AN ISO 9001:2015 & NCVTE APPROVED BY GOVT. OF INDIA.
WE ARE AFFILIATED WITH NATIONAL & INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS
ELEMENT 1: Why we should manage workplace health and safety
SCOPE OF LEARNING-
Why we should manage workplace health and safety-
1.1 The Moral, Financial and Legal reasons for Managing Health and Safety in the workplace
There are three fundamental reasons for organizations to manage health and safety risk:
1.1.1 Moral
According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), over 2.3 million people die each year as a result of workplace injuries or illnesses. Every year, around 0.34 billion occupational accidents and 0.16 billion occupational illnesses are registered. The ILO updates these numbers at regular intervals, and the revisions show a rise in accidents and illness.
Without a moral code of behaviour in the society, the people who make up the society and the organisations that are a part of the society may see financial profit, sales, and marketing as the primary goal, with the secondary goal of subsidising the safety needs.
Employees who come to work have no intention of being harmed, becoming ill, or dying on the job. People come to work to earn a living so that they can meet the demands and expectations of themselves, as well as their families and friends who rely on them.
The correct attitude towards health and safety is one of the Society’s demands. Workers have the right to a safe workplace. The moral approach of simply evaluating risk in large organisations is clearly morally wrong.
Employers have a moral obligation to protect not only their employees, but also those who may be harmed by their work, such as contractors or general members of the public.
1.1.2. Legal
All Organisations around the world has some or more legal obligations to be fulfilled which are imposed upon the Employer by the Country’s specific legislation and some of them comes from International bodies like the International Labour Organisation (ILO) which are accepted by the countries in many a cases and adopted in its Laws.
Over the years many moral obligations have been turned into health and safety law. For example, the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) Occupational Safety and Health Convention 1981, C155, identifies some basic general legal duties of employers towards their employees in part IV, Article 16:
There are strong legal reasons for employers to manage risk, as failure to fulfill the obligations or Laws may lead to Enforcement actions like-
There is no specific standard at Global Level for the enforcement of Health and Safety Law. The Individual countries specify and develop a system of enforcement of Health and Safety Law.
1.1.3. Economic
The ILO has calculated the significant economic cost of underfunding OSH in order to reduce occupational accidents and illnesses. The overall annual costs are equivalent to nearly 4% of global GDP (roughly 2.8 trillion US dollars).
Accidents and ill-health are costly. All Incidents lead to some or other costs directly or indirectly. In some cases, the costs like cost of damage, cost of injury & ill-health, legal costs etc. may be directly calculable in monetary value. But there are other costs which can be indirectly linked like the loss of time, loss of reputation and loss of contracts which collectively may be higher than the Direct costs.
All employers are required to have certain types of insurance against accidents, ill-health or other problems, such as:
Some of the costs are covered through Insurances but majority may be uninsured.
Uninsured (hidden) expenses have been demonstrated in research by the UK’s Health and Safety Executive to range from eight to 36 times higher than known insured costs. This was represented as a “iceberg” concept, where the majority of expenditures (the uninsured ones) were submerged.
Some of these expenses have an undetermined cost. This emphasises how challenging it may be for a company to calculate the exact cost of accidents to its operations. It’s possible that the business lacks the manpower, time, and knowledge necessary to do the analysis. They could not even be aware that some charges are involved, causing them to completely miss them. Because of the organisational culture, it’s possible that many instances never make it into the data that serve as the foundation for costing. Certain costs, such as those associated with ongoing civil cases where a sizable compensation award may be made, may not be known with accuracy for a while.
Good health and safety management undoubtedly has financial advantages. Employers with effective health and safety management systems are likely to save a significant amount of money on the expenses of accidents that would have occurred otherwise.
Direct and Indirect, Insured and Uninsured Costs of Incidents
Direct Costs of accidents and incidents
Expenses such as these can be easily calculated:
Indirect Costs of accidents and incidents
Costs associated with the following are more nebulous:
Of course, some expenditures (employer’s liability, public liability, and vehicles) can be covered by insurance, but many costs related to accidents and incidents cannot be covered, and even those that can often have an excess.
According to research published by the HSE (HSG96 Costs of Accidents at Work), the indirect costs of accidents are eight to thirty-six times higher than the direct costs.
The capacity to tender for orders that would not otherwise be considered by large, public facing organisations as well as improved employee morale and productivity all contribute to good health and safety management’s ability to reduce costs while increasing prospects for profit.
Insured costs
Uninsured costs may include;
1.2.1 Role of Enforcement Agencies
All Organisations around the world has some or more legal obligations to be fulfilled which are imposed upon the Employer by the Country’s specific legislation and some of them comes from international bodies like the International Labour Organisation (ILO) which are accepted by the countries in many a case and adopted in its Laws.
International Labour Organisation (ILO) publishes guidelines in the forms of standard which are published at the Annual International Labour Conference which can be ratified by the member states. The ratifying countries need to adopt and implement this into their Country Specific Laws as per article 19(6) of the ILO Constitution. Failure to comply may lead to complaints against the member state.
One such convention is the ILO’s Occupational Safety and Health Convention 1981, C155.
Article 9 of Convention C155 states:
Article 10 of Convention C155 states:
Measures shall be taken to provide guidance to employers and workers so as to help them to comply with legal obligations.
A particular body is nominated to take up the responsibility of enforcing the Health and Safety Law.
For example, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is a nominated body for UK. Similarly, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in USA.
One approach of ensuring that the Organisations are respecting the Legislation is by conducting Labour Inspections.
Labour inspection is a public function of labour administration that ensures the application of labour legislation in the workplace. Its primary responsibility is to persuade the social partners of the necessity of abiding by the law at work and their shared interest in doing so by preventative, educational, and, where required, enforcement means. Powers of Labour Inspectors
Result of Non-Compliance of Health and Safety Standards
Enforcement action
Enforcement Authorities emphasize on prevention but, where appropriate Enforcement of law is done where it is deliberately flouted
Enforcement actions are taken to ensure duty holders take the following actions-
Types of enforcement
We make clear to duty holders which matters are subject to enforcement, and the measures they must take to achieve compliance (including timescales).
How to challenge/appeal
We also give duty holders advice on their right to challenge/appeal. Depending on the enforcement action, different approaches are available. In What to expect when a health and safety inspector calls, they are described.
What happens after enforcement action?
After any enforcement action Enforcement Authorities-
Fee for intervention
You must pay for the time it takes us to assist you make things right if you broke the law.. This is called a ‘fee for intervention’ (FFI).
1.2.3 Health and Safety Management System (HSMS)
The UK H&S regulation first introduced OH&S management systems in 1991 under the name “Successful Health and Safety Management,” also known as HSG65 and distinguished by its pneumonic POPIMAR.
The Road to ISO 9001 and Annex SL
The US Defense standard MIL-Q-9858, which was published in 1959, is the precursor to contemporary business management systems standards (MSS). Simply put, this standard was created to reduce variation and save money by ensuring that production procedures were trustworthy enough to provide bombs that would reliably detonate when they hit their targets. Knowing this goal is essential to comprehending how an OH&SMS works. It must implement organised control that is trustworthy enough to prevent or significantly minimise workplace and other injuries.
The NATO AQAP series of standards, MIL-Q-9858, were updated in 1969, 1974, and 1979, respectively, to create the UK’s set of quality system criteria. In order to acquire ISO 9001, these were submitted to ISO in 1987. It has since undergone four revisions (1994, 2000, 2008 and 2015).
In 2015, ISO 9001 was updated to match the Figure 1-illustrated then-new ISO structure in Annex SL. For every MSS controlled by ISO, Annex SL introduced a standard high-level structure (HLS). Later that year, ISO 14001 was revised in a similar manner, and the next ISO 45001 will also be created using the same Methodology. I was aware that using MSS may have significant advantages for organisations because I had been using it for more than 30 years. In agreement, the British Accreditation Bureau claimed that 67% of their accredited firms had acquired new clients, and research by Heras and Corbett demonstrated that accredited businesses had higher returns on their assets.
OH&S Standards – OHSAS 18001 and ILO OSH-2001
The UK regulator HSE resisted the development of an OH&S management standard in the early 1980s. HSE’s course was set at this point. According to the meeting with Bamber, L. (2016), the HSE Accident Prevention Advisory Unit (APAU) was supportive of such a standard as long as it was not certifiable, but the HSE Chief Executive quickly blocked it. Despite the commercial opportunities, no one wanted to move forward without the support of the regulator. I believe that HSE’s opposition hampered the ability of otherwise proactive organisations to advance the self-regulation agenda.
