Indicates whether the organization has policies in place to monitor, evaluate, and ensure worker safety.
Organizations should footnote details around these policies, including the practices in place to ensure compliance. See usage guidance for further information.
This metric is intended to capture whether the organization has created policies in line with international norms to protect the safety of its workers.
Worker safety entails placing and maintaining the worker in an environment adapted to the worker's physiological and psychological capabilities; preventing health-related departures caused by working conditions; promoting and maintaining the physical, mental, and social well-being of workers in all occupations; and protecting workers from health risks resulting from working conditions.
Examples of relevant policy details to footnote include: the process in place to assess safety risks, the frequency with which these risks are assessed, and the training and equipment provided to mitigate these risks.
Examples of training and equipment provided to mitigate worker safety risks include: safety training, required protective gear, testing of equipment, and posting of signs.
Organizations can refer to the SPI4 (http://cerise-spi4.squarespace.com/), specifically Essential Practice 5a5, for additional indicators related to worker safety. SPI4 is a social audit tool, developed for financial service providers, which can apply to any organization with both social and financial objectives.
This metric aligns with GRI Disclosure 403-8: Workers covered by an occupational health and safety management system.
Metrics identified as "cross-category" are those that are relevant to any IRIS+ Impact Category or Impact Theme (i.e., these metrics are not specific to any particular industry/category or theme).
June 2022 - IRIS v5.3 Released (current version)
Immaterial change. Minor revision to usage guidance for clarity.
May 2021 - IRIS v5.2 Released
Immaterial change. Minor revision to Usage Guidance for clarity.
January 2020 - IRIS v5.1 Released
No change.
May 2019 - IRIS v5.0 Released
No change.
March 2016 - IRIS v4.0 Released
Immaterial change. Minor revision to metric name and definition language in order to align consistency of metric with catalog's structure and style.
March 2014 - IRIS v3.0 Released
Material change. Metric definition and response format modified to provide clarity based on best practices and standard guidance.
November 2011 - IRIS v2.2 Released
No change.
February 2011 - IRIS v2.1 Released
No change.
September 2010 - IRIS v2.0 Released
New metric. Worker Safety (OI8001) was developed via the IRIS Taxonomy Development Group.
IRIS Metrics Work Better in Sets
To use IRIS metrics—and the resulting data—to understand impact performance, IRIS metrics should be used and analyzed in generally accepted sets and according to well-defined objectives. IRIS+ gives you access to generally accepted Core Metrics Sets aligned to common Impact Themes and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).