Posts Tagged ‘Workplace Safety’

Heat Safety is Smart Business, and its the Law.

Monday, July 12th, 2010

With the summer in full swing, employees must prepare themselves for the heat. And we’re not just talking sun-hats and water bottles here. Incidents related to the heat account for one of the highest workplace injuries causes as reported by OSHA. OSHA (the Occupational Safety and Health Association) clearly outlines an employers responsibility to help protect their employees from heat-related injuries.

The Personal Protective Equipment Rule

The Personal Protective Equipment Rule under OSHA states that employers must provide both protective equipment and training to workers in certain situations, including environmentally hazardous conditions such as sunlight and heat. Some states are more at risk from this type of exposure than others, such as Arizona, which has the nation’s highest heat related death rate. Employers with outdoor workers in states with hot weather conditions must ensure that appropriate measures are in place to prevent heat related illnesses and/or deaths.

New Enforcement Initiative

OSHA has recently unveiled its new enforcement initiative, the “Severe Violators Enforcement Program” which increases penalties, and enhances the corrective measures that must be taken when an employer’s violation is intentional or repetitive. OSHA has issued a directive that state OSHA departments must adopt the Program or an equivalent program within six months of the effective date which is scheduled to be within 45 days of April 22, 2010. Given the increased enforcement initiative, employers should review and revise their safety policies, and procedures to ensure they are in full compliance.

Create a Heat-Safety Program for Your Company

If your business employs workers who work outdoors, or in hot indoor conditions, please contact CPEhr to schedule a complimentary on-site inspection of your workplace. Our experienced Risk Management team will assess your heat risk and create a customized safety program to both protect your employees, as well as keep your business OSHA compliant.

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Final Steps to an Effective IIPP – Part 3

Tuesday, October 27th, 2009

In our last post, we discussed the importance of the staff’s compliance with a safety program, hazard assessment and correction, and investigations. We can now look at the final three elements of an effective IIPP:

Hazard Correction

Include methods/procedures for correcting unsafe or unhealthy conditions in a timely manner.

Training

Training is important to not only educate, but to reinforce the requirements listed above (1-6). Training should be done at minimum- when new guidelines are established, to all new hires, and for all supervisors. Additionally, training must be done when new hazards are introduced into the workplace and when employees are assigned new job duties that will expose them to new hazards.

Record Keeping

Record keeping is one of the most important elements of your IIPP. It shows Cal OSHA that you not only have written documentation of your safety program, but that your program is being implemented. Records should be maintained for at least a year. They should include records of scheduled and periodic self inspections as well as safety training. Inspection records should include the name of the person that conducted the inspection, the unsafe conditions or practices identified and the corrective action taken. Safety training records should include the employee name or other identifier, training dates, type(s) of training and the name of the training provider. In addition, while recordkeeping is very important, requirements are less stringent for employers with less than 10 employees.

Conclusions

The IIPP is not only a way to save money, but it also reinforces the importance of workplace safety. A positive attitude towards safety from upper management will go far in promoting safe work habits to all levels of the organization. While all eight requirements are listed, each requirement is extensive. If you have additional questions about the eight requirements, please contact CPEhr’s Risk Management Representative to assist you with creating an effective Injury and Illness Prevention Program for your company.

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The Importance of an Injury and Illness Prevention Program – Part 1

Wednesday, October 21st, 2009

The absence of an Injury and Illness Prevention Program (IIPP) ranks among the most frequent Cal/OSHA (California Occupational Safety and Health Administration) citations against businesses. Fines for the failure to have an IIPP are upwards to $7,000.  Many California employers are not aware that it is mandated by law to have a written IIPP.  The law (Senate Bill 198) enacted in 1989, and effective on July 1, 1991, requires California employers to develop and implement an IIPP.

In this and upcoming posts we will take a look at eight required sections of the IIPP, along with suggestions that will help you get started in creating an effective safety program. Today, we will look at the first two elements to consider:

1. Management commitment/assignment of responsibilities

A demonstration of safety and health begins with top-level management.  Management’s commitment to safety will set the tone for the rest of the organization.  Appointing a safety captain to be in charge of the program is a great start to demonstrating company-wide commitment.  While the safety captain’s primary role is to ensure that safety work-habits are adopted throughout the organization, they may, also, lead a safety committee comprised of employees representing each department/area of the organization.  Members of the committee can assist the safety captain by executing the organization’s safety goals.

2. Safety Communication system

There are many creative ways that you can communicate the importance of safety to your staff.  They may include:  introducing  your safety program during new hire orientations, include examples of safe behaviors in a company newsletter/company-wide communication, post safety posters throughout your facility or communicate a safety tidbit on a regular basis at a start-up/staff meeting.  Remember, empowering your team to develop creative ideas on how to effectively communicate your safety program will go a long way in motivating them to stay committed.

In our next post, we’ll discuss enforcing employee compliance with the safety plan, how to assess hazards in the workplace, and conducting investigations.

Contributed by: Sara Richards, Senior Loss Control Manager, CPEhr

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