National standards-setting bodies produced a variety of OH&S-MS around the world, but few made an impact.
The Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series (OHSAS) Project Group created OHSAS 18001 in 1999 and revised it in 2007. Its certification bodies stated that the standard would be withdrawn once a comparable ISO standard was published (and this is expected in 2018).
In 2001, the International Safety and Health Information Centre (IOSHIC) reviewed all available OH&S-MS and recommended an international standard to the International Labour Organization (ILO). ILO OSH-2001 is its own non-certifiable OH&S management system standard.
ISO 45001-management-system-work-safety
ISO 45001 is on the rise.
ISO 45001 was written by the ISO technical committee and began development in 2013. There have been three draughts (committee, DIS1, and DIS/ISO 45001.2), with the second failing to get enough support.
The DIS/ISO draught received a majority of votes (88% of national standards organisations voted in favour of it), and a final draught (FDIS) was published in November 2017. The world’s first ISO MSS for OH&S will be published, most likely in February 2018, if the FDIS ballot, which is due on January 25th, is successful.
Figure 1 summarises what this will mean for ISO 45001 users. Clauses 1-3 can be ignored for practical purposes because the scope is self-evident, there are no normative references in the standard, and a competent OH&S adviser will most likely be available to explain the terms used in the standard; generally speaking, these definitions are drawn from common health and safety language.
ISO 45001 – A story of success
All Safe Group has used worldwide standards to focus its leadership and prioritise danger identification and risk control. The company employs its own development of an OH&S MSS, which we supported in developing; it closely follows the PDCA cycle, and the customer will most likely adopt ISO 45001 once it is published. The use of risk assessment to prioritise its aims and ambitions has been critical to its success. It does not allow little matters to interfere with or distract resources away from its big improvement initiatives. Everyone is taking part.
There are numerous approaches to evaluate the success of such a programme. Our client measures success in terms of cultural growth, employee engagement, and risk reduction. They, however, are difficult to describe simply in a short article like this. FAR, LWDC, and TRIR measures of fatality and injury reduction are easier to convey and understand. Figures 2, 3, and 4 show the data over the previous ten years. As can be seen, the fatal accident rate has decreased from 7 to 3 per 100 million hours (i.e. 50,000 full-time equivalent employees and contractors working for a year), lost workday cases have decreased by three-quarters, and total recordable accidents have decreased by one-third, all while advocating for improved incident reporting. As the company continues to harm its employees and contractors, we see a significant improvement in performance. We’re all working together to make things better.
Conclusion
Many strategies and procedures are being developed to minimise, reduce, or eliminate occupational hazards and dangers. Occupational Health and Safety Management refers to an organization’s efforts to anticipate, recognise, evaluate, and control hazards that may arise in the workplace and endanger workers’ health.
The growing body of evidence indicates that the benefits of implementing Occupational Health and Safety Management extend beyond simply recognising and preventing incidents..
1.2.3 International Labour Organization Conventions and Recommendations
International labour standards are legal instruments developed by the ILO’s stakeholders (governments, employers, and workers) that outline fundamental principles and workplace rights. Conventions (or Protocols) are legally binding international treaties that can be ratified by member nations, whereas Recommendations are non-binding advice. In many circumstances, a Convention lays out the essential principles that ratifying countries must follow, while a related Recommendation enhances the Convention by offering more precise guidance on how it can be applied. Suggestions may also be autonomous, that is, unrelated to a Convention.
Conventions and Recommendations are drafted by government, employer, and worker representatives and adopted at the annual International Labour Conference. After a standard is adopted, member states are required by article 19(6) of the ILO Constitution to submit it to their competent authority (usually Parliament) for consideration within twelve months. In the case of Conventions, this indicates that they are being considered for ratification. If ratified, a Convention usually enters into force for that country one year after it is signed. Ratifying countries agree to implement the Convention in national law and practise, and to report on their progress at regular intervals. If technical support is required, the ILO will give it. Furthermore, representation and complaint procedures can be undertaken against countries for violations of a ratified Convention.
Responsibilities of Employers (Article 16 of ILO Convention C155)
Recommendation 10 of ILO R164
The obligations placed upon employers with a view to achieving the objective set forth in Article 16 of the Convention might include, as appropriate for different branches of economic activity and different types of work, the following:
(a) to provide and maintain workplaces, machinery and equipment, and use work methods, which are as safe and without risk to health as is reasonably practicable;
(b) to give necessary instructions and training, taking account of the functions and capacities of different categories of workers;
(c) to provide adequate supervision of work, of work practices and of application and use of occupational safety and health measures;
(d) to institute organisational arrangements regarding occupational safety and health and the working environment adapted to the size of the undertaking and the nature of its activities;
(e) to provide, without any cost to the worker, adequate personal protective clothing and equipment which are reasonably necessary when hazards cannot be otherwise prevented or controlled;
(f) to ensure that work organisation, particularly with respect to hours of work and rest breaks, does not adversely affect occupational safety and health;
(g) to take all reasonably practicable measures with a view to eliminating excessive physical and mental fatigue;
(h) to undertake studies and research or otherwise keep abreast of the scientific and technical knowledge necessary to comply with the foregoing clauses.
Workers’ Responsibilities and Rights (Article 19 of ILO Convention C155)
There shall be arrangements at the level of the undertaking under which–
(a) workers, in the course of performing their work, co-operate in the fulfilment by their employer of the obligations placed upon him;
(b) representatives of workers in the undertaking co-operate with the employer in the field of occupational safety and health;
(c) representatives of workers in an undertaking are given adequate information on measures taken by the employer to secure occupational safety and health and may consult their representative organisations about such information provided they do not disclose commercial secrets;
(d) workers and their representatives in the undertaking are given appropriate training in occupational safety and health;
(e) workers or their representatives and, as the case may be, their representative organisations in an undertaking, in accordance with national law and practice, are enabled to enquire into, and are consulted by the employer on, all aspects of occupational safety and health associated with their work; for this purpose technical advisers may, by mutual agreement, be brought in from outside the undertaking;
(f) a worker reports forthwith to his immediate supervisor any situation which he has reasonable justification to believe presents an imminent and serious danger to his life or health; until the employer has taken remedial action, if necessary, the employer cannot require workers to return to a work situation where there is continuing imminent and serious danger to life or health.
Recommendation 16 of ILO R164
The arrangements provided for in Article 19 of the Convention should aim at ensuring that workers–
(a) take reasonable care for their own safety and that of other persons who may be affected by their acts or omissions at work;
(b) comply with instructions given for their own safety and health and those of others and with safety and health procedures;
(c) use safety devices and protective equipment correctly and do not render them inoperative;
(d) report forthwith to their immediate supervisor any situation which they have reason to believe could present a hazard and which they cannot themselves correct;
(e) report any accident or injury to health which arises in the course of or in connection with work.
1.2.4 Where you can find information on national standards
There are various sources where we can get different categories of information from National Standards which includes-
1.3 Who does what in Organisations
Roles and Responsibilities
1.3.1 Roles of directors/managers/supervisors
The Managing Director is in charge of the overall arrangements and ensuring that the company’s activities are carried out in such a way that, as far as is practically practicable, the health, safety, and welfare of all employees and anyone who may be affected by its operations are ensured. In particular the Managing Director will:
1 Verify that there is an effective company health and safety policy in place and that all employees, contractors, and temporary workers are made aware of their specific responsibilities.
2 To understand and ensure that the company’s responsibilities as employers, as well as any relevant Acts of Parliament and Statutory Instruments, are met through the selection of qualified personnel.
3 Appoint a Director in charge of safety.
4 To ensure that all Directors and Managers understand and carry out their health and safety duties.
5 Prepare for money and facilities to meet company policy and legislation requirements.
6 Make provisions for all staff to get adequate and suitable training.
7 Ensuring that notification and reporting procedures to the appropriate statutory authorities are followed.
8 Lead by example in all aspects of health and safety.
The Director Responsible for Health and Safety reports to the Managing Director on all issues concerning the health, safety, and welfare of employees and others affected by the company’s operations.
1
Understand and ensure that the Board of Directors is aware of the ramifications and duties imposed by new Acts of Parliament, Statutory Instruments, and Codes of Practice.
