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Health & Safety Auditing: An introduction

Definition of Audit

The Audit is a systematic, independent, and documented process for obtaining audit evidence and evaluating it objectively to determine the extent to which the audit criteria are fulfilled. (as per ISO45001 ,3.32)

It is the structural process of collecting independent information on the efficiency, effectiveness, and reliability of the total H&SMS and drawing up plans for corrective actions.

It is the systematic, objective, and critical evaluation mechanism that verifies that an organization’s OHSMS is in place and operating effectively.

For example:

Internal Audit ( e.g. by Internal team members)
External Audit ( e.g. Third party Audit)

An audit is a tool that you can use to assess compliance in the workplace.

Benefits of OHSMS Auditing

What are the benefits of audits?

Concern for harm – The caring approach and concern for harm will be demonstrated by fewer injuries and greater employee loyalty.
Financial benefits – Avoidance of increased insurance premiums, increased operating costs, fewer process interruptions, all of which may lead to enhanced shareholder value.
Business benefits – Fewer business interruptions, less lost time, improved profitability.
Image benefits – Personal pride and improved public relations. Enhanced corporate image can lead to improvements in recruitment quality.
Management benefits – Include ‘peace of mind’, confidence in H&S standards, a continuous improvement process and a consistent approach (avoiding repeated safety initiatives).
Legal benefits – The avoidance of fines, imprisonment, legal costs and civil claims.

Objectives/ Purpose of OHSMS Auditing

The intention of an audit is to provide critical feedback on the Safety management system so that appropriate follow-up action can be taken.

Negative aspect of Audit :

(To examine the ineffectiveness, shortcomings, deficiency, non-compliances , violations , non-conformities , system failures, weakness of safety management system etc.)

To examine the failing of a OHSMS
To examine Whether appropriate management arrangements are in place or not.
To examine that adequate risk control systems exist or not - that they are implemented, and are consistent with the hazard profile of the organisation.
Appropriate workplace precautions are in place or not.
Ensure Legal compliances with policies and regulations
Identify operational inefficiencies
Validating safety policy and H&S strategy
Testing safety compliance and verifying progress
Establishing the current level of safety performance
Identifying areas of high hazard and risk issues
Summarising the current strengths and weaknesses
Producing prioritised action lists and plans

Positive aspect of Audit :

For Continual/Continuous improvement in SMS
Setting future safety performance targets/goals/aims
Improving the management of resources ( good management practices )
Helps to Organisational learning/lesson learning and assurance .
Helps to Business Improvements/ System Improvements.
Increase HSMS system credibility, goodwill /reputation.
Able to implement best practices.
Helps in H&S performance review
It demonstrate commitments to compliance.
It helps in increasing employees awareness of safety and H&S regulations.
Identify possible cost savings
Indirect – Risk Assessment up-dation/review, H&S policy review

What are the main reason to conduct the regular inspection and safety audit?

Here are the reasons that organisation should conduct regular inspections and safety audits:

To determine if you your Safety & Health programs and procedures are working.
To verify that your employees and management are engaged in your safety programs.
To verify that your processes are in compliance with company policies and regulations.
To verify compliance with applicable OSHA rules.
To determine if you are documenting your safety and health program activities properly.
To discover and identify potential hazards.
To evaluate the effectiveness of existing management controls.
To check the safety of your workplace.
To check the safety of your equipment.
To evaluate the adequacy of your supervisors' safety training and performance.
To evaluate the adequacy of your employees' safety training and performance.

Group Discussion:

Why H&S management system should be audited ?
What are the positive aspects of a safety audit program?
What are the negative aspects of a Safety audit program?

Distinction Between Audit & Inspection

(Difference between Audit & Inspection)

What is the difference between an audit and an inspection?

The difference between a Safety Audit and Inspection

The main difference between audits and other forms of monitoring (safety surveys, inspections, tours and sampling,) is primarily the breadth and depth of an audit.

