NEBOSH in occupational health and safety full

Health and safety foundations Setting policy for health and safety Organizating for health and safety Promoting a positive health and safety culture Health and safety risk assessment Principles of control in health and safety Movement of People and vehicle

RRC Business Training

NEBOSH International General Certificate

in Occupational Safety and Health

Health and Safety Solutions

RRC BUSINESS TRAINING

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THE COURSE WRITER

who initially trained as a research chemist and spent 7 years with Courtaulds, first as an R&D

scientist and then as a Safety Manager During this time, he gained his NEBOSH Diploma, studying through RRC and later joined the EHS department of an electronic chemicals manufacturer as

product regulatory officer He has been a regular NEBOSH Diploma examiner

RRC Module No 915.1.3

NEBOSH | International General Certificate

C O N T E N T S

1 Health and Safety Foundations

2 Setting Policy for Health and Safety

3 Organising for Health and Safety

4 Promoting a Positive Health and Safety Culture

5 Health and Safety Risk Assessment

6 Principles of Control in Health and Safety

7 Movement of People and Vehicles – Hazards and Control

8 Manual and Mechanical Handling Hazards and Control

9 Work Equipment Hazards and Control

10 Electrical Hazards and Control

11 Fire Hazards and Control

12 Chemical and Biological Health Hazards and Control

13 Physical and Psychological Health Hazards and Control

14 Construction Activities - Hazards and Control

15 Investigation, Recording and Reporting of Health and Safety

NEBOSH International General Certificate

Contents Page

THE MULTI - DISCIPLINARY NATURE OF HEALTH AND SAFETY 1–3

OBSTACLES TO GOOD STANDARDS OF HEALTH AND SAFETY _ 1–4

HEALTH , SAFETY , WELFARE AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION 1–7

ACCIDENTS AND OTHER EVENTS _ 1–7

HAZARDS AND RISKS 1–9

SIZE OF THE PROBLEM 1–11

DIRECT AND INDIRECT COSTS OF ACCIDENTS AND ILL - HEALTH _ 1–12

THE NEED TO PROVIDE A SAFE PLACE OF WORK , SAFE PLANT AND EQUIPMENT , SAFE SYSTEMS OF WORK , TRAINING AND SUPERVISION ,

AND COMPETENT WORKERS 1–14

THE EMPLOYER ’ S BASIC RESPONSIBILITIES 1–16

WORKER ’ S RESPONSIBILITIES AND RIGHTS _ 1–17

THE CONSEQUENCES OF NON - COMPLIANCE 1–18

ROLE OF ENFORCING AUTHORITIES AND OTHER EXTERNAL AGENCIES 1–18

THE ROLE OF INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS AND CONVENTIONS 1–19

EXTERNAL 1–21

INTERNAL 1–21

1

INTRODUCTION

Most people would agree that poor working conditions of any type have the potential to affect a worker’s health and safety It would also be agreed that our aim should be to eliminate or at least minimise the risk of accident or injury; and to protect workers from the effects of ill-health caused by their working conditions However, those aims are not that simple to achieve in

practice

Take almost any country in the world and people are still killed either at work or as a result of work activities; many more have non-fatal injuries at work or suffer from work-related ill-health The cost of workplace accidents or diseases is very high There is both a direct cost to the

employer in lost working time, medical costs, repair or replacement of equipment, etc., and also

a much higher indirect cost which affects the injured or sick workers and their families

This element sets out a framework of health and safety by looking at the practical, moral and financial issues surrounding the goal of a safe workplace environment, and the legal and

organisational framework which seeks to ensure that goal In doing so, the element is designed

to meet the following aims and learning outcomes as specified by NEBOSH for this part of the syllabus for the International Certificate

Overall Aims

On completion of this element, you should understand:

• The scope and nature of occupational health and safety

• The moral, legal and economic reasons for promoting good standards of health and safety within an organisation

• The role of national governments and international bodies in formulating a framework for the regulation of health and safety

• The basis of a system for managing health and safety

• The costs of failing to manage health and safety

Specific Intended Learning Outcomes

When you have worked through this element, you will be able to:

• Explain briefly the moral/social, legal and economic bases for maintaining good standards

of health and safety

• Outline the roles and responsibilities of employers and workers

• Identify sources of information on health and safety

• Outline the key elements of a health and safety management system

THE NATURE AND SCOPE OF HEALTH AND SAFETY

Health and safety at work is based on an understanding of the causes of accidents and other events at the workplace which lead to harm to workers and others who may be close by In general terms, though, this is perhaps not as easy as may at first be thought

The Multi-Disciplinary Nature of Health and Safety

The roots of a systematic approach to health and safety lie in the development of large-scale manufacturing operations In the past, factory machinery was operated with little or no regard to the safety of workers and it was far from uncommon for factory staff (including young children) to suffer bodily injury from unguarded machines Reacting to these effects, the causes were addressed by concerned factory owners and politicians, allied to increasing pressure from workers themselves, by putting in protective measures (such as machine guards) and developing safer working practices

As scientific knowledge has grown and political and social concern over workplace health and safety has broadened, the effects of work have been studied extensively The range of issues identified, which started with those clearly identifiable physical injuries such as losing fingers or arms, has widened to include less apparent injuries (such as deteriorating eyesight and bad backs) and illnesses (both physical and psychological), which very often build up over time, rather than being caused by a single incident The causes of these problems themselves are often not easily identifiable

Occupational health and safety today, then, has moved a long way from its engineering roots and brings together a wide range of subject specialities to investigate what the ill-effects of work are and what causes them It draws on the study of both the physical world – chemistry,

physics, biology, etc – and the social world, of how and why people behave as they do As a health and safety practitioner, you would not expect to be familiar with the detail of all these subjects, but should be aware of the range of different disciplines which contribute to

knowledge and understanding of health and safety issues These include:

• Chemistry and physics, which explain the properties of different substances and the ways

in which they behave in different circumstances – for example, electricity, explosive or flammable materials, acid, etc

