The Safety of Employees at Work

Workplace Safety

Safety within the workplace is a central issue that Occupational Safety and Health Authority hold with the highest consideration than any other matter within the workplace that can potentially affect the employees. OSHA has in place lucid rules and regulations guiding the safeguarding of the employees safety within organizations. There are various initiatives taken by organization to ensure that there is safety within the workplace. Regardless of the safety initiative taken, employees should feel free to report any illnesses or injuries in the workplace if not then the entire workforce will be at risk. With a sound safety program in place there will be a reduction of accidents at the workplace. This paper will hence concentrate on the issue of workplace safety, its application and the different approaches that both the employees and the employers can always put into practice in order to ensure safety of the employees and of the investment that has been put in place. The paper will have a dual approach to the safety issue, with one approach taking on the physical hazards and the other looking at the health/welfare of the employees.

In every workplace a worker has the right to an environment that is safe, the right to proper training as well as the right to refuse any working terms that are unsafe or may predispose them to undue danger. In general it is everyone's responsibility to assure that any work that is undertaken meets the minimum safety requirements. It is therefore important to note that no work is worth risking one's life and limb. Safety can be achieved through approaches that are systematic to evaluating the risks and seeking solutions for eliminating the risks. It all begins with all members within an organization who wish to take part in the creation of a safe and productive working environment. Employers involved in health and safety of the workplace will reduce the costs of workplace injuries and illnesses. Though it may seem as if the increase of safety on a job execution or general working conditions costs more, in the long run it may be financially worse for the organization in case someone gets injured or killed and especially if legal repercussions follow.

Aims and objectives of the evaluation exercise

This evaluation is aimed and identifying the apparent dangers and the potential hazards that exist within the Top Furniture workshop and give suggestions of how these can be corrected. The main objectives therefore are;

To highlight the overt hazards which exist within the workshop.

To critically evaluate what would be potential hazard within the workshop.

Analyze the existing procedures for handling the dangerous chemicals and gases that ere used within the workshop.

Analyze the procedure for receiving and storing all the supplies that come into the workplace and evaluate any possible gaps in the process that can pose danger to the employees.

Draw out alternative plans that can be used to more effectively handle the issue of workplace safety within the context of the workshop.

The methodology that has been used in this evaluative report and recommendations is the observation method, literature review from authority websites on workplace safety and also a look at the written down criteria that guides the handling of potentially dangerous chemicals and tools and the code of conduct written by the organization. Interviews among the employees based in the workshop was also an instrumental part of the collection of the data that helped in coming up with this evaluation.

The workplace

Within any workplace, the people who are most neglected despite the fact that the most exposed to danger are the employees working in the garages or the workshop. They are exposed to several kinds of dangers from the systemic neglect to the physical harm they face on a daily basis as they carry out their activities to ensure the company is well serviced and supplied with whatever they need. The case study here is a company that has branches in several parts of the country and deals in furniture of all ranges; the home furniture, office furniture, garden furniture, public places furniture and also deals in general joinery and welding works. The workshop is the nerve center of the company since they are the ones concerned with fabricating the furniture, both wooden and the metallic parts, assembling them and presenting them to the various showrooms for sale. The organization's workshop is a very busy place since they have orders that are continuous and in most cases bulk orders. This means that the moment the doors of the workshop open, it is movement and work throughout except during the breaks. Of more concern, apart from the busy schedule in the workshop is the variety of gases, chemicals, fire sources, electric installations and powered machinery and tools that are present in the workshop. All these factors present varied kinds of danger to the workers who are stationed within the workshop handling the chemicals and machinery. In such an environment, safety cannot be compromised hence there is need for a proper plan that will help in raising the safety standards, as well as procedures that are geared towards the safety of the employees, particularly in the workshop.

Health and safety management systems

There are some guidelines that ae stipulated by various work safety agencies including OSHA which is a central agency in ensuring employee protection, treatment and compensation in the event of injury at work place. Below are some of the safety precautions that need to be observed within a work environment similar to the workshop of Top Furniture, some of which were conspicuously missing in the workshop and among the employees.