2 To present company-related health and safety issues to the Board of Directors on a regular basis.
3 To ensure that effective communication between employer and employees exists and is maintained.
4 Liaise with the Safety Manager on the whole range of their tasks and responsibilities, including inspections, audits, report recommendations, changes in legislation, and advice gained from other sources.
5 Provide proper ways of disseminating and conveying health, safety, and welfare information collected from statutory bodies, safety organisations, and trade associations about new accident prevention approaches, new legislative requirements, and codes of practise, and so on.
6 Oversee the establishment of a sufficient health and safety training programme, as well as the promotion of a safety culture among personnel.
7 Lead by example at all times by wearing appropriate personal protective clothing/equipment and adhering to all safety regulations and procedures.
Safety Manager
The major responsibility of the Safety Manager is to advise the Directors and Management on all safety, health, and welfare issues in order to guarantee that the Business meets its statutory duties.
The Director responsible for health and safety has delegated authority to the Safety Manager to control and update this Safety Handbook, as well as to guarantee that all Departments follow the procedures and instructions contained therein:-
The Safety Manager, in particular, will:
1 Understand the application of the Health and Safety at Work Act, and other relevant legislation to the Company’s activities.
2 Keep current legislation up to date and bring any relevant new legislation to the notice of the Director responsible for Health and Safety.
3 Participate in such courses/seminars offered by outside sources to ensure appropriate interpretation of legislation and execution within the organisation.
4 Verify that any “assessments” required by law are completed and reviewed at appropriate intervals, and that records of the same are kept.
5 To advise on the standard of P.P.E. supplied to employees and to recommend control measures.
6 Perform health and safety inspections and create reports on all operations of the organisation.
7 Contact the Director responsible for health and safety immediately if situations are discovered that, in the judgement of the Safety Manager, need prompt rectification or the cessation of any operation.
8 To notify the Director in charge of health and safety if the corrective action agreed upon following any workplace inspection is not carried out by the scheduled date.
9 Conduct investigations into all accidents and near-miss incidents and record the results on the appropriate forms.
10 Report any incidences to the Company Secretary.
11 Arrange for health surveillance as directed.
12 To draw attention to areas where training/certification is required to meet the standards imposed by legislation, approved codes of practise, or guidelines.
13 To bring novel ways for improving health, safety, and welfare to the Director responsible for health and safety’s notice.
14 To set a good example by wearing proper personal protective clothing/equipment and adhering to all safety regulations/procedures.
Managers/Heads of Department
Each Manager/Department Head is personally accountable for his or her own safety as well as the safety of all personnel under his or her command, including individuals who may be affected by the company’s actions.
They will, in particular:
1 Learn and follow the company’s safety policy.
2 Recognize the responsibilities of individuals under their command and ensure that each employee understands his or her role and is prepared to play it.
3 Perform risk assessments on departmental operations to ensure that work procedures and systems are safe. Additionally, the required procedures, rules, and regulations are developed, published, and implemented.
4 Give written instructions for work procedures that outline potential dangers and precautions, and ensure that they are followed.
5 Verify that accident and near-miss reporting protocols are understood and followed, and assist with accident investigations as needed.
6 Verify that all workers and subcontractors are appropriately trained/competent to carry out the specified task, and that all required licenses/certificates of competence are in effect and appropriate.
7 Ensure that Statutory Notices, the Safety Policy, the Insurance Certificate, and the names of Designated First Aiders are prominently posted and maintained.
8 Ensure that all new workers in the organisation are given a copy of the policy statement, undergo any induction training that may be specified in procedures, are given personal protective equipment as needed, and understand their personal duties as outlined in this manual.
9 Reprimand any employee who fails to meet their health and safety obligations.
Set a personal example in terms of health and safety.
Mechanical, Electrical, Civil Engineering Manager
The Engineering Manager is personally accountable for his own safety as well as the safety of all personnel under his command, including individuals who may be affected by the company’s actions. He will, in particular,:
1 Learn and put into practise the Business Safety Policy.
2 Recognize the responsibilities of individuals under their command and ensure that each employee understands his or her role and is prepared to play it.
3 Ensure that all written schemes and procedures provide enough detail for each task to be thoroughly analysed and are fully understandable to all those who must use them.
4 Develop and maintain a programme that identifies work equipment that requires inspection by qualified personnel and ensures that the equipment is easily recognised and available for inspection on the specified date.
5 Maintain appropriate records of all inspections. These records specify what was inspected, how it was inspected, who was inspected, when it was inspected, any problems discovered, corrective action performed, and the date/time of the next inspection.
6 As the designated “responsible person” under the Supply of Machinery Regulations, ensure that all items of work equipment manufactured in-house meet the essential health and safety requirements of Schedule 3 of the regulations and that all necessary documentation, such as user and maintenance guides, is produced.
7 Perform risk assessments on departmental activities to ensure that work procedures and systems are safe. Additionally, the required procedures, rules, and regulations are developed, published, and implemented.
8 Verify that all engineering construction activity under his supervision is in accordance with all applicable construction legislation instruments.
9 Verify that the procedures for reporting accidents and near-misses are understood and followed. Help with accident investigations as needed.
10 Verify that all workers and subcontractors are properly trained and qualified to carry out the assigned task, and that all applicable licenses/certificates of competence are in effect and appropriate.
11 Ensure that Statutory Notices, the Safety Policy, the Insurance Certificate, and the names of Designated First-Aiders are prominently posted and maintained.
12 Ensure that every new employee’s approaching start date is communicated to the Company Secretary in a timely manner.
13 Reprimand any employee who fails to meet their health and safety obligations.
14 Set a personal example in terms of health and safety.
Supervisors
All Employees
The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations, which impose duties on both employers and employees. In this regard, the Company reminds employees of their responsibilities to protect their own health and safety, as well as the health and safety of others who may be affected by their actions or omissions. Employees must also cooperate with the company in order for it to successfully discharge its own responsibilities.
Additionally, all employees are expected to:
1 Perform assigned tasks and duties in a safe and orderly manner, in accordance with instructions, and in accordance with safety rules/procedures, regulations, and codes of practise.
2 If they become aware of any unsafe practise or condition, or if they have any doubts about the safety of any situation, they should consult their supervisor.
3 Obtain and use the appropriate tools/equipment for the job, and avoid using any that are unsafe or damaged. After use, all tools, equipment, and personal protective equipment must be stored in an approved location.
4 Ensure that all guards are securely fastened and that all provided safety equipment and personal protective clothing/equipment is used.
5 No plant or equipment may be operated unless authorised.
6 To notify their line management of any accident, near-miss, dangerous occurrence, or dangerous condition.
7 To turn off and secure unattended machinery or equipment.
8 To avoid improvised arrangements and to suggest safe methods of removing hazards.
9 Not to engage in horseplay or put fellow employees in danger through their actions.
1.3.2 How top management can demonstrate commitment
Top management must demonstrate leadership and commitment to the OH&S management system by doing the following:
How top management can demonstrate commitment by making resources available to design, implement and maintain the occupational health and safety
management system
Management provides the resources required to implement the safety and health program, pursue program goals, and resolve program flaws as they arise.
How to Go About It
Your organization’s resource requirements will differ depending on its size, complexity, hazard types, and program maturity and development. Capital equipment and supplies; staff time; training; access to information and tools
How top management can demonstrate commitment by defining roles and responsibilities
The employer is ultimately responsible for safety and health management. Executive directors, senior managers, line managers, supervisors, and employees are typically allocated this task. Each individual’s authority and responsibilities should be clearly defined, recorded, and conveyed to them. An in-house organizational chart should depict the organizational and reporting structure for carrying out these activities. Furthermore, each director on the organization’s board of directors must accept their obligations in terms of safety and health commitment and leadership by:
Appointing senior managers with specific responsibility for health and safety
Accidents, illnesses, and incidents are rarely random events. They are typically caused by control errors and involve several contributing factors. The immediate reason could be a human or technological failure, but such incidents are frequently the result of organizational flaws that are the responsibility of management. Managers’ and other employees’ strengths should be leveraged in successful safety and health management systems. The organization must comprehend how human elements influence safety and health performance. Senior executive directors or other senior management controlling body members, as well as executive senior managers, are largely accountable for the organization’s safety and health management. These individuals must ensure that all of their decisions reflect their safety and health intents, as expressed in the Safety Statement, which should include:
Appointing competent people (internal and external, including specialists) to help the organisation meet its health and safety obligations
Regarding health and safety, A competent person is a firm employee whose job it is to oversee compliance with all health and safety regulations. It’s their responsibility to spot potential threats to employee well-being at your company and recommend practical, effective ways to deal with them. The goal of a competent worker is to create and sustain a risk-free workplace that complies with all applicable health and safety requirements. Employers shouldn’t assume they can delegate entire responsibility for employee safety and health to even a qualified individual. Employers are encouraged to choose at least one competent person in the workplace who can provide support and guidance, as well as point out potential problems and suggest solutions. With over a hundred distinct health and safety rules to follow, having a team of experts on hand is essential.
