How Safety Affects Managers Today - Essay Example

and Section # of How safety affects managers today? Safety affects managers in numerous ways while they are managing an enterprise. Managers are concerned with the smooth functioning of their respective organizations and are extremely concerned about any events or processes that may hamper the smooth functioning of the firm. The threats associated with safety are one of the major causes of disruption of the normal business routine. If these potential threats materialize they can cause serious implications on the manager as well as the organization. For example, let’s assume that there was a potential threat against product safety that materialized and became a danger for the products image and the company’s image. The manager is now faced with a tough problem and that is to find means to save the image of the product and the company. This will cause a disruption in the manager’s planned routine and he will try to curtail losses as much as possible. Furthermore, the manager will try to gain back the confidence people has in his brand and his company and will therefore invest his time, energy and resources to retain the company’s market share. Hence, it is evident that safety plays a vital role in a manager’s job. Why Safety is Important Safety ensures the well being of a business in all aspects. Be it the manufacturing process, work place environment, food and beverages, occupational hazards or the environment in which business takes place. Safety is important for the efficient running of these processes and for the welfare of the people involved in these processes. For a business to prosper all business functions should work together and perform efficiently. Therefore, safety issues need to be considered right across the organizational domain starting from production and going up to shipment and delivery. For this reason most companies have developed standards for safety in their work domain and ensure that safety standards are always met. Different paradigms for safety Food Safety According to the WHO, food and waterborne diseases are the leading causes of illness and death in less developed countries, killing approximately 2.2 million people annually, an estimated 1.8 million of whom are children Therefore, the recent trends in global food production, processing, distribution and preparation are creating an increasing demand for food safety to ensure a safer global food supply (WHO). Even in the developed countries food safety has become a major concern. Food safety needs to be ensured in restaurants as well as homes to prevent people from catching food borne diseases. The WHO has identified five ways to ensure food safety and they comprise of keeping ourselves clean, i.e. ensuring that we wash our hands before eating anything, separating raw and cooked food from each other, cooking food thoroughly at designated temperatures, storing food at safe temperatures and using safe water and raw materials while cooking (WHO). Today millions of people become ill everyday and thousands die from food borne diseases and yet people are still negligent and ignore standard safety practices. Most food borne diseases can be prevented by taking small safety precautions. Hence, we can save thousands from dying or from getting sick by just creating awareness amongst the masses to follow safety precautions while eating and cooking food. Occupational and Workplace safety There are numerous reasons for establishing good occupational safety and health standards. They include: Moral – Employees should not have to risk their lives or injure themselves while doing work. Neither should their work harm other people outside or inside of their working environment. Economic – In most of the developed economies poor occupational safety standards result in loss to the Government in terms of proving social benefits to people who get injured while working. Similarly, the employers also suffer from a monetary loss in terms of fines, compensation etc. Legal – In most countries it is legally binding to follow occupational safety standards while failing to do so results in legal implications to the organization. Employees may be subject to a lot of hazards while working. These hazards can be mechanical, biological, physical, chemical and psychosocial. Mechanical hazards are potential dangers that can be caused from mechanical instrument. It may caused also be caused by the malfunction or breakage of the machine or a part of the machine. Other mechanical hazards include common injuries such as slipping from the stairs, colliding with people, falling from a height or falling after being entangled by something. Mechanical hazards can be prevented by making sure that all the mechanical instruments and machinery goes through routine checks. Maintenance should be on time and adequate. People should also be taught safety precautions while using heavy machinery. Common mechanical hazards can be prevented by training employees not to rush through crowded corridors, avoid taking two or steps at a time while climbing stairs and not to throw things to one and another rather take it to the person who needs it. Ensuring proper maintenance and training the employees can save the employees from a lot of mechanical hazards. Although no matter how hard one trains the employees or ensures proper maintenance of machines and equipment. Some hazards will occur occasionally and it is important to train employees how to respond in such situations (Daft). For this reason organizations should organize drills, awareness seminars and should also indicate evacuation exits boldly so that people can see it in times of emergencies. Biological Hazards Biological hazards include bacterial infections, viral infections, fungi and other microorganisms. In a work environment different people are carriers of different diseases; while some of these diseases are transmittable others are not. Some most common biological hazards are transmittable. Thus there exists a risk of infecting other people in the work domain. Biological hazards can be prevented by ensuring cleanliness of the working environment, making sure that people use antibacterial soaps when they need to wash hands etc and making sure that sick employees take the day off rather than show up at work and jeopardize the health of others. Physical Hazards Physical hazards are ones that affect the physical capability of an individual to perform work. Examples of physical hazards include exposure to loud noises, exposure to excessive vibration (in work domains where drilling takes place), exposure to lightning, exposure to intense radiation and electrical shocks. When an individual is exposed to the named hazards, the physical condition of that individual is harmed and working becomes exceedingly difficult. Although some physical hazards may be caused in the long run such as cancer due to prolonged exposure to radiations, other physical hazards are often present in work places. What needs to be done in order to ensure the well being of the employees is to make sure employees wear protective gear if their work exposes them to excessive radiation. Similarly, care must be taken by employees to prevent themselves from electrical shocks. Chemical hazards Chemical hazards arise from exposure to strong acids, bases, heavy metals like lead, platinum etc, highly inflammable products such as petroleum products, alcohol based solvents and highly reactive elements and compounds. Employees in manufacturing businesses are usually exposed to such