IMS9.5.3 Incident Reporting Procedure

1.0   PURPOSE

The purpose of this procedure is to document the process for the timely reporting of health, safety and environmental hazards and incidents, including statutory reporting requirements.

 2.0   SCOPE

This procedure applies to Kelsian Group Limited ('Kelsian") businesses within:

• Australian Public Transport (APT)
• Kelsian Corporate
• SeaLink Marine and Tourism (M&T)

 3.0   RESPONSIBILITIES

General Managers / Managing Directors are responsible for:

• Promoting an environment that encourages open and honest communications about safety issues.
• Demonstrating and promoting leadership and commitment in line with a just and fair culture, by protecting workers from reprisals when reporting incidents and hazards.

Managers are responsible for:

• Implementing this procedure within their area of responsibility and ensuring necessary resources are provided to support in its implementation.
• Recording all hazards and incidents in their area of responsibility.
• Consulting with the Health and Safety Representative in their designated work group.
• Where an employee is injured, ensure contact is made with the Return to Work Coordinator where applicable.
• Ensuring that anyone injured receives appropriate first aid or medical treatment as necessary.
• If necessary, ensure the incident site is preserved and left undisturbed.
• Providing feedback to the originator/s of each incident or hazard report to foster a good reporting culture.

Business Unit HSEQ Manager is responsible for:

• Ensure notifiable incidents are reported to relevant State/Territory regulatory authorities.
• Ensuring SafeConnect remains current, containing correct incident data.

Kelsian HSEQ Department is responsible for:

• Managing SafeConnect reporting functionality.
• Providing advice and support to Business Units around incident reporting and investigation processes.

Workers are responsible for:

• Taking reasonable care of their own health, safety and well-being.
• Taking immediate action to make an area safe where reasonably practicable following an incident and bringing any hazard to the attention of others in the area.
• Reporting identified hazards and incidents to their manager and recording them within SafeConnect as soon as reasonably practicable.

4.0   HAZARD AND INCIDENT REPORTING

In the event of an incident or identification of a hazard:

• Workers should take reasonable steps to control the hazard to prevent further incidents/injury and seek first aid assistance if required.
• Workers must notify their manager as soon as practicable after the incident has occurred.
• Managers must take further steps immediately to eliminate the hazard and/or apply interim controls if required.
• All hazards and incidents are to be recorded in DataWeb/SafeConnect by the worker involved, or if this is not possible, by their manager, as soon as possible after it occurred and within at least 24 hours of it occurring. Incidents include:
  • ​Near Miss
  • Employee Injuries
  • Customer Injuries
  • Employee Occupational Illness/Disease
  • Customer Illness
  • Behaviour Reports
  • Environmental Incidents
  • Property Damage
  • Vehicle Damage
  • Vessel Incidents
  • Security Incidents
• If a worker has sustained an injury their manager must complete a report within DataWeb/SafeConnect within 24 hours of the injury occurring, and make contact with the Return to Work Coordinator where applicable.

DataWeb/SafeConnect will notify the appropriate persons, as agreed with the Business Units, of reported hazards and incidents.

Every effort should be made to provide feedback to the originator/s of the incident or hazard report to foster a good reporting culture.

5.0   STATUTORY AND OTHER EXTERNAL REPORTING REQUIREMENTS

If an incident occurs that is notifiable to a regulatory authority specific requirements and timeframes are required to be maintained. These are detailed in the sections below.
The manager of the site where a notifiable incident has occurred must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that the incident site is secure and not disturbed until the regulatory authority (e.g., SafeWork Investigator) arrives at the site or directs otherwise.
Preserving a site does not prevent any action required:

• To assist an injured person
• To remove a deceased person
• To make the site safe or to minimise the risk of a further incident
• To facilitate a police investigation
• For which an inspector or the regulator has given permission

Contractual arrangements may require additional reporting obligations. Details of these obligations are to be maintained within Business Unit work instructions.

6.0   NOTIFIABLE INCIDENTS AND REPORTING - WHS

The following incidents are to be reported by telephone or electronic means (e.g., email) to the State or Territory Safety Regulator immediately after becoming aware of an occurrence.

• The death of a person
• A serious injury or illness of a person
• A dangerous incident

Records of each notifiable incident must be retained for a period of 5 years from the day the notice of the incident was given to the regulator, in line with company retention policy.

7.0   NOTIFIABLE INCIDENTS AND REPORTING - MARINE

The following incidents must be reported to Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) as soon as reasonably practical by the completion of the AMSA Incident Alert Form (Form 18), with an Incident Report Form (Form 19) completed within 72 hours:

• Death or injury to a person associated with the operation or navigation of a vessel
• Loss or presumed loss of a vessel
• Collision with another vessel or object
• Grounding, sinking, flooding, or capsizing of a vessel
• Fire onboard a vessel
• Loss of stability that affects the safety of the vessel
• Structural failure of a vessel
• A close-quarters situation
• An event that results in, or could have resulted in:
  • ​Death or injury to a person on board a vessel
  • Loss of a person from a vessel
  • Vessel becoming disabled and requiring assistance
• Fouling or damaging by a domestic commercial vessel of:
  • Any pipeline or submarine cable
  • Any aid to navigation
• A prescribed incident involving a domestic commercial vessel

8.0   NOTIFIABLE INCIDENTS AND REPORTING – ENVIRONMENTAL

The mandatory reporting of environmental incidents can differ between States/Territories. The Business Unit is to ensure notifiable environmental incidents are understood and are reported to the State/Territory environmental authority.
Assistance with reporting and clarity on requirements can be provided by the Divisional Head of HSEQ.

9.0   SUPPORTING INFORMATION

10.0   REFERENCES

• ISO 9001:2015 Quality management systems - Requirements
• ISO 45001:2018 Occupational health and safety management systems – Requirements with guidance for use
• ISO 14001:2015 Environmental management systems – Requirements with guidance for use
• ISO 55001:2014 Asset – Management systems – Requirements
• Marine Safety (Domestic Commercial) National Law Act 2012
• Relevant State/Territory Work Health and Safety legislation
• Safe Work Australia Information Sheet – Incident Notification November 2015

11.0   DEFINITIONS

12.0   VARIATION

Where a Business Unit or employee identifies an impediment in their ability to comply with this document or part thereof, a Variation Form must be completed and submitted to the General Manager HSEQ (Systems & Governance) for approval.

All approved deviations must be recorded in writing for auditable evidence, compliance requirements, and a copy maintained by the General Manager HSEQ (Systems and Governance).

13.0   VERSION CONTROL

To ensure the HSEQ Management System remains relevant and maintains a focus on continuous improvement, this document must be reviewed at least every 2 years and where appropriate amended by the Document Control Procedure.