CSHS: Advancing the safety, health and sustainability of the global workplace.
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Research
Corporate Disclosure of Human Capital Metrics
Human capital metrics, including occupational safety and health data, frequently are collected by a majority of global companies, yet many of these firms are not publicly reporting the information. Human capital metrics are of increasing interest to global investors who understand that a sustainable workforce is critical to a company’s success, including its bottom line. The study’s conclusion draws on data from a 2016 survey conducted by RobecoSAM of nearly 2,000 of the largest companies traded on global exchanges. Survey respondents were far more likely to report human capital metrics than non-respondents, whose data was gathered solely from public reports, suggesting that many respondents collect metrics but do not disclose them. Research performed by Larry Beeferman and Aaron Bernstein of Harvard Law School and funded by the American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) and ASSP Foundation.
The Need for Standardized Sustainability Reporting Practices: Issues Relating to Corporate Disclosure of Information on Occupational Health & Safety Performance
This research updates CSHS's Current Practices report from 2013, providing insight into how organizations considered "sustainable" currently publicly disclose information on occupational health and safety (OHS). The report finds that voluntary sustainability reporting on OHS lacks the degree of rigor necessary to allow key stakeholders to effectively evaluate corporate performance or compare performance across organizations. It then makes recommendations on how the stakeholders involved can work together to bridge this gap.
CSHS Best Practice Guide for Occupational Health and Safety in Sustainability Reports
This guide provides occupational health and safety professionals with metrics and best practices in OHS sustainability reporting. Investors and other key stakeholders are demanding greater transparency in corporate reporting, presenting important implications for OHS performance reporting. It is with this end in mind that CSHS has launched an initiative to standardize OHS reporting that allows for comparison among organizations worldwide. Developed through global collaboration among the world's largest occupational health and safety professional bodies, these metrics are not radical, but are standards of performance which are already accepted, understood, and operationalized by those managing health and safety at work. They have a broader scope and wider applicability in assessing workplaces worldwide across all geographical boundaries.
The Accounting Revolution and the New Sustainability: Implications for the OSH Professional
This white paper provides an overview of emerging trends in sustainability and financial accounting practices that will have lasting ramifications for the occupational safety and health profession. With the increasing recognition that many non-financial topics such as OSH are integral to organizational performance, the OSH profession has an opportunity to partake in a dramatic transformation of the way that OSH is viewed and managed by organizations in the coming years. Designed as a primer for OSH professionals, this report provides a comprehensive analysis of current sustainability policies and practices and their implications for the management and oversight of OSH.
Current Practices in Occupational Health & Safety Sustainability Reporting
This research provides a “snapshot” of actual occupational health and safety (OHS) reporting by analyzing reports from organizations currently considered “sustainable.” The report presents an analysis of the extent to which organizations report OHS sustainability information – and whether that information provides insight into actual OHS performance. It also determines to degree to which information lends itself to being compared across organizations. Finally, the study aims to help the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) improve OHS indicators in future iterations of its sustainability reporting framework.
Best Practice Guide for Leading Health Metrics in Occupational Health and Safety Programs
Leading metrics can assist with prediction of and influence on health and safety performance related to occupational illness and worker health. Many common leading metrics currently in use focus on safety-related injuries and outcomes. Leading health metrics—those that focus on disease prevention and health preservation—are not as prevalent, often due to the complexities related to human health. However, leading health metrics could be extremely useful and important in promoting behaviors and actions shown to correlate with improved worker health. To fill the gap caused by few leading health metrics, the Center for Safety and Health Sustainability (CSHS) and American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) developed this guidance document, identifying leading health metrics for use by the broad community of occupational health and safety professionals.
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