What reporting on safety and health means
Sustainability information explains impacts on people, measures adopted and results. OSH forms part of this social dimension; it is not limited to publishing an accident rate or the number of courses delivered.
The ILO recognises a safe and healthy working environment as a fundamental principle and right. Reporting on it should also show how hazards are identified, concerns are heard and prevention is verified. An apparent improvement in an indicator does not, on its own, demonstrate a real improvement in conditions.
GRI 403 and ESRS S1: different references
GRI 403:2018 addresses information on safety and health management, harm prevention and outcomes. ESRS S1 concerns an organisation’s own workforce and includes safety and health information. The frameworks are related, but are not automatically interchangeable.
Before preparing data, confirm the framework, its version and the provisions applicable to the entity and reporting year. Revisions to standards can change references and requirements. This article addresses information preparation; it does not determine which companies must report or their reporting timetable.
Defining the boundary before calculating
Document which entities, sites and groups of workers are included in each indicator. Employees, non-employees and value-chain workers may require different treatment under the framework used.
The numerator and denominator must refer to compatible populations and periods. If contractor incidents are counted, check how the corresponding hours or headcounts are obtained. Explain exclusions, boundary changes and estimates. Without this information, two figures with the same name may describe different realities.
Creating a specification for each indicator
A data dictionary prevents sites from interpreting concepts differently. For each indicator, record the definition, unit, formula, population, source, owner and cut-off date. Add how duplicates or reclassified cases are corrected.
- Separate accidents, diseases and other absences.
- Retain the criterion determining which cases are recorded.
- Distinguish observed hours from estimated hours.
- Protect personal and health data.
Published aggregates should explain the result without revealing unnecessary individual information.
Explaining results without disguising reality
Provide context alongside figures: changes in activity, acquisitions, improved reporting or methodological differences. An increase in reports may reflect greater participation; a decline may conceal reporting difficulties. Compare results with the effectiveness of measures.
Avoid equating certification with coverage of the entire organisation or a guarantee of no harm. Check consistency between the report, records and evidence. If a figure changes, retain the explanation for the correction so comparisons remain understandable.
Hypothetical example: consolidating three sites
A group combines data from three sites for its report. Two count actual hours while the third has only estimates; additionally, one includes contractors in its cases but not in its hours.
Before publication, it agrees definitions, separates populations and documents the estimation permitted by the relevant framework. It also explains a scope change. The result is less striking than a standalone figure, but makes it possible to understand what it represents and review the calculation.
