OH&S Legislation - Case Study Example

Name Course Tutor Date At the mention of occupational safety and safety, many think of dangers connected to contractions sites or factories. However, in offices workers are comprehended by many unique challenges to their safety and health. Histolically, offices are considered to safe places however workers have expressed concerned about the office environment and working conditions and this is clearly reflected in complaints, absenteeism, anxiety, sick leave and job turnover. Accidents that occur in offices occur due to poorly designed office environments and improper office procedures (Butrej & Douglas p34). When workers are informed about the potential hazards and safe work practices, then office accidents decline tremendously. It is worth noting that training workers on general safety precautions for work in the office reduces both the number and severity of accidents. In the Information Technology industry has for long advocated for firms complying with the law, standards and regulations which are conducive to their operations and activities that go with it. As an employer one is held responsible of reporting hazards in their respective work places to the appointed OH&S officer (Mathews p193). OH&S legislation is an obligation of both the employers and employees to provide a healthy and safe workplace for everyone within the workplace environment. This includes visitors and any contractor who maybe in there. Failure to comply with the acts, regulations, codes of practices and standards attract penalties incase they are breached. This therefore means that, it is the obligation of the employers to ensure that the employees and any other person in their premises are safe and likewise the obligation of the employees to ensure that their acts or omission do not endanger themselves or others in the work place. Computer and other equipments that accompany them and their repair consist of plastics, metals, glass, foam, rubber, carbon powder and addictives such as paints coatings and fire retardants not forgetting that there are still some other materials that pose environmental and health risks used to manufacture them. Moreover, the disposal of obsolete equipments is also a head ache to many organizations and therefore these has been left entirely to the OH&S work teams. In most organizations, there are laid down procedures to ease the operations of the OH&S department. This is done by appointing someone to be reporting to the management. this coordinator is then held responsible for providing health and safety/loss management services and also manage the companies health and safety auditing program as well as in all areas that concern the safety registration, policies, procedures and programs. In Computer repair and TV video departments, use entirely some electronics equipments which have dangerous items and therefore should be approached with a lot of care. It is important to employ some safety precautions like ensuring that all cords are in good working condition and positioned properly in the power points. When working of a system box, its important to ensure that all cables are plugged out. This is due to the fact that just turning off the box at the power point may not be enough to disconnect is fully from the power. Working on an unplugged box may cause harm to the machine itself and even the person doing the job. Moreover, some systems have live voltages trickling through the mother board even when they are switched off. It’s worth noting that the most dangerous part in computer repair is the monitor which at time holds some electrical charges even after being switched off and plugs removed. So a lot of care needs to be employed for this matter. When repairing computers, also its good to be aware that the PC may contain some sharp edges, so when handling them it is vital to watch out or else one gets injured. Moreover, there is the issue of manual lifting which causes back pains. While most postures in our daily life produce a change in the alignments of the spine, certain postures instill a lot of pressure on the spine muscle putting it at a greater risk of an injury. Some movement, standing up, bending down, pulling, pushing and lifting increases risk of spine injury (Worksafe Australia p22).. OH&S legal framework is the relationship between various OH&S acts, codes, standards and guideline notes that give way to support and provide enforcement of OH&S legal compliance in all the organizations. It consists of several levels ranging from Acts, Regulations, Standards and codes of practice and guidance notes. Acts are the highest legal status components which determine the obligations of duty holders or employees/OH&S staff, work place duty or care arrangements and enforcement bodies for acts. Regulations support the acts and clearly indicate how they should be enacted. They are the bases of penalties incase of non compliance. Standards and codes of practice are more detailed information about how to comply with the acts and regulations in specific workplaces and industries in this case concerning computer repair and video TV. They are not directly enforceable but they must be followed for acts and regulations compliancy. Finally, guidance notes are published frequently by the commonwealth and states regulatory