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Employee Safety and Health

Employee Safety and Health. Chapter 16. Chapter Overview. Occupational Safety and Health Act The Causes of Accidents How to Measure Safety Organizational Safety Programs Employee Health Violence in the Workplace Summary of Learning Objectives. 16- 3. Employee Safety and Health.

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Employee Safety and Health

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  1. EmployeeSafetyandHealth Chapter 16

  2. Chapter Overview • Occupational Safety and Health Act • The Causes of Accidents • How to Measure Safety • Organizational Safety Programs • Employee Health • Violence in the Workplace • Summary of Learning Objectives 16-3

  3. Employee Safety and Health • Employee safety and health are important concerns in today’s organizations • Indirect costs include employers’ costs for health insurance and workers’ compensation • Health costs have escalated dramatically in recent decades • Occupational injuries and illnesses have always been common • U.S. Congress passed Occupational Safety and Health Act in 1970 16-4

  4. Occupational Safety and Health Act • Occupational Safety and Health Act • Federal law enacted in 1970 to ensure safe and healthful working conditions for every working person • Applies to all businesses with one or more employees (except self-employed persons) • General-duty clause • Clause in the Occupational Safety and Health Act covering those situations not addressed by specific standards • Requires employers to comply with the intent of the act 16-5

  5. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Responsibilities • Encourage employers and employees to reduce workplace hazards and to implement new safety and health management systems or improve existing programs • Develop mandatory job safety and health standards and enforce them through worksite inspections, employer assistance, and, sometimes, by imposing citations, penalties, or both • Promote safe and healthful work environments through cooperative programs, partnerships, and alliances • Establish responsibilities and rights for employers and employees to achieve better safety and health conditions • Support the development of innovative ways of dealing with workplace hazards 16-6

  6. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Responsibilities • Support the development of innovative ways of dealing with workplace hazards • Establish requirements for employers to keep records of injury and illness and, monitor certain occupational illnesses • Establish training programs to increase the competence of occupational safety and health personnel • Provide technical and compliance assistance and training and education to help employers reduce worker accidents and injuries • Work in partnership with states that operate their own occupational safety and health programs • Support the Consultation Programs offered by all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands 16-7

  7. OSHA Standards • Establishes legally enforceable standards relating to employee health and safety • Currently OSHA issues standards for a wide variety of workplace hazards including • Toxic substances • Harmful physical agents • Electrical hazards • Fall hazards • Hazardous wastes • Infectious diseases • Fire and explosion hazards • Dangerous atmospheres • Machine hazards 16-8

  8. OSHA Standards • Most OSHA standards and forms can be obtained online • The Federal Register, regularly publishes all OSHA standards and amendments • Human resource department is responsible for being familiar with these standards and ensuring that organization complies with them 16-9

  9. Establishment of Standards • OSHA can initiate standards on its own or on petitions from other parties, including • U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) • National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) • State and local governments • Nationally recognized standards-producing organizations, employers, labor organizations, or any other interested party • NIOSH, which was established by the act as an agency under HHS, • Conducts research on various safety and health problems • Recommends most of the standards adopted by OSHA 16-10

  10. Workplace Inspections • OSHA compliance officers (inspectors) are authorized under the act to conduct workplace inspections • It conducts inspections without advance notice • Employers do have the right to require that OSHA obtain a search warrant before being admitted • Originally employers were not given advance notice of inspections and could not refuse to admit OSHA inspectors • Marshall v. Barlow’s Inc. – Court ruled that employers are not required to admit OSHA inspectors onto their premises without a search warrant • At the same time, however, the court ruled that the probable cause needed to obtain a search warrant would be much less than what would be required in a criminal matter 16-11

  11. Inspection Priorities • The agency inspects under the following conditions • Imminent danger, or any condition where there is reasonable certainty that a danger exists that can be expected to cause death or serious physical harm immediately or before danger can be eliminated through normal enforcement procedures • Catastrophes and fatal accidents resulting in the death of any employee or the hospitalization of three or more employees • Employee complaints involving imminent danger or an employee violation that threatens death or serious harm • Referrals from other individuals, agencies, organizations, or the media • Planned, or programmed, inspections in industries with a high number of hazards and associated injuries • Follow-ups to previous inspections 16-12

  12. Inspection Procedures • Representatives of employer should first ask to see the inspector’s OSHA credentials • Inspector conducts a preliminary meeting with top management of organization • Manager of human resource department is usually present • At this time, the inspector explains the • Purpose of the visit • Scope of the inspection • Standards that apply • Inspector then usually requests an • Employer representative – Often someone from human resource department • Employee representative – Usually selected directly by employees or union if one is present 16-13