In order to aid an employer in meeting health and safety regulations, one must be skilled in those areas. Your company’s competent person(s) should be trained to spot both immediate and potential dangers on the job, and they should be empowered to take immediate action to eliminate the former.
All of the following are requirements for someone to be considered competent:
Reviewing health and safety performance
Establishing a system for top management to review the OHSMS at least once a year and to recommend improvements to the OHSMS to ensure it remains suitable and effective (and even improves) over time is an important part of operating an OHSMS for your workplace.
It is not necessary to wait an entire year between management reviews; in fact, it may be preferable in some situations to conduct them more frequently. To ensure that the OHSMS remains in step with any revisions or adjustments made to the organization’s stated objectives, for instance, periodic reviews may be required.
OHSMS leaders, process owners, and employees (or their representatives) should all take part in the “management review,” even though upper management is the focus of the name.
Prior to implementing the OHSMS, the company will have established its overarching objectives. It’s possible to adjust these targets as time goes on. Therefore, no single management review of an OHSMS will apply the same standards, goals, or evaluation criteria to all OHSMS.
1.3.3 Responsibilities of organisations who share a workplace to work together on health and safety issues
As per Article 17 of ILO Convention C155 –
Whenever two or more undertakings engage in activities simultaneously at one workplace, they shall collaborate in applying the requirements of this Convention.
As per Recommendation 11 of R164-
Whenever two or more undertakings engage in activities simultaneously at one workplace, they should collaborate in applying the provisions regarding occupational safety and health and the working environment, without prejudice to the responsibility of each undertaking for the health and safety of its employees. In appropriate cases, the competent authority or authorities should prescribe general procedures for this collaboration.
Co-operation and co-ordination
When two or more employers conduct activities on the same construction site, they must work together as well as with the client or client’s representative and other people involved in the construction work to ensure that the prescribed safety and health measures are followed.
When two or more employers carry out activities at the same time or in succession on the same construction site, the principal contractor, or another person or body with actual control over or primary responsibility for overall construction site activities, should be responsible for planning and coordinating safety and health measures, as well as ensuring compliance with such measures, to the extent compatible with national laws and regulations.
Where the principal contractor, or another person or body with actual control over or primary responsibility for overall construction site activities, is not present at the site, they should appoint a competent person or body on the site with the authority and means necessary to ensure co-ordination and compliance with safety and health measures on their behalf, as far as is compatible with national laws and regulations.
Employers should continue to be held accountable for the implementation of safety and health measures in relation to the workers placed under their authority.
Employers and self-employed individuals working on a construction site at the same time should fully cooperate in the implementation of safety and health measures.
Employers and designers should communicate effectively about safety and health issues.
1.3.3 How clients and contractors should work together
The duties the Client and Contractor owe each other
Following are the duties of a Contractor/Sub-contractor
1 As a condition of their subcontract, all subcontractors must comply with the goals of their client’s policy and must submit a copy of their Safety Policy and Safety Plan for the work for review.
2 Subcontractors will submit Assessments, Test Certificates, and Method Statements to comply with Statutory requirements at pre-contract meetings or at any other time specified.
3 All Subcontractors and their staff are required to respond to and comply with any instruction issued affecting health and safety.
4 Before the operation begins, site management will be presented with operator certificates of competence and test certifications for the various types of plant and equipment to be employed.
5 Each Subcontractor shall be responsible for providing all appropriate personal protective apparel and equipment to his staff.
6 All portable tooling and other plant and equipment will be maintained and in excellent working order, and evidence of proper testing and certification for lighting appliances and electrical equipment must be provided.
7 Any hired ride on plant will only be operated by people who have been designated as competent and, if relevant, certificated.
8 All products or chemicals brought onto the site must be properly labelled and packaged in appropriate containers or packages. Such items or substances must be reported to the site manager, together with an appropriate assessment, to ensure that the substance poses no risk to the health or safety of individuals who are affected by its usage, and that proper storage and fire precautions are taken.
19 subcontractors will be in charge of ensuring that the workers on site are fully trained and competent in the work to be done. Training documentation will be required throughout the tendering process and may be sought during site safety inspections/audits.
10 Sub-Contractors will ensure that their workplaces are kept safe and that their storage rooms are kept clean, neat, and free of risks.
11 Any additional health and safety conditions will be included in the order/contract conditions and will be part of the requirements of this policy.
The ILO’s code of practice on ‘Safety and Health in Construction’ sets out some duties of the client-
2.7.1 Clients should:
(a) co-ordinate or nominate a competent person to co-ordinate all activities relating to safety and health on their construction projects;
(b) inform all contractors on the project of special risks to health and safety of which the clients are or should be aware;
(c) require those submitting tenders to make provision for the cost of safety and health measures during the construction process.
Effective planning and co-ordination of contracted work
The Client and Contractors by proper communication and by other medium need to effectively plan and maintain co-ordination of the Contracted work.
The ILO’s code of practice on ‘Safety and Health in Construction ’ clearly explains the duties related to co-ordination of contracted work-
2.4. Co-operation and co-ordination
2.4.1. Whenever two or more employers undertake activities at one construction site, they should co-operate with one another as well as with the client or client’s representative and with other persons participating in the construction work being undertaken in the application of the prescribed safety and health measures.
2.4.2. Whenever two or more employers undertake activities simultaneously or successively at one construction site, the principal contractor, or other person or body with actual control over or primary responsibility for overall construction site activities, should be responsible for planning and co-ordinating safety and health measures and, in so far as is compatible with national laws and regulations, for ensuring compliance with such measures.
2.4.3. In so far as is compatible with national laws and regulations, where the principal contractor, or other person or body with actual control over or primary
ELEMENT 1: Why we should manage workplace health and safety
SCOPE OF LEARNING-
Why we should manage workplace health and safety-
1.1 The Moral, Financial and Legal reasons for Managing Health and Safety in the workplace
There are three fundamental reasons for organizations to manage health and safety risk:
1.1.1 Moral
According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), over 2.3 million people die each year as a result of workplace injuries or illnesses. Every year, around 0.34 billion occupational accidents and 0.16 billion occupational illnesses are registered. The ILO updates these numbers at regular intervals, and the revisions show a rise in accidents and illness.
Without a moral code of behaviour in the society, the people who make up the society and the organisations that are a part of the society may see financial profit, sales, and marketing as the primary goal, with the secondary goal of subsidising the safety needs.
Employees who come to work have no intention of being harmed, becoming ill, or dying on the job. People come to work to earn a living so that they can meet the demands and expectations of themselves, as well as their families and friends who rely on them.
The correct attitude towards health and safety is one of the Society’s demands. Workers have the right to a safe workplace. The moral approach of simply evaluating risk in large organisations is clearly morally wrong.
Employers have a moral obligation to protect not only their employees, but also those who may be harmed by their work, such as contractors or general members of the public.
1.1.2. Legal
All Organisations around the world has some or more legal obligations to be fulfilled which are imposed upon the Employer by the Country’s specific legislation and some of them comes from International bodies like the International Labour Organisation (ILO) which are accepted by the countries in many a cases and adopted in its Laws.
Over the years many moral obligations have been turned into health and safety law. For example, the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) Occupational Safety and Health Convention 1981, C155, identifies some basic general legal duties of employers towards their employees in part IV, Article 16:
There are strong legal reasons for employers to manage risk, as failure to fulfill the obligations or Laws may lead to Enforcement actions like-
There is no specific standard at Global Level for the enforcement of Health and Safety Law. The Individual countries specify and develop a system of enforcement of Health and Safety Law.