• Biological sciences (including toxicology, hygiene and medicine), which explain the

composition and processes of living organisms – for example, the effects of harmful

organisms on people, the responses and reactions of the human body when under physical stress, etc

• Engineering, which is responsible for the construction of buildings and mechanical

processes – for example, the safe design of machinery and vehicles, fireproofing buildings, etc

• Psychology, which attempts to explain the behaviour of the individual – for example, the effects of stress on the mind, the motivation behind the behaviour of individuals and groups at the workplace, etc

• Sociology, which attempts to explain the behaviour of people in groups – for example, management processes, patterns of work, communication in organisations, etc

• The law, which contains the rules and regulations of society – for example, the mass of law which deals with workplace activities

Obstacles to Good Standards of Health and Safety

As we have noted, health and safety is based on removing, or minimising, the causes of

accidents and other events in the workplace which may have adverse effects on workers It should be clear now that this cause-and-effect relationship is not always easily identifiable and,

as the processes and activities in the workplace continue to develop, that the complexity of the problem is a continuing obstacle to good standards of health and safety However, other

obstacles arise from the nature of the workplace itself – the characteristics both of the

organisation within which work is carried out (including private commercial businesses and public sector bodies) and of the people who carry out the work

Complexity of the Problem

We can see three ways in which the issue of health and safety in the workplace is far from

simple

•

Whilst this is self-evident in respect of certain events – for example, dropping a

still-burning cigarette into a wastepaper basket can cause a fire – there are many ill-effects suffered by people at work for which there is no readily identifiable cause or, where there is

an identifiable cause, its relationship with the effect does not seem to be straightforward For example, in some offices, workers have suffered from a variety of symptoms such as headaches, or eye, skin, nose and throat irritations, etc where there is no one apparent cause Rather the problem is attributed to “sick building syndrome” – a general term which may cover a whole variety of causes, including the lighting, air-conditioning, presence of static electricity, etc Another example is that of work-related upper limb disorders (WRULD for short, or, as it was often known in the past, repetitive strain injury or RSI), which affect some workers using computer keyboards but not others

In general, these issues may be resolved by increasing our scientific understanding of the nature of the injury or harm, and the ways in which the working environment acts to cause them Thus, the incidence of lung disorders among certain workers was only attributed to the workplace when the link between asbestos exposure and such health problems was established, and since then there have been ever stricter controls over the use of the

substance

•

In many western countries, the last 30 years has seen a revolution in the way in which work

is carried out and the type of work which is undertaken In the main, this has been fuelled

by technological change – primarily, the computerisation of manufacturing and information processing – and the drive for increased efficiency and productivity to keep costs down in the face of increasing competition

The effects include an increase in the range and complexity of activities, the speeding up of operations and changes to the traditional patterns of organisation and management Thus, the increasing complexity of the modern workplace has perhaps increased the range of hazards and risks

•

It may be argued that as the hazards and risks to health have become better understood, the range of issues which have to be addressed have themselves made health and safety more complex Reflecting this, the legislation and official guidance covering workplaces have steadily increased in both number and complexity over the years Those responsible for health and safety have an ever increasing task of keeping abreast of new developments and requirements, and of implementing appropriate responses to them through policies and practices, in an already complex working environment

Competing and Conflicting Demands

Organisations exist to produce the goods and services demanded of them by their customers and clients If they do not do this and do it profitably, they will go out of business or, in the case

of public sector organisations, there will be political and/or management changes to ensure that they do Therefore, the primary objective of management in a competitive and cost-conscious environment will be to achieve those goals

Under this way of looking at organisations, health and safety represents a cost, which might be regarded as a non-productive cost in that it does not directly contribute to the efficient provision

of goods and services As a result, in many organisations, health and safety is not a priority of management Instead, it may be seen as conflicting with the need to increase production, to pursue higher sales figures or to cut costs In the situation where an employer takes little responsibility for the protection of his workers’ health and safety, the result will be that serious workplace accidents, injuries or diseases are commonplace

Behavioural Issues

The first thing we should note is that for occupational health and safety practice to work

successfully, there has to be the collaboration and participation of both the employers and the workers in health and safety matters

To some extent, the management measures taken to implement good health and safety

standards at work can be integrated into the working processes themselves Thus, guards may

be placed on machines, circuit breakers incorporated into electrical appliances, or automatic fire detection devices fitted which immediately set off alarms when they sense the presence of smoke However, most measures rely, to a greater or lesser degree, on the actions of workers to make them effective

Unfortunately, this is a major source of weakness It has been estimated that 60% of workplace accidents are caused by human action (or lack of action), with the main reasons for this being ignorance, carelessness or incompetence

The extent to which workers, individually or collectively, are conscious of the hazards and risks

at the workplace and are motivated to maintain the necessary standards to ensure safe working practices can vary enormously There are a number of factors which can influence this:

• Conflicts between individual or group goals and the requirements of health and safety – for example, the pursuit of higher levels of output to attract bonus payments, working

excessive numbers of hours, or simply patterns of social interaction which may cause distraction or loss of attention

• Individual characteristics and suitability for the job – including physical or mental

characteristics, knowledge and skills, temperament, personality, etc

• The satisfaction of needs through achievements at work – the extent to which the

characteristics of the job and the workplace meet the needs of individuals and provide a motivation to perform effectively

All of these factors can – and should – be addressed directly by management in the interests of developing and maintaining a safe working environment

MEANINGS AND DISTINCTIONS

The subject of health and safety is, like all subjects, full of its own language and terminology –

we have already started to use some, such as hazards and risks It is important to be clear about

a number of the basic concepts of the subject and here we shall define and explain certain underlying principles

Health, Safety, Welfare and Environmental Protection

Health and safety at work is a general term to cover a wide range of effects which may be created

by activities and events which occur at the workplace Exactly what is covered?