bodies. These are the notes that guide the duty holder to meeting the requirements of the relevant acts and regulations. They have no direct legal status but should be used so as to comply with the law (Worksafe Australia p27). Generally every state has its own work cover / work safe statutory authority. For instance in Victoria, the statutory is the Victorian Work safe Authority which enforces the law and helps to avoid workplace injuries from occurring, providing reasonably priced workplace injury insurance to employers and managing the workers compensations scheme. In this state (Victoria) OH&S is governed by a system of laws, regulations and compliance codes which employees and employers must follow to ensure that the workplace is safe. The OH&S act will be replaced on January 2012 with new work health and safety laws. But until then, the existing health and safety system is in work which includes: Act. The occupational health and safety act 2004 lays the foundation of legislative and administrative measure for occupational health and safety in Victoria. The Acts set up the principles, duties and rights in relation to occupational health and safety. The Regulation The occupational health and safety regulation 2007 are made under the act and they specify the ways duties dictated by the Act should be performed. It prescribes the procedural/ administrative matters to support the Act like licenses for certain activities, record keeping or notifying certain matters. Guidance For an effective OH&S there has to be providence of clear, accessible advice and guidance about what is in complying with the Act and regulations. They state that, health and safety precautions should be communicated across languages and there should be first aid tools and expertise in the work place just to mention but a few. Policies and Procedures Purpose To prevent Injury to persons as a result of use of unserviceable equipment/faulty equipments Damage to equipments removed from service for repair and maintenance Any injury caused by negligence in the TV Video and computer repair departments. Scope TV video and computer repair and maintenance departments. Preamble An out of service tag should be attached on items being serviced and on powered and unpowered machines. These tags consist of danger tags and lockout devices. Policy With the help of the senior administration of this department, we develop and implement policy and procedure to make sure that: An out of service tag is attached on machines which are foreseen to cause injuries if used at their current state. An out of service tag be firmly attached on all new or recently repaired machines until they are deemed safe and ready for use by a competent person. Out of service tags are only removed by authorized persons who know the functionality of the specific machine and know the entire reason why the tag was placed. People who are not from this department should not be allowed to operate any malfunctioned machine whatever the case. Every person in the department should wear all the protective gears including gloves and head gears to prevent any injuries from sharp objects. Anybody who is not from this department should never be allowed into the company unaccompanied. Contractors Contractors should be made aware of and should fully comply with this policy at al times Disciplinary Procedures Any person tampering with or removing tags without authorization shall be subject to disciplinary action which may include dismissal. Any person found operating any machine while else he/she is not from this department shall be punished. Related Documents This document should be read in conjunction with ‘Lockout/Tag out Procedures When giving out the information about OH&S there are techniques and strategies that need to be employed which should include identification of hazards and risk assessment. Since safety at work is everybody’s responsibility, the management behavior and the messages they send are very profound in enhancing a safety culture. This is implemented by demonstrating leadership b management. By this I mean that when the managers’ consider OH&S important, then these will be the case downwards to the other workers. Moreover ensuring that employees are informed about OH&S issues and are given regular feedback on the progress with health and safety matters is of great help and importance. Most importantly, the consultative process should be genuine whereby the employees consider they have ownership of the program and their knowledge and skills are used. They should be involved in coming up with nay sour of information. They should discuss all that is being implemented and agree on the acceptable and unacceptable behavior and this will make sure that they understand deeply the implemented information concerning their safety and health. Safety audit which is a systematic and periodic inspection of the workplace would be employed to evaluate the effectiveness of the organization’s health and safety system (Worksafe Australia p44).. These should be done by the safety officers and report given to the management by the OH&S committee. Inspections should be done regularly by the department managers, supervisors and safety committee members to determine what hazards exist in the workplace. This is consultation with the supervisors