Sharing

best practices
in workplace
health &
safety
Best Practices Branch
Prevention Division

June 1999
5033A (10/01)
 sharing
best practices
in workplace
health & safety
Sharing best practices in workplace health and safety is the theme of this
workbook. The Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) has
prepared this workbook to achieve three goals.
Goal 1) Learning from the best
We want to learn about companies recognised as leaders in
health and safety. This will help us gain a clearer and more
complete understanding of how leaders have achieved
success in preventing injuries and illness. We want to
know why leaders take action and "walk the talk". Our aim
is to ensure that this knowledge is shared with all workers
and employers (the "workplace parties") so that others can
learn successful prevention strategies.
Goal 2) Communicating and
disseminating best practices
We also want to share our work-in-progress and our
approach to benchmarking and best practices.
Benchmarking can be described as
“… the search for successful occupational health and
safety practices so that workplaces may identify
opportunities for improving their organisation's
performance.”
One thing we have learned from those who have used
benchmarking techniques is that it helps to have a
framework to classify the types of practices that you are
interested in. Based on our review of the literature and our
talks with workplace representatives, we have proposed a
framework that is based on the analogy of a tree.
The “prevention tree” represents our current vision of a
good workplace health and safety program. Using the
analogy of the tree, we can describe the essential elements
of a health and safety program. A tree may have many
leaves but it will not thrive unless it has a healthy root
system, trunk and branches. The roots of a successful
program are leadership and commitment by top
management in the workplace, and workplace culture and
values that reinforce health and safety in all operations. At
the base of the tree is a health and safety policy, which lays
the foundation for the program by expressing the
commitment of top management to excellence in health
and safety performance. The trunk of the tree – what holds
everything else up – is a system for managing health and
safety – for setting goals and making sure that everyone
knows their responsibilities and is accountable for them.
The branches of the tree are the functions that ensure
employee participation and effective communications and
training, and that recognise and motivate good health and
safety performance. The leaves are the activities performed
in the workplace to anticipate, recognise, assess and
control health and safety hazards, and to manage disability
if injury and illness do occur.
When all these elements are in place and functioning
well, a workplace will be successful in creating safe and
healthy tasks, workplaces and behaviours. And the tree
will bear fruit—fruit that includes healthy and safe
workers, good employee morale, lower costs, and a
successful business.
We want your feedback on both the vision and those
elements of the health and safety program that your
experience shows are critical to effective and continuously
improving health and safety performance.
Companies who have benchmarked their health and
safety programs have consistently identified many of these
elements identified on the prevention tree as essential to
the implementation of their health and safety system. The
workbook can help you benchmark your own health and
safety processes or participate in a benchmarking initiative
with other firms. If interested, you may participate in this
initiative by working with partner organisations to
benchmark the practices of members' workplaces.
Benchmarking will help guide us toward those activities
that deserve to be considered best practices. We will
compile benchmarks into a database available to all Ontario
employers and workers.
The Best Practices Branch, Prevention Division, of the
WSIB can help benchmarking groups get started. See back
page for details on how to contact us.
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Goal 3) Giving you an information tool
Although the ideas we share in this workbook will also
“continuously improve” as a result of feedback from lead-
ing workplaces, we have designed the workbook to be
used by any workplace for stimulating thought about
health and safety programs and processes. The workbook
can also be used to gather information from other work-
places on processes that you are interested in and to help
you think about your own programs and processes.
A word about best practices
This workbook describes a variety of practices that some
workplaces have used successfully. That doesn't mean that
they will work in all situations, or that they are the only
way to achieve success. By searching for “best practices”
we are trying to come up with a menu of approaches that
may work for some firms. One thing we have learned,
however, is that a “best practice” is not a “magic bullet”.
Any practice can only be successful when it is appropriate
to the situation and implemented with commitment.

Thanks!
We want to thank you for your participation. By sharing best practices in health and safety we
can build towards the development of a model of a successful health and safety program and
a set of leading indicators of workplace health and safety. This model will ultimately be the
framework for our best practices programs, our research and development, as well as a practi-
cal guide that we can share with Ontario’s workplace parties.

2
 How to use this workbook
This workbook describes a number of elements that correspond with the health and safety essentials depicted by the
prevention tree and listed below. Each element in the workbook contains three parts. The first part includes examples of
practices documented in case studies, health and safety journals, and implemented by top industry performers. The
second part includes a series of questions about your firm’s practices on that element. The third part asks a few questions
about your continuous improvement efforts.
The workbook is designed for flexibility; browse it in whatever sequence interests you. Complete any or all of the
elements. Do it in short sittings, use it for workshop material, do it all at once, divide among staff and share responses –
whatever suits your pace and style.

Health and safety program elements

Based on our initial research we have identified some of the key elements required for a health and safety program. In the
future, we may expand the workbook to include more of the sub-elements identified below.
The Health and Safety Program Elements and Sub-elements
Foundation of Leadership, Commitment, Culture, Hazard Control
and Values. ➥ Contractor Safety
Health and Safety Policy ➥ Operating Procedures
➥ Ergonomics Programs
Occupational Health and Safety Management System ➥ Hygiene Programs
➥ Roles, Responsibilities and Involvement ➥ Emergency Response
➥ Continuous Improvement Process ➥ Personal Protective Equipment
➥ Goals and Expectation Setting ➥ Preventive Maintenance
➥ Accountability and Performance Tracking ➥ Infection Control
➥ System Evaluation and Audits: Qualitative and
Quantitative Training
➥ Compliance
Hazard Anticipation, Recognition and Assessment ➥ Train-the-trainer
➥ Inspection ➥ New Employee Orientation
➥ Investigation and Reporting ➥ Job Specific
➥ Record-keeping
➥ Job/task Analysis Communications
➥ Job, Equipment, and Workplace Design ➥ Messages
➥ Change Management ➥ Feedback
➥ Purchasing ➥ Methods
➥ Response to Employee Concerns
Employee Participation
➥ Joint Health and Safety Committees Recognition and Motivation
➥ Safety Teams ➥ Awards
Disability Management
➥ Return to Work Program

Your reaction
We hope you will reflect on the example practices and identify the ones that you have used successfully, the ones that
you tried and found effective, and the ones you find intriguing and worth a try. Please mark up the list any way you
wish— we want to hear your reaction. Our questions are to probe for your thoughts about your health and safety
program, and the critical elements and activities that in your opinion have resulted in your successful health and safety
performance. Under each element we have asked whether you would be willing to share your practices with us. If you
have agreed we will be contacting you to follow-up or you may contact us directly. See back page for details on how to
contact us.