• Health relates to the physical condition of both body and mind, of all people at the

workplace (workers, contractors and visitors) and their protection from harm in the form of injury or disease

• Safety relates to the conditions at the workplace and applies to the pursuit of a state where the risk of harm has been eliminated or reduced to an acceptable level

• Welfare relates to the general well-being of workers at the workplace and the promotion of conditions which help to provide for their needs in respect of health, comfort, social and personal well-being This broader concept of welfare is not a specific concern of health and safety at work, but effective health and safety measures may contribute to the conditions which promote it

• Environmental protection can be seen as comprising two types:

− The workplace environment, which relates to the general conditions in the immediate area of the workplace itself – for example, levels of lighting, noise, heat, etc

− The external environment, which relates to pollution of, or damage to, the air, land, water and living creatures outside of the workplace, insofar as they may be affected by workplace activities

The second type is not generally considered to be part of health and safety at work, since its focus is not on the protection of people at the workplace However, some of the issues with which it is concerned are shared with those of health and safety and there is a degree

of common practice and methods between them

Accidents and Other Events

It is useful to define several types of event commonly considered in relation to health and safety

An event that gave rise to an accident or had the potential to lead to an accident (the term incident includes accidents and near misses (see below))

This is widely agreed to mean an undesired event, giving rise to death, ill-health, injury, damage or other loss e.g a worker is injured when he puts his hand into a machine from which a guard has been removed

– These are any form of event which could have resulted in injury or loss but did not

in fact do so Consider the following example: The worker realises that a machine guard is missing and pulls out his hand, just getting a smear of oil on his fingers

These may be the same events with the same causes as the accidents illustrated before, but with

a different outcome They are significant in that lessons should be learned from them in order to prevent them re-occurring and, perhaps, causing harm the next time

In many regions throughout the world, certain types of events are reportable to the enforcing authority By enforcing authority we mean the executive branch of the government charged with enforcing health and safety legislation and standards These organisations are also commonly referred to as competent authorities In terms of reporting, the following four definitions are noteworthy

: an occurrence arising out of, or in the course of, work, which results in fatal or non-fatal injury

: an accident resulting in death or personal injury occurring on the direct way between the place of work and:

(i) the worker's principal or secondary residence; or

(ii) the place where the worker usually takes a meal; or

(iii) the place where the worker usually receives his or her remuneration

: a readily identifiable event as defined under national laws and regulations, with potential to cause an injury or disease to persons at work or to the public These events typically involve serious potential for injury, even though no injury in fact resulted – though they usually involve some form of loss or damage to equipment Examples of this type might include explosions when a factory is empty of workers or collapse of scaffolding during a night time gale

: any disease contracted as a result of an exposure to risk factors arising from work activity e.g occupational cancer arising from exposure to asbestos in the workplace

Work-Related Ill-Health

It is easy to equate personal injury with accidents, but work-related ill-health may also be the outcome of a type of accident Nobody sets out deliberately to create the conditions which

cause asbestosis, dermatitis or work-related upper limb disorder

The main differences between health issues and safety issues are timescale and the nature of the harm Physical accidents happen very quickly, whereas health accidents tend to occur

slowly, often over a long period of time, and equally health issues relate to illness whilst safety issues relate to injuries

Work-related ill-health may be either physiological or psychological:

• Physiological problems are those diseases or injuries suffered as a result of long-term exposure to dangerous substances in the workplace (such as various types of dust or

fumes) or to damaging working practices (such as repetitive movements or excessive

noise)

• Psychological problems are usually related to stress and include such illnesses as

depression Stress may be created by short-term, or even instant, events, where the

emotional shock of a particular incident or series of incidents (such as being involved in or witnessing violence) may cause problems for workers It may also be the result of longer-term exposure to particular pressures at the workplace, including excessive demands on performance or bullying

Hazards and Risks

A is an article, substance or situation that has the The key word is Not all hazards will cause harm all of the time It depends upon circumstances Typical workplace hazards include:

These are just a few examples In a normal workplace there may be many more hazards

A is the The degree of risk depends upon the likelihood of harm happening and the severity of the outcome i.e type of injury, numbers involved, etc Unfortunately, it is very often impossible to eliminate all hazards to avoid accidents The next best thing, then, is to reduce to an acceptable level the risk of any hazard turning into an

accident For example, a trailing cable in the workplace constitutes a hazard and the associated risk is the chance of a trip or a fall over the cable, accompanied by a particular degree of injury (Electricity is another hazard present in this situation, but for simplicity we will ignore this.) Ideally, the hazard should be eliminated by having the appliance close to the electrical socket,

or the cable permanently fastened to the wall However, with some types of equipment, say a vacuum cleaner, this is not possible A solution, therefore, would be to reduce the risk by considering the positioning of the cable and perhaps providing warning signs

The magnitude of the risk is an estimate of how likely it is that someone will trip over the cable, with an assessment of the likely severity of injury caused The same hazard may therefore present different magnitudes of risk, depending on the arrangements:

Hazard Position of Cable Magnitude of Risk

(likelihood x severity) Fastened to wall Zero

Trailing around edge of room Low Trailing across the floor Medium

Tripping

over

cable and

falling

Trailing across head of stairway High

The identification of hazards and the assessment of associated risks has become the

cornerstone of modern health and safety law

(3) What two types of hazard are there?

(4) What factors are assessed in determining the magnitude of a risk?

