Reasons for establishing good OH&S standards

The reasons for establishing good occupational safety and health standards are frequently
identified as:

 Moral - An employee should not have to risk injury at work, nor should others associated
with the work environment.
 Economic - many governments realize that poor occupational safety and health
performance results in cost to the State (e.g. through social security (NIS) payments to
the incapacitated, costs for medical treatment, and the loss of the "employability" of the
worker). Employing organisations also sustain costs in the event of an incident at work
(such as legal fees, fines, compensatory damages, investigation time, lost production, lost
goodwill from the workforce, from customers and from the wider community).
 Legal - Occupational safety and health requirements may be reinforced in civil law
and/or criminal law; it is accepted that without the extra "encouragement" of potential
regulatory action or litigation, many organizations would not act upon their implied
moral obligations.

Responsibilities of Employers

Section 8(1) of the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2000 ( OHS Act 2000) states that an
employer ‘must ensure the health, safety and welfare at work of all the employees’. To meet your
responsibilities under the OHS Act 2000, you must provide:

 safe premises
 safe machinery and substances
 safe systems of work
 provision of information, instruction, training and supervision
 suitable working environment and facilities.

The Act also states that employers are responsible for the health and safety of people other than
your workers, who may be present at the workplace.

Responsibilities of Workers

Section 20 of the OHS Act 2000 states that as a worker you must:

 take reasonable care for the health and safety of your co-workers who may be affected by
your actions
 cooperate with your employer in anything that they do or require, in order to ensure a
safe workplace.

You must:
  ensure that your actions do not put others at risk
 work safely
 use and maintain machinery and equipment properly
 ensure that your work area is free of hazards.

Cooperating with your employer may include:

 notifying your supervisor of actual and potential hazards

 wearing or using prescribed safety equipment
 carrying out work in a safe manner
 following health and safety instructions
 taking notice of signs
 adhering to speed limits
 participating in safety training.

Section 22 states that you must not be charged for anything that your employer provides or does
in relation to OH&S.

You should not:

 be asked to pay for a training course that your employer deems necessary to the safe
system of work
 be required to provide your own personal protective equipment
 be required to pay for equipment that is required to do the job safely
 lose pay or time if you are working as an OHS representative or on an OHS committee. 

Section 23 protects you from dismissal or demotion should you raise any health and safety
issues.

Personal Protective Equipment

PPE is used when all other means of protection are not adequate to protect people from harm and
injury. Since it is the LAST RESORT in body protection and only limited to that person only,
other protection methods should be explored before adopting PPE.
Eye Protection
Protective eye protection is required where there is a reasonable probability of injury that can be
prevented by such equipment. Industrial operations expose the eyes to a variety of hazards,
including flying objects, slashes of corrosive liquids of molten metal, dust, and radiation.

Foot protection
Protectors for toes and feet are available in various types and in many styles, each of them for
specific purposes.

Metal-free shoes, boots, and other footwear are available for use where there are severe electrical
or fire and explosion hazards.

Reinforced shoes have inner soles of flexible metal and are designed for use where there are
protruding nails but the likelihood of contact with energized electrical equipment is remote ---
for example, in the construction industry

Safety shoes with metatarsal guards should always be worn during operations where heavy
materials --- such as pig iron, heavy castings, and timbers --- are handled. They are
recommended wherever there is a possibility that objects of any weight will fall and strike the
foot above the toecap. Metal footguards are long enough to protect the foot back to the ankle and
may be made of heavy-gage flanged and corrugated sheetmetal; they should be easy to adjust
and remove
Head protection

There are many occupations that require the use of head protection to protect workers form
impact and penetration from falling and flying object and from limited electric shock and burn.

Safety helmets are classified into two types: (1) full-brimmed and (2) brimless with peak. These
two types are further classified as follow:

      Class A : limited voltage resistance for general service

      Class B : high voltage resistance
      Class C : no voltage protection (metallic helmet)
      Class D : limited protection for fire fighting

All helmets must be identified on the inside of the shell with the manufacturer's name, American
Standard designation 289.1, and the class (A,B,C,D)

To anyone exposed to noise levels which can seriously damage their hearing, the danger is
irreversible- a hearing aid will not replace lost hearing.

If the assessment shows that the noise levels are exceeded, they should reduce the noise levels at
source wherever this can reasonably practically be done, e.g. by using silencers, mufflers or
noise enclosures, or by hiring/using quieter machines.

Hearing protection
There are several types of ear protectors:
1. Ear plugs. These fit inside the ear canal and can be reusable or disposable according to the
manufacturer’s instructions. They may sometimes be attached to a cord to prevent loss. Ear plugs
may not be suitable for people with a history of ear problems
.
2. Canal caps. These have soft rubber caps attached to headband which presses them into the
openings of the ear canals.

3. Ear muffs. These are normally hard plastic cups with sound absorbent filling which fit over
the ears and sealed to the head by cushion seals. They need to be pressed to the head either by a
headband or by special fittings attached to some types of safety helmet. To avoid any
interference with other forms of PPE it is important to note that most headbands can be worn
over the head, the chin or around the back of the neck in accordance with the manufacturer's
instructions.

Using hearing protection

Hearing protectors will only give proper protection if they fit, are worn properly and are used
whenever the wearer is exposed to high noise levels. The more comfortable they are the more
likely it is that workers will use them properly. Taking them off even for a short time when noise
levels are high can quickly allow hearing damage to occur.
PPE examples