Clause 5.2: OH&S policy
Top management sets up, puts in place and keeps an OH&S policy.
What clause 5.2 asks
Top management sets up, puts in place and keeps an OH&S policy. The policy commits the organization to providing working conditions that are safe and healthy so that injury and ill health caused by work are prevented, in a way that suits its purpose, size and context and the particular nature of the OH&S risks and opportunities it faces; gives a framework within which OH&S objectives are set; commits to meeting legal and other requirements; commits to removing hazards and lowering OH&S risks; commits to continual improvement of the system; and commits to consulting workers, and their representatives where they exist, and to their participation. The policy is documented, communicated within the organization, available to interested parties as appropriate, and relevant and appropriate.
The policy is a short public promise that has to match what the organization actually does. Every commitment in the clause has to be visible somewhere else in the system, or the policy is decoration.
A policy that names remote work and work-life balance. The ISO abstract says the guidance aims to protect the health and safety of remote workers and to maintain a balance between work and life. A policy that speaks only about the organization's own premises leaves the remote worker outside its promises. The policy should name remote work, the right to disconnect or the working-time expectations, the reporting route and the support available.
Basis: ISO, BSI. For clause 5.2, the public record is a draft guideline and does not state a requirement in terms that this site can quote. The clause 5.2 overlay is our reading of the public scope and the named summaries, not the draft text.
Evidence for clause 5.2
An auditor will read the policy against the objectives, the consultation records and the hierarchy of controls, and ask where each promise is kept.
- Policy Approved OH&S policy carrying every required commitment
- Policy Communication records to workers and contractors
- Policy Availability to interested parties (website, noticeboards)
- Policy Review records
Where clause 5.2 commonly fails
- Commitment to worker consultation and participation missing
- Policy not communicated to contractors
- Generic policy not tailored to the organization's hazards
What to do about clause 5.2 before the guidance lands
Add a remote working commitment to the policy: safe workspace, equipment, reporting, consultation, working-time expectations and support. Make sure the commitments are capable of being evidenced, and remove any promise the organization does not resource.
For clause 5.2, do the work that will be right under either instrument. The current requirement for clause 5.2 is ISO 45001:2018, and the certificate, if you hold one, is issued against it. The clause 5.2 remote working preparation is an extension of the existing duty to a group of workers the system already covers, not a new system and not a reason to rebuild around a draft.
Read across from clause 5.2
Open the full index. The public record behind clause 5.2 shows the scope and the themes.
Source for clause 5.2: ISO 45001:2018, clause 5.2, retrieved 20 October 2026, record at the standards library. The clause 5.2 remote overlay rests on the public 45008 record named above. The clause 5.2 requirement, evidence and gaps are written from our clause record. Every source.