The suggested answers are given at the end of the element

THE MORAL, LEGAL AND ECONOMIC REASONS FOR HEALTH AND SAFETY

The responsibility for health and safety at work rests primarily on the shoulders of the employer

It must therefore be a prime concern of management to ensure that appropriate measures and practices are in place to create safe working conditions This placing of responsibility on

employers comes essentially from the focus given by most health and safety legislation

However, there are also compelling moral and economic reasons for employers to be concerned with health and safety:

• Employers (through management) provide the premises and equipment and put in place the working practices which workers use to produce the goods and services with which

employers earn profits (or, in the case of government agency employers, remain in power)

To that extent they can be said to gain from the conditions at the workplace In return, they provide an income for workers, but also have a moral responsibility to provide appropriate working conditions This forms the basis of the employer’s responsibilities which we discuss below

• Unsafe working conditions are likely to have an impact on production – through both loss

of output and a lowering of worker morale and motivation – and on sales Increasingly, society has expectations of a socially-concerned approach to management and the conduct

of business, and the customer/client base of organisations may be adversely affected by the negative image surrounding a poor health and safety record

• Apart from the financial cost of loss of output, employers may be liable for fines and/or payment of damages in respect of accidents at work

Size of the Problem

The introduction of legislation, together with an extensive programme of publicity and advice on accident prevention, has brought about a consistent reduction in the number of both fatal and non-fatal accidents at work However there continues to be an unacceptably high toll in terms of death, injury and financial loss associated with incidents at the workplace

The following global statistics have been published by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) as part of their SafeWork programme (the actual figures are unimportant – it is simply to show the scale of the problem):

• There are 270 million occupational accidents and 160 million occupational diseases each year

• Around 2 million people die every year from occupational accidents and occupational diseases

• 4% of the world’s gross domestic product is lost each year through the cost of injury, death, absence, etc

• There are around 355,000 on-the-job fatalities each year – half of these occur in agriculture Other high-risk sectors are construction and fishing industries

Direct and Indirect Costs of Accidents and Ill-Health

We have seen that the costs of failures in health and safety at work across the economy as a whole are enormous For the individual employer, they can also be very significant

The costs may be divided into two parts:

• – These are the measurable costs arising from an accident and/or any claim for liability under the civil or criminal courts They include sick pay, repairs or replacement

of damaged equipment and buildings, etc., product loss or damage, loss of production, public and/or product liability, fines, legal fees, increases in insurance premiums, etc

• – These are costs which may arise as a consequence of the event, but do not generally involve the payment of money They are often largely unknown, but it is

estimated that in certain circumstances they may be extremely high They include business interruption, loss of orders, cost of time spent on investigations, loss of corporate image

We can examine these costs by reference to different classes of accident or other health and safety events

There are no direct costs associated with this type of event However, near misses may incur minor indirect costs in relation to a temporary stoppage of work, with the extent of the losses depending upon the duration of the stoppage and that in itself depends upon the nature and severity of the event

The direct costs of this type of event include:

• Value of the materials wasted

• Value of any finished products or work-in-progress lost as a result

• Cost of replacement or repair of plant and equipment

• Loss of production whilst repairs are made or replacements obtained

• Increased overtime costs incurred to make up for loss of production

In addition, the following indirect costs may be incurred:

• Loss of time already spent on the job

• Loss of goodwill from customers following from delays in production and fulfilling orders – resulting in cancellations and further loss of orders

• Penalty clauses activated for failing to meet delivery dates, resulting in lower profits from sales

The direct costs of this type of event include:

• Costs of medical treatment – first aid, ambulance, out-patient treatment, in-patient

treatment (bed, nursing, doctors, specialists, consultants, medication, etc.)

• Compensation payable to victim

• Fines imposed on conviction for breach of criminal law

• Loss of victims’ own productive capacity and possible knock-on effects to others, causing overall loss of production before production schedules and work allocations are

rearranged

• Increased overtime costs incurred to make up for loss of production

In addition, the following indirect costs may be incurred:

• Loss of production time due to workers stopping to assist the victim(s) and discussing the incident

• Downtime on machinery due to switching off in order to provide assistance to the victim(s)

• Loss of staff from productive duties in order to investigate the incident, prepare reports, undertake hospital visits, deal with relatives, attend court proceedings

• Cost of training replacement(s)

• Difficulties in recruiting suitable replacements, and possible loss of existing staff, if health and safety record is poor

• Increased overheads if plant and men are idle

• Loss of goodwill from customers following delays in production and fulfilling orders – resulting in cancellations and further loss of orders

• Activation of penalty clauses for failing to meet delivery dates, resulting in lower profits from sales

The costs here are likely to be a combination of those liabilities arising separately for events involving only damage to plant and equipment and those involving only personal injury

Insurance, Costs and Liabilities

Employers usually take out insurance to cover themselves against potential losses caused by such events as fire and theft In many countries, employers are also required by law to have insurance against certain types of liability However, many of the costs involved in respect of accidents at work are not covered by insurance

Uninsured costs include all indirect costs as well as those relating to loss of production as a result of many types of incident In addition, the insurance to cover loss in respect of certain events may be void where it may be shown that the employer has not taken adequate

precautions to prevent the incident It has been estimated that uninsured losses were between

8 and 36 times greater than insured losses

Fault and No-Fault Compensation Systems

In many countries around the world the principle way that a worker has to claim compensation in the case of a workplace inquiry is to use the Courts This “tort” based system is essentially adversarial and requires that someone else is blamed for causing the inquiry In most instances

it is the employer who is blamed and therefore found to be at fault This is the principal

compensation mechanism used in the UK and the USA

In other countries a no-fault compensation system is in operation In these countries there is no requirement to blame employers or employees in order for compensation to be awarded

Instead a panel of experts make a decision on whether compensation should be awarded The

system is non-adversarial and does not involve lawyers or the courts in most instances These no-fault compensation systems are operated in, for example, New Zealand and Sweden

The Need to Provide a Safe Place of Work, Safe Plant and

Equipment, Safe Systems of Work, Training and Supervision, and Competent Workers

Safe Place of Work

You will appreciate that should an employer create a place of work, it follows that there should

be some legal requirement on him to ensure that such a place of work is reasonably safe What

is considered “reasonable” may vary with the type of work It follows that the employer should provide safe access to and from the workplace; it is no good the workplace itself being safe and yet having to climb a high ladder just to get to it!