3
 Some initial questions about your workplace health & safety program
If you have undertaken a program to improve health and safety in your firm within the last 10 years, what
were the best things you did? Which are the most important for firms just starting to improve their health and
safety program?

Which of the above elements do you think are most responsible for your firm's success? Which do you think
your firm particularly excelled at?

4
Health and Safety Program Elements Workbook Pages
Health and Safety Policy.......................................................................................................................6-7
Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems ...........................................................................8-11
Hazard Anticipation, Recognition, and Assessment ...............................................................................12-15
Investigation and Reporting ..............................................................................................................16-19
Employee Participation .....................................................................................................................20-23
Hazard Control ...............................................................................................................................24-25
Contractor Safety.............................................................................................................................26-27
Training ..........................................................................................................................................28-31
Communication About Safety.............................................................................................................32-35
Recognition and Motivation ...............................................................................................................36-37
Measurements for Health and Safety Systems..........................................................................................38

5
 The development and implementation of a written health and safety policy is the

Health and Safety Policy

necessary foundation for an effective health and safety program. A health and safety
policy is communicated to all employees in the organization to help them
understand senior management’s commitment to health and safety and enlist their
co-operation and participation

Examples of Health and Safety Policy Practices

☞ The health and safety of workers is a company
priority and is written into the policy statement
☞ The purpose and intent of the safety program is
clearly defined in the policy
☞ The company health and safety policy is
communicated to all employees and is written
clearly so it can be understood by all employees
☞ The policy clarifies the health and safety
responsibility and accountability of management
and staff
☞ Employees have an opportunity to discuss the
policy and ask questions. Employees can provide
valuable feedback about the written policy
☞ Reinforcing employees’ understanding of the
policy occurs when employees observe managers,
supervisors and co-workers setting examples to
ensure that the workplace is safe and hazard free.

Your Reaction
✍ Have you used or tried any of the above practices? ❏ Yes ❏ No
If yes, which ones did you find effective and why?

About your firm

✍ Do you have a written health and safety policy? ❏ Yes ❏ No
Who has signed the policy? Position___________________________________________________
How frequently is the policy re-issued (changing date, circulating, with or without change of content)?

✍ Did input to the policy document came directly from:

❏ Board level ❏ President/VP level
❏ Middle management level ❏ Union or worker representatives
❏ Outside sources, e.g. model policies, trade groups
✍ How is the policy communicated to employees and first line supervision?

✍ When was the health and safety policy last revised/updated?

✍ What are the major goals and objectives identified in the policy?

6
Continuous improvement

Health and Safety Policy

✍ How would you rate your firm’s health and safety policy?
❏ Do not have a policy ❏ Needs improvement ❏ Satisfactory ❏ A model program
To what do you attribute the success of your health and safety policy?

❏ I would be willing to share the specifics of my company practices in this area.

See back page for details on how to contact us.
✍ What would you tell others are the benefits of implementing a health and safety policy?

✍ How much does your health and safety policy contribute to your overall health and safety performance?

✍ Have you evaluated your firm’s health and safety policy? ❏ Yes ❏ No
If yes, what indicators or measures did you use? What were the results of the evaluation?
How did you use the results?

✍ Please share an example or two of specific actions or events in your firm’s development or implementation
of health and safety policy.

✍ If you were looking for a company your

own firm could learn from, what
companies do you think of as having an
exemplary health and safety policy?

7
 A good health and safety management system is as important as good technical

Occupational Health and Safety Management System

safety and industrial hygiene knowledge and skills. The concept of a “management
system” is not new. This concept has been integral in many organizations’ efforts to
achieve total quality in products and services.
Other sections of this workbook present activities to reduce hazards, prevent injury and illness, and communicate.
Improvements in workplace health and safety should result from implementing programs in these areas. However,
an occupational health and safety management system is needed to ensure that they do: that good intentions and
earnest efforts really do achieve prevention in the workplace. Without a management system in place, a workplace
may fail to notice that compliance with a procedure declines after the novelty wears off, or that one department’s
procedure is not quite practical because it overlooks the needs of a related department.
Implementation of a health and safety management system ensures that the intended prevention activities as set
out on the “prevention tree” are carried out and that they achieve the intended benefits by:
➥ definition of measurable goals and assignment of responsibility for goals to people who will be accountable
for achieving them.
➥ Performing evaluations and audits, to maintain standards and achieve continuous improvement.