1.1.3. Economic
The ILO has calculated the significant economic cost of underfunding OSH in order to reduce occupational accidents and illnesses. The overall annual costs are equivalent to nearly 4% of global GDP (roughly 2.8 trillion US dollars).
Accidents and ill-health are costly. All Incidents lead to some or other costs directly or indirectly. In some cases, the costs like cost of damage, cost of injury & ill-health, legal costs etc. may be directly calculable in monetary value. But there are other costs which can be indirectly linked like the loss of time, loss of reputation and loss of contracts which collectively may be higher than the Direct costs.
All employers are required to have certain types of insurance against accidents, ill-health or other problems, such as:
Some of the costs are covered through Insurances but majority may be uninsured.
Uninsured (hidden) expenses have been demonstrated in research by the UK’s Health and Safety Executive to range from eight to 36 times higher than known insured costs. This was represented as a “iceberg” concept, where the majority of expenditures (the uninsured ones) were submerged.
Some of these expenses have an undetermined cost. This emphasises how challenging it may be for a company to calculate the exact cost of accidents to its operations. It’s possible that the business lacks the manpower, time, and knowledge necessary to do the analysis. They could not even be aware that some charges are involved, causing them to completely miss them. Because of the organisational culture, it’s possible that many instances never make it into the data that serve as the foundation for costing. Certain costs, such as those associated with ongoing civil cases where a sizable compensation award may be made, may not be known with accuracy for a while.
Good health and safety management undoubtedly has financial advantages. Employers with effective health and safety management systems are likely to save a significant amount of money on the expenses of accidents that would have occurred otherwise.
Direct and Indirect, Insured and Uninsured Costs of Incidents
Direct Costs of accidents and incidents
Expenses such as these can be easily calculated:
Indirect Costs of accidents and incidents
Costs associated with the following are more nebulous:
Of course, some expenditures (employer’s liability, public liability, and vehicles) can be covered by insurance, but many costs related to accidents and incidents cannot be covered, and even those that can often have an excess.
According to research published by the HSE (HSG96 Costs of Accidents at Work), the indirect costs of accidents are eight to thirty-six times higher than the direct costs.
The capacity to tender for orders that would not otherwise be considered by large, public facing organisations as well as improved employee morale and productivity all contribute to good health and safety management’s ability to reduce costs while increasing prospects for profit.
Insured costs
Uninsured costs may include;
1.2.1 Role of Enforcement Agencies
All Organisations around the world has some or more legal obligations to be fulfilled which are imposed upon the Employer by the Country’s specific legislation and some of them comes from international bodies like the International Labour Organisation (ILO) which are accepted by the countries in many a case and adopted in its Laws.
International Labour Organisation (ILO) publishes guidelines in the forms of standard which are published at the Annual International Labour Conference which can be ratified by the member states. The ratifying countries need to adopt and implement this into their Country Specific Laws as per article 19(6) of the ILO Constitution. Failure to comply may lead to complaints against the member state.
One such convention is the ILO’s Occupational Safety and Health Convention 1981, C155.
Article 9 of Convention C155 states:
Article 10 of Convention C155 states:
Measures shall be taken to provide guidance to employers and workers so as to help them to comply with legal obligations.
A particular body is nominated to take up the responsibility of enforcing the Health and Safety Law.
For example, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is a nominated body for UK. Similarly, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in USA.
One approach of ensuring that the Organisations are respecting the Legislation is by conducting Labour Inspections.
Labour inspection is a public function of labour administration that ensures the application of labour legislation in the workplace. Its primary responsibility is to persuade the social partners of the necessity of abiding by the law at work and their shared interest in doing so by preventative, educational, and, where required, enforcement means. Powers of Labour Inspectors
Result of Non-Compliance of Health and Safety Standards
Enforcement action
Enforcement Authorities emphasize on prevention but, where appropriate Enforcement of law is done where it is deliberately flouted
Enforcement actions are taken to ensure duty holders take the following actions-
Types of enforcement
We make clear to duty holders which matters are subject to enforcement, and the measures they must take to achieve compliance (including timescales).
How to challenge/appeal
We also give duty holders advice on their right to challenge/appeal. Depending on the enforcement action, different approaches are available. In What to expect when a health and safety inspector calls, they are described.
What happens after enforcement action?
After any enforcement action Enforcement Authorities-
Fee for intervention
You must pay for the time it takes us to assist you make things right if you broke the law.. This is called a ‘fee for intervention’ (FFI).
1.2.3 Health and Safety Management System (HSMS)
The UK H&S regulation first introduced OH&S management systems in 1991 under the name “Successful Health and Safety Management,” also known as HSG65 and distinguished by its pneumonic POPIMAR.
The Road to ISO 9001 and Annex SL
The US Defense standard MIL-Q-9858, which was published in 1959, is the precursor to contemporary business management systems standards (MSS). Simply put, this standard was created to reduce variation and save money by ensuring that production procedures were trustworthy enough to provide bombs that would reliably detonate when they hit their targets. Knowing this goal is essential to comprehending how an OH&SMS works. It must implement organised control that is trustworthy enough to prevent or significantly minimise workplace and other injuries.
The NATO AQAP series of standards, MIL-Q-9858, were updated in 1969, 1974, and 1979, respectively, to create the UK’s set of quality system criteria. In order to acquire ISO 9001, these were submitted to ISO in 1987. It has since undergone four revisions (1994, 2000, 2008 and 2015).
In 2015, ISO 9001 was updated to match the Figure 1-illustrated then-new ISO structure in Annex SL. For every MSS controlled by ISO, Annex SL introduced a standard high-level structure (HLS). Later that year, ISO 14001 was revised in a similar manner, and the next ISO 45001 will also be created using the same Methodology. I was aware that using MSS may have significant advantages for organisations because I had been using it for more than 30 years. In agreement, the British Accreditation Bureau claimed that 67% of their accredited firms had acquired new clients, and research by Heras and Corbett demonstrated that accredited businesses had higher returns on their assets.
OH&S Standards – OHSAS 18001 and ILO OSH-2001
The UK regulator HSE resisted the development of an OH&S management standard in the early 1980s. HSE’s course was set at this point. According to the meeting with Bamber, L. (2016), the HSE Accident Prevention Advisory Unit (APAU) was supportive of such a standard as long as it was not certifiable, but the HSE Chief Executive quickly blocked it. Despite the commercial opportunities, no one wanted to move forward without the support of the regulator. I believe that HSE’s opposition hampered the ability of otherwise proactive organisations to advance the self-regulation agenda.
National standards-setting bodies produced a variety of OH&S-MS around the world, but few made an impact.
The Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series (OHSAS) Project Group created OHSAS 18001 in 1999 and revised it in 2007. Its certification bodies stated that the standard would be withdrawn once a comparable ISO standard was published (and this is expected in 2018).
In 2001, the International Safety and Health Information Centre (IOSHIC) reviewed all available OH&S-MS and recommended an international standard to the International Labour Organization (ILO). ILO OSH-2001 is its own non-certifiable OH&S management system standard.
ISO 45001-management-system-work-safety
ISO 45001 is on the rise.
ISO 45001 was written by the ISO technical committee and began development in 2013. There have been three draughts (committee, DIS1, and DIS/ISO 45001.2), with the second failing to get enough support.
The DIS/ISO draught received a majority of votes (88% of national standards organisations voted in favour of it), and a final draught (FDIS) was published in November 2017. The world’s first ISO MSS for OH&S will be published, most likely in February 2018, if the FDIS ballot, which is due on January 25th, is successful.
Figure 1 summarises what this will mean for ISO 45001 users. Clauses 1-3 can be ignored for practical purposes because the scope is self-evident, there are no normative references in the standard, and a competent OH&S adviser will most likely be available to explain the terms used in the standard; generally speaking, these definitions are drawn from common health and safety language.
ISO 45001 – A story of success
All Safe Group has used worldwide standards to focus its leadership and prioritise danger identification and risk control. The company employs its own development of an OH&S MSS, which we supported in developing; it closely follows the PDCA cycle, and the customer will most likely adopt ISO 45001 once it is published. The use of risk assessment to prioritise its aims and ambitions has been critical to its success. It does not allow little matters to interfere with or distract resources away from its big improvement initiatives. Everyone is taking part.