Safe Plant and Equipment

Not only should an employer provide a safe place of work, but all the machinery, tools, plant, equipment and appliances which will be used by workers must at all times be kept in a well-maintained and safe condition Exactly what this means will depend on the type of work being carried out It is safe to assume that the greater the risk involved in the operation of particular types of plant and equipment, the greater the care that must be taken Thus, the need to

inspect, service and repair, and replace machinery in a steel-making factory would be far greater than that which would apply in an office However, the same duty to maintain the plant and equipment used in proper condition applies to both and employers must be able to demonstrate that they have given reasonable thought to the health and safety implications of the machinery, etc., and taken reasonable steps to ensure its continuing safety, if they wish to escape liability in the event of an accident

Safe System of Work

It is not sufficient to stop at the provision of safe premises and plant and equipment There must

be recognised safe procedures for the use of equipment and these should be rigorously

maintained

There are a number of aspects to this which must be considered:

• The system of work should be reasonably safe in all circumstances, so the procedures must cover all foreseeable possibilities – for example, the operation of drilling equipment in different types of weather, rather than just a set of rules which ensure safety when the weather is good

• Workers must be fully aware of and competent in carrying out the safe system of work Thus, there is an implied requirement that staff are properly trained and instructed in the procedures, and that all information necessary to ensure that the system is followed is made available This may include the display of warning notices, and it may be necessary for them to be printed in a number of different languages to ensure that all staff and visitors are aware of what is necessary

• The fact that a system of work has been in operation without incident for a period of time is not evidence of it being a safe system of work In recent years, emphasis has been placed

on the need for appropriate review, planning and control in ensuring that working methods are safe

Training and Supervision and Competency of Staff

It is essential to ensure that staff are equipped with the knowledge, experience, skills and training necessary to carry out their work in a safe manner, without causing harm to themselves

or others, and that they do indeed carry out the work in a safe manner

This starts with the appointment of workers, where the employer must ensure that the person has all the necessary abilities to do the job safely i.e he is competent It would be courting disaster, for example, to engage a person who was unable to read and then put him to work on complicated machinery where there was a requirement to read and understand important operating instructions

All staff need also to be provided with the specific knowledge required to operate safely in the particular workplace, using the particular plant and machinery according to the recognised safe systems of work The provision of that knowledge through training, instruction and other forms

of information is a major responsibility of the employer Training and instruction must be

suitable for the individual worker

Finally, employers should take reasonable practical steps to ensure that staff are following all the correct procedures and are actually operating safely This does not mean that an employer stands and looks over the shoulder of each individual worker – this would clearly be

unreasonable However, it does imply that management must take active steps to check the situation

We have noted that around 60% of workplace accidents are the result of human actions and are preventable Clearly there are many instances of workers not following the agreed procedures and practices In such situations, who is to blame – the employer, the worker or both?

With judicious use of supervision, an employer can reinforce adherence to procedures If

supervision is not used at all, it may create a culture in which safe working procedures are ignored

TYPICAL FRAMEWORKS FOR REGULATING HEALTH AND SAFETY

As you would expect, the actual detailed legal duties placed on employers and workers does vary throughout each country in the world Even so, many will have the same basic intention of protecting people at work There is a general recognition that most of the responsibility lies with the employer – since he provides the work, the workplace, the tools, systems, methods, etc Though the terminology can vary throughout the world, it is a common theme that the law has certain behavioural expectations of both employers and workers This includes exercising

reasonable care in order to protect others from the risks of foreseeable injury, health problems

of the individual undertaking

C155 is complemented by P155 – “the Protocol to the Occupational Health and Safety Convention 1981” which fleshes out some of provisions regarding reporting of occupational accidents etc to national authorities

The Occupational Safety and Health Recommendation 1981 (R164) supplements C155 and

provides more detailed guidance on how to comply with the policies of C155 In particular, it identifies obligations that might be placed on employers and workers in order to achieve the basic goal of a safe and healthy place of work These basic ideas are widely enshrined in

national legislation

The Employer’s Basic Responsibilities

Article 16 of C155 identifies some basic obligations on employers:

1 Employers shall be required to ensure that, so far as is reasonably practicable, the

workplaces, machinery, equipment and processes under their control are safe and without risk to health

2 Employers shall be required to ensure that, so far as is reasonably practicable, the

chemical, physical and biological substances and agents under their control are without risk to health when the appropriate measures of protection are taken

3 Employers shall be required to provide, where necessary, adequate protective clothing and protective equipment to prevent, so far as is reasonably practicable, risk of accidents or of adverse effects on health

Article 10 of R164 expands on what this might mean in practice It identifies at least the

following practical obligations to meet the objective of Article 16 of C155:

(a) to provide and maintain workplaces, machinery and equipment, and use work methods, which are as safe and without risk to health as is reasonably practicable;

(b) to give necessary instructions and training, taking account of the functions and capacities

of different categories of workers;

(c) to provide adequate supervision of work, of work practices and of application and use of occupational safety and health measures;

(d) to institute organisational arrangements regarding occupational safety and health and the working environment adapted to the size of the undertaking and the nature of its activities; (e) to provide, without any cost to the worker, adequate personal protective clothing and equipment which are reasonably necessary when hazards cannot be otherwise prevented or controlled;

(f) to ensure that work organisation, particularly with respect to hours of work and rest breaks, does not adversely affect occupational safety and health;

(g) to take all reasonably practicable measures with a view to eliminating excessive physical and mental fatigue;

(h) to undertake studies and research or otherwise keep abreast of the scientific and technical knowledge necessary to comply with the foregoing clauses

Thus it is a reasonable expectation that every employer should provide a safe workplace and generally look after the health and safety of workers This kind of principle is nearly always enshrined in law – though the actual extent of the duty may vary This means that if an employer

is aware of a health and safety risk to workers, or ought to have known of its existence (in the light of current knowledge at the time), he will be liable if an worker is injured, killed or suffers illness as a result of the risk and he (the employer) has failed to take reasonable steps to avoid it happening

Worker’s Responsibilities and Rights

Article 19 of C155 identifies obligations placed on all workers and their representatives to

cooperate with their employer in regard to fulfilling his safety obligations Workers should: (a) take reasonable care for their own safety and that of other persons who may be affected by their acts or omissions at work;

(b) comply with instructions given for their own safety and health and those of others and with safety and health procedures;