Examples of Occupational Health and Safety Management System Practices in

setting goals and ensuring accountability
☞ Health and safety goals and supporting objectives
are communicated company-wide and are signed
off and endorsed by the company Chief Executive
Officer and labour representatives.
☞ Health and safety objectives are based on a
recent, comprehensive program evaluation, risk
assessments, and hazard identification. Objectives
are measurable and are understood by those who
are to accomplish them
☞ The health and safety responsibility and
accountability of management and staff is clarified
in the health and safety policy.
• Someone at the most senior management level is
responsible for health and safety and ensures that
the management system is properly implemented
at all levels of the company. Senior management
allocates sufficient resources to provide a safe and
healthy work environment and assigns sufficient
authority to those who maintain it.
• Health safety is on the agenda of all senior
management meetings.
• Work teams draw up their own health and safety
program and report progress to the health and
safety committee.
• Operations staff are “process owners”, responsible
for maintaining a list of hazards and risks in all
parts of the process. Staff are required to keep
everyone updated.
• The company provides expert advisors to help
staff and supervisors identify hazards and control
measures.
☞ Health and safety requirements for each job are
written out and shared with employees. The safe
practices and safe conditions specifically related to
each job are documented, and provided to each
employee. Depending on the job type, the
information may include descriptions of proper
attire, personal protective equipment and its use,
safe work practices, controls related to hazardous
materials and physical hazards. The employee and
manager sign the document. The document is
reviewed if changes to the job are made or an
incident occurs.
☞ Responsibility for record keeping and
documentation necessary to support the program
is assigned.
☞ All planned and unplanned facility, equipment,
process and procedure changes are accompanied
by review of health and safety systems.
☞ Health and safety evaluations are used to rate job
performance. Outcome of evaluations affect pay
and/or promotion or disciplinary actions.

8
Sample practices in monitoring goal achievement
☞ The supervisor continuously monitors to ensure
good housekeeping practices, proper task
procedure, adequate staff assigned to risky
procedures, and that all areas, equipment, and
tools are maintained for healthy operations.
Where a malfunction, near-miss, or accident has
occurred, the supervisor seeks to determine what
may have been overlooked in established
procedure or monitoring, and makes appropriate
revisions.
☞ Retrospective performance measures include
injuries, diseases, other absence, reports of
discomfort, near-misses, product quality rates.
Prospective performance indicators include
observation of working environment and work
methods, verification of permits to work,
condition of emergency equipment and medical
facilities, etc.
☞ Hazard control is analysed by examining history
of work orders generated from audits, inspections,
health and safety consultations, investigations,
and safety committee reports.
Your Reaction
✍ Have you used or tried any of the above practices?
If yes, which ones did you find effective and why?
Occupational Health and Safety Management System
☞ A reliable safety management audit process with
clear measurable objectives is established. Both
qualitative and quantitative goals may be
included. Goals are tailored to the needs of the
organisation. Audits are performed by competent
auditors who are as independent as possible from
the activity being audited. Audits are
implemented at the departmental and company-
wide levels, and include both scheduled and
unannounced audits.
☞ An observational sampling program is used.
Targets are objectively measurable and clearly
communicated, and all training and equipment
required to meet targets is supplied. The sampling
program includes observations by employees and
feedback is given to employees.
❏ Yes ❏ No
9
 About your firm

Occupational Health and Safety Management System ✍ Do you use a management systems audit to monitor how you are managing health and safety ?
❏ Yes ❏ No
If yes, what elements do you include in the audit?

Continuous improvement

✍ How would you rate your firm’s health and safety management system?
❏ No activity ❏ Needs improvement ❏ Satisfactory ❏ A model program
To what do you attribute the success of your health and safety management system?

❏ I would be willing to share the specifics of my company practices in this area.

For details on how to contact us see back page.
✍ What would you tell others are the benefits of implementing a health and safety management system?

✍ How much does your health and safety management system contribute to your overall health and safety
performance?

10
✍ Have you evaluated your firm’s health and safety management system? ❏ Yes ❏ No

Occupational Health and Safety Management System

If yes, what indicators or measures did you use? What were the results of the evaluation?
How did you use the results?

✍ Please share an example or two of specific actions or events in your firm’s development or implementation
of your health and safety management system.

✍ If you were looking for a company your own firm could learn from, what companies do you think of as
having an exemplary health and safety management system?

11
 Inspections and audits are important components of hazard anticipation, recognition

Hazard Anticipation, Recognition and Assessment

and assessment activities.
Examples of Hazard Inspection and Recognition Practices
☞ Senior line managers participate in corporate
health and safety audits.
☞ In response to internal audit results, a safety
action plan is developed and is approved by senior
management. Safety action teams, continuous
improvement teams, and joint health and safety
teams implement the plan.
☞ Frequent audits (random and scheduled) are
conducted by workers, managers and safety
professionals. Audit findings are used for hazard
identification and risk analysis and eliminating
sources of risk of injury/illness.
☞ Audit criteria
• Include observable items for which there are
regulations.
• Include factors identified in past accidents and
illnesses.
• Are explicit and unambiguous.
• Are phrased in positive form.
• Include both conditions and practices.
• Audit performance scores are reported to the
workforce.
• Each department strives to improve its own
performance scores.
☞ The workplace (or portions thereof) are inspected
every month by members of the joint health and
safety committee. Staff are asked for concerns and
recommendations on job safety.
☞ Systematic self-assessments are linked to overall
requirements and expectations.
☞ Supervisors and middle managers are expected to
continuously inspect and make immediate
remedy to restore the safety level designed into
the operations. As a result, inspections and
accident investigations should find no hazardous
conditions or practices that a supervisor could
have remedied.
☞ Through regular audits, inspection and hazard
recognition, all employees know that
identification of hazardous conditions is
acceptable and encouraged, and feel empowered
to take initiative when hazards arise.

Your Reaction
✍ Have you used or tried any of the above practices? ❏ Yes ❏ No
If yes, which ones did you find effective and why?

About your firm

✍ How are hazards detected in your firm? Please list the five most common ways hazards are detected.
(Most common =1)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

✍ How often are work areas inspected in your firm, by whom, how formally?
Who inspects, what area?