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

The safety measure and the type of PPE that will be required will depend on risk associated with the workplace there are various protective clothing ranging from helmets, facemasks, eye protectors, overall, industrial aprons, leg protectors, disposable gloves, and many more. These are worn on the basis of the impeding risks that may not be foreseen immediately (The University of Chicago, 2010). It is important to note that some employees in the workshop in scrutiny did not have helmets and some never used gloves. One reason that stood out for such a discrepancy was sheer employee negligence and in a few cases, the employees said that they were not provided with helmets once the ones they had were worn-out and the straps were detached. It was also concerning to see some employees without the heavy duty industrial boots that have hardened toe tip. This being a heavy machinery place requires that those operating therein have their feet protected.

Careful handling of hazardous materials

Another safety practice that must be observed in work environments such as the workshop is identification of hazardous substances and handling them as they occur rather than postponing. There should be a proper and official company plan for identifying and handling hazards substances, placement of warning signs, removal of fluids or toxic materials and dangerous tools and proper labeling of hazardous material. These are simple and basic measures that can go a long way to save the employees from unreasonable dangers they could be predisposed to. Upon inquiry from the employees if they were aware of any official procedure of this above, the common answer was negative, yet they work in an environment where chemicals and substances that if mishandled can pose serious danger. In case of an accident involving these chemicals, the employees are not equipped with the knowledge to handle such hazards.

Quick response to hazards

First aid response is a standard approach that is fully recommended to any organization or workplace setting to avert possible acceleration of the harm that an individual may encounter. There has to be a first aid kit that is fully equipped with the necessary content according to the workplace that it is meant fro and the possible dangers that may befall the employees there. There also needs to be a detailed action plan developed on how injured employees should be handled. There should be emergency numbers ready, an identified medical facility and a well equipped first aid kit available to everyone or at least to every department. There must be a selected number of employees from each department that are thoroughly trained for the first aid response and the training should emphasize more on the likely incidents within the organization. The workshop had sufficient first aid kits that were well equipped and they were easily reachable in case of an emergency, this was a sign that there was some level of safety awareness within the company. Emergency numbers were prominently displayed, including the number of the hospital that was identified to be used in case of an emergency.

Machine safety

At the workplace, the employer should ensure that the machines, tools and equipment are in good condition and in no way cause injury to the workers due to unworthy condition that they may have deteriorated to.

Good health and safety practice also includes all the workers being in a position to use the machines that they should be handling in the process of their job hence adequate training on machine use is a health and safety precaution. There should be conspicuous signs that show any operational hazards or extra safety requirements for any machine such as areas where helmets must be worn or leather gloves must be used.

There should always be supervision when employees are working with machines because any injury that may occur is dealt with promptly under the direction of the supervisor. The equipment should always be in good working conditions, old ones replaced and those under use always kept in order and functioning.

The floors in workplaces should not be messy, dirty or slippery such that could lead to employees sustaining fall related injuries while operating machines at the workplace. All new workers should be well oriented in the workplace and the details of the risks in the workplace clearly stated to them. This will act as a precaution for any future occurrence of accidents within the workplace on these new employees since they will have all the information required to carry out operations in the workplace safely. There should also be encouragement of team work for instance lifting of heavy things that may be hazardous if and when done by one individual. The floor of the workshop was not as tidy as it should be with pieces of timber and metal clattered all over. There were instances of plastic wrappings on the floors which can be very slippery and hazardous. There were loose handing cables from some machines and the walls noted and some of the employee aprons had loose ends and loosely handing straps which could easily get entangled into machines. There is also the need to know the laws that act as guidelines to companies in providing safe workplace for employees. A safety manager should be employed who will ensure that the legislations are known and always observed (Green, 2012).

Health and safety Act

This guideline clearly gives the issue of safety priority and stipulates the obligations of both the employer and the employee in ensuring the workplace remains to be a secure and safe place to be in.

