The committee aims to develop a voluntary, consensus standard to help companies better manage their occupational safety and health performance. Plans call for developing a standard of management principles and systems to help organizations design and implement documented approaches to continuously improving their health and safety track record.

The standard will enable health and safety management to be integrated into a company’s overall business management systems. It will focus on principles that are broadly applicable to organizations of all sizes and types, not on detailed specifications. The standard will be compatible with relevant health, safety, environmental and quality management standards such as ISO 9000 and ISO 14000, and with approaches to OHS management commonly used today in the U.S.

The committee is chaired by Alan Leibowitz of ITT Defense and Electronics and vice-chaired by Jim Howe of the United Auto Workers International. It has a six-member steering committee and 31 additional members representing industry, labor, government, general interest, and professional organizations.

The committee is accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and the secretariat is the American Industrial Hygiene Association. For more information, contact AIHA’s David Gillum at (703) 849-8888.