hazards on a routine basis. But care needs to taken to make sure that no harm occurs to the personal well being of the employees. In order to make sure that employees are prevented from being hurt by chemicals most manufacturing companies have a very strict materials management/handling policy. This policy highlights the dangers of exposure or contact with different chemical compounds used in production. It is done to educate employees of the potential damage that can be caused by these chemical compounds. Apart from creating awareness companies also make strict rules for handling of chemicals and these rules include wearing proper gear when handling chemicals, making use of designated instruments while transferring chemicals from one container into another, making sure that chemicals are stored safely and under prescribed conditions. Psychosocial hazards Psychosocial issues are pertaining to mental health and social conditions, or factors that affect psychological or social well-being (San Francisco AIDS Foundations Bulletin of Experimental Treatments for AIDS). Work related stress, which may be due to excessive work or being involved in a project that requires a lot of concenration and physical work, a fight or an incidence of violence (extrenal or internal to the work environment), sexual harassment, bullying and excessive use of tobacco and alcohol are all examples of such issues. These issues may be hard to detect sometimes and a person may not epxress his actual feelings at the workplace but they do exist in certain individuals. The most important task in combating these issues is to first identify the source of the problem, since most of these problems are related to personal habits or personal experiences finding out the exact nature of the problem is difficult. Once the problem has been identified there are numerous ways to solve these kinds of problems. Work related stress can be eliminated by giving the employee a time off from the hectic work envoirnment. Most people find a vaction to be the best way to get rid of work related stress. While others often resort to their favorite hobbies such as watching soccer or playing rugby. Violence outside the work environment should be reported to the concerned law enforcement agencies. Instead of dealing with matters personally one should seek the assistance of the law enforcement agencies to resolve the problem. On the other hand, sexual harassement and incidences of voilence inside the work domain should be reported to the senior officials and the human resource department. Instances of sexual harassment are dealt with very seriously in the workplace and individuals should know their rights and exercise authority if they are being infringed (Daft). Similarly, people should not tolerate being bullied around or being subjected to violence by others. In order to maintain workplace security companies often install security cameras in and around the workplace to spot occurences of violence. Environmental Safety For most manufacturing concerns environmental safety is one of the most important factors related to production. In the developed nations companies are bound by law to produce under a certain stipulated level of environmental pollution. With the recent surge in pollution environmentalists are pressing even further to make stricter rules against environmental pollution. They are striving hard to ensure that companies do not forget their responsibilities while producing products. Environmental safety focuses on air emissions, energy conservation, water conservation and waste management. Air emissions standards set limits to the permissible amount of pollutants that can be released into the environment. It is important to limit emissions in order to control pollution in the environment. Automobiles release oxides of sulphur and nitrogen which are a primary cause of acid rains and lung cancer. Energy conservation refers to the efficient use of energy. It is important to save energy as producing energy is not only costly but also contributes to increased pollution. Water conservation is the controlled and efficient use of water resources. Water conservation is necessary as water is a primary input in most production firms; it is also a primary necessity for the survival of human lives. Efficient utilization of water means that there will be less wastage of water, lesser capital will be spent on the purification of water, and more water will be available for agricultural and domestic uses. To curtail the air emissions most Governments have established emission standards for automobiles and industries while there are certain other standards for the regulation of smaller equipment such as generators etc. Similarly, greener cars are being produced today so as to decrease the amount of pollution caused by vehicles. Energy and water conservation have been the topics for research over the past decades, with newer technology and more efficient production cycles energy and water are both conserved. Product safety Product safety is concerned with the safe use of products that may cause harm to people if not used in a proper manner. In order to ensure product safety Governments set standards for products that are likely to be hazardous. These standards are then communicated to the general public using information standards. This is done to protect the consumers from harm by specifying to the producers minimum requirements that must be met before products can be produced. The producers and suppliers can help achieve greater product safety by providing clear instructions for the use of the product, by providing warnings against the misuse of the product, by following the industry standards in production, by developing recall plans for faulty or unsafe products, ensuring safety while designing the product, testing products, assuring their quality before they are released in to the market and acting in a responsible and swift manner when serious safety concerns arise (Australian Competition and Consumer Commission). Conclusion From the discussion of the different paradigms of safety it is evident that safety is a very broad term which is applied to almost all aspects of our business and personal lives. From food safety to organizational and environmental safety we are affected not only by our actions but also by the actions of those around us. Therefore, it is important not only to act responsibly ourselves but also to educate others about the potential hazards and threats that they face in their hectic daily lives. Many injuries could have been avoided if only small measures for safety would have been in place. Yet many lives could be saved by implementing these standards in our workplaces and environment today. If proper awareness measures are taken and people are made to follow the rules defined by standards our workplace and life would definitely become safer. Works Cited Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. (n.d.). Retrieved December 02, 2009, http://www.accc.gov.au/content/index.phtml/itemId/816195 Daft, R. L. Management . Mc Graw Hill. San Francisco AIDS Foundations Bulletin of Experimental Treatments for AIDS. (n.d.). Retrieved December 02, 2009, from San Francisco AIDS Foundation: http://www.sfaf.org/custom/glossary.aspx?l=en&a=P WHO. (n.d.). Prevention of food borne disease. Retrieved December 02, 2009, from World Health Organization: http://www.who.int/foodsafety/consumer/5keys/en/index.html WHO. (n.d.). World Health Organization . Retrieved December 02, 2009, http://www.who.int/foodsafety/en/ Read More