Responsibility of employers and employees

At every workplace the employer is largely responsible for everything that happens within the work environment. Even in situations where an employee is negligent the employers will most definitely be made to bear a large portion of the responsibility. The employer is responsible for the employees as well as any visitors and maintenance crew during the time that they are in the confines of the organization or out on a work related activity. Therefore an employee should take all necessary precautions to ensure safety is upheld at all times.

There are various responsibilities of an employer and one of the responsibilities is that the employer is expected to provide and maintain systems and procedures of work that are safe and without any risks to health of the employees. They should also make arrangements for ensuring safety and absence of risks to health in connection with using, handling, storage and transport of substances or items. According to the Act, they should also provide all necessary information, instruction, training and supervision as is necessary to ensure the safety and health at work for every person that is employed.

No employer should employ workers at machines or process that is liable to cause ill or bodily injury and hence the employers have a responsibility to fully instruct the employees on any dangers that are likely to arise in connection therewith and also provide them sufficient training in work at the machine or the process.

The employers should also ensure that there is maintenance of workplace structural conditions that are safe and without any risk to health, like providing and maintain necessary means of access to egress from the workplace or buildings that are safe and with no risks pertaining to security in case of an emergency like fire or collapse of building.

The employer should ensure that they provide employees with adequate information of any risks from new technologies introduced within the organization and any danger that is imminent. They should also ensure that the employees are in participation of the application and review of safety and health measures within the organization. Employers should as well ensure that they carry out appropriate risk assessments in relation to the safety and health of the employees and on the basis of these results, adopt preventive and protective measures to ensure that under all conditions of their intended use, the chemicals, machines, equipment, tools and process under the control of the employer are safe and they do not have any risks to health and comply with the requirements of safety and health provisions in this Act.

The employer should also ensure that a copy of each risk assessment report is sent to area occupational safety and health officers. They should also make a point in taking immediate steps to stop any operation or activity where an imminent and serious danger to safety and health of the employees is reported and evacuate everyone appropriately from the vicinity of the impending danger. Occupational health and safety Act requires that workplaces where employees are exposed to wet or injurious or offensive substances, employers must provide and maintain clothing and appliances that are adequate, effective and suitably protective to such conditions, these include suitable gloves, footwear, goggles and head covering where necessary. In Section 102 there is provision that employers supply suitable goggles or effective screens to protect the eyes of people that are involved in dry grinding of metals, or articles of metals that is applied by hand to a revolving disc that is driven by mechanical power. They should also ensure that they do so for employees who are welding or cutting metals by means of electric oxyacetylene or similar process.

Responsibilities of the employees

The safety of workplaces cannot be guaranteed without the direct involvement of the people who are engaged therein most of the time. In as much as the employees have a right to the above conditions being provided to them by the employer, they also have the responsibility to cooperate with the administration and each other to ensure the safety of the place.

Reporting of injuries or illnesses within the work environment is a core right of employees'. No form of retaliation should be made against workers who make reports of workplace injuries. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) holds the views that the traditional safety incentive programs which associate injury reduction and rewards can offer an inducement for employees not to report injuries and illnesses. However if these programs are well implemented they can be very efficient and yield positive results. These programs must fit in with the objectives of the organization and employees should be involved in development and implementation of these programs (Pardy, 1997).

OSHA stresses that this safety incentive program should engage employees. This is because it is the employees who are directly involved in the safety practices. Therefore, it is mandatory for them to be included when the programs are being developed and ultimately at the implication stage too. Employees are directly impacted by these programs hence they should be well aware and conversant with a program that affects them. A well thought safety incentive program designed by the employees to ensure that their needs are addressed then it will help in motivating the employees to be safe.

OSHA also opines that the safety incentive program should be sound, this is because there have been reports about employers who have policies in place to penalize or disadvantage employees injured in the course of their work regardless of the circumstances involved. Making a report on an injury is an act which is protected by the law thus such employees are violating the rights of employees. Therefore, OSHA stresses that the program in place should be sound to avoid the occurrence of such incidences (U.S. Department of Labor, 2012).