and the employees and then the report given to the management also. Employees are the ones who are aware of the hazards and the possible ways of controlling them therefore there should be consultations from them on ways of controlling them than management. This is made possible by being accessible to everyone in this department. Finally ones they are identified, they are then assessed on their significance. The level of their significance will be used to determine their priority to the elimination control. Employees should be consulted so as they can contribute to the making of decisions affecting their health, safety and welfare at work; these decisions range from system practices, substances, undertaking risk assessments or even applying risk control measures. When coming up with these decisions, all workers are involved to ensure that what they expect is met for safe working conditions. To ensure and encourage active participation in the OH&S consultative process, one need there is a need to involve all the workers and most importantly, incorporating their ideas and proposals in the final report and implementation (Worksafe Australia p56).. Peter TV and computer repair OH&S Structure flowchart With all these people being involved in the coming up with the OH&S programs and ideas and therefore they are completely involved in consultative procedures. Our company recognizes that employees input and participation improves decision making about health and safety matters. I have been involved in consultation process one when there were proposed changes in the Video TV and computer repair department, after the OH&S risks were reviewed/assessed, when decision concerning the elimination of risks were being made, when monitoring procedures for monitoring risks and finally when decisions about the adequacy of facilities for employees welfare were being made. By monitoring the implemented programs and keeping record of any risk that occur, OH&S consultative process is adhered to throughout the department. Part B Training is important for it focuses on what people need to know to perform in the workplaces, and that standard to which they have to perform. It is not about completing a course but enhancing competency. In our organization, training is done and developed for work teams. Every team member have an opportunity to participate in the development of OH&S training plans however there need to have a training plan that is to address the gaps identified in the training need analysis performed. The training plan should not be a static document, but it should be reviewed and revised as new information becomes available. This should be done by reviewing job descriptions, technologies, recent accidents and incidents reports and the minutes of OHS meetings and evaluation of the OHS training plan. Peter TV and computer repair Training Competency Target Audience Competency Type Suggested Training OH&S Competency Awareness of OHS legislation framework Knowledge of employer and employees OHS responsibilities. Knowledge of Hazard and incident reporting procedures All staff License Qualification Skill knowledge Internal training Local area OHS induction Local first aid provisions Local building emergency provisions Knowledge of hazards and controls for local area through safe work procedures All staff License Qualification Skill knowledge Internal training OHS risk assessment techniques Knowledge of hazard identification techniques Risk assessment procedure Ability to use the departments forms to complete a risk assessment All department staff License Qualification Skill knowledge Addressing hazards and risks in the workplace Competencies relating to OHS consultation arrangement. Understanding of OHS legislative framework Understanding OHS responsibilities Knowledge of the OHS dispute resolution process OHS consultation principles Risk management principles OHS committee nominees Committee advisory School safety committee License Qualification Skill knowledge OHS principles for workplace Advisory committee members Ergonomic competencies Awareness of optional workstation arrangement Ergonomically safe work practices All staff License Qualification Skill knowledge Ergonomics in the workplace Radiation safety competencies The radiation hazards associated with their work Safe working methods and techniques Precautions to be taken and reasons to take them Emergency procedures Any person handling radioactive substances License Qualification Skill knowledge Radiation safety training From the above check list there are very many gaps that need to be filled and this can be done by conducting training. There is no single area where there is a competency score and therefore this means that there is a dire need to address the issue of competency in the organization so as to manage and minimize risks associated with the work place. From the recommendation this training is to be undertaken locally. I.e. to be undertaken in the organization and holding the staff members who are affected by this program. Peter TV and computer repair OH&S Training Plan OH&S Training Modules Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Legislation Hazard Management Manual Handling Hazardous substances Occupational Violence Slips, trips and falls Emergency procedures First aid Accident reporting