Health & Safety at

Workplace
“The bottom line is that success in
controlling a particular hazard is
proportional to the amount of
attention given to that hazard.”
 Health & Safety at Workplace
(Contd)
 It is safe to assume that most employers consider
their employees to be their most important asset.
That is why it is so important for employers to
protect workers from hazards, or potential hazards,
in the workplace.
 The Occupational Safety and Health provisions in
the Labour Act (Act 651) requires employers to
provide a workplace that is free from recognized
hazards that are causing, or are likely to cause,
death or serious physical harm to employees. To
achieve that end, employers should develop a
comprehensive safety and health plan.
 Health & Safety at
Workplace (Contd)
 Developing and maintaining an
organizational culture of health and safety
requires management commitment at all
levels. Regardless of the type of industry—
from manufacturing and construction to
knowledge management and retail—safety
is managed by focusing on training and
accident prevention.
 Health & Safety at
Workplace (Contd)
 In today’s litigatious society,
organizations cannot afford to be
ignorant regarding occupational
safety.
 Further, if companies want to
maintain a positive employer
brand and reputation, safety is
key
 Health & Safety at Workplace
(Contd)
 Employers receive big dividends from an
effective safety and health plan. Studies
have shown that a good plan:
• Reduces the extent and severity of work-
related injuries and illnesses.
• Improves employee morale and productivity.
• Lowers workers’ compensation costs.
• Helps with retention and recruiting, due to
the organization’s good reputation for
safety.
 Health & Safety at Workplace
(Contd)