Employees should ensure that they cooperate with the employers or any person who is in discharge of the duty or requirement that are imposed on the employer. They should make sure that they wear or use protective equipment or clothing that is provided by employer for the purpose of preventing risks to their safety and health. They should also comply with safety and health procedures, requirements and instructions that have been given by a person that is in authority over them for their own safety and safety of other people.

Workers are also supposed to make reports to their supervisors in case there is any accident or injury that may arise in the course of or in connection with his. They should report to their supervisors any situation which they have reason to believe would present a hazard and of which they cannot make any corrections. They should ensure that any duty or requirement that has been imposed on their employers, to co-operate with the employer or other relevant people to enable that particular duty or requirement to be performed (Henard, R., 2006).

The employees and employers can cooperate and make the workplace safe and healthy environment they can do so by forming committees that are joined for the workplace. The committee that is made up of workers and management may meet to inspect workplace, talk about incidences and illness prevention and promote health and safety programs.

Significant hazards at the workshop / Risk assessment on physical activities

The issue discussed herein and the subsequent preventive measures that can be made part of the standard operation procedures within the workshop will cover risk assessment on the physical hazardous activity (improper lifting of heavy loads) and also welfare hazard (improper/lack of prerequisite machinery). The survey noted a very potential hazard at the workplace that may have already affected some of the employees, and may still pose a big threat to the health of the victims in the workshop. The issue of back injury was noted to be a common phenomenon here and after observation of the work plan and the working conditions and the equipment available. Back injuries are part of the large category of injuries that are work related and known as musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs).The U.S. Department of Labor has defined MSDs as disorders or injuries of the nerves, muscles, joints, tendons, cartilage and/or the spinal discs. There are measures that employers and employees can take in order to manage back injuries and other MSDs within the workplace (HSE, 2014). People who have been victims of this can be helped to remain at work or even make an early return to work.

It is fair to say that every worker that lifts or does other manual handling tasks is at risk musculoskeletal injury. Low back injury is the most likely kind of injury and a complete elimination of this risk is not actually realistic since back injuries involve awkward postures and repeated forceful movements. However people can reduce the numbers and severity of the back injuries substantially through using work practices that are safe. In order to prevent occupational back injuries it is first essential to identify factors that make a worker more susceptible to back injury or those factors that contribute directly to these injuries. When efforts of preventing back injuries focus on only a single risk factor they do not lead to a significant reduction of the rate of back injury. A more successful approach like that offered by ergonomics combines knowledge of engineering, environment and human capabilities and limitations. There are several aspects that have to be considered and these are; organization of the work flow, the design of the job / redesign which is inclusive of environment, the pre-placement procedures and training (Canadian Centre for Occupational Health & Safety, 2014). These are factors that need to be implanted in the workshop in order to reduce the number of MSDs in the organization. This is so important, bearing the fact that in making and fabricating the furniture, there is a lot of ferrying of heavy parts, timber and metal from one point to another, from the bench to the floor and so on.

Risk assessment on employee welfare activity/Work flow

In many occasions poor planning of the work flow leads to needless or repeated handling of same objects. For instance when things are stored in one place, moved to another place, then stored again and finally moved again. In such cases a more efficient work flow can lead to the elimination of many potentially harmful tasks that might result to back injuries. In the Top Furniture this is exactly wat is happening which makes the work of shifting the material and finished furniture too tedious. In the case of this workshop, the materials are stored in a store that is far off, and the furniture while in the fabrication stages have to be moved from one section to another depending on the stage it is at in the making process, once it is finished, it is not recorded and taken to the loading zone directly but taken to the stores for inventory then later on shifted to the loading zone and delivered to the respective showrooms. This is a redundant duplication of jobs that lead to the common back pain problem.

Job design

The problem of the MSDs can also be handled from the work design approach since it was noted that the machinery to help in the easy ferrying of material and finished products within the workshop. The design or redesign of jobs that involve back injuries ought to be approached in several stages;