Safety Surveys look at only one aspect of the OH&SMS, Safety inspections are frequent regular local monitoring normally carried out by line managers, tours concentrate on management commitment, sampling looks at only one area or subject over a short limited time.

An audit is the process of checking that compliance obligations have been met, including that the required inspections have been done.

Audits are typically performed less frequently than inspections. The goal of an audit is usually to assess overall compliance with one or more regulations, internal policies, or other compliance drivers.

Audits are typically conducted by a third-party to the site being audited, which could include an auditor from a corporate department or an auditor completely external to the company.

Audits also allow a company to “self-check” to make sure everything is fine.

What is the difference between an audit and an inspection?

Understanding the differences between these two actions is important for the daily practices within your organisation. Confusing one with the other could potentially lead to certain standards or legislation not being met, which can cause long term problems. These problems can include penalties, reduced income and damage to your brand – all of which can be easily avoided with the correct knowledge.

Below are five key differences between an inspection and an audit.

1) Inspections focus on what, audits focus on why

“Are the fire extinguishers where they should be?” is a very different question to “Who owns fire safety management?”.

The first is a binary question which will get a straightforward "yes / no" response. This is an inspection.

The second has various layers. It requires exploratory reviews involving risk assessments, training records, documentation, supplier reviews, equipment analysis, nonconformities etc. This is an audit.

The different types of questions require tools to match.

2) Inspections focus on an action, audits are the process

Another difference between an audit and an inspection is that inspections review a single point in time. Alternatively, audits follow a process from start to finish. For example, an audit of new business may consider:

Existing customer lifetime value
Existing customer satisfaction and feedback
Marketing process
Sales roles
On-boarding
Customer lifetime journey

An inspection may check that the process is being completed according to plan at set intervals.

Internal audits can be incredibly expensive. They take vast amounts of time, energy, and resources.

In an IIA survey of medium and large sized organisations, nearly 70% of internal audit assignments take more than 15 days to compile.

3) Inspections are quantitative, audits are qualitative

If you’re a multi-site or large facility, you’ll be doing hundreds of inspections. Audits explore details and complexities. Many questions can't be answered with a simple yes or no.

4) Inspections are simple, audits are complex

This is a bit of a generalisation. However, inspections tend to be much more straightforward than an audit. In an inspection, you may check the lightbulbs are all there. If they aren’t, the action is to get more lightbulbs. In an audit, you might be exploring why the lightbulbs were missing. This will take more consideration.

5) Inspections create actions, audits create recommendations

Inspections usually produce straightforward actions. In an audit there are recommendations to review. The average internal audit report contains 6-10 recommendations.

An inspection is typically something that a site is required to do by a compliance obligation.

A safety inspection is an on-site walk through to identify potential hazards to occupants and personnel and options for remedial action.

Purpose:

Inspection: Inspections assess if the safety processes effectively ensure the H&S of the organization’s team members. The ISO 45001:2018 definition states an inspection as “‘determination of conformity to specified requirements’ (3.11.7).”

Audit: An audit is a more in-depth examination of how the company manages team members’ H&S.

The same ISO standards define an audit as “‘the systematic, independent and documented process for obtaining objective evidence and evaluating it objectively to determine the extent to which audit criteria are fulfilled’ (3.13.1).”

The structure

Inspection: An inspection may be a simple examination of the presence or lack of compliance. An audit will check compliances over a longer duration and examine if there is any deviation from expectations. The answer to an inspection is typically a ‘yes’ / ‘no’ format.

Audit: Audit process involves many layers and multiple touchpoints. It can cover risk assessment, documentation, and training details. It also covers maintenance details of the various parts of the equipment (and more such equipment) across different sites.

Action vs. Process

Inspection: An inspection will be at a single point in time. So the action of an EHS inspector checking mechanical equipment to conform with H&S standards is termed as an inspection.

Audit: An audit will be a thorough check of the organization’s H&S protocols and processes. So this process will uncover insights on two key points:

Does the organization comply with current safety regulations?
What are the vulnerabilities to complying with H&S processes?

