ASF Governance & Policy Manual · ASF-POL-51

Staff Induction, Health, Safety and Wellbeing

Part of the ASF Governance & Policy Manual. Verified against ISQua EEA Guidelines and Standards for External Evaluation Organisations, 5th Edition v1.1, March 2022.

Owner: ASF Secretariat.

Workforce planning

The Secretariat determines staffing and Coordinator/Monitor numbers needed against current and projected facility caseload, reviewed alongside the annual operating plan (ASF-POL-50).

Induction

Every new Secretariat staff member, and every newly certified Coordinator/Monitor/Surveyor, completes an induction covering: ASF’s structure and services; its mission, vision and values (ASF-POL-50); health and safety procedures; and their own specific role and responsibilities — reviewed and improved annually using inductee feedback. Temporary staff and contractors receive a tailored induction covering, at minimum, health and safety and confidentiality, and sign a confidentiality statement on completion (cross-referenced to ASF-POL-18).

Health and safety

ASF maintains a health and safety programme covering: safe working conditions for Secretariat staff; travel and field safety for Coordinators/Monitors/Surveyors conducting in-facility verification (cross-referenced to ASF-POL-29, Safety, Security and Duty of Care); workload monitoring to limit work-related stress; and incident reporting under ASF-POL-21. The programme is reviewed annually and reported to the International Standards Council.

Staff support and wellbeing

Flexible arrangements for caring responsibilities and family leave consistent with French law (ASF-POL-20); a culture of openness for raising workplace issues through ASF-POL-21; and recognition of individual and team contributions.

Continuing education

Secretariat staff are supported to attend relevant off-site workshops, seminars, and conferences, and in-house briefings on service delivery developments are held as needed; attendance is monitored and documented. A Secretariat member developing accreditation-facing expertise may observe a full in-facility verification (at a facility’s 3-year renewal) alongside a certified Monitor, the same shadowing mechanism Monitor candidates use (ASF-MON-STD-v1, Standard G9).

Performance evaluation

Secretariat staff performance is reviewed annually against their job description and agreed objectives, with development needs identified and addressed. HR practice overall is evaluated annually (staff satisfaction, turnover, exit interviews where applicable) and results feed improvements, reported to the Council.