INTRODUCTION
The
Occupational Safety and Health Act of
1970 (OSHAct) obligates each employer
to provide and maintain a safe and healthful
workplace for all employees. To meet
this obligation, employers need to effectively
manage safety and health in the workplace.
This manual describes those essential
elements and actions necessary for designing
an effective and functioning workplace
program. Essential elements and actions
are:
1. Management
Leadership and Employee Involvement
Having
a Safety and Health Policy
Setting
a Goal & Developing Objectives
Assigning
of Responsibilities
Getting
Top Management to Provide Leadership
Getting
Employees Involved
Provide
Adequate Authority/Resources
Giving
& Receiving Accountability
Providing
Program Evaluations
2. Worksite
Analysis
Comprehensive
Hazard Identification
Regular
Site Safety & Health Inspections
Employee
Reports of Hazards
Accident
& Incident Investigations
Injury
& Illness Trend Analysis
3. Hazard Prevention
and Control
Appropriate
Controls
Preventive
Maintenance
Emergency
Preparation
Medical
Program
4. Safety and
Health Training for Employees, Supervisors,
Managers
Many
employers believe they have a safety
program but have never assessed their
program to find out. This manual will
help in evaluating the effectiveness
of your safety and health program. You
can compare your program elements with
those elements OSHA uses to describe
effective and functioning workplace
program. In addition you have a systematic
means of determining how yours actually
measures up.
One
section of the manual contains a worksheet
to help in identifying problems and
focus on strategies that when carried
out can cause program improvement. The
manual and worksheets are applicable
to all types of industry -
manufacturing, construction, service
industry and nonprofit. We think it
provides the user with a tool to assess
the effectiveness of a program already
in place and to identify areas that
need improvement. It is especially useful
for the small employer who must make
provisions for a safe and healthful
workplace. It is a primary tool to aid
in evaluating a workplace safe program
and in simplifying the diagnostic process.
Each
subject is presented in two parts. The
first part contains key questions to
objectively qualify and quantify each
element on a performance basis. The
second part contains a brief explanation
of the key elements that must be in
place in order to have an effective
program.
We
devised a scoring system in an attempt
to quantify the effectiveness of the
program; the scoring system is not an
absolute that can be applied in all
situations. A numerical value is assigned
for each "Yes" answer and
receives a numeric value of one point.
Modify the numeric value to fit particular
circumstances that vary from employer
to employer. As an example, on the question
asked "Is management's safety attitude
communicated to employees orally and
in writing". However, if one of
the two actions is not done, assign
one-half point.
It
is not necessary to be able to answer
"Yes" to each question asked.
No safety and health program is perfect
and it's unlikely that any program will
receive a perfect score. If however,
your safety and health program does
not measure up to 80% (see Final Assessment
Worksheet), you may want to incorporate
the activity suggested by the question
into your existing program.
SITUATION
|
POTENTIAL
CAUSES
|
COUNTERMEASURE
|
|
Poor
safety performance resulting in
high insurance premiums, production
delays and poor company image
|
Lack
of leadership
|
A1,
Policy
A4, Leadership
|
| Lack
of supervision |
A3,
Responsibility
A4, Leadership
A7, Accountability
D1, Supervisor Training
|
| Need
for more safety control |
B1,
Hazard Inventory
B5 Trend Analysis
C1, Appropriate Controls
|
| Lack
of skill |
D1,
Employee Training |
| Attitude |
A5,
Involvement
A4, Positive Reinforcement
A6, Authority/Resources
|
|
Number
of preventable accidents attributed
to one individual
|
Program
elements not in place or not effective
|
A8,
Program Evaluation
|
| Lack
of direction |
A2,
Goal & Objective |
| Health
problems |
C4,
Medical Program |
| Personal
problems |
A4,
Leadership
C4, Medical
|
|
High
turnover, high absenteeism
|
Low
morale
|
A1,
Policy
A5, Empl Involvement
|
|
SITUATION
|
POTENTIAL
CAUSES
|
COUNTERMEASURE
|
|
Accidents
due to equipment failures
|
No
preventative maintenance program;
inadequate maintenance
|
C2,
Preventive Maintenance
|
| Inadequate
inspections |
B1,
Comp. Survey
B2, General Survey
B3, Employee Reports
D1, Training
|
|
Increased
severity of injury
|
Lack
of pre-planning
|
C3,
Emergency Preparation
|
|
Damaged
equipment leading to production
losses
|
Need
for investigations
|
B4,
Investigations
|
|
Number
of observed unsafe acts
|
Lack
of leadership
|
A4,
Leadership
A7, Accountability
D1, Training
|
|
OSHA
violations or other unsafe conditions
|
Lack
of leadership
Lack
of direction
|
A1,
Policy
A2,
Goal & Objective
|