(c) use safety devices and protective equipment correctly and do not render them inoperative; (d) report forthwith to their immediate supervisor any situation which they have reason to believe could present a hazard and which they cannot themselves correct;

(e) report any accident or injury to health which arises in the course of or in connection with work

Workers have a right to the provision of a safe workplace, as implied by the employer’s

obligations The following additional rights are identified in Article 19 of C155

There shall be arrangements at the level of the undertaking under which…

(c) representatives of workers in an undertaking are given adequate information on measures taken by the employer to secure occupational safety and health and may consult their representative organisations about such information provided they do not disclose

commercial secrets;

(d) workers and their representatives in the undertaking are given appropriate training in

occupational safety and health;

(e) workers or their representatives and, as the case may be, their representative organisations

in an undertaking, in accordance with national law and practice, are enabled to enquire into, and are consulted by the employer on, all aspects of occupational safety and health associated with their work; for this purpose technical advisers may, by mutual agreement,

be brought in from outside the undertaking;

(f) a worker reports forthwith to his immediate supervisor any situation which he has

reasonable justification to believe presents an imminent and serious danger to his life or health; until the employer has taken remedial action, if necessary, the employer cannot require workers to return to a work situation where there is continuing imminent and

serious danger to life or health

The Consequences of Non-Compliance

A breach of health and safety legislation is usually a criminal offence – whatever part of the world you are in As a result, a company may face heavy fines It is not uncommon for countries

to hold individuals within companies to be responsible and actually imprison them or levy a personal fine on them

In addition, civil liability may also arise As a result, compensation may be payable for injuries sustained In terms of health and safety, the most important civil liability arises as a result of negligence

Negligence is a relatively modern idea, but today it is probably the most important in terms of the number of cases and the amount of damages which may be awarded for serious injury

Negligence consists of a breach of the legal duty to exercise reasonable care towards others In essence, negligence is causing harm to someone to whom you owed a duty of care, as a result of something you did OR failed to do Of course, the harm has to have been reasonably

foreseeable – things are very different if no-one could reasonably have seen it coming

In health and safety terms, the same concept applies to employers, who are under a duty of care towards their workers and others As we have seen, that duty has a number of aspects,

including the provision of a safe place of work, safe equipment and plant and safe systems If an employer fails in respect of any or all of these responsibilities by doing something or failing to act in circumstances where the reasonable man would foresee that injury is likely to be caused,

he has been negligent and will be liable to compensate an worker who is injured as a result

Role of Enforcing Authorities and Other External Agencies

Governments make laws and courts decide on guilt and pass sentence on those who are guilty

In between the two we have various agencies who can enforce laws, investigate, provide advice and so on

Typical agencies might include the following

Fire Authorities

Fire authorities often have a role to play – either in enforcing specific aspects of fire legislation

or simply acting as advisors to employers regarding fire safety

Insurance Companies

In some countries insurance companies fulfil a major role in enforcing safety, thereby avoiding the necessity for the government to employ many enforcement staff Inspections and audits they undertake of their clients’ premises supplement those of the authorities, and in some cases are the only inspections which occur on a regular basis They can exert considerable influence in raising standards, as they can refuse to provide insurance cover unless their standards are met

The Role of International Standards and Conventions

Most countries have their own specific laws, developed over the years to tackle their own

specific issues – sometimes in a unique way There is of course no truly global harmonisation of health and safety legislation However, countries often end up adopting similar basic

approaches to protect the health and safety of their people; the detail may vary but, for example, most legislators agree that it is both desirable and possible to take measures to stop workers from falling a distance likely to cause significant injury

A prime mover in the area of international standards in Health and Safety is the United Nations (UN), specifically, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) A large number of countries are members of the ILO – e.g Albania, Bahrain, Chile, UK, USA The two primary outputs of the ILO are “Conventions” and “Recommendations” These set international standards

When ratified by member states, Conventions create binding obligations or objectives/policies

to implement their provisions (which are goal-setting in nature) Of course, these have no legal effect unless ratified and implemented in the legal structure of each member state ILO

conventions are increasingly being ratified Recommendations provide guidance on policy, legislation and practice These are further supported by codes of practice

The ILO has been active in the area of health and safety standards, the principals of which have been widely adopted Some elements of the Occupational Health and Safety Convention 1981 (C155) and supporting recommendations have already been discussed earlier in this element These Conventions can form the basis of detailed legislation in each member country – the result being that basic minimum health and safety standards are adopted The detailed provisions will still vary as each member state implements in a nationally appropriate way As well as general Conventions on Health and Safety, the ILO has produced a great deal of sector-specific and subject-specific material e.g C115 (Radiation Protection, 1960), C162 (Asbestos, 1986), C167 (Safety and Health in Construction, 1988) – together with supporting recommendations and codes of practice Additionally, as well as Conventions for regulating health and safety, the ILO has produced frameworks for managing health and safety in the workplace (ILO-OSH 2001) More information is available on the ILO SafeWork website

hazardous chemicals These recommendations will then be available for adoption by national and regional governments

Other agencies are also active For example the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) is the world’s largest developer of standards ISO has been rather successful at promoting the adoption of ISO 9001 (the Quality Management Standard) and ISO 14001 (The Environmental Management Standard) Whilst these are not legal documents they have been widely adopted

by large numbers of companies throughout the world since they demonstrate good management practice The result is a common approach to managing quality and environment matters At a technical level, ISO has been responsible for developing the safety standards to which

machinery etc should conform These are then commonly referenced by national legislation on machinery safety, since compliance with the recognised standard demonstrates safety

The Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series (OHSAS) specification 18001:1999 is a result of collaboration between 13 internationally recognised standards organisations It

describes a health and safety management system, which is thoroughly compatible with ISO

9001 and ISO 14001

SOURCES OF INFORMATION (INTERNAL AND

EXTERNAL)

Health and safety is surprisingly complex There is a wealth of information available which needs to be consulted There are two chief sources of data – outside the organisation (External) and inside the organisation (Internal)

External

External data sources include:

