Following the release of  ISO 45001—Occupational health and safety management systems – Requirements with guidance for use—in March, a technical specification has been created to ensure those auditing the standard are up to scratch.

ISO/IEC TS 17021-10 Conformity assessment – Requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of management systems – Part 10: Competence requirements for auditing and certification of occupational health and safety management systems, defines the required skills and knowledge of bodies auditing organizations that have implemented ISO 45001.

The new technical specification intends to guarantee a harmonized approach to the accreditation of ISO 45001 certification. ISO/IEC TS 17021-10 is aimed at auditors—or anyone making certification decisions related to ISO 45001—and will ultimately serve certification, accreditation, and regulatory bodies by confirming that auditing and certification decisions related to ISO 45001 are completed by competent professionals.

Catherine Montagnon, co-convenor of the working group in charge of ISO/IEC TS 17021-10, said “ISO 45001 contains a number of requirements for which specific skills related to occupational health and safety are required to audit it effectively, such as those relating to terminology, principles, concepts, tools, and techniques.

“Therefore, it is necessary to have a dedicated conformity assessment document to ensure auditors have the right skills to do the job well,” Montagnon said.