OHS Act, where section 37 makes it personal
Section 37 makes an employer liable for the acts of employees and mandataries unless it can prove reasonable steps were taken to prevent them. That defence is made of records: appointments, training, inspections, instructions. Dimeri holds them against the duty they answer.
What the OHS Act requires
The Occupational Health and Safety Act 85 of 1993 governs workplace health and safety everywhere except mines, which fall under the Mine Health and Safety Act. Its structure is a general duty followed by specific regulations. Section 8 requires every employer to provide and maintain, as far as reasonably practicable, a working environment that is safe and without risk to health, and then lists what that includes: safe plant and systems of work, identification and mitigation of hazards, information, instruction, training and supervision, and enforcement of the necessary measures.
Section 9 extends duties to people who are not employees but may be affected, which is what brings contractors, visitors and the public into scope. Sections 16 and 17 deal with assignment of duties and the designation of health and safety representatives, and section 19 with health and safety committees. Section 24 requires certain incidents to be reported to an inspector, and section 25 requires them to be investigated.
The provision that concentrates attention is section 37. Where an employee or mandatary commits an offence under the Act, the employer is deemed to have committed it too, unless the employer proves it did not connive or permit it, took all reasonable steps to prevent it, and that the act fell outside the scope of authority. In practice that defence stands or falls on documentation: appointments in writing, training records, inspection registers, and evidence that instructions were given and enforced.
The duties Dimeri tracks
Dimeri holds the general duties, the regulation-specific duties and the appointment and training records that evidence them.
General duties of employers
A safe working environment as far as reasonably practicable, with hazards identified, risks mitigated, and information, instruction, training and supervision provided.
- Hazard and risk register per site and activity
- Controls linked to the hazards they address
- Instruction and supervision evidenced, not assumed
- Reasonably practicable assessments recorded
Duties to non-employees
Persons other than employees who may be affected by the undertaking, which brings contractors, visitors and the public into scope.
- Contractor induction and competence records
- Site access controls with evidence
- Contractor agreements under the Construction Regulations
- Visitor and public exposure assessed where relevant
Assignment and appointments
The section 16(2) assignment of duties, and the designation of health and safety representatives, each of which must be in writing.
- Appointments held with dates and signatures
- Scope of each assignment recorded
- Reappointment prompted when roles change
- Representative numbers checked against headcount
Health and safety committees
Committees established where required, meeting at the required intervals, with their recommendations recorded.
- Committee composition and meeting calendar
- Attendance and minutes retained
- Recommendations tracked as actions to closure
- Matters escalated to management recorded
Incident reporting and investigation
Reportable incidents notified to an inspector, and incidents investigated with the findings recorded.
- Incident register with reportability assessed
- Notification to the inspector evidenced with its date
- Investigation findings and root cause recorded
- Corrective actions carried until closed with evidence
Regulation-specific duties
Construction, General Safety, Hazardous Chemical Agents, Environmental Regulations for Workplaces and the rest, each with their own appointments, inspections and registers.
- Applicable regulations identified per site
- Statutory appointments held per regulation
- Inspection and test registers with due dates
- Certificates of compliance tracked to expiry
How Dimeri covers OHSA
The section 37 defence is an evidence exercise. Everything below exists so that the evidence is already there when it is needed.
Appointments that have not lapsed
Written appointments under section 16(2) and the regulations carry dates and scope, and reappointment is prompted when a role changes. An appointment naming someone who left two years ago is a common and avoidable finding.
Reasonable steps, recorded as steps
Training delivered, inspections done, instructions given and enforcement applied are captured as they happen with dates and names. That is what the section 37 defence is made of, and it cannot be assembled after an incident.
Contractors inside the system
Section 9 and the Construction Regulations bring contractors into scope. Their inductions, competence and agreements are held alongside your own, not in a separate folder that nobody reconciles.
One hazard register with ISO 45001
The hazards the Act obliges you to identify are the ones ISO 45001 clause 6.1.2 requires. Recorded once, they evidence the statutory duty and the management system together.
Getting OHS Act coverage in place
- 1
Establish which regulations apply
The general duties apply everywhere, but Construction, Hazardous Chemical Agents, Driven Machinery and the others depend on your activities. Identifying them per site is what makes the appointment and inspection obligations concrete.
- 2
Load appointments and representatives
Section 16(2) assignments, health and safety representatives and regulation-specific appointments are recorded in writing with dates, scope and the person named.
- 3
Build the hazard and inspection cycle
Hazards are registered per site and activity, controls attached, and statutory inspections and tests scheduled with owners and due dates.
- 4
Run incidents through to closure
Incidents are captured, reportability assessed against section 24, investigation findings recorded, and corrective actions tracked until evidence closes them.
OHSA questions
What does section 37 actually mean for us?
Where an employee or mandatary commits an offence under the Act, the employer is deemed to have committed it as well, unless it proves it did not connive or permit the act, that it took all reasonable steps to prevent it, and that the act fell outside the scope of authority. The practical effect is that the employer must be able to produce evidence of the steps it took, which means appointments, training records, inspections and enforcement have to exist in documented form.
Does the OHS Act apply to mines?
No. Mines fall under the Mine Health and Safety Act 29 of 1996, enforced by the DMRE inspectorate rather than the Department of Employment and Labour. Organisations with both mining and non-mining operations run both, and Dimeri holds them as separate obligation sets over a shared control library.
Which incidents have to be reported?
Section 24 requires certain incidents to be reported to an inspector, including those resulting in death, certain injuries, or where a person is unable to work for a defined period, along with specified dangerous occurrences. The assessment of reportability should be recorded with the incident, since a decision not to report is as significant as the report itself.
Do we need a health and safety committee?
Section 19 requires committees where two or more health and safety representatives have been designated, and representatives are required once the workforce reaches the threshold in section 17. Both turn on headcount per workplace, so the calculation should be recorded rather than assumed.
Is this a substitute for legal advice?
No. OHS Act breaches carry criminal liability, and section 37 exposure is personal to the employer and in some cases to individuals. Your health and safety and legal advisers should confirm what applies to your operation.
Put OHSA on one register
Every requirement mapped to a control with a named owner, the evidence held against it, and one view of where you stand.