Area of focus

Inspection: Inspections focus on safety hazards in the work environment.

Audit: An audit will focus on the processes employed by an organization to prevent these safety hazards and address worker safety issues.

Level of complexity

Inspection: Inspections are prone to be simpler in nature. The person may simply tick off a safety point against a checklist to complete the inspection work.

Audit: An audit is more complex and has involvement from multiple teams to get the work done. It uses various data sources (including inspection data and exploratory surveys), policies, and documentation. These data sources assist the auditors in doing a department-wide audit and identifying potential risks and improvement areas. Such elaborate steps help strengthen the safety process in the work environment.

The outcomes

Inspection: The end result of both processes is vastly different. An inspection will uncover safety hazards or health risks. So if there is insufficient lighting for a particular machinery operation, the inspection will show that there needs to be more bulbs installed to improve working conditions and worker safety.

Audit: An audit will be more detailed. It will chart out why the area had less than adequate lighting. It also outlined the safety vulnerabilities in such situations. It ends with recommendations on how this issue can be addressed so that there is no risk from such vulnerabilities. Such audit reports give actionable decision-making assistance to the management.

Group Discussion:

What is the difference between an audit and an inspection?

Types of Audits:

Three types of Audit:

Product Audits

The American Society for Quality (ASQ) defines a product audit as:

The goal of a product safety audit is to identify design defects, which comprise a high percentage of product liability claims. Compliance with government or industry voluntary standards constitutes design minimums and may not be sufficient to ensure a “reasonably safe” product.

“An examination of a particular product or service (hardware, processed material, software) to evaluate whether it conforms to requirements (that is, specifications, performance standards, and customer requirements).”

Product audits take place after manufacturing is complete, but before the product reaches the customer. If a product doesn’t meet safety standard requirements or specifications, the auditor documents the findings and logs a non-conformance.

While each company will have its own procedures for addressing non-conformances, the product audit steps typically includes:

Identifying the problem
Containing the non-conformance
Reworking or repairing the products, if possible
Disposing of nonconforming products if you can’t rework or repair them
Determining the necessary countermeasures for preventing recurrence
Product audits can help a manufacturer improve quality, profits, customer satisfaction, and loyalty.
There is some Limitations like : you must do them consistently and effectively, taking steps to identify process errors that are the root cause of defects.
If you don’t, you’ll still see high internal failure rates and an increased likelihood of defects going undetected until they reach the customer.

Factors to consider for Product Safety Audit

Statutory and regulatory requirements for product safety – the organization needs to identify all legal and other requirements related to product safety. This can include the methods of identification and review of this information.
Customer requirements regarding product safety – usually, this information is clearly stated by the customer, but there are always some requirements that are implied and are part of the bullet above.
Safety-related characteristics of the product – considering the lifecycle of the product and how it is used, the organization needs to identify those characteristics that are relevant for product safety.
Product safety-related controls at the point of manufacture – the organization needs to establish appropriate process controls to ensure that the product meets safety requirements.
Special approval of process FMEA and control plans – special approval is additional approval by the function (usually the customer) that is responsible for approving such documents with safety-related content.
Reaction plans – these usually include containment of the product and 100% inspection if necessary.
Responsibilities, including the escalation plan and flow of information to the top management and the customer.
Training for the personnel involved in the product safety and manufacturing process (training requirements can come from the organization itself or from the customer).
Approval of the changes in the product or process, including evaluation of the effects of the changes on the product safety.
Transfer of the product safety requirements throughout the supply chain, including customer-designated sources.
Product identification and traceability have been expanded to ensure clear start and stop points for the product received by the customer, or in the field, that may contain quality- and/or safety-related nonconformities, with the same requirements extended to externally provided products with safety/regulatory characteristics. The IATF stated that this requirement was strengthened to support industry lessons learned related to field issues.
Control of reworked product is a new requirement in the 2016 revision of the standard. Within this new clause, the organization is required to obtain approval from the customer prior to commencing rework of any the safety and regulatory characteristics related to the product.
Disposition of nonconforming product is another scope expansion of the new standard, requiring product not meeting safety and regulatory requirements to be scrapped and rendered unusable prior to disposal.
Lastly, the management review inputs are required to include a review of actual field failures and their impact on safety or the environment.