Safe operation procedures Electrical Noise Working in isolation Drugs and alcohol Personal protective equipments House keeping and storage practices With the consultations between the management and the staff involved in the TV Video and computer repair department, I was able to come up with the training and plan. It is worth noting that this was derived from the training need assessment that I got. This instigated the coming of courses suitable for the trainees. The OHS learning goals is to attain a safe and risk free workplace and also having competent workers who can handle any case or hazard that may arise in the work place. As for the timeline for training, the most important courses will be the first to be tackled. Those courses that touch the day to day risks that maybe encountered in the workplace are given the first priority and have to be handled first. Every staff attending the training will be given a form where he/she fills the name and the department, the date the OHS module was taken. After each module, all who attend the training will be required to complete and assignment practically and written examinations so as to review and evaluate their competency. Incase one fails he/she will be required to redo the assignment or even undergo the training again. The organization will cater for the training and the incentives to encourage the staff perform well in the training. This will include trophies and certificates which will be issued at the end of the training period. There has to be two trainers who need to be hired to do the training. However, there is no need to incur for venue training for the meeting halls will be utilized. Budget Two tutors $500 @ 12000 Training material 5000 5000 Incentives 3200 3200 Miscellaneous 2500 2500 Equipment lease 2000 2000 Total $ 24,700 Induction training ensures that starters are retained, and that they can settle quickly in the work place and more so, that they be productive. It is more than skills training for it are about basics that seasoned employees need to have. The new employees need to know the mission, goals, dress code and most importantly the health and safety rules. Incase this training is not given, then the new employees may not be aware of the hazards common in the work place and they put themselves and other at a risk in the work place. Coaching and monitoring improves OHS in work place in a great way. This will increase competency and will keep every staff on his/her toes as far as maintaining a healthy and safe workplace is concerned. When everyone is familiar and is always having the safety measures at the finger tips, then safety in the workplace is improved. Nobody expects emergency or disaster. But the truth is business have emergencies and disasters which can strike anytime and therefore there is need to have laid down procedures to handle this. In our organization the procedures are laid down in relation to the hazards that commonly occur. They range from falls, slips, electric shocks, sharp objects or even fires. The training conducted will help in a big way in the safety and health part in the office. This is because all workers will be aware of these hazards and the first steps to take when they occur. Currently when there is disaster, people are not well equipped on how to handle it. Therefore after the training all the steps to control, avoid or even the first aid procedures will be well defined and conversant to all workers. Part C A hazard is described as a process or phenomena which may either be due to human activity or natural and normally can endanger an organization and its personnel if proper precaution is not put in place. It is quite evident that within a TV Video and Computer Service Repair there are a number of hazards that are usually covered by industrial regulations and code of practice. It is notable that staff within a TV Video and Computer Service Repair can be exposed to radioactive rays from the TV and Video whereby they are either prone to either short or long term health problems these kind of hazards are referred to as occupational hazards. The code of practice in this case entails obtaining information regarding this hazard and ensuring that workers operate on manuals and various respective standards. Further health surveillance may be appropriate where detection of any adverse health effects from radiation at a very initial stage (Higuera, p1). HAZARD IDENTIFICATION AND RISK ASSESSMENT (HIRA) FORM PART 1: HAZARD/ RISK IDENTIFICATION (To be finished by the Service/Department Safety Advisor). 1) Title of Activity/Equipment in use Location --------------------------------------------- -------------------- 2) Short explanation of the Activity/Equipment involved (under assessment). ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3) Reference system (under assessment basing on environmental guidance). 4) Persons Affected (list all individuals in the organization that have performed an activity through use of machine). -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- a) Staff: (Names where applicable, Job Titles and their numbers). b) Non Staff: (numbers, i.e. per year/per practical), guests and general public). -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5) Possible Significant Hazards (all hazards that are associated with equipment or activity should be listed). --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Signed: (Safety Advisor/Risk Assessor) Date: COMPLETED TV AND VIDEO REPAIR HAZARD IDENTIFICATION AND RISK ASSESSMENT (HIRA) FORM PART 1: HAZARD/ RISK IDENTIFICATION (To be finished by the Service/Department Safety Advisor). 