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Contractor health and safety expectations: guidance for supply chain partners

Published: | Category: Health and safety , Specifications | Audiences: Road controlling authorities, Road traffic engineers & consultants, Roading contractors

As a person conducting a business or undertaking (PCBU) Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency has a duty to ensure the health, safety and wellbeing of all its supply partners, so far as reasonably practicable.

Industry good practice identifies that a lead contracting PCBU, doesn’t often control a workplace but significantly influences the health and safety practices and behaviours of downstream contractors working for them. As a major influencer in the construction industry we have an obligation to lead the way in keeping workers safe.

Waka Kotahi Contractor health and safety expectations: guidance for supply chain partners document forms part of a wider contractor management process currently being developed. It will replace the Zero Harm portal and all previous ‘Zero Harm Minimum Standards’ related health and safety minimum standards. 

Minimum standards

ConstructSafe was removed as a Waka Kotahi requirement for work on state highway projects in 2019. Industry has worked with CHASNZ and Site Safe to develop site access requirements which has requirement to demonstrate health and safety competency of all workers on construction sites. Construct Safe is a way of demonstrating this competence within this industry standard but PCBU’s can opt to use other forms of assessment that also meet this standard.

CHASNZ Site Access requirements(external link) 

Waka Kotahi retains a strong commitment to contributing to improved health,  safety outcomes in the construction industry, and we will continue to work with CHASNZ to lift safety practice on state highway work sites.  For example, Waka Kotahi has worked closely with its supply partners and with CHASNZ to ensure compliance with strict health and safety protocols to keep staff and construction workers safe on state highway worksites under Covid-19 Alert Levels 2 and 3.

Waka Kotahi Contractor expectations: health and safety incident notification, investigation and reporting sets the expectations that Waka Kotahi has of its supply partners when a health, safety or wellbeing incident related to work undertaken for Waka Kotahi occurs.

Publication details

  • Author:
  • Published: June 2020
  • Version: 2