Product audit: making sure the product meets all specifications.

1. Are all dimensions/specifications correct.?

2. Is it in the proper box/container?

3. Is the container properly labeled?

4. Is all paperwork completed properly?

Process Audits

A process audit is an examination of results to determine whether the activities, resources and behaviours that cause them are being managed efficiently and effectively.

A process audit is not simply following a trail through a department from input to output - this is a transaction audit.

In contrast with rear-facing product inspections, process audits focus on how your team prepares, produces, packages and distributes those products.

This approach provides a more comprehensive view of the value stream than product audits, which only sample the finished output.

Process audits look at details of the manufacturing process such as:

Fabrication steps
Safety measures
Temperature settings
Pressure readings
Calibration of gauges

A safety-focused process audit question might ask the auditor to verify if the operator is wearing safety goggles, a hardhat, and steel-toed boots.

If the answer is no, the auditor would note a non-conformance and ask the operator to put on the appropriate PPE.

Example: Basic Process Safety information for process industry

Process Safety Information

>Hazards of the Chemicals Used in the Process

>Technology of the Process

>Equipment in the Process

>Employee Involvement

Process Hazard Analysis

Operating Procedures

Employee Training

Contractors

Pre-Startup Safety Review

Mechanical Integrity of Equipment
Process Defenses
Written Procedures
Inspection and Testing
Quality Assurance
Non-routine Work Authorizations
Managing Change
Incident Investigation
Emergency Preparedness
Compliance Audits
Planning
Staffing
Conducting the Audit
Evaluation and Corrective Action

Process audit - making sure the product was made per the defined procedure/plan/arrangement.

Example questions:

1. Was raw material purchased from an approved supplier?

2. Was material inspected per the inspection requirements?

3. Were gages used calibrated?

4. Is material in storage properly labeled, protected, etc?

5. Were proper instructions followed for removing items from inventory (rotation, handling, etc.)?

6. Was part made on correct machine per the control plan?

7. Was SPC done as defined on the control plan?

8. Was process rate per requirement?

9. Do quality levels meet requirements (scrap, etc.)?

10. Are all steps on the control plan followed in the proper order?

11. Were inspection requirements followed?

12. Is the nonconforming product procedure followed when necessary?

How Product and Process Auditing Provide Absolute Accountability?

Audit will :

Are your suppliers’ adhering to all requirements?
Assure accuracy of drawings and requirements
Review suitability of materials used
Assess machine capability
Determine appropriateness of workers’ skills and training
Validate appropriate use of proper measuring devices
Evaluate production flow and reveal production “bottlenecks”

Safety Management System (SMS) Audit

(e.g. ISO45001 / HSG65/ ILO-OSH-2001)

Each aspects of OHSMS is audited.
The Occupational health and Safety Management System (OHSMS) Audit is a major exercise, typically carried out every years, as a means of assessing the adequacy of the whole organization's SMS.
It addresses all aspects of safety management ( policy, resources allocation, leadership, planning , support, Risk control measures , performance evaluation) in a structured manner, using written questions.
Answers will be confirmed by a review of records, staff interviews, and observation of workplaces and operations.
The OHSMS Audit may benefit from being undertaken by a person or persons independent of the organization and should, where practicable, be carried out in real time.

What should be contained in the system audit protocols and procedures?

The protocols and procedures for the audit on the health and safety management system should include the following:

the allocation of resources to the process
personnel requirements, including that of the audit team, i.e. competence required for auditors (auditors should have the appropriate training and skills so that they can assess physical, human and other factors and the use of procedures as well as documents or records - wherever possible, auditors should be independent of the activity being audited and include support from a wider range of specialists if necessary)
the methodologies for conducting and documenting the audits, which may include checklists, questionnaires, interviews, measurement and direct observation
the procedures for reporting audit findings to those responsible to facilitate timely corrective action and improvement
a system for auditing and tracking the implementation of audit recommendations to include addressing the possible need for changes to safety and health policy, objectives and other elements of the safety and health management system.