There are numerous approaches to evaluate the success of such a programme. Our client measures success in terms of cultural growth, employee engagement, and risk reduction. They, however, are difficult to describe simply in a short article like this. FAR, LWDC, and TRIR measures of fatality and injury reduction are easier to convey and understand. Figures 2, 3, and 4 show the data over the previous ten years. As can be seen, the fatal accident rate has decreased from 7 to 3 per 100 million hours (i.e. 50,000 full-time equivalent employees and contractors working for a year), lost workday cases have decreased by three-quarters, and total recordable accidents have decreased by one-third, all while advocating for improved incident reporting. As the company continues to harm its employees and contractors, we see a significant improvement in performance. We’re all working together to make things better.
Conclusion
Many strategies and procedures are being developed to minimise, reduce, or eliminate occupational hazards and dangers. Occupational Health and Safety Management refers to an organization’s efforts to anticipate, recognise, evaluate, and control hazards that may arise in the workplace and endanger workers’ health.
The growing body of evidence indicates that the benefits of implementing Occupational Health and Safety Management extend beyond simply recognising and preventing incidents..
1.2.3 International Labour Organization Conventions and Recommendations
International labour standards are legal instruments developed by the ILO’s stakeholders (governments, employers, and workers) that outline fundamental principles and workplace rights. Conventions (or Protocols) are legally binding international treaties that can be ratified by member nations, whereas Recommendations are non-binding advice. In many circumstances, a Convention lays out the essential principles that ratifying countries must follow, while a related Recommendation enhances the Convention by offering more precise guidance on how it can be applied. Suggestions may also be autonomous, that is, unrelated to a Convention.
Conventions and Recommendations are drafted by government, employer, and worker representatives and adopted at the annual International Labour Conference. After a standard is adopted, member states are required by article 19(6) of the ILO Constitution to submit it to their competent authority (usually Parliament) for consideration within twelve months. In the case of Conventions, this indicates that they are being considered for ratification. If ratified, a Convention usually enters into force for that country one year after it is signed. Ratifying countries agree to implement the Convention in national law and practise, and to report on their progress at regular intervals. If technical support is required, the ILO will give it. Furthermore, representation and complaint procedures can be undertaken against countries for violations of a ratified Convention.
Responsibilities of Employers (Article 16 of ILO Convention C155)
Recommendation 10 of ILO R164
The obligations placed upon employers with a view to achieving the objective set forth in Article 16 of the Convention might include, as appropriate for different branches of economic activity and different types of work, the following:
(a) to provide and maintain workplaces, machinery and equipment, and use work methods, which are as safe and without risk to health as is reasonably practicable;
(b) to give necessary instructions and training, taking account of the functions and capacities of different categories of workers;
(c) to provide adequate supervision of work, of work practices and of application and use of occupational safety and health measures;
(d) to institute organisational arrangements regarding occupational safety and health and the working environment adapted to the size of the undertaking and the nature of its activities;
(e) to provide, without any cost to the worker, adequate personal protective clothing and equipment which are reasonably necessary when hazards cannot be otherwise prevented or controlled;
(f) to ensure that work organisation, particularly with respect to hours of work and rest breaks, does not adversely affect occupational safety and health;
(g) to take all reasonably practicable measures with a view to eliminating excessive physical and mental fatigue;
(h) to undertake studies and research or otherwise keep abreast of the scientific and technical knowledge necessary to comply with the foregoing clauses.
Workers’ Responsibilities and Rights (Article 19 of ILO Convention C155)
There shall be arrangements at the level of the undertaking under which–
(a) workers, in the course of performing their work, co-operate in the fulfilment by their employer of the obligations placed upon him;
(b) representatives of workers in the undertaking co-operate with the employer in the field of occupational safety and health;
(c) representatives of workers in an undertaking are given adequate information on measures taken by the employer to secure occupational safety and health and may consult their representative organisations about such information provided they do not disclose commercial secrets;
(d) workers and their representatives in the undertaking are given appropriate training in occupational safety and health;
(e) workers or their representatives and, as the case may be, their representative organisations in an undertaking, in accordance with national law and practice, are enabled to enquire into, and are consulted by the employer on, all aspects of occupational safety and health associated with their work; for this purpose technical advisers may, by mutual agreement, be brought in from outside the undertaking;
(f) a worker reports forthwith to his immediate supervisor any situation which he has reasonable justification to believe presents an imminent and serious danger to his life or health; until the employer has taken remedial action, if necessary, the employer cannot require workers to return to a work situation where there is continuing imminent and serious danger to life or health.
Recommendation 16 of ILO R164
The arrangements provided for in Article 19 of the Convention should aim at ensuring that workers–
(a) take reasonable care for their own safety and that of other persons who may be affected by their acts or omissions at work;
(b) comply with instructions given for their own safety and health and those of others and with safety and health procedures;
(c) use safety devices and protective equipment correctly and do not render them inoperative;
(d) report forthwith to their immediate supervisor any situation which they have reason to believe could present a hazard and which they cannot themselves correct;
(e) report any accident or injury to health which arises in the course of or in connection with work.
1.2.4 Where you can find information on national standards
There are various sources where we can get different categories of information from National Standards which includes-
1.3 Who does what in Organisations
Roles and Responsibilities
1.3.1 Roles of directors/managers/supervisors
The Managing Director is in charge of the overall arrangements and ensuring that the company’s activities are carried out in such a way that, as far as is practically practicable, the health, safety, and welfare of all employees and anyone who may be affected by its operations are ensured. In particular the Managing Director will:
1 Verify that there is an effective company health and safety policy in place and that all employees, contractors, and temporary workers are made aware of their specific responsibilities.
2 To understand and ensure that the company’s responsibilities as employers, as well as any relevant Acts of Parliament and Statutory Instruments, are met through the selection of qualified personnel.
3 Appoint a Director in charge of safety.
4 To ensure that all Directors and Managers understand and carry out their health and safety duties.
5 Prepare for money and facilities to meet company policy and legislation requirements.
6 Make provisions for all staff to get adequate and suitable training.
7 Ensuring that notification and reporting procedures to the appropriate statutory authorities are followed.
8 Lead by example in all aspects of health and safety.
The Director Responsible for Health and Safety reports to the Managing Director on all issues concerning the health, safety, and welfare of employees and others affected by the company’s operations.
1
Understand and ensure that the Board of Directors is aware of the ramifications and duties imposed by new Acts of Parliament, Statutory Instruments, and Codes of Practice.
2 To present company-related health and safety issues to the Board of Directors on a regular basis.
3 To ensure that effective communication between employer and employees exists and is maintained.
4 Liaise with the Safety Manager on the whole range of their tasks and responsibilities, including inspections, audits, report recommendations, changes in legislation, and advice gained from other sources.
5 Provide proper ways of disseminating and conveying health, safety, and welfare information collected from statutory bodies, safety organisations, and trade associations about new accident prevention approaches, new legislative requirements, and codes of practise, and so on.
6 Oversee the establishment of a sufficient health and safety training programme, as well as the promotion of a safety culture among personnel.
7 Lead by example at all times by wearing appropriate personal protective clothing/equipment and adhering to all safety regulations and procedures.
Safety Manager
The major responsibility of the Safety Manager is to advise the Directors and Management on all safety, health, and welfare issues in order to guarantee that the Business meets its statutory duties.
The Director responsible for health and safety has delegated authority to the Safety Manager to control and update this Safety Handbook, as well as to guarantee that all Departments follow the procedures and instructions contained therein:-
The Safety Manager, in particular, will:
1 Understand the application of the Health and Safety at Work Act, and other relevant legislation to the Company’s activities.
2 Keep current legislation up to date and bring any relevant new legislation to the notice of the Director responsible for Health and Safety.
3 Participate in such courses/seminars offered by outside sources to ensure appropriate interpretation of legislation and execution within the organisation.
4 Verify that any “assessments” required by law are completed and reviewed at appropriate intervals, and that records of the same are kept.
5 To advise on the standard of P.P.E. supplied to employees and to recommend control measures.
6 Perform health and safety inspections and create reports on all operations of the organisation.
7 Contact the Director responsible for health and safety immediately if situations are discovered that, in the judgement of the Safety Manager, need prompt rectification or the cessation of any operation.
8 To notify the Director in charge of health and safety if the corrective action agreed upon following any workplace inspection is not carried out by the scheduled date.
9 Conduct investigations into all accidents and near-miss incidents and record the results on the appropriate forms.
10 Report any incidences to the Company Secretary.
11 Arrange for health surveillance as directed.
12 To draw attention to areas where training/certification is required to meet the standards imposed by legislation, approved codes of practise, or guidelines.