❏ Frequency of the inspection ❏ Written record kept ❏ Action items identified

✍ When management and your union/worker representatives jointly perform inspection and hazard
recognition or inspection practices:
✍ Are inspection reports completed? ❏ Yes ❏ No
✍ If yes, are they reviewed by management? ❏ Yes ❏ No
✍ What is the process when someone recognises a hazard?
✍ What is the time-frame for corrective action?

12
✍ Do you use a formal audit system?

Hazard Anticipation, Recognition and Assessment

❏ No ❏ Proprietary system _____________________ ❏ Developed our own

✍ How often is a full or partial audit performed?

✍ How often is the same part of the firm re-audited?

✍ On your inspections, do you audit/observe:

❏ behaviours/practices
❏ conditions
❏ both

✍ Where there are sub-contractors involved on the site, is there a requirement for them to conduct formal
inspections of their areas of responsibility? ❏ Yes ❏ No
If yes, a) how often? ______________________

b) how do they show that they meet the requirement? (produce minutes etc.)

c) or does the company’s own committee inspect contractors’ work areas?

13
 Continuous improvement

Hazard Anticipation, Recognition and Assessment ✍ How would you rate your firm’s inspection and hazard recognition?
❏ No activity ❏ Needs improvement ❏ Satisfactory ❏ A model program
To what do you attribute the success in hazard recognition?

❏ I would be willing to share the specifics of my company practices in this area.

See back page for further details on how to contact us.
✍ What would you tell others are the benefits of inspection and hazard recognition?

✍ How much does your inspection and hazard recognition contribute to your overall health and safety
performance?

14
✍ Have you undertaken to evaluate how your firm inspects and recognizes hazards? ❏ Yes ❏ No

Hazard Anticipation, Recognition and Assessment

If yes, what indicators or measures did you use? What were the results of the evaluation?
How did you use the results?

✍ Please share an example or two of specific actions or events in your firm’s inspection and hazard
recognition.

✍ If you were looking for a company your own firm could learn from, what companies do you think of as
having an exemplary health and safety inspection and hazard recognition program?

15
 Investigation of accidents and near-misses can capture data on hazards and

Investigation and Reporting

oversights in safety management.

Examples of Investigation and Reporting Practices

☞ A near miss reporting system is established. Staff
report near-miss accidents and are asked to
provide recommendations for avoiding repetition
with full consequences.
☞ Supervisors investigate near misses and
recommend ways of preventing similar
occurrences.
☞ Detailed injury questionnaires are administered.
☞ Recording of accidents is used to build up an
accident performance profile.
☞ Careful record keeping and detailed analysis of
health and safety data is maintained.
☞ Investigations refrain from inferring any causal
mechanisms beyond available evidence.

Your Reaction
✍ Have you used or tried any of the above practices? ❏ Yes ❏ No
If yes, which ones did you find effective and why?

About your firm

✍ What is the minimum injury or disease severity for which your firm requires a written accident report
form?

✍ What is the source of your firm’s accident report form?

❏ WSIB Form 7 ❏ Safe Workplace Association model form
❏ Proprietary system _________________ ❏ Company developed system
✍ Does your firm investigate reported accidents? Who does the investigation? When?

✍ How severe does an accident have to be to warrant an investigation? Please give an example.

✍ Which of the following “non-critical” events would you investigate?

❏ paper cut ❏ eyestrain ❏ nausea ❏ clothing torn on doorknob ❏ back pain
✍ How much time is required to completely report an injury, from the moment of injury to the conclusion of
first aid and all the paperwork (excluding any meetings on following dates, or medical appointments off-
site)?

✍ What percentage of your firm’s total reportable injuries would you say are actually reported? ______%
✍ Do you report or investigate illnesses/diseases differently from injuries? If so, how?

16
✍ What are the roles of the following in reporting injuries/diseases?

Investigation and Reporting

Write/add Provide information Review/see Approve/amend
Injured worker ❏ ❏ ❏ ❏
Supervisor ❏ ❏ ❏ ❏
Union or worker representative ❏ ❏ ❏ ❏
Middle management ❏ ❏ ❏ ❏
Executive management ❏ ❏ ❏ ❏
Safety specialist ❏ ❏ ❏ ❏
Witness(s) ❏ ❏ ❏ ❏
Nurse/doctor ❏ ❏ ❏ ❏
✍ Under your firm’s policies, are near-miss (no injury, no illness) events:
Always required to be reported. ❏ Yes ❏ No
Reportable under certain conditions, e.g. potential severity of outcome (describe conditions).

Reportable during periodic campaigns.

✍ How closely does actual practice follow policy for near-miss reporting?

✍ What information about accidental injury, occupational diseases, and near-misses is communicated to the
Board/President/VP level in your firm? Please mention regularly scheduled reports and any events which
would be required to be reported to them immediately.

✍ Do you use a standardized approach to accident investigation?

❏ No, other than common sense
❏ Company developed system
❏ Proprietary system _____________
✍ How do you determine when an investigation is ‘done’ and you have determined the ‘cause’? What signs
indicate that you have enough information and do not need more?

What standards are used against which to assess information collected?

✍ Do you determine preventive measures based on an accident investigation, and if so, how?

✍ Do you follow through on findings from investigations? If so, how?

17
 Continuous improvement

Investigation and Reporting ✍ How would you rate your firm’s reporting and investigation?
❏ No activity ❏ Needs improvement ❏ Satisfactory ❏ A model program
To what do you attribute your success in reporting and investigation?

❏ I would be willing to share the specifics of my company practices in this area.

For further details on how to contact us see back page.
✍ What would you tell others are the benefits of investigation and reporting of injuries?

✍ How much does your reporting and investigation contribute to your overall health and safety
performance?

18
✍ Have you evaluated how your firm reports and investigates injuries and near-misses?

