2.2.7 Safety And Health 5b3812

2.2.7 Safety, health and well-being

Safe and healthy work environment Refers to both physical work environment and its hazards for the physical safety and health of the organisation's human resources and to those aspects of work and organisation which may adversely affect people's psychological, as well as their physical, safety and health. - National Qualifications Framework

Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 O Principal objective to prevent harm to

employees at work O Aims

O promote excellence in health and safety

management by employers O impose specific duties on employers and others to prevent harm to employees O provide for making of regulations and approval of codes of practice relating to hazards

Health and Safety in Employment Act 1992 O Covers people in places of work O Accident O event that causes, or might have caused harm

to any person

O Harm O illness, injury, or both O Hazard O activity, arrangement, circumstance, event,

occurrence, phenomenon, process, situation, or substance (arising or caused in or outside a place of work) that is an actual or potential cause or source of harm

O Safe O means a person is not exposed to hazards or

that a place is free from hazards

Duties of employers O Take all practicable steps to ensure safety of O O O O O O O

employees at work Provide and maintain safe working environment Ensure machinery and equipment is safe Ensure employees are not exposed to hazards Develop procedures for dealing with emergencies Ensure employees do not cause harm to others Ensure employees are adequately trained Ensure employees do not cause harm to others in workplace

Hazard management O Employers must have systems for

identifying hazards to employees at work O Must regularly assess whether or not each hazard is significant O Employers must take all practicable steps O to eliminate significant hazards O to isolate significant hazards which cannot be

eliminated O to minimise likely harm to employees if hazards cannot be eliminated or isolated

Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996 O Aim to protect environment, and

health and safety of people and communities, by preventing or managing adverse effects of hazardous substances and new organisms O Hazardous substance is any material which can harm people or environment

Accident compensation O Provides no-fault and

comprehensive coverage for all workers who suffer accidental injury O Offers incentives to employers to improve their safety and accident prevention performance and records O gives ACC central role in ing development of workplace safety and rehabilitation programmes

Health and safety policies O State organisation’s commitment to

health and safety O Define safety responsibilities O Set out hazard management process O Outline emergency procedures O Describe consultation arrangements

Workplace safety committee O Highlight safety and health problems in O O O O O O

workplace Point out corrective action Help investigate accidents Conduct periodic safety audits Raise personal safety consciousness of its and other employees Demonstrate that management is interested and concerned with safety and health issues Involve employees in accident prevention activities

Workplace accidents An unplanned event which results, or could have resulted, in harm to people, damge to property, or loss to a process.

Accident ratios

Contemporary safety and health issues O Workplace design O Occupational overuse syndrome O Shiftwork O Violence in the workplace O Stress and fatigue O AIDS O Alcohol and drugs abuse

Stress O Topical issue O Law has long recognised stress as

cause of workplace health problems O Key contributors O Environmental factors O Job and work design factors O Contract-related factors O Relationship factors

Recognising stress O Mood changes O Cognitive changes O Behavioural changes

“My cope runneth over” - Gordon Rabey

Dealing with stress O Minimise unpredictability and

ambiguity O Minimise uncontrollavle events O Eliminate avoidance learning O Minimise physical stressors O Avoid recurring stresses O Watch for negative effects