13 To bring novel ways for improving health, safety, and welfare to the Director responsible for health and safety’s notice.
14 To set a good example by wearing proper personal protective clothing/equipment and adhering to all safety regulations/procedures.
Managers/Heads of Department
Each Manager/Department Head is personally accountable for his or her own safety as well as the safety of all personnel under his or her command, including individuals who may be affected by the company’s actions.
They will, in particular:
1 Learn and follow the company’s safety policy.
2 Recognize the responsibilities of individuals under their command and ensure that each employee understands his or her role and is prepared to play it.
3 Perform risk assessments on departmental operations to ensure that work procedures and systems are safe. Additionally, the required procedures, rules, and regulations are developed, published, and implemented.
4 Give written instructions for work procedures that outline potential dangers and precautions, and ensure that they are followed.
5 Verify that accident and near-miss reporting protocols are understood and followed, and assist with accident investigations as needed.
6 Verify that all workers and subcontractors are appropriately trained/competent to carry out the specified task, and that all required licenses/certificates of competence are in effect and appropriate.
7 Ensure that Statutory Notices, the Safety Policy, the Insurance Certificate, and the names of Designated First Aiders are prominently posted and maintained.
8 Ensure that all new workers in the organisation are given a copy of the policy statement, undergo any induction training that may be specified in procedures, are given personal protective equipment as needed, and understand their personal duties as outlined in this manual.
9 Reprimand any employee who fails to meet their health and safety obligations.
Set a personal example in terms of health and safety.
Mechanical, Electrical, Civil Engineering Manager
The Engineering Manager is personally accountable for his own safety as well as the safety of all personnel under his command, including individuals who may be affected by the company’s actions. He will, in particular,:
1 Learn and put into practise the Business Safety Policy.
2 Recognize the responsibilities of individuals under their command and ensure that each employee understands his or her role and is prepared to play it.
3 Ensure that all written schemes and procedures provide enough detail for each task to be thoroughly analysed and are fully understandable to all those who must use them.
4 Develop and maintain a programme that identifies work equipment that requires inspection by qualified personnel and ensures that the equipment is easily recognised and available for inspection on the specified date.
5 Maintain appropriate records of all inspections. These records specify what was inspected, how it was inspected, who was inspected, when it was inspected, any problems discovered, corrective action performed, and the date/time of the next inspection.
6 As the designated “responsible person” under the Supply of Machinery Regulations, ensure that all items of work equipment manufactured in-house meet the essential health and safety requirements of Schedule 3 of the regulations and that all necessary documentation, such as user and maintenance guides, is produced.
7 Perform risk assessments on departmental activities to ensure that work procedures and systems are safe. Additionally, the required procedures, rules, and regulations are developed, published, and implemented.
8 Verify that all engineering construction activity under his supervision is in accordance with all applicable construction legislation instruments.
9 Verify that the procedures for reporting accidents and near-misses are understood and followed. Help with accident investigations as needed.
10 Verify that all workers and subcontractors are properly trained and qualified to carry out the assigned task, and that all applicable licenses/certificates of competence are in effect and appropriate.
11 Ensure that Statutory Notices, the Safety Policy, the Insurance Certificate, and the names of Designated First-Aiders are prominently posted and maintained.
12 Ensure that every new employee’s approaching start date is communicated to the Company Secretary in a timely manner.
13 Reprimand any employee who fails to meet their health and safety obligations.
14 Set a personal example in terms of health and safety.
Supervisors
All Employees
The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations, which impose duties on both employers and employees. In this regard, the Company reminds employees of their responsibilities to protect their own health and safety, as well as the health and safety of others who may be affected by their actions or omissions. Employees must also cooperate with the company in order for it to successfully discharge its own responsibilities.
Additionally, all employees are expected to:
1 Perform assigned tasks and duties in a safe and orderly manner, in accordance with instructions, and in accordance with safety rules/procedures, regulations, and codes of practise.
2 If they become aware of any unsafe practise or condition, or if they have any doubts about the safety of any situation, they should consult their supervisor.
3 Obtain and use the appropriate tools/equipment for the job, and avoid using any that are unsafe or damaged. After use, all tools, equipment, and personal protective equipment must be stored in an approved location.
4 Ensure that all guards are securely fastened and that all provided safety equipment and personal protective clothing/equipment is used.
5 No plant or equipment may be operated unless authorised.
6 To notify their line management of any accident, near-miss, dangerous occurrence, or dangerous condition.
7 To turn off and secure unattended machinery or equipment.
8 To avoid improvised arrangements and to suggest safe methods of removing hazards.
9 Not to engage in horseplay or put fellow employees in danger through their actions.
1.3.2 How top management can demonstrate commitment
Top management must demonstrate leadership and commitment to the OH&S management system by doing the following:
How top management can demonstrate commitment by making resources available to design, implement and maintain the occupational health and safety
management system
Management provides the resources required to implement the safety and health program, pursue program goals, and resolve program flaws as they arise.
How to Go About It
Your organization’s resource requirements will differ depending on its size, complexity, hazard types, and program maturity and development. Capital equipment and supplies; staff time; training; access to information and tools
How top management can demonstrate commitment by defining roles and responsibilities
The employer is ultimately responsible for safety and health management. Executive directors, senior managers, line managers, supervisors, and employees are typically allocated this task. Each individual’s authority and responsibilities should be clearly defined, recorded, and conveyed to them. An in-house organizational chart should depict the organizational and reporting structure for carrying out these activities. Furthermore, each director on the organization’s board of directors must accept their obligations in terms of safety and health commitment and leadership by:
Appointing senior managers with specific responsibility for health and safety
Accidents, illnesses, and incidents are rarely random events. They are typically caused by control errors and involve several contributing factors. The immediate reason could be a human or technological failure, but such incidents are frequently the result of organizational flaws that are the responsibility of management. Managers’ and other employees’ strengths should be leveraged in successful safety and health management systems. The organization must comprehend how human elements influence safety and health performance. Senior executive directors or other senior management controlling body members, as well as executive senior managers, are largely accountable for the organization’s safety and health management. These individuals must ensure that all of their decisions reflect their safety and health intents, as expressed in the Safety Statement, which should include:
Appointing competent people (internal and external, including specialists) to help the organisation meet its health and safety obligations
Regarding health and safety, A competent person is a firm employee whose job it is to oversee compliance with all health and safety regulations. It’s their responsibility to spot potential threats to employee well-being at your company and recommend practical, effective ways to deal with them. The goal of a competent worker is to create and sustain a risk-free workplace that complies with all applicable health and safety requirements. Employers shouldn’t assume they can delegate entire responsibility for employee safety and health to even a qualified individual. Employers are encouraged to choose at least one competent person in the workplace who can provide support and guidance, as well as point out potential problems and suggest solutions. With over a hundred distinct health and safety rules to follow, having a team of experts on hand is essential.
In order to aid an employer in meeting health and safety regulations, one must be skilled in those areas. Your company’s competent person(s) should be trained to spot both immediate and potential dangers on the job, and they should be empowered to take immediate action to eliminate the former.
All of the following are requirements for someone to be considered competent:
Reviewing health and safety performance
Establishing a system for top management to review the OHSMS at least once a year and to recommend improvements to the OHSMS to ensure it remains suitable and effective (and even improves) over time is an important part of operating an OHSMS for your workplace.
It is not necessary to wait an entire year between management reviews; in fact, it may be preferable in some situations to conduct them more frequently. To ensure that the OHSMS remains in step with any revisions or adjustments made to the organization’s stated objectives, for instance, periodic reviews may be required.
OHSMS leaders, process owners, and employees (or their representatives) should all take part in the “management review,” even though upper management is the focus of the name.
Prior to implementing the OHSMS, the company will have established its overarching objectives. It’s possible to adjust these targets as time goes on. Therefore, no single management review of an OHSMS will apply the same standards, goals, or evaluation criteria to all OHSMS.
1.3.3 Responsibilities of organisations who share a workplace to work together on health and safety issues
As per Article 17 of ILO Convention C155 –
Whenever two or more undertakings engage in activities simultaneously at one workplace, they shall collaborate in applying the requirements of this Convention.
