ISO 45001 and occupational safety requirements in Georgia

Georgian employers must meet the Organic Law on Occupational Safety whether or not they seek certification. ISO 45001 turns those legal duties into a managed system that also satisfies international clients and investors.

The legal baseline

The Organic Law of Georgia on Occupational Safety was adopted in February 2019 and has been amended several times since. It applies to all fields of economic activity, with exceptions for certain defence and security bodies. Its main duties for employers include:

• assessing workplace risks, keeping a written risk assessment and updating it when conditions change;
• a written prevention policy, using a risk methodology recognised by the International Labour Organisation;
• occupational safety specialists according to size: an employer with up to 20 employees may take the role personally after an accredited training programme, an employer with 20 to 100 employees must appoint at least one specialist, and from 100 employees a service with at least two specialists is required;
• instruction and training of workers at hiring, on transfer, before new processes and at regular intervals, during working hours and at no cost to the worker;
• preliminary and periodic medical examinations where legislation requires them;
• accident insurance for heavy, harmful and hazardous work;
• recording accidents and, in defined cases, informing the supervisory body and other parties within 24 hours.

Compliance is supervised by the Labour Inspection Service, which can inspect without prior notice and apply warnings, fines and suspension of work processes. The law does not require ISO 45001 certification.

What ISO 45001 adds

ISO 45001:2018 is the current edition of the occupational health and safety management system standard; a revision is in progress and has reached the draft stage in 2026. It shares its structure with ISO 9001 and ISO 14001. Where the law tells you what must exist, the standard asks how you make sure it keeps working: leadership commitment, worker consultation and participation, hazard identification across routine and non-routine activities, legal compliance evaluation, objectives, contractor control, incident investigation and continual improvement.

Mapping the law to the standard

1. Risk assessment. The written risk assessment required by law becomes the core of hazard identification and risk assessment in ISO 45001 clause 6.1. Extend it to non-routine work, contractors and visitors, and link each significant risk to a control.
2. Prevention policy. The policy required by law and the OH&S policy in clause 5.2 can be one document signed by top management.
3. Specialists and roles. Your occupational safety specialist or service usually runs the system day to day. ISO 45001 adds clear responsibility for top management, which auditors test through interviews.
4. Training. Legal instruction records serve as competence and awareness evidence.
5. Worker participation. The standard requires consultation and participation of non-managerial workers. Many Georgian companies have to build this from scratch.
6. Legal compliance evaluation. A legal register listing the Organic Law, its secondary acts and any sector rules, with periodic checks of compliance.
7. Incidents. One process for reporting, the 24-hour notifications required by law, investigation and corrective action.
8. Contractors. On construction sites, at mines and in energy projects, contractor control is where most serious accidents and audit findings occur.

Who seeks ISO 45001 in Georgia

Construction companies, mining and metals, energy and hydropower, manufacturing, logistics and port operations are the most common. The driver is often external: international financial institutions and foreign investors attach health and safety conditions to project financing, and multinational clients require certified systems from contractors. Certification by an accredited body gives these parties assurance that does not depend on their own site visits.

Preparing for a Labour Inspection Service visit and a certification audit

The evidence is largely the same: current risk assessments, training and instruction records, medical examination records where required, personal protective equipment issue records, incident records and corrective actions. A certification auditor will also ask about objectives, worker participation, internal audit and management review. A company that keeps this evidence for the certification body is in a much better position when an inspector arrives unannounced.

Integration

ISO 45001 combines well with ISO 14001, because both deal with operational control, emergencies and contractors. See ISO 14001 and EU exports and our ISO 14001 page.

How BALTUM helps

We run a gap assessment against ISO 45001 and the Georgian legal requirements that apply to you, help update risk assessments and procedures, set up worker participation and incident processes, train managers and internal auditors, and support the certification audit with an accredited certification body. The plan is set after the first assessment. Details are on our ISO 45001 page.

This article is general information, not legal advice. To discuss your organisation, use the form on this site or write to info@baltum.org.

Frequently asked questions

Does Georgian law require ISO 45001 certification?

No. The Organic Law on Occupational Safety sets legal duties for all employers but does not require certification. ISO 45001 is voluntary and is usually requested by clients, investors or lenders.

Can the occupational safety specialist manage the ISO 45001 system?

Usually yes. The specialist or service often runs the system day to day, but the standard requires top management to take responsibility and workers to participate.

More articles from BALTUM Georgia