Investigation and Reporting

❏ Yes ❏ No If yes, what indicators or measures did you use?

What were the results of the evaluation?

How did you use the results?

✍ Please share an example or two of specific actions or events in your firm’s reporting and investigation.

✍ If you were looking for a company your own firm could learn from, what companies do you think of as
having an exemplary investigation and reporting program?

19
 People work more safely when they participate in decision-making processes. This

Employee Participation
means that employees are given the opportunity to communicate their thoughts to
management and receive feedback.

Examples of Employee Participation Practices

☞ Employees have an active role in management of
health and safety through on site health and
safety committees with representatives from
labour and management working co-operatively
to plan and implement safety activities.
☞ Employees are provided with a forum to discuss
safety concerns and report unsafe work
conditions.
☞ Employees participate in five minute pre-shift
safety talks.
☞ Confidential surveys of safety climate are
administered by a qualified analyst and results are
reported and interpreted to management;
management remedies sources of perceived risk.
☞ Staff play a key role in the development and
implementation of health and safety programs.
☞ Safety is a key focus of discussion at all periodic
staff meetings.
☞ Work teams draw up their own health and safety
program and report progress to the health and
safety committee.
☞ Employee task forces are used to analyse special
health and safety problems.
☞ Employee and contractor representatives meet to
discuss health and safety issues. Key issues are
identified and solutions are developed. The results
are then shared with the company. Plant teams
are developed to study and review common
issued raised by the joint committee and then
modified to meet their own health and safety
needs.
☞ Employees meet with staff from award winning
companies to discuss and learn more about
excellent health and safety practices. Employees
are required to return and share and make
recommendations for change based on new
information acquired.
☞ An information technology system is
implemented to enable employees to raise health
and safety questions/concerns to management.
Management is required to respond to all
questions.

Your Reaction
✍ Have you used or tried any of the above practices? ❏ Yes ❏ No
If yes, which ones did you find effective and why?

About your firm

✍ How does your firm involve employees in the development and implementation of your health and safety
program?
✍ What role do employees play and what authority do they have? For example:
Suggest needs
Review proposals
Approve purchases
Develop materials
Deliver programs
Monitor performance

✍ Which types of health and safety-related decisions or actions can not proceed without employee
involvement? Please give a couple of examples of this.

20
JOINT HEALTH AND SAFETY COMMITTEES

Employee Participation
✍ The Ontario Occupational Health and Safety Act provides that almost every workplace will have employee
involvement through the Joint Health and Safety Committee (JHSC) or health and safety representative.
What role does the JHSC or health and safety representative play in your firm in addition to their legal
requirements: inspections, investigations, and recommendations.

✍ What do you believe makes employees feel comfortable enough to participate honestly and openly in your
firm?

✍ What resources are available to employees to help them participate in the health and safety program?

✍ What are the top three benefits you see as a result of employee involvement in health and safety?
1.
2.
3.

✍ Provide some examples.

21
 Continuous improvement

Employee Participation ✍ How would you rate your firm’s employee involvement in health and safety?
❏ No activity ❏ Needs improvement ❏ Satisfactory ❏ A model program
To what do you attribute your success in employee involvement in health and safety??

❏ I would be willing to share the specifics of my company practices in this area.

For further details on how to contact us see back page.
✍ What would you tell others are the benefits of employee involvement in the health and safety program?

✍ How much does your employee involvement contribute to your overall health and safety performance?

22
✍ Have you evaluated how employees in your firm are involved in your health and safety efforts?

Employee Participation
❏ Yes ❏ No
If yes, what indicators or measures did you use?

What were the results of the evaluation?

How did you use the results?

✍ Please share an example or two of specific actions or events in your firm’s employee involvement in health
and safety.

✍ If you were looking for a company your own firm could learn from, what companies do you think of as
having exemplary employee involvement?

23
 The first opportunity for prevention and/or control of a potential hazard is at the design

Hazard Control
stage of the facility, equipment or process. Job safety analysis identifies ways in which
processes may deviate from “normal” and result in harm, and ways in which this is
prevented. Ergonomics incorporates knowledge of human capabilities and limitations to
identify risks of musculoskeletal injury and human error. Risk assessment evaluates
probabilities of hazard states, size of exposed population, and consequences, to
determine the need for risk reduction measures.

Examples of Safe Job Design Practices

☞ The company implements systematic job safety
analysis. Once an analysis is complete, job
procedures can be written or revised to remove
hazards and reflect the way the job will be
performed.
☞ Ergonomics is included in the engineering design
☞ An ergonomic analysis of each job is undertaken
and a database is maintained. Based on the results
of the analysis the company implements
recommended ergonomic changes to reduce risk
of biomechanical injury and human error.
☞ Control measures are implemented for all jobs
where ergonomic risk has been determined.
☞ Prior to the introduction of new operations or
process changes, process and ergonomic risk
factors are evaluated and corrections are made if
the risk level is unacceptable.
☞ Safety committees review renovation and
construction plans and safety equipment
purchases to foresee health and safety
implications and intercept any decisions likely to
result in unacceptable risks. Reviews consider
effects in the immediate work unit and
implications for other units.

Your Reaction
✍ Have you used or tried any of the above practices? ❏ Yes ❏ No
If yes, which ones did you find effective and why?

About your firm

✍ What proportion of work tasks in your company have had a job safety analysis, ergonomic assessment,
and/or risk assessment conducted that identifies potential risks of the job and resulted in risk reduction
measures and/or documents the administrative controls for minimising those risks?