As per Recommendation 11 of R164-
Whenever two or more undertakings engage in activities simultaneously at one workplace, they should collaborate in applying the provisions regarding occupational safety and health and the working environment, without prejudice to the responsibility of each undertaking for the health and safety of its employees. In appropriate cases, the competent authority or authorities should prescribe general procedures for this collaboration.
Co-operation and co-ordination
When two or more employers conduct activities on the same construction site, they must work together as well as with the client or client’s representative and other people involved in the construction work to ensure that the prescribed safety and health measures are followed.
When two or more employers carry out activities at the same time or in succession on the same construction site, the principal contractor, or another person or body with actual control over or primary responsibility for overall construction site activities, should be responsible for planning and coordinating safety and health measures, as well as ensuring compliance with such measures, to the extent compatible with national laws and regulations.
Where the principal contractor, or another person or body with actual control over or primary responsibility for overall construction site activities, is not present at the site, they should appoint a competent person or body on the site with the authority and means necessary to ensure co-ordination and compliance with safety and health measures on their behalf, as far as is compatible with national laws and regulations.
Employers should continue to be held accountable for the implementation of safety and health measures in relation to the workers placed under their authority.
Employers and self-employed individuals working on a construction site at the same time should fully cooperate in the implementation of safety and health measures.
Employers and designers should communicate effectively about safety and health issues.
1.3.3 How clients and contractors should work together
The duties the Client and Contractor owe each other
Following are the duties of a Contractor/Sub-contractor
1 As a condition of their subcontract, all subcontractors must comply with the goals of their client’s policy and must submit a copy of their Safety Policy and Safety Plan for the work for review.
2 Subcontractors will submit Assessments, Test Certificates, and Method Statements to comply with Statutory requirements at pre-contract meetings or at any other time specified.
3 All Subcontractors and their staff are required to respond to and comply with any instruction issued affecting health and safety.
4 Before the operation begins, site management will be presented with operator certificates of competence and test certifications for the various types of plant and equipment to be employed.
5 Each Subcontractor shall be responsible for providing all appropriate personal protective apparel and equipment to his staff.
6 All portable tooling and other plant and equipment will be maintained and in excellent working order, and evidence of proper testing and certification for lighting appliances and electrical equipment must be provided.
7 Any hired ride on plant will only be operated by people who have been designated as competent and, if relevant, certificated.
8 All products or chemicals brought onto the site must be properly labelled and packaged in appropriate containers or packages. Such items or substances must be reported to the site manager, together with an appropriate assessment, to ensure that the substance poses no risk to the health or safety of individuals who are affected by its usage, and that proper storage and fire precautions are taken.
19 subcontractors will be in charge of ensuring that the workers on site are fully trained and competent in the work to be done. Training documentation will be required throughout the tendering process and may be sought during site safety inspections/audits.
10 Sub-Contractors will ensure that their workplaces are kept safe and that their storage rooms are kept clean, neat, and free of risks.
11 Any additional health and safety conditions will be included in the order/contract conditions and will be part of the requirements of this policy.
The ILO’s code of practice on ‘Safety and Health in Construction’ sets out some duties of the client-
2.7.1 Clients should:
(a) co-ordinate or nominate a competent person to co-ordinate all activities relating to safety and health on their construction projects;
(b) inform all contractors on the project of special risks to health and safety of which the clients are or should be aware;
(c) require those submitting tenders to make provision for the cost of safety and health measures during the construction process.
Effective planning and co-ordination of contracted work
The Client and Contractors by proper communication and by other medium need to effectively plan and maintain co-ordination of the Contracted work.
The ILO’s code of practice on ‘Safety and Health in Construction ’ clearly explains the duties related to co-ordination of contracted work-
2.4. Co-operation and co-ordination
2.4.1. Whenever two or more employers undertake activities at one construction site, they should co-operate with one another as well as with the client or client’s representative and with other persons participating in the construction work being undertaken in the application of the prescribed safety and health measures.
2.4.2. Whenever two or more employers undertake activities simultaneously or successively at one construction site, the principal contractor, or other person or body with actual control over or primary responsibility for overall construction site activities, should be responsible for planning and co-ordinating safety and health measures and, in so far as is compatible with national laws and regulations, for ensuring compliance with such measures.
2.4.3. In so far as is compatible with national laws and regulations, where the principal contractor, or other person or body with actual control over or primary
1.3.4 Pre-selection and management of Contractors
Key actions in managing contractors effectively
Leaders
Managers
Monitor the contractor’s health and safety performance
Carry out a joint risk assessment of the work with the contractor
Have the right procedures in place
If you have an incident
Check that everyone understands the risks
Worker consultation and involvement
Competence
Selection Criteria for Contractors
The contractor selection process looks at the contractor’s demonstrated competence to work safely, how successfully the contractor’s safety programme is executed, and how safety competency evaluation is carried out to meet the workplace safety management needs.
Technical Criteria for pre-qualification of a contractor on the basis of Safety Competency:
REFERENCES
GLOBAL TRENDS ON OCCUPATIONAL ACCIDENTS AND DISEASES https://www.ilo.org/legacy/english/osh/en/story_content/external_files/fs_st_1-ILO_5_en.pdf
C155 – Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981 (No. 155)
https://www.ilo.org/dyn/normlex/en/f?p=NORMLEXPUB:12100:0::NO::P12100_ILO_CODE:C155
Labour Inspection- What it is and what it does
Enforcement Action
https://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/enforcement.htm
The Evolution of Management System Standards Leading to ISO 45001
https://insights.pecb.com/evolution-management-system-standards-leading-iso-45001/
Conventions and Recommendations
Reasons for Managing Health & Safety
https://entirelysafe.com/reasons-for-managing-health-safety/#.ZBXE9nZBzrc
Reasons for Managing Health & Safety
https://entirelysafe.com/reasons-for-managing-health-safety/#.ZBhIVHZBzrc
ISO 45001:2018
Occupational health and safety management systems — Requirements with guidance for use
‘Safety and health in construction’, ILO Code of Practice – Chapter 2
Management Leadership
https://www.osha.gov/safety-management/management-leadership
What are the responsibilities of management regarding the implementation of safety and health in the organisation?
https://www.hsa.ie/eng/topics/managing_health_and_safety/safety_and_health_management_systems/
Health and Safety Competent Person
https://www.smseurope.co.uk/service/health–safety-services/health-and-safety-competent-person
1.3.4 Pre-selection and management of Contractors
Key actions in managing contractors effectively
Leaders
Managers
Monitor the contractor’s health and safety performance
Carry out a joint risk assessment of the work with the contractor
Have the right procedures in place
If you have an incident
Check that everyone understands the risks
Worker consultation and involvement
Competence
Selection Criteria for Contractors
The contractor selection process looks at the contractor’s demonstrated competence to work safely, how successfully the contractor’s safety programme is executed, and how safety competency evaluation is carried out to meet the workplace safety management needs.
Technical Criteria for pre-qualification of a contractor on the basis of Safety Competency:
REFERENCES
GLOBAL TRENDS ON OCCUPATIONAL ACCIDENTS AND DISEASES https://www.ilo.org/legacy/english/osh/en/story_content/external_files/fs_st_1-ILO_5_en.pdf
C155 – Occupational Safety and Health Convention, 1981 (No. 155)
https://www.ilo.org/dyn/normlex/en/f?p=NORMLEXPUB:12100:0::NO::P12100_ILO_CODE:C155
Labour Inspection- What it is and what it does
Enforcement Action
https://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/enforcement.htm
The Evolution of Management System Standards Leading to ISO 45001
https://insights.pecb.com/evolution-management-system-standards-leading-iso-45001/
Conventions and Recommendations
Reasons for Managing Health & Safety
https://entirelysafe.com/reasons-for-managing-health-safety/#.ZBXE9nZBzrc
Reasons for Managing Health & Safety
https://entirelysafe.com/reasons-for-managing-health-safety/#.ZBhIVHZBzrc
ISO 45001:2018
Occupational health and safety management systems — Requirements with guidance for use
‘Safety and health in construction’, ILO Code of Practice – Chapter 2
Management Leadership
https://www.osha.gov/safety-management/management-leadership
What are the responsibilities of management regarding the implementation of safety and health in the organisation?
https://www.hsa.ie/eng/topics/managing_health_and_safety/safety_and_health_management_systems/
Health and Safety Competent Person
https://www.smseurope.co.uk/service/health–safety-services/health-and-safety-competent-person
