ‘Occupational Health Services’ defines occupational health services as ‘services
entrusted with essentially preventive functions and responsible for advising the employer, the workers andtheir representatives in the undertaking on the requirements for establishing and maintaining a safe andhealthy work environment which will facilitate optimal physical and mental health in relation to work andthe adaptation of work to the capabilities of workers in the light of their state of physical and mental
health.’484

Occupational health services functions may include, among others:

485
486

•

surveillance of the factors in a working environment, or in working practices, which may affectworkers’ health, including in any sanitary installations, canteens and housing provided to workers;

487•

surveillance of workers' health in relation to work;488•

advice on occupational health, safety and hygiene;489•

advice on ergonomics, and on individual and collective protective equipment;

490•

promoting the adaptation of work to the worker;

491•

the organizing of first aid and emergency treatment.

492

Guidance for Disclosure 403-4

493

The reporting organization can explain how it ensures the quality of the occupational health services.

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Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety
494

Guidance for clause 2.5495

See the ILO Code of Practice on Protection of workers’ personal data (1997).

496

References

497

See References 2, 5 and 6 in the References section.

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Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety498

Disclosure 403-5 Worker health promotion

499

Reporting requirements
Disclosure 403-5
The reporting organization shall report the following information:
a. A description of voluntary programs it has established for workers to address
major non-work related health risks.
b. The percentage of workers that have access to voluntary programs to address
major non-work related health risks.
c. An explanation of how the data have been compiled, including why any
workers have been excluded, and any standards, assumptions, andmethodologies used.

501

Reporting recommendations

502
503

2.6

When compiling the information specified in Disclosure 403-5, the reportingorganization should describe:

504

2.6.1

how it selects topics to cover in a program;

505

2.6.2

how workers are included in the selecting of topics;

506

2.6.3

the extent to which proven effective interventions are included in the programs;

507

2.6.4

the metrics used to evaluate programs’ effectiveness;

508
509

2.6.5

how it maintains the confidentiality of personal information related to workers’
health;

510
511
512
513

2.6.6

how it ensures that personal information related to workers’ health, andworkers’ participation or lack of participation in the programs, is not used fordiscriminatory purposes or in any other manner prejudicial to workers’
interests;

514
515
516

2.6.7

whether it provides workers with access to non-occupational medical andhealthcare services, such as through health insurance or financial contributions,and the coverage provided.

517

Guidance

518

Background

519
520
521

This disclosure covers the promotion of the health of workers and their families within the community,
complementing other occupational safety and health measures that are required to protect workers’
health and safety.

522
523
524
525

Ensuring healthy lives and promoting well-being for all at all ages is one of the Sustainable Development
Goals adopted by the United Nations as part of the 2030 agenda for sustainable development. This goal
includes targets such as reducing by one third premature mortality from non-communicable diseases
through prevention and treatment and promoting mental health and well-being, as well as strengthening

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Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety
526
527

the prevention and treatment of substance abuse, including narcotic drug abuse and harmful use ofalcohol.

528
529
530
531

Worker health promotion programs are expected to respect workers’ right to privacy and cannot
become criteria for employment, promotion, compensation or other favorable treatment towards
workers; and they cannot not substitute for effective systems that prevent workplace hazards and risks,and protect workers from work-related injuries and illnesses.

532

Guidance for Disclosure 403-5

533
534
535

This disclosure covers voluntary programs for workers aimed at addressing major non-work related
health risks, such as smoking, drug and alcohol consumption, physical inactivity, unhealthy diets, HIV, andpsychosocial risk factors.

536
537

Voluntary programs may include, for example, smoking cessation programs, dietary advice, or Employee
Assistance Programs. A program is voluntary when it does not set personal targets related to incentives.

538
539

Disclosure 403-5-b requires the percentage of workers that can access these programs on a voluntarybasis. It does not require the percentage of workers that participate in these programs.

540

Guidance for clause 2.6.3

541

For guidance on effective interventions see Reference 11 in the References section.

542

Guidance for clauses 2.6.5 and 2.6.6

543

See the ILO Code of Practice on Protection of workers’ personal data (1997).