 Every effective safety and health plan

has four key elements:
 management commitment and
employee involvement;
 worksite analysis (risk assessment);
 hazard prevention and control; and
 training and education.
 Management Commitment
and Employee Involvement
There are seven steps that contribute to the
successful involvement of both managers and
employees in developing a safety and health
plan:
1. . Go to the top officer in the organization and
present the plan; request the support of each
member of management as well. Ask that safety
and health be made a core value of the company
and that management’s actions reflect that
commitment. Without strong support from the
head of the organization, the plan cannot
succeed.
 Management Commitment
and Employee Involvement
2. Develop a safety and health policy and be
sure to communicate that policy to all
employees. It should be posted on the
bulletin board of each company location
and included in the employee handbook.
3. Develop short-term and long-term goals
and communicate them to all employees.
Develop a plan to help achieve the goals
and provide feedback on the progress
made.
 Management Commitment
and Employee Involvement
4. Create a safety and health manual and be sure it
defines responsibilities at all levels.
5. Be sure that all levels of management have a
visible role in the implementation of the plan. If
management is not in evidence, employees will
not take management’s commitment to safety
and health seriously. Managers can reinforce the
plan by complying with its provisions themselves.
If safety glasses are required in a certain area,
for example, be sure managers wear safety
glasses when they are in that area.
 Management Commitment
and Employee Involvement
6. Ensure employee participation—a critical factor.
Levels of involvement for workers range from
contributing advice to serving on a safety
committee. If there is to be an incentive plan
based on safety achievements, be sure that the
employees, not just managers, take part. Share
the goals and objectives with employees and ask
for their support and commitment.
7. Review the plan regularly. It should be reassessed
at least once a year to evaluate its success in
meeting the established goals and objectives.
When a new standard comes out or an existing
standard is revised, update the written plan.
 Worksite Analysis
 After managers and employees are committed to the
safety and health plan, specific job issues should be
addressed. Walk through the facility and conduct a
thorough needs analysis. Once the analysis is complete,
develop a job safety analysis for each position. A job
safety analysis looks at each function of a job, identifies
any potential hazards, and lists what should be done to
protect employees from those hazards.
 After the safety and health plan has been implemented,
conduct frequent and regular inspections of the
workplace. This will reveal issues that may have been
omitted from the original plan, or facets of the plan that
require modification. If problems are uncovered, adjust
the plan to correct them.
Hazard Prevention & Control
 The first step in preventing or eliminating hazards should be the
use of engineering controls. Engineering controls can include
lowering work benches, installing safety switches, adding lifting
devices, or changing the chemicals used in a particular process.
In addition, layouts can often be redesigned to eliminate hazards.
 Administrative controls are another way to reduce hazards. One
example is reducing the length of time employees are exposed to
particular hazards. If an employee has worked for two or three
hours in a noisy area, allow him (or her) to work in another
section of the facility for a while. When the total time of exposure
is calculated, the employee should be below the threshold limit.
In such cases, be sure to document any administrative actions
taken to reduce exposure.
 The last method used to protect employees is the use of proper
personal protective equipment (PPE). PPEs must be provided by
the employer at no cost to the employee
Training and Education
 Employees should be trained person in a specific areas of
safety, such as fall protection, scaffolding and excavations.
 Regular training should be conducted with all employees.
Some safety standards require that all employees who are
exposed to a hazard be trained in how to recognize the
hazard and protect themselves.
 The final step in education is to have regularly scheduled
safety meetings. A weekly safety talk of five to 10 minutes is
an ideal way to continue the educational process. Use the
weekly talk to provide feedback on safety goals, talk about a
“close call” incident, or educate employees about a wide array
of safety and health issues.
 Health & Safety Committee
Operating Procedures
 Purpose:
 In accordance with the company’s commitment to safety, each company
element will be responsible for establishing a Health and Safety Committee
for the following purposes:
 1. To maintain and enhance employee interest in health and safety issues.
 2. To ensure that managers, supervisors and employees are aware
through training activities that they are responsible for the prevention of
workplace accidents.
 3. To help make health and safety activities an integral part of the
organization's operating procedures, culture and programs.
 4. To provide an opportunity for discussion of health and safety problems
and possible solutions.
 5. To inform and educate employees and supervisors about health and
safety issues and research findings, etc.
 6. To help reduce the risk of workplace injuries and illnesses.
 7. To help ensure compliance with federal and state health and safety
standards.
 Health & Safety Committee
Operating Procedures
 Functions:
 To accomplish these objectives, the Health and Safety Committee will:
 1. Develop a written mission statement in accordance with corporate
requirements.
 2. Define duties and responsibilities of committee members.
 3. Identify and prioritize goals and establish action plans to achieve each goal.
 4. Include representation from different levels and areas of the company
element.
 5. Meet at least monthly.
 6. Record and disseminate minutes of meetings, documenting attendance,
problems, and issues, as well as corrective action proposed and actions taken
to address each issue.
 7. Make attendance mandatory with the penalty of removal for repeated
absences.
 8. Develop methods to increase and maintain safety awareness.
 9. Organize special subcommittees to address specific issues, projects or
programs.
Safety Scorecard System

 Building a world-class workplace safety program takes time, dedication and

commitment. The following 10 steps are guidelines for organizations to design a
safety scorecard system.4
 1. Review the organizational culture, starting from top management.
 2. Collect information on organizational safety goals, objectives, performance
measures and training documentation.
 3. Assign safety responsibilities to all management.
 4. Establish a safety steering team.
 5. Develop systems to measure success regarding safety.
 6. Establish a safety committee (develop a mission, conduct training on health
and safety issues, and define roles and responsibilities of members).
 7. Brainstorm safety ideas.
 8. Provide additional training to safety steering team and safety committee (e.g.,
ergonomics, OSHA topics, hazard analysis skills, safety conferences, plant tours).
 9. Deliver safety training to management (e.g., incident investigation skills,
corrective action development and tracking, safety scorecard measurements,
and safety program responsibilities).
 10. Provide safety training for the entire workforce.
Elements of a Safety Program

