Internal control: A strategy for occupational safety and health. Experiences from Norway

Abstract

This article discusses internal control as a systematic, verifiable strategy of safety and health management. Organizational means to improve safety and health in industry and parallels to principles of quality assurance are emphasized.

As a basis for developing a Norwegian research programme on internal control, a survey has been carried out comprising interviews with key personnel in the field, and on content analysis of selected public documents. The main results are presented and discussed.

The survey indicates that opinions differ significantly concerning what internal control really is. The answers can be grouped in three levels of functions and aspirations for internal control systems. Answers range from a bureaucratic documentation system imposed by the authorities to a powerful, integrated organizational means for improving safety. Most responses are somewhere in-between and deal with safety and health management systems for deviation control.

The paper summarizes challenges to internal control as a topic for future applied multi-diciplinary research.