✍ What percentage of the time does your firm obtain and act on health and safety design reviews (e.g.
ergonomics, job safety analysis) by experts or internal committees at the following process stages?
Committee review (%) Expert advice (%) Acton (%)
Facility planning (pre-design) .............................................................______ ______ ______
Facility detail design development .....................................................______ ______ ______
Facility detail design approval ............................................................______ ______ ______
Facility renovation design development .............................................______ ______ ______
Facility renovation design approval ....................................................______ ______ ______
Equipment purchase–needs assessment and criteria development .....______ ______ ______
Equipment purchase–selection / purchase order ...............................______ ______ ______
Equipment purchase–modify task procedures for new equipment .....______ ______ ______
Prevent recurrence after injury ..........................................................______ ______ ______
Prevent recurrence after multiple injuries ..........................................______ ______ ______
Employee health and safety concern..................................................______ ______ ______
other..................................................................................................______ ______ ______
✍ What are the qualifications of the people who perform job safety analyses in your firm?

✍ What are the qualifications of the people who perform ergonomic assessments in your firm?

✍ What sources do you consult for design assessments to determine if jobs are within acceptable limits:
Health and safety regulations _________________________________________________________________________
Ergonomic guidelines _______________________________________________________________________________
Reference materials (e.g. texts, handbooks) ______________________________________________________________
24 Foreign source ergonomic regulations and guidelines_______________________________________________________
Other ___________________________________________________________________________________________
Continuous improvement

Hazard Control
✍ How would you rate your firm’s safety planning and design?
❏ No activity ❏ Needs improvement ❏ Satisfactory ❏ A model program
To what do you attribute the success in safety planning and design?

❏ I would be willing to share the specifics of my company practices in this area.

For further details on how to contact us see back page.
✍ What would you tell others are the benefits of safety planning and design activities?

✍ How much does your safety planning and design contribute to your overall health and safety performance?

✍ Have you evaluated your firm’s health and safety policy? ❏ Yes ❏ No
If yes, what indicators or measures did you use? What were the results of the evaluation?
How did you use the results?

✍ Please share an example or two of specific actions or events in your firm’s development or implementation
of safety planning and design.

✍ If you were looking for a company your own firm could

learn from, what companies do you think of as having
an exemplary safety planning and design activities
program?

25
 Contractor safety is an integrated element of good health and safety programs.

Contractor Safety Examples of Contractor Safety Practices

☞ A contractor safety program defines expected
safety performance by detailing how contractors
are to be selected, trained, and educated to
ensure safety performance is at expected
company standards.
☞ Bid pre-qualification and selection process
includes a review of the contractor’s injury data
for several years and submission of a written
health and safety plan. Pre-qualified contractors
are required to have good safety performance as a
contract condition.
☞ Contractors are given site safety manuals, subject
to the same rules as other employees. They
participate in safety committees and in accident
investigation teams.
☞ Contractors must complete health and safety
orientation before they are allowed to perform
work on the site.
☞ Safety evaluations are conducted at the
completion of the project.
☞ The contractor is subject to inspections and
required to attend safety meetings.

Your Reaction
✍ Have you used or tried any of the above practices? ❏ Yes ❏ No
If yes, which ones did you find effective and why?

About your firm

✍ Do you have a program related to contractor safety? ❏ Yes ❏ No
✍ How do the requirement(s) apply?
Please check as many as applicable.
❏ Contractor selection
❏ Onsite work practices
❏ Offsite work practices
❏ Termination of work as penalty
❏ Payment withheld as penalty

✍ What requirements are imposed on contractors?

✍ How do you verify compliance with each of those requirements? Who does it?

✍ How do you acquaint contractors with your requirements?

✍ What consequences have you actually imposed for failure to comply with your requirements?

26
 Contractor Safety
Continuous improvement

✍ How would you rate your firm’s program for contractor safety?
❏ No activity ❏ Needs improvement ❏ Satisfactory ❏ A model program
To what do you attribute the success in contractor health and safety?

❏ I would be willing to share the specifics of my company practices in this area.

For further details on how to contact us see back page.
✍ What would you tell others are the benefits of implementing a contractor health and safety program?

✍ How much does your contractor health and safety program contribute to your overall health and safety
performance?

✍ Have you evaluated your firm’s contractor health and safety program? ❏ Yes ❏ No
If yes, what indicators or measures did you use? What were the results of the evaluation?
How did you use the results?

✍ Please share an example or two of specific actions or events in your firm’s development or implementation
of contractor safety.

✍ If you were looking for a company your own firm could learn from, what companies do you think of as
having an exemplary contractor health and safety program?

27
 Training has a direct influence on developing and molding the safety knowledge,

Training
skills, and attitudes that all employees need to prevent injuries and illness.

Examples of Training Practices

☞ New employees receive introduction and
orientation training. This introduction training
includes orientation to the health and safety
policy manual. New employees receive a one day
orientation session to the company safety program
and spend time with a mentor in order to
perform the job safely and correctly. New
employees continue to train until the
trainer/mentor is satisfied that the new employee
can work alone.
☞ Specific health and safety training is given to
supervisors on legislative responsibilities, how to
conduct periodic safety audits, identification of
hazards, and how to respond to safety problems.
☞ All employees receive mandatory safety training
and are provided with retraining on a regular
basis. Training courses are offered on-site.
☞ Training in work techniques for quality and
productivity includes safe work practices.
☞ A training database that tracks training and re-
training for all employees is maintained.
☞ Supervisors and Joint Health and Safety
Committee (JHSC) representatives are provided
with specialised training. JHSC representatives
undertake the same in-house training provided to
all management.
☞ Safety training is direct and relevant and has
application for real work settings. For example,
training utilises video re-enactments of incidents
starring the employee involved and the group
team leader. The safety team makes a video-tape
after the incident investigation. The “actors” re-
enact the incident to describe what happened.
Root causes of the incident and suggested ways
that the incident could have been avoided are
discussed in training. Corrective action is taken
and shared amongst the employees.
☞ Training effectiveness is measured through
improvement in quality and operational
performance, as well as comprehension and
application of predefined learning goals.