Compliance Audit

The compliance audit is done to check whether you have complied with all the applicable safety laws, standards, and other requirements.

The compliance audit can be done by government safety inspector or other external safety auditors. This depends on your country’s safety rules, safety management system, etc.

Audit Compliance Status in respect of ISO Standards

Audit Compliance status with Legal Regulations

The audit stages (Steps)

Notification of the audit ( pre audit meeting and Objective of the audit is determined.)
Pre-audit preparations,
Forming of competent audit team,
Time – informing audit schedule
Resources required
Information gathering ( collect the relevant documents and evidences)
Information analysis
Post Audit meeting
Completion of audit report and submission of same
Action by organization

Audit Process /The audit stages (Steps)

(Three main stages of Audit)

Pre-Audit Preparations

Notification of the audit ( pre audit meeting and Objective of the audit is determined.)
Pre-audit preparations,
Forming of competent audit team,
Time – informing audit schedule
Resources required

During the Audit

Information gathering ( collect the relevant documents and evidences)
Information analysis

Post Audit (at End of the Audit)

Post Audit meeting
Completion of audit report and submission of same
Action by organization

Basic Audit Process:

Notification of Audit

Audit notifications are sent out in advance as required by policy, typically a month before the engagement, for audits included in the approved annual audit plan.

The audit notification communicates authority for performing the audit, the scope and the overall objectives.

In this stage, the auditors are planning the engagement and gaining an understanding of your mission and objectives in order to tailor the audit to your needs.

E.g. notification letter

Competent Audit Team (Selection of appropriate audit team)

What Makes a Good Auditor?

(Refer : ISO 19001 )

For reliable audits, the following are the audit principles that an auditor should adhere to, set out by ISO 19011:2018 Guidelines for Auditing Management Systems.

Integrity & Professionalism
Ethical conduct
Fairness (Fair Presentation)
Independence & Confidentiality
Risk and Evidence based approach

Other Competency for an Auditor or Audit Team

Formal auditing training
Prior auditing experience
Experience of similar activity to that carried out in the audited unit
A thorough understanding of the relevant regulatory requirements
Sufficient seniority to stand up to the local senior manager
Knowledge of the local language and culture (if overseas)
Professional HSE knowledge

Pre-Audit Preparations- (Resources for auditors)

Documents that may be consulted prior to audit (policy etc.)
Accommodation arrangements ( In-house, Hotel rooms if required) ,
Logistics (meeting room booking, travel arrangement etc.)
Computer for report writing,
PPEs requirement before entering into Hazardous site.
Induction training and Site Visit arrangement

Scope of the Audit

Defining the scope of audit (ISO-45001, Health, Safety etc.); (Statement of what is to be audited)

Extent of audit (comprehensive or restricted to specific aspects of management system);

Who will be required ( Auditor & Auditee representative( Management Representative))?

Introduce the members of the audit team to the auditee’s senior management
Identification of auditee’s audit manager/coordinator (Who will be required.-personnel involved in audit(trained auditors –external or internal, persons coordinating, persons to interact);

Documents that may be consulted prior to audit

Minimum, Following documents may be consulted prior to audit:

Location layout plan (for large and complex offices or factories)
Organisation chart of the management of the unit
Previous audit reports (Obtaining relevant previous audit reports and action lists)
Auditor’s guidance notes or rules
Checklists or protocols
Quantitative reporting process, if required
Blank copies of auditor’s working papers
Organization H&S policy & mission statement

During entry meeting (Opening meeting)

Entry meeting presentational material or notes ( Auditor & Company Profile)
Explain Audit programme
Agreement on working and reporting languages
Target numbers of discussions to be carried out
Review the scope and the objectives of the audit
Provide a short summary of the methods, procedures and programme to be used to conduct the audit
Establish official communication links between the audit team and the auditee
Confirm that the resources and facilities needed by the audit team are available
Confirm the time and date for the closing meeting
Clarify any unclear details on either side
Details of any special rules or requirements of the local management, such as confidentiality agreements (NDA- Non-disclosure agreement) and special PPEs requirements
Audit report style

During Audit Process

(How information is gathered during Audit by Auditor ?)