1) Title of Activity/Equipment in use Location TV and Video Repair Australia 2) Short explanation of the Activity/Equipment involved (under assessment). Repairing of TV and Videos TV and Video maintenance Audio and visual system check 3) Reference system (under assessment) Fully based on the understanding of environment agency guidance of concerned country 4) Persons Affected (list all individuals in the organization that have performed an activity through use of machine). Meredith Johnson-chief technician Mercy Johnson- overall technician Peterson Woulter – technician Paul Exodus –assistant technician 5.) Staff: (Names where applicable, Job Titles and their numbers). Meredith Johnson-chief technician Mercy Johnson- overall technician Peterson Woulter – technician Paul Exodus –assistant technician b) Non Staff: (numbers, i.e. per year/per practical), guests and general public). Ten postgraduate students Minister for public works 5) Possible Significant Hazards (all hazards that are associated with equipment or activity should be listed). Exposure to needles and other sharp objects High exposure of radioactive rays Trapped and constantly being hit by moving machinery Contact with electric current Confrontation regarding the repair by aggressive individuals Signed: Evans Mathews (Safety Advisor/Risk Assessor) Date: 18th July 2011 JOB SAFETY CHECK LIST Good Satisfactory Action Required FIRE Immediate To Be Scheduled Extinguishers placed in specific places with labels Direction for extinguishers Are Exit doors easy to open Alarms working properly Fire instructions available and displayed Good Satisfactory Action Required ELECTRICAL Immediate To Be Scheduled No broken sockets and naked wires No tattered or damaged leads Moveable equipments in good conditions No transitory leads on floor Emergency measures in place No stressed leads Circuit breakers or routine cut outs installed COMPLETED JOB SAFETY CHECK LIST Good Satisfactory Action Required FIRE Immediate To Be Scheduled Extinguishers placed in specific places with labels YES After every three months by safety authorities Direction for extinguishers YES labelled direction for ease in movement Are Exit doors easy to open YES doors should be easily opened on both ways doors should be made of light material for ease in pushing and pulling Alarms working properly yes need constant checking replaced after a duration of one year Fire instructions available Yes constantly reviewed replaced to fit in current standards and displayed Good Satisfactory Action Required ELECTRICAL Immediate To Be Scheduled No broken sockets and naked wires yes need to be refurbrished constantly No tattered or damaged yes be inspected every time leads Moveable equipments in good conditions Yes No transitory leads on yes floor Emergency measures in place Yes No stressed leads yes Circuit breakers or routine yes cut outs installed Different organizations have acquired various ways on recording hazards. Within a TV and Video repair, recording first entails identifying any hazard or incident and reporting to the respective authority (Busman, p14). After clearly identifying the hazard, it is essential to record the hazard by way of isolating it by ensuring that details that are associated to it are noted down. The hazard is then fixed and all aspects that surround the hazards are recorded. According to Higuera (p1) it is essential to further record any action to be taken and also ensure that a full report has been issued out so as to keep future record should such a hazard reoccur. The above process of recording the hazard has a great significance in increasing the likelihood of an effective response. This is because an organization such as that of TV and Video Repair will always be in the forefront of ensuring that similar hazards in future are well taken care of. Further, recording of hazards by way of writing reports highly assists in keeping track of the various hazards reported and what has been done to fix them (Busman, p14). Employees are considered to be key asserts in any given modern organization. Beyond their responsibility of performing assigned duties, employees have various designed roles in risk control. Employees’ responsibility in risk control entails cooperating with their employees through actions that should comply with specified Act or Regulation (Higuera, p1). Employees who come in contact with a particular risk are expected to act in accordance so as to control the risks. He is expected to apply and use measures to ensure that the hazard does not pose any health risk to other employees and organization at large. Employees should ensure that all equipments after use are stored properly in their respective places. As an employer of TV and Video Repair, my role in ensuring that risks are controlled to ensure that I obtain up to date safety details from suppliers and make sure that information is available to his workers. In addition, it is my responsibility to provide information, instruction and constant