  13. Inspection Procedures • Under no circumstances may the employer select the employee representative • Inspector proceeds with inspection tour, which may cover part or all of the facilities • Inspector meets again with employer or the employer representatives • Inspector discusses what has been found and indicates all apparent violations for which a citation may be issued or recommended 16-14

  14. Citations and Penalties • Citations • In some cases, inspector has authority to issue citations at the work site immediately following the closing conference • Normally citations are issued by the OSHA area director and sent by certified mail • Once the citation is received, employer is required to post a copy of the citation at or near the place where violation occurred • For three days • Or until violation is corrected; whichever period is longer • Penalties • Under certain conditions some proposed penalties can be adjusted downward • Additional penalties may be imposed 16-15

  15. Types of OSHA Violations 16-16

  16. Reporting/Record-Keeping Requirements • All employers must report to OSHA within eight hours of learning about • The death of any employee from a work-related incident or • The in-patient hospitalization of three or more employees as a result of a work-related incident • Employers must report all fatal heart attacks • Deaths/Accidents that do not need to be reported include • Deaths from motor vehicle accidents on public streets (except those in a construction work zone) • Accidents on commercial airplanes, trains, subways, or buses 16-17

  17. Reporting/Record-Keeping Requirements • Employers of 11 or more persons must meet certain record-keeping requirements specified by OSHA. These include • Maintaining records in each establishment of occupational injuries and illnesses as they occur and making those records accessible to employees • Keeping injury and illness records and posting from February 1 through April 30 an annual summary of occupational injuries and illnesses for each establishment • A company executive must certify the accuracy of the summary • Complying with any additional record-keeping and reporting requirements in specific OSHA standards 16-18

  18. Reporting/Record-Keeping Requirements • Recording any fatality regardless of the length of time between the injury and death • Providing, upon request, pertinent injury and illness records for inspection and copying by • Any representative of the Secretaries of Labor or HHS, or • State during any investigation, research, or statistical compilation 16-19

  19. Reporting/Record-Keeping Requirements • Many OSHA standards have special record-keeping and reporting requirements • All employers covered by the act must maintain certain forms • Currently, three record-keeping forms are required • OSHA Form 300, Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses • OSHA Form 300A, Summary of Work-Related Injures and Illnesses • OSHA Form 301, Injury and Illness Incident Report 16-20

  20. Reporting/Record-Keeping Requirements • Form 300 – Requires employers to log each recordable occupational injury and illness within six working days from time employer learns of it • Form 300 includes • All occupational illnesses, regardless of severity • All occupational injuries resulting in • Death • One or more lost workdays • Restriction of work or motion • Loss of consciousness • Transfer to another job • Medical treatment other than first-aid 16-21

  21. Reporting/Record-Keeping Requirements • Form 300A – Designed to make it easier to post and calculate incident rates • Employers must post copies of the previous year’s records no later than February 1 and keep them up at least through April 30 • Form 301 – Includes more data about how injury or illness occurred • Must be completed within seven calendar days from time employer learns of work-related injury or illness • These forms must be retained for five years by the organization and must be available for inspection 16-22

  22. The Causes of Accidents – Personal Acts • Estimated that unsafe personal acts cause as much as 80 percent of organizational accidents • Unsafe personal acts include • Taking unnecessary risks • Horseplay • Failing to wear protective equipment • Using improper tools and equipment • Taking unsafe shortcuts • Difficult to determine why employees commit unsafe personal acts. Potential reasons include • Fatigue • Haste • Boredom • Stress • Poor eyesight • Daydreaming 16-23

  23. The Causes of Accidents – Personal Acts • These reasons do not totally explain why employees intentionally neglect to wear prescribed equipment or do not follow procedures • Most employees think of accidents as always happening to someone else • Such an attitude can easily lead to carelessness or a lack of respect for what can happen • Some people get a kick out of taking chances and showing off • Research studies have also shown that employees with positive attitudes have fewer accidents than employees with negative attitudes • This is not surprising when one considers that negative attitudes are likely to be related to employee carelessness 16-24

  24. The Causes of Accidents – Physical Environment and Accident Proneness • Physical environment • Accidents can and do happen in all types of environments, such as offices, parking lots, and factories • Certain work conditions, however, seem to result in more accidents • Accident proneness • Certain people are accident prone • Some employees, due to their physical and mental makeup, are more susceptible to accidents • This condition may result from inborn traits, but it often develops as a result of an individual’s environment • However, this tendency should not be used to justify an accident • Given the right set of circumstances, anyone can have an accident 16-25

  25. Unsafe Conditions in theWork Environment 16-26

  26. How to Measure Safety • Two most widely accepted methods for measuring an organization’s safety record include • Accident frequency • Accident severity • Frequency rate – Used to indicate how often disabling injuries occur • Disabling injuries – Cause an employee to miss one or more days of work following an accident • Also known as lost-time injuries • Severity rate – Indicates how severe the accidents were by calculating the length of time injured employees were out of work • Only disabling injuries are used in determining frequency and severity rates 16-27