Your Reaction
✍ Have you used or tried any of the above practices? ❏ Yes ❏ No
If yes, which ones did you find effective and why?

About your firm

✍ Do you have a written health and safety training program? ❏ Yes ❏ No
training topic/issue
who delivers
who receives
delivery method
✍ How soon after hire or reassignment do employees receive general health and safety training?
❏ As soon as possible ❏ Specific limit ___________ ❏ Before permitted to work
✍ How soon after hire or reassignment do employees receive task-specific health and safety training?
❏ As soon as possible ❏ Specific limit ___________ ❏ Before permitted to work
✍ How soon after installation of new equipment do employees receive training in safe operation?
❏ As soon as possible ❏ Specific limit ___________ ❏ Before permitted to work
✍ Where do you obtain the instructional material to use in health and safety training programs?
✍ Who develops task specific and new equipment training?

28
✍ Is on-the-job training conducted to help ensure that workers perform all tasks safely and without risk to

Training
their health?

✍ What are the top three messages in your health and safety training programs?
1.
2.
3.
✍ If nothing has changed in an employee’s equipment or job duties, how often on average does he or she
receive health and safety training after initial hire?

✍ Please describe a few typical health and safety training programs including the topic, presenter, and
delivery method (movies, discussions, demonstrations, buddy-system, etc.) Which are the most effective?

✍ Which does training include:?

❏ company policies and procedures

❏ specific job hazards
❏ safety precautions
❏ health precautions
❏ job responsibilities
❏ regulatory requirements
❏ company enforcement policy
❏ worker right to know
❏ worker right to refuse unsafe work
✍ What type of evaluation do you use to check the achievement of the learners and the effectiveness of the
programs?

✍ What do you think are the most important elements of your health and safety training program?

✍ Other topics?

29
 Continuous improvement

Training ✍ How would you rate your firm’s health and safety training program?
❏ No activity ❏ Needs improvement ❏ Satisfactory ❏ A model program
To what do you attribute the success of your health and safety training?

❏ I would be willing to share the specifics of my company practices in this area.

For details on how to contact us see back page.
✍ What would you tell others are the benefits of implementing a health and safety policy?

✍ How much does your health and safety training contribute to your overall health and safety performance?

30
✍ Have you evaluated your firm’s health and safety training program? ❏ Yes ❏ No

Training
If yes, what indicators or measures did you use? What were the results of the evaluation?
How did you use the results?

✍ Please share an example or two of specific actions or events in your firm’s development or implementation
of health and safety training.

✍ If you were looking for a company your own firm could learn from, what companies do you think of as
having exemplary health and safety training?

31
 Communications is a critical function in achieving the organization’s health and

Communication About Safety

safety goals and objectives, and cascading the health and safety message throughout
the organization.

Examples of Communication Practices

☞ The CEO communicates expectations for health
and safety performance throughout the company.
☞ The company’s health and safety goals, objectives
and expectations are communicated to all
employees through the use of newsletters,
orientation sessions, and other measures such as:
• monthly safety meetings
• monthly safety themes set out in the
company calendar
• Corporate annual report
• E-mail bulletins on safety incidents
• Updating of daily notice boards to spread
health and safety information.
• Posting results of inspections, surveys, and
audits on bulletin boards.
☞ Safety teams are used to ensure that all levels
within the organization can communicate
regularly on safety issues. Communication efforts
are integrated with the safety department,
engineering, and training.
☞ Top management/executives ask questions about
health and safety when visiting shop floor areas.
Preparation of relevant questions in advance of
the visit enables non-technical managers to show
interest and support of health and safety working
conditions.
☞ A safety communication program is developed to
heighten awareness among employees.
Campaigns are developed and include recognition
of individuals, groups or departments with
outstanding safety performance. Symbols and
slogans are used to build a communications
campaign. For example, the plant safety slogan is
located on the front entrance of the building, in
meeting rooms, calendars, and pay cheque
stuffers.
☞ The company allocates a special room where
employees find current information about the
company’s health and safety goals, accident
statistics, etc.

Your Reaction
✍ Have you used or tried any of the above practices? ❏ Yes ❏ No
If yes, which ones did you find effective and why?

About your firm

✍ What is the most important health and safety message that top management communicates to employees?
Why?

✍ How are health and safety messages developed?

✍ What is the most frequently communicated health and safety message from top management to
employees?

✍ What is the most important health and safety message employees communicate to top management?

✍ What is the most frequently communicated health and safety message from employees to top
management?

32
✍ For what health and safety messages would you use each of the following forms of communication?

Communication About Safety

Meetings/discussions ______________________________________________________________
Lectures/presentations _____________________________________________________________
Posters/signs/displays ______________________________________________________________
Email/payroll stuffers ______________________________________________________________
Posted memos and reports __________________________________________________________
Communicate through managers _____________________________________________________
Peer communication _______________________________________________________________
Other___________________________________________________________________________

✍ How do employees communicate health and safety concerns to senior management?

✍ How often does the average employee have this opportunity?

✍ How does the organization respond to employee concerns? (By whom, what response time standard?)

✍ How is an employee notified of the outcome of his/her concern?

✍ What role do slogans and campaign-type communication play in the success of your health and safety
program?

33
 Continuous improvement

Communication About Safety ✍ How would you rate your firm’s health and safety communications?
❏ No activity ❏ Needs improvement ❏ Satisfactory ❏ A model program
To what do you attribute the success of your health and safety communications?

❏ I would be willing to share the specifics of my company practices in this area.

For details on how to contact us see back page.
✍ What would you tell others are the benefits of communications health and safety throughout the
organization?

✍ How much does your health and safety communication contribute to your overall health and safety
performance?