Information sources are usually approached through:

Assemble the evidence
Gather and consider documentation (Collect documents & records).
On site interviewing ( Interviewing managers and workers)
Review and assessment of additional documents,
Observation of physical conditions, work activities, workplace , equipment and behaviour
evaluate the evidence;

Documents Examined in Audit (Information gathered during Audit)

Health and safety policy.
Performance objectives and KPIs
Risk assessments (Risk & Opportunities as determined by the auditee)
SSW Procedures (e.g. PTW, JSA , JHA , SOPs)
Training records (e.g. TBT, Induction).
Statutory inspection reports
Previous Enforcement Notices
Minutes of safety-committee meetings.
Maintenance records.
Record of monitoring activities(Tours, Surveys etc.)
Accident-investigation reports and data.
Legal Requirement
Emergency arrangements.
Inspection reports from insurance companies.
Regular visitors reports.
Worker complaints records,
Customer complaints records ,
Previous Audit Reports
Health surveillance and Medical Records
Accident data / Incident data (LTI etc.)
Welfare Records

Group Discussion:

What documents could be examined when reviewing an organization’s health and safety audit and explain why it is necessary to verify this information ?

What are the issues that need to be considered at the planning stage of the audit?

At the End of the Audit/ Closing meeting/ Exit Meeting

Post audit meeting (Exit Meeting):

Auditor will discuss (formal /informal) and write an audit report;
Auditor -Make presentation of findings to management and workforce representatives.

Verbal feedback session:

Audit findings to discuss with managers.
Discuss Highlights of the audit.

Report submission : After deliberate discussion, written report to be submitted to the management:

Findings. - Specify any unsafe practices(high risk/ major breach), which must cease immediately
Recommendations.
-Encourage the continuation of things which are being done well (good practices)
-Identify improvement opportunities where new practices need to be started
Priorities and timescales for NC (Non-conformities).

Methods to communicate monitoring results of Audit

(These are the common methods( Verbal, written and Graphic) for Safety Inspection / Review of OHSMS / Safety Performance Review / Risk Assessment/ Safety Policy)

• Team briefings

• Posting on notice boards

• Refresher trainings

• Tool box talks

• Intranet, newsletters

• Booklets

• Safety committee meetings

• Induction trainings

Action Taken by Organization following audits correcting Non-Conformities(NCs)

Corrective Plan to be implemented for major & minor NCs (CAPA- Corrective Action and Preventive action)

For Major non-conformance (Major NC):

Significant issue/shortcomings, needs urgent action. ( E.g. Protective equipment not functioning properly and may lead to dangerous situation any moment, Failure of apply Legal requirements etc.)

For Minor non-conformance (Minor NC):

Less serious issue, unlikely to result in injury or failure of management system.

Observations. ( An “observation” is a statement of fact made during an audit and substantiated by objective evidence. )

Opportunities for Improvement (OFI). improve the overall status and effectiveness of the Management System. They do not affect the recommendation for certification.

Major Nonconformity ( What is Major Nonconformity?)

A major nonconformity is the total breakdown of a system meaning you fail to meet a requirement of the standard.

A number of minor nonconformities against one requirement can represent a total breakdown of the Management System and thus be considered a major nonconformity.

Major nonconformities must be rectified before certification can be recommended by the Auditor.

This may involve a further site visit by the Auditor.

Minor Nonconformity ( What is a Minor Nonconformity?)

A minor nonconformity may be either a failure or a single observed lapse in some part of the management system.

Minor nonconformities do not affect the recommendation for approval but must be addressed prior to the issue of your certificate.