  27. How to Measure Safety • Neither frequency rate nor severity rate means much until they are compared with similar figures • For other departments or divisions within the organization • For the previous year • For other organizations • It is through these comparisons that an organization’s safety record can be objectively evaluated 16-28

  28. Formulas for Computing Accident Frequency Rate and Severity Rate 16-29

  29. Organizational Safety Programs • Major objective of any safety program is to get the employees to “think safety” • Accident prevention • Designed to keep safety and accident prevention on employees’ minds • Four basic elements are present in most successful safety programs • It must have the genuine (rather than casual) support of top and middle management • It must be clearly established that safety is a responsibility of operating managers • A positive attitude toward safety must exist and be maintained • One person or department should be in charge of safety program and responsible for its operation 16-30

  30. Promoting Safety – Suggestions • Make the work interesting • Attempts to make jobs interesting usually successful if they add responsibility, challenge, and other similar factors that increase employees’ job satisfaction • Establish a safety committee composed of operative employees and representatives of management • A rotating membership of 5 to 12 members is desirable • Normal duties include inspecting, observing work practices, investigating accidents, and making recommendations • Committee meetings should be held at least once a month on company time, and attendance should be mandatory • Feature employee safety contests • Reward for having best safety record for a given time period, safety knowledge, for submitting good accident prevention ideas 16-31

  31. Promoting Safety – Suggestions • Publicize safety statistics • Monthly accident reports should be posted • Ideas as to how accidents can be avoided should be solicited • Use bulletin boards throughout the organization • Pictures, sketches, and cartoons can be used • Change bulletin boards frequently • Encourage employees, including supervisors and managers, to have high expectations for safety • Recognize positive safety actions, and acknowledge those who contribute to safety improvements • Periodically hold safety training programs and meetings • Have employees attend and participate in these meetings as role players or instructors 16-32

  32. Establishing a Safety Training Program • Assess training needs by examining accident and injury records and talking to department heads about their perceived needs • Regardless of severity, try to find out • Where problems are located • What the potential causes might be • What has been done in the past to correct them • Gauge level of employees’ safety skills • Use written tests, employee interviews, and general observations to determine level of employee knowledge about their job • Design a program to solve the program • Outside resources such as consultants, equipment vendors, and even OSHA can be helpful • Use a variety of teaching methods and involve employees as much as possible 16-33

  33. Establishing a Safety Training Program • Get line managers on board • Once top management has embraced a safety philosophy, inform line managers about safety problems throughout the organization • Emphasize that they can help set the proper tone through example and instruction • Evaluate the program’s effectiveness • Try to answer two basic questions • Did the program change employees’ behavior? • Did the program impact business results in a positive manner? • Fine-tune the safety process • Periodically review training program and make adjustments • To incorporate new safety standards • To account for business and industry changes 16-34

  34. Employee Health • Recently, there has been a lot of attention on employee health • Statistics show occupational diseases may cost industry as much or more than occupational accidents • Although total number of nonfatal job-related injuries and illnesses in the U.S. has dropped in certain recent years, the total number of illnesses has risen over the same periods • There are many diseases and health-related problems that are not necessarily job related but that may affect job performance • Many organizations now attempt to • Remove health hazards from the workplace • Investigate programs to improve health 16-35

  35. Occupational Health Hazards • Defined as any abnormal condition or disorder (other than that resulting from an occupational injury) caused by exposure to environmental factors associated with employment • Approximately 242,500 new cases of occupational illnesses were reported among U.S. employees in private industry during 2005 • In 2005, the overall incidence rate of nonfatal occupational illnesses was 26.7 per 10,000 full-time employees in private industry • U.S. Department of Labor currently uses four major categories to classify occupational illnesses • Occupational skin diseases or disorders • Respiratory conditions due to toxic agents • Poisoning (systemic effects of toxic materials) • All other occupational illnesses • Increased awareness of occupational diseases contributed to passage of OSHA 16-36

  36. Occupational Health Hazards • Toxic Substance Control Act of 1976 • Requires pretesting of certain new chemicals marketed each year • A 1980 OSHA rule requires organizations to • Measure for safety • Record employee exposure to, certain potentially harmful substances • Medical records must be made available to • Employees • Their designated representatives • OSHA • These records must be maintained for 30 years, even if the employee leaves the job • Additional rules have been issued related to specific hazards 16-37

  37. Hazard Communications • Right-to-know rule • Purpose is to ensure employers and employees know • What chemical hazards exist in their workplace • How to protect themselves against those hazards • Goal • Reduce incidence of illness and injuries caused by chemicals • Hazard Communication Standard ensures uniform requirements • To ensure hazards of all chemicals imported into, produced in, or used in workplace are evaluated and evaluated results are transmitted to affected employers and exposed employees • OSHA has developed a variety of materials to help employers and employees implement effective hazard communication programs • www.eduwhere.com 16-38

