RECENT NEWS

Most businesses treat health & safety as a one-off “We’ve got our policies sorted.” “We did that last year.” These are things we hear often from NZ business owners and managers when health and safety comes up. On the surface, it makes sense. You’ve created documents, completed a risk assessment, and inducted your staff. It feels like a job that has been ticked off the list. But this is where a common misunderstanding comes in. Health and safety is often treated like a checkli

Why “health & safety” feels confusing for many NZ businesses If you run a business in New Zealand, you have probably been told you “need health and safety”. What that actually means, however, is often far less clear. For many business owners and office or operations managers, health and safety feels like a mix of paperwork, policies, templates and vague obligations. You might have a folder of documents, or something a previous manager put together years ago, but still feel un

Contractors play a critical role in many New Zealand businesses, particularly across construction, manufacturing, trades, and maintenance services. While engaging contractors brings flexibility and specialist skills, it also introduces additional health and safety risks if not managed well. This is where contractor prequalification, often referred to as prequal, becomes essential. In the context of workplace safety in New Zealand, contractor prequalification helps businesses

Running a small business in New Zealand means wearing many hats. Health and safety is one of those responsibilities that can feel overwhelming, especially when you don't have a dedicated safety manager or HR team. The good news is that practical health and safety systems for small businesses in NZ do not need to be complex, expensive, or time-consuming to be effective. With the right systems in place, you can protect your people, meet your legal obligations, and build a safer

The number of notifiable incidents has steadily risen over the last few years; both COVID-19 and economic hardship could play a role in this. However, there are methods businesses can utilise to reduce the likelihood of notifiable incidents occurring. From cultivating a safety culture to proactively identifying hazards, there is much leadership can do.

When organisations across New Zealand start developing a health and safety system, one key question always comes up – should we build it ourselves or bring in a professional? We recently revisited a conversation with a local organisation that highlights this exact challenge. It is a situation we see often within Kiwi businesses, especially those balancing limited resources with growing compliance responsibilities under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015. So, what is the r