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Safety and Health. Programs. Introduction. Research indicates benefits to companies who establish effective worker safety and health programs: Reduction in the extent and severity of work-related injuries and illnesses Improved employee morale Higher productivity
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Safety and Health Programs
Introduction • Research indicates benefits to companies who establish effective worker safety and health programs: • Reduction in the extent and severity of work-related injuries and illnesses • Improved employee morale • Higher productivity • Lower workers’ compensation costs
Exemplary Workplaces • Common characteristics of effective safety and health programs: • Assignment of responsibility to managers, supervisors, and workers • Regular inspections to control hazards • Employee training and orientation for the recognition and avoidance of hazards
S & H Program Guidelines • Systematic approach to hazard: • Identification • Evaluation • Control
S & H Program Guidelines • Goes beyond specific requirements of the law to focus on all hazards
S & H Program Guidelines • As the size of the workplace increases so does the need for a formalized written program • Program effectiveness more important than “In Writing” • Element taken from the ‘Safety and Health Program Guidelines - 1989’
Major Elements • Keys to an effective program: • Management commitment and employee involvement • Worksite analysis • Hazard prevention and control • Safety and health training
Management Commitment • Management provides: • Direction and motivation • Resources • Activity control
Management Commitment • Safety and health policy statement • Clear program goals and objectives • Visible involvement in program from top management • Leadership
Management Commitment • Assignment of safety and health responsibilities • Clear communication of program goals
Management Commitment • Provides adequate authority to responsible personnel • Holds managers, supervisors and employees accountable for meeting their responsibilities
Management Commitment & Employee Involvement • Complement one another • Management provides the motivating force and resources for safety and health programs • Employee involvement provides workers opportunities to develop and express their own commitment to the safety and health program
Employee Involvement • Active role for employees: • Workplace inspections • Hazard analysis • Development of safe work rules • Training of coworkers & new hires
Worksite Analysis • Hazard Identification: • Facilities • Processes • Materials • Equipment • Use professionals that understand the processes involved
Worksite Analysis • Perform job hazard analysis • Break tasks down into elements • Identify the hazards in each element • Identify control measures and safe work rules for each element
Worksite Analysis • Identify existing hazards • Anticipate hazards where procedures or operations change
Worksite Analysis • Provide for regular site safety and health inspections • Method for reporting and correcting hazards: • Communication of hazards • Method for correcting reported hazards • Prioritizing work • Timeliness • Without fear of reprisal
Worksite Analysis • Effective system for: • Accident Investigations • Near Misses • Identify root causes • Contributing factors • Methods for prevention of reoccurrence
Worksite Analysis • Analyze injury and illness trends over time: • Identify injury type patterns • Identify injury task patterns • Analyze by department • Identify common causes and prevent reoccurrence
Hazard Prevention and Control • Make a determination that a hazard exists • Where feasible, eliminate by job or task design/redesign • If elimination is not feasible, then control the hazard: • Engineering controls • Administrative controls • Personal protective equipment (PPE)
Hazard Prevention and Control • System for timely correction or control of hazards • Safe work procedures: • Developed from worksite analysis • Training • Correction of unsafe performance • Positive reinforcement • Enforcement
Hazard Prevention and Control • Provide for facility and equipment maintenance • Plan and prepare for emergencies: • Training and drills • Medical Program • First aid • Physician and emergency care
Safety and Health Training • Effective new employee orientation: • Employee safety and health responsibilities • Protective measures • Proper procedures for machine operation • Understand all safeguards • Exits and emergency procedures
Safety and Health Training • Cover all required employee training • Documentation where required • Reinforcing employee training: • Continual feedback • Refresher training as needed
OSHA Alliances Strategic Partnerships VPP
Alliances • Enables organizations committed to workplace safety and health to collaborate with OSHA to prevent injuries and illnesses in the workplace • OSHA and its allies work together to reach out to, educate, and lead the nation's employers and their employees in improving and advancing workplace safety and health.
Alliance Benefits • Build trusting, cooperative relationships with the Agency. • Network with others committed to workplace safety and health. • Leverage resources to maximize worker safety and health protection.
How Alliances Work • OSHA and the participating organization must define, implement and meet a set of short and long-term goals that fall into three categories: • Training and education • Outreach and communication • Promote the National Dialogue on Workplace Safety and Health
Getting Started with Alliances • For national Alliances, contact OSHA's Office of Outreach Services and Alliances at 202-693-2340. • For regional or local Alliances, contact the OSHA regional office for your area.
OSHA Strategic Partnerships • The OSHA Strategic Partnership Program for Worker Safety and Health (OSPP), adopted on November 13, 1998 • An expansion of OSHA's experience with voluntary programs.
OSHA Strategic Partnerships • Extended, voluntary, cooperative relationship with groups of employers, employees, and employee representatives • Opportunity to identify a common goal, develop plans for achieving that goal, and cooperate in implementation. • Most are small businesses, with an average employment of 22 workers.
OSHA Strategic Partnerships • Many of these partnerships focus on areas of concern addressed in OSHA's Strategic Plan. • These partnerships are seeking solutions to silica and lead exposures • Serious hazards in the: • Nursing home, • Food processing, • Logging, and • Construction industries.
Voluntary Protection Program • Designed to recognize and promote effective safety and health management. • In the VPP, management, labor, and OSHA establish a cooperative relationship at a workplace that has implemented a strong program: • Management program that meets OSHA criteria • Employees participate & work with management • OSHA provides public recognition • Removal from routine inspections
OSHA's Consultation Service
OSHA Consultation Service • Free Service: • Find out about potential hazards in the workplace • Improve safety & health management systems • Qualify for one-year exemption from routine inspection
OSHA Consultation Service • Delivered by state governments: • Well trained staff • On-site consultation • Confidential • Commitment to correcting serious job hazards