  38. Stress in the Workplace • Mental and physical condition that results from a perceived threat of danger (physical or emotional) and the pressure to remove it • Potential exists when an environmental situation presents a demand threatening to exceed a person’s capabilities and resources for meeting it • Stress manifests itself among employees in several ways, including • Increased absenteeism • Job turnover • Lower productivity • Mistakes on the job • Excessive stress can result in both physical and emotional problems 16-39

  39. Stress in the Workplace • Some common stress-related disorders include • Tension and migraine headaches • Coronary heart disease • High blood pressure • Muscle tightness in chest, neck, and lower back • Gastritis, indigestion, ulcers, diarrhea, constipation • Bronchial asthma • Rheumatoid arthritis • Some menstrual and sexual dysfunctions • From a psychological perspective, inordinate or prolonged stress can adversely affect personal factors such as • Concentration, memory • Sleep, appetite • Motivation, mood • Ability to relate to others 16-40

  40. Stress in the Workplace • Recent reports by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) cites the following • 40 percent of employees reported their job was very or extremely stressful • 25 percent view their jobs as the number one stressor in their lives • 75 percent of employees believe that employees have more on-the-job stress than a generation ago • 29 percent of employees felt quite a bit or extremely stressed at work • 26 percent of employees said they were “often or very often burned out or stressed by their work” 16-41

  41. Stress in the Workplace • American Institute of Stress states that cost of stress for employers is currently estimated at over $300 billion annually as assessed by • Accidents • Absenteeism • Employee turnover • Diminished productivity • Direct medical and insurance costs • Workers’ compensation • Other legal costs • 60 to 80 percent of accidents on job are stress related • Many organizations conduct training programs designed to help reduce employee stress • Most attempt to teach employees self-help techniques for individually reducing their own stress 16-42

  42. Common Sources and Suggested Causes of Job-Related Stress 16-43

  43. Burnout • Occurs when work is no longer meaningful to a person • Can result from stress or a variety of other work-related or personal factors • Certain related myths have surfaced • Myth 1: Burnout is just a new-fangled notion that gives lazy people an excuse not to work • Myth 2: As long as people really enjoy their work they can work as long and hard as they want and never experience burnout • Myth 3: Individuals know when they are burning out and, when they do, all they need to do is take off for a few days or weeks and then they’ll be as good as new • Myth 4: Individuals who are physically and psychologically strong are unlikely to experience burnout • Myth 5: Job burnout is always job-related 16-44

  44. Burnout • From organization’s viewpoint, to reduce burnout • Identify those jobs with highest potential for burnout • Air traffic controller • Certain computer- related jobs • Several actions are possible, once those have been identified • Redesigning jobs • Clarifying expectations • Changing work schedules • Improving physical working conditions • Training jobholders 16-45

  45. The Path to Professional Burnout 16-46

  46. Alcoholism and Drug Abuse • Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration estimated for year 2005 • Nearly 19.7 million people in the U.S. used illicit drugs • 55 million people were alcohol binge drinkers • 16 million people were heavy drinkers • National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence estimates alcohol and drug abuse costs American economy $276 billion per year in • Lost productivity • Health care expenditures • Crime • Motor vehicle crashes • Other conditions 16-47

  47. Alcoholism and Drug Abuse • Compared to most employees, substance abusers • Are late 3 times more often • Request time off 2.2 times more often • Have 2.5 times as many absences of eight days or more • Use 3 times the normal level of sick benefits • Are 5 times more likely to file a workers’ compensation claim • Are involved in accidents 3.6 times more often • Substance abuse results in • Reduced productivity • Reduced work quality • Damage to property and equipment • Theft • Lower morale • Safety violations • Poor decision making 16-48

  48. Alcoholism • Historically, people viewed alcoholics as people lacking self-control and morals • Alcoholism is recognized as a disease with no single cause • Does not strike any particular group • Approximately 80 percent of all adult binge and heavy drinkers are employed • Estimated that economic loss to employer of an alcoholic employee amounts to 25 percent of the employee’s wages • Compared to nonalcoholic employees, alcoholics incur twice the rate of absenteeism caused by illness • Alcoholics are also two to three time more likely to be involved in a work-related accident • Some estimate that as many as 50 percent of all problem employees in industry are actually alcoholics 16-49

  49. Alcoholism • Organizations have only recently undertaken widespread efforts to reduce employee alcoholism • Many have established in-house alcoholic treatment programs • Indicated that in-house alcoholic treatment programs achieve a high rate of success, based on • Recovery rates • Cost-effectiveness measures • Programs normally administered as part of an employee assistance program (EAP) 16-50

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