training to employee who may be of risk while working. It is essential that we assess and control all risks that may pose danger to my staff, maintaining records through keeping register of any hazardous substance within the organization. Other major responsibilities that I have in risk control is monitoring and evaluating hazard, exposure levels and constantly providing health surveillance when necessary (Conley, p13). Organizational hierarchy of control Elimination of the hazard entails removing the risk from the workplace where applicable. In substituting the hazards requires one to find a new procedure or material that when used will minimize risks. Isolation control is whereby the hazard is separated in the work place for instance, locking out any designated procedure on a certain faulty equipment. Modification of existing machinery is main example of use engineering solution (Conley, p13). Administrative way of control entails developing methods that ensures reduction of various risks conditions. Finally, the use of personal protective equipment is referred to as the last resort while dealing with a hazard. It is used when a particular can not be minimized or removed through any other method. Within a risk control plan there are several step required in setting them up. There are five main step involved in setting up a risk control plan namely; identification of risks, followed by measuring it, greatly formulating strategies that will limit a specified risk, carrying out various tactics as a way of implementing the drawn strategies and finally, continuously monitoring and evaluating the effort involved in risks (Conley, p13). Risk management plan Executive summary Risk is defined as that event which usually has a probability of occurring that can either have a positive or negative impact top an organization. Risk management entails identification, planning, monitoring and control. Purpose This plan will be used in monitoring and controlling events that are perceived to bring about negative impacts. It will address the following; Risk identification Risk assessment Risk mitigation Risk contingency planning Risk tracking and reporting Risk management strategy Risk identification Risk within an organization can be identified in various ways. This can either be prior to the initialization of the project or during the project lifecycle. Risk responsibility The responsibility that is attached into managing risk should be shared among all stakeholders involved. Risk assessment This is the act that involves the act of determining the possibility that a particular risk will take place. It involves two factors namely; possibility which measures certainty of an event occurring and impact of the uncertainty on the project. Risk response It is quite important that for any identified risk a quick response need to be identified. It is evident that the probability of a risk occurring is based on determination of action of mitigation Risk mitigation This process involves two steps namely; identification of various activities and coming up with a contingency plan as a way of dealing with the risk. Risk contingency planning This is the act that entails preparation of a plan in case a certain risk adverse. Developing a contingency plan makes a team think widely. When inadequacies are identifies in any organizational risk control there are several action should be taken. The main action entails identifying and reporting hazards so as to ensure that the problem is rectifies instantly. Taking initial actions is essential in controlling or confining the risks according to various organizational procedures. Accident/Incident Report Form Date of occurrence: _______________ Time: ________ AM/PM Name of wounded individual: Address: Phone Number(s): Date of birth: ________________ Male ______ Female _______ Who was wounded individual? (Circle one) Passenger System Employee Nature of injury: Particulars of incident: Individual requires physician/hospital visit? Yes ___ No _____ Name of hospital: Address: Physician phone number: Signature of wounded party _________________________________________________________ Date Signature of injured party Date Work cited Higuera, Doro fee, Walker, & Williams, “Team Risk Management: A New Model for Customer Supplier Relationships,” 1994. Download at: www.sei.cmu.edu/publications/documents/94.reports/94.sr.005.html Conley, John. Waves of the future, risk management. U.S.A : Wileys brothers. 1999 pg 13 Busman, Evans. The challenge ahead: adopting an enterprise wide approach to risk. Risk management. 1998 pg 14 Workplace Learning Policy for Students in Government Schools and TAFE NSW Institutes (2005): 1.3, 1.4, and 5.3. Starting Work? Know Your Legal Rights Office of Industrial Relations & Work Cover NSW, http://www.industrialrelations.nsw.gov.au/rights/young/starting_work.html An Employer’s Guide to Workplace Learning (Rev 2005) https://www.det.nsw.edu.au/vetinschools/schooltowork/learning/wplImp2005.html Butrej, P. Douglas, G. Hazards at Work: Health, Safety and Welfare in the Australian Workplace, WorkCover NSW, Catalogue No. 1003. 1995 Mathews, J. Health and Safety at Work: Australian Trade Union Safety Representatives Handbook, Pluto Press, 1993 Worksafe Australia , OHS: Everyone’s Business - Information Manual, Worksafe, 1993 Read More