Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1967 - Essay Example

? Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1967 (OSHA) Research Paper Introduction Occupational safety and health is a specific area that is concerned with protecting the health, welfare and safety of people who are involved in employment or work. The aim of the occupational safety and health program is to foster a healthy and safe work environment. This occupational safety and health program also protects employers, family members, co-workers and other who can be affected due to inadequate workplace environment. Occupational safety and health law is important for legal, financial and moral reasons. It is the responsibility of the organizations to take care the health and safety aspects of the employees. The study is all about the OSHA of 1967. The research will highlight the purpose of the law. Moreover, it the study will reveal the requirement of the law. The study will discuss about the application and effect of this law in the organizations. In order to clear the concept of the readers, the study has provided important case example and issues associated with the case. Finally the study will summarize the whole research and provide a recommendation plan. Analysis History In US, the DOSH under the Human Resource Ministry has ensured that the health, welfare and safety of the employees in both private and public sector should be upheld. DOSH has enforced machinery act in 1967. It is under the OSHA act. OSHA officially formed in the year 1971. The act has become effective. Due to this act the employers are bound to provide safety and health benefits to the employees. Several Facts about the Act Hazards can affect the work environment of several workplaces and organizations. Several calamities and accidents, such as falling objects, sharp edges, noise, chemical and flying sparks can create a dangerous situation. Controlling the accidents and hazards is the best possible way to protect the employees within an organization. OSHA requires employers should have these controlling elements in order to protect the employees from the hazards and injuries in workplace (OSHA, 2003). According to the act, employers should provide PPE to their employees when the administrative and workplace controls are not feasible. The following controlling and management process will help both the employees and employers of an organization. Realize several types of PPE. Workplace hazard assessment needs to be conducted. Appropriate PPE should be selected for various circumstances. Appropriate training program and proper utilization of PPE need to be realized depending upon the specific situations. In order to ensure the best possible protection for the employees in an organization, the employers and employees need to execute collaborative and co-operative efforts. This will help them to establish and maintain a healthy and safe work environment. The followings are the recommended roles of both employers and employees. Employers should perform a hazard assessment of the organization’s workplace. It will help them to identify and control. Employers should provide training to use and take care of PPE. Employers should identify and offer useful PPE for employees. Employers should review periodically, update and evaluate the significance and effectiveness of the programs related to PPE. Employees should attend the training programs in regular basis. Moreover, they need to take care and maintain a PPE. Employees should inform the supervisors to replace the affected materials and PPE. This occupational safety and health program also protects employers, family members, co-workers and other who can be affected due to inadequate workplace environment. Occupational safety and health law is important for legal, financial and moral reasons. Critical Thinking, Elaboration and Discussion The OSHA act was developed in order to provide the employees a healthy and safe working environment in USA. This OSHA is an administrative body that is administered through the Labor Department. Application for HR professional, Managers and Employers Generally OSHA requires employers to allow inspections of OSHA without notice as an employee complaint’s result. The employers should provide the employees the information of OSHA through the workplace notifications and posters. They need to provide training program to their employees about dealing with several workplace hazards. Information about first aid procedure needs to be provided to the employees. All the employers covered by the act of OSH should orally report to the OSHA regarding any hazard and death of any employee. Employers whose establishments are not classified and having more than 10 employees need to record the work related illness and injuries implementing OSHA forms 301, 300A and 300 (OSHA, 2013). The compliance should be ensured by the employers. Employers should report orally to the OSHA regarding any issues. Hazards can affect the work environment of several workplaces and organizations. Several calamities and accidents, such as falling objects, sharp edges, noise, chemical and flying sparks can create a dangerous situation. Employee can get affected due to these hazards. Controlling the accidents and hazards is the best possible way to protect the employees within an organization. OSHA requires employers should have these controlling elements in order to protect the employees from the hazards and injuries in workplace. Facts The US Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor statistics has compiled the information about the fatalities in workplace. Since, the establishment of OSHA act it is evident that most workplace fatality was occurred in the year 1994. The number of workplace fatality was 6,632. The lowest was in the year 2002 with 5,534 work fatalities. According to most recent information, 5.840 employees have died in the workplace in the year 2006. It has happened due to the lack of workplace safety. Therefore, it is the responsibility of the employees to respond according to their rights. Employees It is possible for the employees that, if they feel uncomfortable or unsafe in a workplace then can file a complaint to the OSHA. The employees have three options, such as online, telephone and mail or download or fax to file a complaint regarding workplace safety and health issue (OSHA, 2013). In terms of online complaint filing option, the employees need to go online complaint forum to submit a written complaint. Moreover, they can shoot a mail to the OSHA or they can download a complaint form and can submit the form by entering the issues. Lastly, they can file a complaint over telephone. The telephone number of area office has been provided in the web page of OSHA. The Employees can ask the OHSA to inspect the workplace if the employees have been wronged under the OSHA law. They should use their rights without discrimination and retaliation. The employees should review the records of job related illness and injuries according to their rights. Lastly, they can get the medical record copies. Case Example Coca Cola is one of the leading food and beverage organizations within the industry. Accident at the workplace is one of the major concerns for Coca Cola. In 2001, the organization has faced several challenges due to a critical accident in a manufacturing plant in US. Lack of maintenance of PPE and inadequate risk control has caused the hazard. 2 employees have died and 3 workers had critically injured due to the accident (Williams, 2008). Depending upon the case, it can state that, the other employees in that plant should file a complaint to OSHA to take desired steps and action. According to the worker’s right under the OSHA act 1967, the employees can file a complaint if they feel unsafe. Therefore, based on the above analysis it can state that, the employers need to follow the rules of OSHA to provide safety to the employees in the work place. Conclusion The aim of the occupational safety and health program is to foster a healthy and safe work environment. This occupational safety and health program also protects employers, family members, co-workers and other who can be affected due to inadequate workplace environment. OSHA officially formed in the year 1971. The act has become effective. Due to this act the employers are bound to provide safety and health benefits to the employees. All the employers covered by the act of OSH should orally report to the OSHA regarding any hazard and death of any employee. The employees have three options, such as online, telephone and mail or download or fax to file a complaint regarding workplace safety and health issue if they feel that they are unsafe under the workplace. In order to ensure the best possible protection for the employees in an organization, the employers and employees need to execute collaborative and co-operative efforts. This will help them to establish and maintain a healthy and safe work environment. Recommendation The OSHA act is very essential for the organizations to control the risks and hazards associated with the workplace environment. It is the responsibility of both the employers and employees to maintain the rules and regulations and should act depending upon their rights accordingly. The following recommendation plans can help to improve the workplace environment. The employers need to control the risk associated with work place. The employers and employees should act collaboratively to minimize the threats. The employers need to take up the responsibility to follow all the rules and regulations. The workers need to undertake the required steps according to the worker’s right in case of discrimination. It is the responsibility of the employers to provide training program to make the employees aware about the acts and information of OSHA. References OSHA. (2003). Personal Protective Equipment. Retrieved From: . OSHA. (2013). Complaint Filing options. Retrieved From: . OSHA. (2013). Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Retrieved From: . Williams, C. (2008). Management. Stamford: Cengage Learning. Read More