 A workplace safety program is more than training. It encompasses a

wide range of issues and topics, as listed below, and establishes clear
roles and responsibilities regarding health and safety within the
organization.
 • Written safety policy.
 • Safety committee (safety inspections, accident investigation, safety
record keeping).
 • Companywide safety training.
 • Training on workplace violence prevention.
 • Health issues (e.g., drug-free workplace, smoke-free work
environment).
 • Fire drills.
 • Ergonomics.
 • Emergency response plan (e.g., medical emergencies, terrorism).
 • Training for first aid and CPR.
 • Employee assistance program.
 Lessons Learned/Best
Practices
 In the safety arena, learning from past mistakes is
important. These lessons, however, do not happen
in isolation. Workplace safety is closely tied to the
organizational culture supported by the leadership
and management of the entire organization. To
enhance the safety program, organizations may
want to include a “lessons learned” or best
practices program. For employee access, this
information may be posted in a safety newsletter
on the company intranet.
 Other Health & Safety
Concerns (Research)
 Security abroad for expatriates will increase to ensure
personal and business safety and to deal with terrorist
kidnappings and blackmail.
 Obesity and diabetes among the working population will
increase, affecting health and the ability to work.
 Work intensification will occur as employers try to increase
productivity with fewer employees and resources. This could
drive up stress and stress-related illnesses.
 Businesses will increasingly ban smoking as more cities/states
enact Clean Indoor Air laws.
 Real-time video surveillance via high-speed Internet is
becoming affordable to more effectively monitor employee
activity and safety and prevent theft.
 Part XV of the Labour Act (Act
651)-Occupational Health,
Safety & Environment
 118 (1) It is the duty of an employer to ensure that every
worker employed by him works under satisfactory
,safe and health conditions.
 An employer shall:
 (a) maintain at the workplace, plant and the system of
work that are safe and without risk to health.
(b) ensure the safety and absence of risks to health in
connection with use, handling, storage and transport of
articles and substances
 (c) Provide the necessary information, instructions,
training and supervision having regard to the age, literacy
level and the other circumstances of the worker to
ensure ,so far as is reasonably practicable ,the health
and the safety at the work of those other workers
engaged on the particular ;
 Part XV of the Labour Act (Act
651)-Occupational Health,
Safety & Environment
 d) Take the steps to prevent contamination of the workplaces
by, and protect the workers from, toxic gases ,noxious
substances vapours, dust, fumes, mists and other
substances or materials likely to cause the risk to safety
or health.
 (e) Supply and maintain at no cost to worker adequate
safety appliances, suitable fire-fighting equipment, personal
protective equipment, and instruct the workers in the
use of appliances or equipments;
 (f) Provide separate, sufficient and suitable toilet and
washing facilities and adequate facilities for the storage,
changing, drying, and cleansing from the contamination
of clothing for male and female workers;
 Part XV of the Labour Act (Act
651)-Occupational Health,
Safety & Environment
 (g) Provide adequate supply of clean drinking
water at the workplace; and
 (h)Prevent accidents and injury to health arising
out of connected with, or occurring in the course
of, work by minimizing the causes of hazards
inherent in the working environment.
 It is the obligation of every worker to use the
safety appliances fire-fighting equipment and
personal protective equipment provided by the
employer in compliance with the employer’s
instructions.
Part XV of the Labour Act (Act 651)-
Occupational Health, Safety &
Environment
 An employer shall not be liable for injury suffered
by a worker who contravenes subsection (3)
where the injury is caused solely by non-
compliance by the worker.
 An employer who, without reasonable excuse
,fails to discharge any of the obligations under
subsection (1) or (2) commits an offence and is
liable on summary conviction to a fine not
exceeding 1000 penalty units or imprisonment for
a term not exceeding 3 years or both.
 Part XV of the Labour Act (Act
651)-Occupational Health,
Safety & Environment
 Exposure to imminent hazards
 119. (1) When a worker finds himself or herself in any
situation at the workplace which she or he has reasonable
cause to believe presents an imminent and serious danger to
his or life ,safety or health ,the worker shall immediately
report this fact to his or her supervisor and remove himself or
herself from the situation.
 An employer shall not dismiss or terminate the employment
the worker or withhold any remuneration of the a worker who
has removed himself or herself from the wok situation which
the worker has reason to believe presents imminent and
serious danger to his or her life, safety or the health.
 (3) An employer shall not require a worker to return to work
in circumstances where there is a continuing imminent and
serious danger to the life, safety or health of the worker.