544

Guidance for clause 2.6.7

545
546
547

Achieving universal health coverage, including financial risk protection, access to quality essential healthcare services and access to safe, effective, quality and affordable essential medicines and vaccines for all is
one of the targets of the Sustainable Development Goals.

548
549

If the reporting organization does not provide access to medical and healthcare services because it
operates in a country where they are freely provided to the population, it can explain this.

550

References

551

See References 1, 2, 10, 11 and 12 in the References section.

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Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety

552

References

553
554

The following documents informed the development of this Standard and can be helpful forunderstanding and applying it.

555

Authoritative intergovernmental instruments:

556
557

1.

International Labour Organization (ILO), An ILO code of practice on HIV/AIDS and theworld of work, 2001.

558
559

2.

International Labour Organization (ILO), Code of Practice on Protection of workers’ personaldata, 1997.

560
561

3.

International Labour Organization (ILO), Code of Practice on Recording and Notification of
Occupational Accidents and Diseases, 1996.

562
563

4.

International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention 155, ‘Occupational Safety and
Health Convention’ and related Protocol 155, 1981.

564
565

5.

International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention 161, ‘Occupational Health Services
Convention’, 1985.

566
567

6.

International Labour Organization (ILO) Recommendation 171, ‘Occupational HealthServices Recommendation’, 1985.

568
569

7.

International Labour Organization (ILO), Guidelines on Occupational Safety and HealthManagement Systems (ILO-OSH 2001), 2001.

570
571

8.

International Labour Organization (ILO), ‘Tripartite Declaration of Principles concerning
Multinational Enterprises and Social Policy’, 2006.

572
573

9.

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), OECD Guidelines
for Multinational Enterprises, 2011.

574
575

10.

United Nations (UN), Transforming our world: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable
Development, 2015.

576
577

11.

World Health Organization (WHO), (Burton, Joan), WHO Healthy Workplace Frameworkand Model: Background and Supporting Literature and Practices, 2010.

578
579

12.

World Health Organization (WHO), Global action plan for the prevention and control ofnoncommunicable diseases 2013-2020, 2013.

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Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety

580

Annex – Defined Terms

581
582
583

This Annex contains new or revised terms and definitions for use with GRI 403: Occupational Health and
Safety. These terms will eventually be incorporated into the GRI Standards Glossary. Additional definedterms referenced in this draft can be found in the GRI Standards Glossary.

584

control of work and/or workplace585

the control of work and/or workplace includes both full and shared control:

586
587

full control: the work activity is performed by the reporting organization’s employees, or byworkers in workplaces that are managed by the organization

588
589

Note 1: For example, if the organization’s products are manufactured by its employees,
this work is considered to be ‘fully controlled’.

590
591

Note 2: This may include joint ventures, where the organization has management
control.

592
593

shared control: the work activity is performed by workers or in workplaces that are managed
by an external party, on behalf of the reporting organization

594
595

Note 1: For example, if the organization outsources the manufacturing of its products toa supplier, this work is considered to be under the ‘shared control’ of the organization.

596
597

Note 2: This may include workplaces owned by the organization, but which are managed
by an external party on behalf of the reporting organization.

598

formal agreement

599
600

written document signed by all relevant parties declaring a mutual intention to abide by what is
stipulated in the document

601
602

Note: A formal agreement can include, for example, a local collective bargaining
agreement, or a national or international framework agreement.

603

formal joint management–worker health and safety committee

604
605
606
607

a committee made up of management and worker representatives, whose function is integrated
into an organizational structure, and operates according to agreed, written policies, procedures
and rules, and which helps to facilitate worker participation and consultation on occupational
health and safety608

hazard609

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Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety
610
611
612
613

Note 1: Hazards can be physical (such as ergonomics), chemical, biological, psychosocial(such as verbal abuse, harassment, or bullying), work-organizational (such as due to shift
work, long hours, or night work), physiological, mechanical, electrical, and based on
movement and energy.