• National legislation (e.g regulations)

• Safety data sheets from manufacturers and suppliers

• Government Enforcing Authority publications such as Codes of Practice and Guidance Notes

• Manufacturers’/suppliers’ maintenance manuals

• National/International standards

• Information from local safety groups

• Information from trade associations

• Information from journals and magazines

Internal

Internal data sources include:

• Information from accident records

• Information from medical records and the medical department (if you have one)

• Information from company doctors

• Risk assessments

• Maintenance reports

• Information from joint inspections with safety reps

• Information from audits, surveys, sampling and tours

• Information from safety committee minutes

Some examples of external information sources:

The International Labour Organisation (UN) http://www.ilo.org

The Occupational Safety & Health Administration (USA) http://www.osha.gov

The European Agency for Safety & Health at Work (EU) http://agency.osha.eu.int

The Health & Safety Executive (UK) http://www.hse.gov.uk

Worksafe (Western Australia) http://www.safetyline.wa.gov.au

(3) Identify two external and two internal sources of information about health and safety

The suggested answers are given at the end of the element

FRAMEWORK FOR HEALTH AND SAFETY

MANAGEMENT

The extent of the legal duties placed on employers are such that, in order to meet them, health and safety must be addressed systematically within the organisation This means that it must

be considered a function of management – no less important than the management of

production, purchasing, sales, human resources, etc – and, as for those other functions,

appropriate arrangements must be put in place to ensure health and safety throughout the organisation

The starting point is to express safety policy in terms of a clear formal statement This should cover not only general policy, but also the internal organisation and arrangements necessary to put it into operation throughout all workplaces and all activities However, health and safety management has to be a dynamic process within the organisation – the policy and arrangements must be monitored and reviewed continually to ensure that they provide the level of protection demanded by the law Several organisations have published broadly similar standards on Health and Safety management For example OHSAS 18001:1999 and also The ILO Guidelines on Occupational Safety and Health Management Systems 2001 (ILO-OSH 2001) - both mentioned earlier in this element

Here we discuss the elements of the model described in ILO-OSH 2001 for the development and maintenance of effective systems and procedures This type of management strategy is not unique to health and safety It reinforces the fact that managing health and safety is part of good management practice

The key elements of this are the same as for other management processes as follows:

Audit

Action for Improvement Evaluation Planning and Implementation

management organisation and implementation is based

Organising

There should be a framework of roles and responsibilities for health and safety, with duties placed upon individuals throughout the organisation, from senior management down to the shop floor This will include organisational duties which may be required by law, as well as appointing specialist staff where appropriate and ensuring that general management roles and other arrangements (such as management meetings) address health and safety issues

Planning and Implementation

This refers to the detailed specification of health and safety standards to be applied in all areas and aspects of work, and the measures taken to ensure that they are carried out Central to this idea is the concept of risk assessment On the basis of the risk assessment, specific systems of work and protective measures should be identified and implemented

Responsibility for ensuring that the systems and measures are carried out effectively at all times will rest with management, although workers must also be aware of and accept their own

responsibilities This requires that appropriate information and training is provided for all staff

Evaluation

Evaluation basically means monitoring, measuring and reviewing performance It is not enough simply to put the systems and measures in place Management must ensure they are working effectively and this can only be determined by holding some form of systematic review The implementation of the health and safety policy should be monitored on a regular basis by

collecting information about accidents and other incidences, and this information used to assess the appropriateness of the current organisational arrangements, the standards being applied and the way in which they are being operated

The process of monitoring and review should be a clear management process within the

organisational structure for dealing with health and safety Employers may have to demonstrate that it has taken place in order to ensure that they are meeting their duties under the legislation

Action for Improvement

Any defects identified by the review process must be set right as soon as possible by making whatever adjustments are necessary to the policy, organisation and arrangements for

implementation

Auditing

This refers to the process of collecting independent information on the efficiency, effectiveness and reliability of the total safety system in the organisation Crucially, it reflects the need to ensure that all aspects of the system remain appropriate in the light of current developments in the field – in relation to both legislation and good health and safety practice Thus, it is

necessary to obtain information and advice from outside the organisation about these matters and to integrate this with the further development of internal systems and procedures

Continual Improvement

Arrangements need to be made for the continual improvement of all the elements of the OSH management system As well as taking account of internal data sources (from e.g results of performance measurements, accident investigations etc.), the performance of the organisation should be compared with others in order to benchmark progress

SUMMARY

This element has introduced you to the general principles of health and safety at work, which we will develop in detail in other elements of the course

The basis of health and safety lies in the potential for harm from hazards at the workplace This

is demonstrated by the high cost in terms of both personal injury and ill-health suffered by

workers and others, and financial loss suffered by individual organisations and the economy as

a whole through disruption to production

Employers have particular responsibilities to protect their workers and others from harm at work

or arising from work activities A failure to comply with these duties may give rise to civil liability and a claim for damages, and/or criminal liability and fines, or even imprisonment Workers also have duties to take reasonable steps to ensure health and safety at work

Different countries have legislation in place which expressly identifies these duties This may be based on international conventions The legislation is often supplemented with practical

guidance on how to comply

To maintain compliance with health and safety legislation, employers must use a systematic management approach This should include the allocation of roles and responsibilities for

health and safety throughout the organisation, and the adoption of operational systems and protective measures in all workplaces Arrangements must also be made to keep the

effectiveness of both health and safety policy and practice under review

SUGGESTED ANSWERS TO REVISION QUESTIONS

Revision Question 1

(1) Health and safety has to compete with other management priorities, particularly those associated with the production of goods and services which is the basic rationale of an organisation It may be seen as an unproductive cost which conflicts with the requirement

to keep costs low

(2) (i) An undesired event resulting in personal injury, damage or loss

(ii) A situation with the potential to cause harm or damage

(iii) The likelihood that harm from a particular hazard may be realised

(3) Unsafe conditions and unsafe acts

(4) The number of people likely to be affected by the harm from a hazard, and the severity of the harm that may be suffered

