Businesses Urged to Improve Change Management as Workplace Risks Increase During Operational Transitions

Health and safety professionals are warning businesses that organisational change is becoming an increasingly significant source of workplace risk, with many incidents and near misses occurring during periods of restructuring, expansion, relocation or process modification.

Industry reviews have found that while businesses often focus heavily on the commercial and operational aspects of change, the associated health and safety implications do not always receive the same level of attention. Safety specialists say this can create situations where new risks emerge without being fully assessed or controlled.

A spokesperson for the Health and Safety Executive said organisations should ensure that health and safety considerations form part of all significant business changes. “Changes to people, processes, equipment, locations or organisational structures can introduce new hazards. These risks should be identified and managed before changes are implemented,” the spokesperson said.

Safety consultants report that common examples include introducing new machinery, relocating operations, altering shift patterns, increasing production capacity or integrating acquired businesses. In many cases, existing risk assessments and procedures are based on previous operating conditions and may no longer reflect the reality of the workplace once changes take place.

“Businesses are often surprised by how quickly risk profiles can change,” said Rebecca Turner, an occupational safety consultant working with manufacturing and service-sector organisations. “A process that was safe yesterday may not be safe after a change in staffing levels, equipment layout or workload. The challenge is recognising those risks before they result in an incident.”

Recent audits have identified cases where operational changes were implemented without sufficient consultation with employees, leading to confusion about responsibilities and safe working practices. In some instances, employees were expected to work with unfamiliar equipment or revised procedures before receiving adequate training.

Industry bodies say that organisational change can also affect less visible risks, including fatigue, workload pressures and communication breakdowns. Where roles are altered or resources reduced, employees may face increased demands that create additional safety concerns.

“People often focus on physical hazards during change,” Turner explained. “But changes can also affect competence, supervision and decision-making. These factors are equally important from a health and safety perspective.”

Some organisations have responded by introducing formal change-management processes that require health and safety reviews before significant operational changes are approved. Others are integrating safety representatives and frontline employees into planning activities to identify potential issues at an early stage.

Insurance providers and auditors are also paying greater attention to change-related risks. Businesses are increasingly being asked to demonstrate how health and safety considerations are incorporated into project planning, operational improvements and strategic decision-making.

The growing focus reflects a wider recognition that many workplace incidents occur not during routine activities, but during periods of transition when established controls may no longer be effective. Safety professionals say organisations that manage change successfully are typically those that view it as a risk-management exercise rather than simply an operational project.

As businesses continue to adapt to changing market conditions, technology and workforce demands, effective management of change is expected to remain a key area of health and safety governance. For organisations operating under frameworks such as ISO 45001, demonstrating that health and safety risks are assessed and controlled during organisational change is increasingly viewed as an important indicator of management system maturity and resilience.

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