614
615
616

Note 2: This definition is based on International Labour Organization (ILO), Guidelines on
Occupational Safety and Health Management Systems (ILO-OSH 2001), 2001, and on
ISO/DIS 45001.2:2017.

617

high potential incident

618
619

incident with a high probability of causing death, impairment and/or ill health but where none
occurs620
621

Note 1: A potential incident may also be referred to as a ‘near-miss’, ‘near-hit’, or ‘close
call’.

622

Note 2: This definition is based on ISO/DIS 45001.2:2017.

623

impairment624

any loss or abnormality of psychological, physiological or anatomical structure or function

625
626

Note 1: Examples of impairment include blindness, deafness, paralysis or amputation of alimb, the loss of a finger, musculoskeletal disorders, back injury, or intellectual disability.

627
628

Note 2: This definition comes from the World Health Organization (WHO),
International Classification of Impairments, Disabilities and Handicaps, 1976.

629

incident

630
631

occurrence arising out of, or in the course of, work that could or does result in injury and/or ill
health632

Note 1: This definition comes from ISO/DIS 45001.2:2017.

633
634
635
636

Note 2: Incidents may be due to, for example, electrical problems, explosion, fire;
overflow, overturn, leak, flow; breakage, bursting, splitting; loss of control; slipping stumbling and falling; body movement without stress; body movement under/with stress;
shock, fright, violence.

637

occupational health and safety management system

638
639

set of interrelated or interacting elements to establish occupational health and safety policy andobjectives, and to achieve those objectives

640
641

Note: This definition comes from International Labour Organization (ILO), Guidelines on
Occupational Safety and Health Management Systems (ILO-OSH 2001), 2001.

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Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety642

recordable work-related injury or illness

643
644
645
646
647

injury or illness that results in any of the following: death, days away from work, restricted workor transfer to another job, medical treatment beyond first aid, or loss of consciousness; or
significant injury or illness diagnosed by a physician or other licensed health care professional,
even if it does not result in death, days away from work, restricted work or job transfer, medical
treatment beyond first aid, or loss of consciousness

648
649
650
651

Note: This definition comes from the United States Occupational Safety and HealthAdministration, General recording criteria 1904.7,
https://www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=STANDARDS&p_i
d=9638, accessed on 1 August 2017.

652

work-related injury or illness

653

negative impacts on health arising from exposure to hazards at work

654
655

Note 1: This definition comes from International Labour Organization (ILO), Guidelines
on Occupational Safety and Health Management Systems (ILO-OSH 2001), 2001.

656
657
658
659

Note 2: Work-related injuries or illnesses are those that arise from the conduct of thereporting organization. Other types of incident can occur, which are not connected withwork or the conduct of the organization. For example, the following incidents are notconsidered to be work-related:

660
661

•

a worker or another person suffers a heart attack while at work which isunrelated to work or the conduct of the organization;

662
663

•

a person driving to work is injured in a car accident (where driving is not part oftheir work);

664
665

•

a person with epilepsy has a seizure at work which is unrelated to work or the
conduct of the organization.

666
667

Note 3: Terms such as ‘disease’, ‘illness’ and ‘disorder’ are often used interchangeably, asare ‘occupational’ and ‘work-related’.

668

worker participation

669

workers’ involvement in decision-making

670

Note 1: Worker participation may be carried out through workers’ representatives.

671
672

Note 2: Worker participation and consultation are two distinct terms with specificmeanings. See the definition of ‘worker consultation’.

673

worker consultation

674

seeking of workers’ views before making a decision

675

Note 1: Worker consultation may be carried out through workers’ representatives.

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Exposure draft of GRI 403: Occupational Health and Safety
676
677
678
679
680

Note 2: Consultation is a formal process, whereby management takes the views ofworkers into account when making a decision. Consultation must, therefore, take place
before the decision is made. It is essential to provide timely information to workers or
their representatives to make an informed decision. Genuine consultation involves
dialogue.

681
682

Note 3: Worker participation and consultation are two distinct terms with specificmeanings. See the definition of ‘worker participation’.

Page 27 of 27