Opportunities for Improvement (OFI). ( What do you mean by opportunities for improvements)

These relate to existing conditions which, according to the Auditor, may warrant clarification or investigation so as to improve the overall status and effectiveness of the Management System.

They do not affect the recommendation for certification.

Responsibility for the Audit ( Who are responsible for Audit?)

The organisation.
It is the responsibility of management at all levels to ensure recommendations for improvement are communicated and implemented.

External authorities:
Enforcement agencies.
Insurance companies.
Accreditation centres (ISO45001:2018 etc.)

Third Party Audit(TPA) ( What is Third part Audit?)

A Third-Party Audit (TPA) is an Audit organization which is independent of the Customer-supplier relationship and is free of any conflict of interest.

A TPA is when an external organisation (third-party) who undertakes an audit of an organisation, where the external organisation does not have a direct relationship to the Auditee organisation (the organisation being audited).

Ist Party ( Customer/Client/Organization)
IInd Party(Contractor/supplier)
IIIrd Party ( external Auditors/ Certification body)

Advantages and Limitations of External Auditor (Third Party Auditor-TPA)

Benefits or advantages of using the External Auditors / third party auditors:

Independent Approach: They come with a new perspective, having fresh pair of eyes, will be visiting first time at workplace and their mind will be free from any prejudice.
Critically evaluation: They can ask more in-depth questions to understand the systems which can elicit underlying problems and weakness of system.
Non-biased approach- They have no partiality in their audit reports as they are not working under the influence of management.
Competency: They have better auditing skills, up-to-date with legal requirement and best practices in industry, experience, knowledge and easily can evaluate like risk assessment, system & management failure.
Unaffected from other opinions: They will not be inhibited/reserved from criticizing members of management or the workforce.
Auditing done by Third party auditors’ improves credibility of system and confidence of management & stakeholder.
Their report help to maintain the ISO45001 certification and brings reputation to the organization.
Their Audit reports help for benchmarking & performance monitoring of the system.
Come with a new prospective
Independent of any internal influence( Independent Approach) ( will not be inhibited from criticizing members of management.)
Fresh pair of eyes
May have wider experienced at auditing- more exposure
Competency level is very high
Experience of different types of workplace.( may have solutions learnt elsewhere that would benefit the organization)
Recommendations often carry more weight- used in benchmarking
Up to date with law/ legal requirements
More able to be critical (Critically evaluation)
Unbiased Approach (Unaffected from other opinions)
Need to ask more questions to understand the systems in operation which can elicit underlying / root problems.

Disadvantages/ Limitations of External Auditor

More Expensive
More Time-consuming
Are unlikely to be familiar with the workforce, tasks and processes,
Will not be familiar with the workforce and their individual attitudes to H&S and will have difficulty in obtaining their full cooperation
May not understand the business so make impractical suggestions ( may be unfamiliar with the industry and seek unrealistic standard)
May intimidate(threatened) workers so get incomplete evidence

Advantages and limitations of the Internal Auditor:

Advantages of Internal Auditors:

Less expensive & Less time consuming ( may be less costly and easier to arrange than an external auditor.)
Auditors are already familiar with the workplace, system, processes of the organization
Are likely to aware of what is practicable for the industry.
Can see changes since last audit
Improves ownership of issues found
Are familiar with the workforce and an individual’s qualities and attitudes

Limitations /disadvantages of Internal Auditor

Biased approach - Could be influenced by internal relationships (Biased reporting that lacks critical insight and has the potential for errors)
May not give honest views from the workforce for fear of consequences.
Conclusions may not be taken seriously (Weaker acceptance with shareholders and agencies).
The auditor may make assumptions ( Auditors may not notice certain issues.)
Auditors may be less likely to be aware of best practices of other industry/organization.
May not be up-to-date with legal standards (Lack of specialization in Health and Safety )
Competency-Auditors may not possess auditing skills so may need training
May be subjected to pressure from management and the workforce( like time constraints imposed upon them)