34
✍ Have you evaluated your firm’s health and safety communication program? ❏ Yes ❏ No

Communication About Safety

If yes, what indicators or measures did you use? What were the results of the evaluation?
How did you use the results?

✍ Please share an example or two of specific actions or events in your firm’s development or implementation
of health and safety communication.

✍ If you were looking for a company your own firm could learn from, what companies do you think of as
having an exemplary health and safety communications?

35
 Recognition can be used to enhance management commitment, improve attitudes

Recognition and Motivation

and motivation, and sustain desired performance

Examples of Recognition and Motivation Practices

☞ Pay increases and bonuses are related to the
employees’ health and safety performance.
☞ Contractors are eligible to win safety prizes.
☞ Awards are given for safe and healthy working
conditions and practices, not merely avoidance of
lost time claims.
☞ To encourage employee participation in decision-
making, staff are encouraged to make suggestions
for improvements in health and safety by entering
suggestion/ideas for continuous improvement.
Each suggestion is eligible to win a prize at the
end of the contest period. For example, a name is
randomly selected and the winner receives a gift
certificate or a periodic luncheon is held for
everyone who puts in a suggestion, or an annual
prize is awarded for the most innovative
suggestion. Management is required to explore
the merits/benefits of the suggestions made by
staff.
☞ Employee bonuses are affected by the company's
overall health and safety performance.

Your Reaction
✍ Have you used or tried any of the above practices? ❏ Yes ❏ No
If yes, which ones did you find effective and why?

About your firm

✍ Do you use incentives, recognition, and awards in your health and safety program?
✍ When do you use negative consequences?
For what violations or failures?
What is a typical penalty for this violation?
✍ When do you use positive rewards?
For what achievements?
What is a typical reward for this achievement?
✍ Who might receive a reward or penalty?
❏ The worker
❏ A specialist such as safety specialist, nurse, or designer
❏ A whole work team, department, etc.
❏ The whole staff of the facility
❏ The worker’s supervisor
✍ How are recognition awards determined?
❏ on a periodic schedule ❏ when a good thing occurs ❏ both
✍ Does the rest of the organization know when a reward/penalty has been given? How?

✍ Who actually administers a penalty?

✍ Who actually delivers a reward?

✍ Do departments compete for rewards?

❏ Yes ❏ No If yes, what measurement is used to tally their scores?

36
Continuous improvement

Recognition and Motivation

✍ How would you rate your firm’s health and safety recognition system?
❏ No activity ❏ Needs improvement ❏ Satisfactory ❏ A model program
To what do you attribute the success of your health and safety recognition system?

❏ I would be willing to share the specifics of my company practices in this area.

For details on how to contact us see back page.
✍ What would you tell others are the benefits of implementing a recognition system?

✍ How much do your health and safety recognition practices contribute to your overall health and safety
performance?

✍ Have you evaluated your firm’s recognition/motivation program? ❏ Yes ❏ No

If yes, what indicators or measures did you use? What were the results of the evaluation?
How did you use the results?

✍ Please share an example or two of specific actions or events in your firm’s health and safety incentives.

✍ If you were looking for a company your own firm could learn from, what companies do you think of as
having an exemplary recognition and motivation program?

37
 Measuring Health & Safety
Counting the rings: How do you measure
‘health and safety’?
✍ What measurement(s) does your firm use to evaluate your overall health and safety performance?

✍ Please rank to indicate which you consider most meaningful as a measure of health and safety and which
your firm relies most upon (1=most). (Please add any measures that you use that are not listed here.)
Meaningful Reliance
Frequency rate ______ ______
Compensation cost ______ ______
Severity rate ______ ______
Total number of injuries ______ ______
Regulatory violations ______ ______
Union health and safety grievances ______ ______
Worker feedback about unresolved concerns ______ ______
Indirect costs, e.g. loss replacement, sales lost ______ ______
Results of hazard inspections or audits ______ ______
Observations of safe work practices ______ ______
Others (please specify) _______________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________

✍ How would you rate your firm’s performance measurement system?

❏ No activity ❏ Needs improvement ❏ Satisfactory ❏ A model program
❏ I would be willing to share the specifics of my company practices in this area. For further details on
how to contact us see back page.

✍ How often do you compute the calculated performance scores (if used)?

✍ Other than health and safety performance measures listed above, what criteria and sources of information
do you think determine top management’s health and safety expectations?

More important than quantitative health and safety performance measures

Less important than quantitative health and safety performance measures

38
 COMPANY PROFILE:
Company_______________________________________________________________________________________
Location _______________________________________________________________________________________

Contact(s) ______________________________________________________________________________________

Telephone _____________________________________________________ Fax ____________________________

E-mail address __________________________________________________________________________________

Company Demographics:
Industry Sector __________________________________________________________________________________
% of Workers Employed in Office _____________________________ % Non-office____________________________
Number of employees in your workplace ________________ In firm, Ontario-wide____________________________

Employee Characteristics:
% of Female ____________________________________________________________________________________
% of Male ______________________________________________________________________________________
Average Educational Level _________________________________________________________________________
Average Age ____________________________________________________________________________________
Unionized
❏ Yes ❏ No
Predominant Language(s) Spoken ___________________________________________________________________
Average Length of Service _________________________________________________________________________
New Hires Per Year _______________________________________________________________________________
% of Shiftworkers ________________________________________________________________________________

Title of person completing workbook _________________________________________________________________

Title of person you report to ________________________________________________________________________

If you would like to share information with us related to your interest in benchmarking, discussing the workbook or your
model program in any of the health and safety elements, please contact Kathy Zoras, Senior Research/Policy Analyst at
416-344-4347 or fax at 416-344-4919 or e-mail: kathy_zoras@wsib.on.ca

Thank you for your participation.

39