Revision Question 2

(1) Workers should:

(a) take reasonable care for their own safety and that of other persons who may be

affected by their acts or omissions at work;

(b) comply with instructions given for their own safety and health and those of others and with safety and health procedures;

(c) use safety devices and protective equipment correctly and do not render them

(2) Criminal – fines; Civil - compensation

(3) External data sources include: National legislation (e.g regulations); Safety data sheets from manufacturers and suppliers; Government Enforcing Authority publications such as Codes of Practice and Guidance Notes; Manufacturers’/suppliers’ maintenance manuals; National/International standards; Information from local safety groups; Information from trade associations; Information from journals and magazines

Internal data sources include: Information from accident records; Information from medical records and the medical department (if you have one); Information from company doctors; Risk assessments; Maintenance reports; Information from joint inspections with safety reps; Information from audits, surveys, sampling and tours; Information from safety

committee minutes

Revision Question 3

(1) There should be a framework of roles and responsibilities for health and safety allocated to individuals throughout the organisation, including the appointment of specialist staff and ensuring that general management roles and arrangements address health and safety issues

(2) To ensure that the organisational arrangements, health and safety standards and

operational systems and measures are working effectively and, where they are not, to

provide the information upon which they may be revised

NEBOSH International General Certificate

Contents Page

GENERAL STATEMENT OF INTENT _ 2–4

THE ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF INDIVIDUALS _ 2–4

ARRANGEMENTS , SYSTEMS AND PROCEDURES 2–4

GENERAL STATEMENT OF INTENT _ 2–6

INTRODUCTION

In some countries health and safety law may be lacking or based on outdated legislation which

is no longer entirely relevant to present economic conditions or to technologies currently in use Despite such limitations, responsible employers will still use best practice to improve health and safety by eliminating those risks which are under their control

The foundation stone of health and safety in the workplace is the organisation’s health and safety policy It is a document which defines the organisation’s broad approach to health and safety and expresses its commitment, both in general terms and in respect of specific

responsibilities, together with the practical arrangements that are required to be in place

In many countries the provision of a health and safety policy is a legal requirement, and its contents and format are specified Here we will give an example of the sort of things which should be considered in such a policy

In this element we shall examine the role of the health and safety policy in achieving a healthy and safe working environment We will look at the components which should be included in it and the way in which they provide the framework within which management and staff carry out their duties and ensure adequate control of risks

A specimen company health and safety policy is provided as an appendix to the element to show the general form and content of the document You will find it useful to examine other examples – especially your own organisation’s policy – and there are many examples available on the Internet which you might look at

The element is designed to meet the following aims and learning outcomes as specified by NEBOSH for this part of the syllabus for the International General Certificate

Overall Aims

On completion of this element, you should understand:

• The importance of setting policy for health and safety

• The key features and appropriate content of an organisation’s health and safety policy

Specific Intended Learning Outcomes

When you have worked through this element, you will be able to:

• Explain the purpose of a health and safety policy

• Assess the appropriateness of an organisation’s health and safety policy in terms of

structure and general content

THE ROLE OF THE HEALTH AND SAFETY POLICY

The essential feature of a policy is that it sets out the general approach and commitment of an organisation to achieving particular objectives, which provide the guidelines for more detailed operational arrangements to be made with reference to the objectives A health and safety policy does exactly that It provides a framework of general health and safety responsibilities for staff, and of general operational arrangements to be taken to protect workers and others from harm as a result of activities in the workplace Within this framework, specific responsibilities for carrying out particular duties will be allocated and specific preventive and protective

measures will be taken regarding particular risks

For example, the policy statement may identify the general responsibility of supervisors to ensure the health and safety of all workers under their control From this statement, particular duties will be worked out relating to the instruction of workers in the specific safety measures which apply to their work (for example, following special procedures when dealing with

particular machinery or wearing hard hats on site, etc.), ensuring compliance with those

measures and considering whether they work in practice

Another example of arrangements might be the way in which the policy identifies what should be done regarding the safety of outside visitors to the workplace From this, particular procedures might be developed to ensure that visitors sign in on entering the site, keep to designated walkways, wear ear defenders to protect against noise in certain areas and sign out again on leaving

All staff health and safety responsibilities and arrangements made to protect workers from harm will therefore come under the organisation’s health and safety policy

Note that there is no single correct format or approach to the development and content of a health and safety policy Instead, it should be a reflection of the particular circumstances of the individual organisation It should be prepared in the light of the hazards and risks which are faced or may be created in the course of the activities carried out at the particular workplace or workplaces of that organisation Thus it will vary with the size of the organisation, the industry

in which it is involved and the particular nature of the work carried out

AIMS, OBJECTIVES AND KEY ELEMENTS

An organisation's health and safety policy is a comprehensive written statement of how it will deal with health and safety issues In general terms, its objectives are to:

• Identify the roles and responsibilities of managers, specialist health and safety personnel and other workers

• Co-ordinate activities to identify, analyse and implement solutions to potential safety

problems

• Define arrangements for promoting, planning and controlling all aspects of health and safety in the workplace

The policy will consist of three basic parts:

General Statement of Intent

This will give a broad outline of the organisation's overall philosophy in relation to the

management of health and safety It will usually re-state the principles of the national

legislation applying to the organisation in terms which are appropriate to its particular

circumstances, and identify the broad responsibilities of both management and the workforce

It will also set targets

The Roles and Responsibilities of Individuals

This part deals with people and their operational duties in relation to health and safety It will outline the chain of command for health and safety management and identify roles and

responsibilities for individual staff or groups and give the scheme of delegation For example:

− Who is responsible to whom and for what

− How accountability is fixed to ensure that responsibilities are undertaken

− How policy implementation is monitored

− Specific safety responsibilities, including job descriptions covering the safety content of particular jobs

− A management chart showing the lines of responsibility and accountability in terms of health and safety management

Arrangements, Systems and Procedures

This deals with the practical arrangements by which the general policy is to be effectively

implemented It will cover, for example: