Managing Work Safety

 Managing Work Safety 



Introduction 

Work related issues such as accidents, injuries and diseases increase the employees stress, frustration and anxiety. This situation is hampering the worker creativity, well-being, productivity and specially the performance. Therefore, occupational safety and health (OSH) programs have been developed to arrest safety and health hazards emerging in the work place.
According to Alli, (2008) occupational safety and health is generally defined as the science of the anticipation, recognition, evaluation and control of hazards arising in or from work place that could impair the health and well-being of workers, tracking in to account the possible impact on the surrounding communities and the general environment.
International labour organization (ILO) has laid out numerous principals and legislation to eliminate OSH hazards.
As per the ILO around two million occupational fatalities occur around the world every year.  

Management of OSH 

There are different kinds of OSH system adopted by the organization to ensure the workers well-being. Whatever the system in place it should have characteristics to focus on elimination of safety and health hazards. 
  • A system has to be laid down according to national and internationals laws, regulations and technical standards. 
  • The system should be maintained and ascertain the sustainability and review the progress periodically. 
  • The OSH program should cover the physicals and mental well-being of employees. 
  • It is mandatory to supply personal protective equipment and required medical assistance to all the employees.  
  • Training on OSH to employees is mandatory by the competent instructor.
  • Should have a tracking system to trace back an incident and take necessary action so it would not recur the same. 
  • Continuous progress and improvements have to be adopted as for further upgrade to the OSH Program.   
The OSH management cycle
 
 

OSH Plan in Sri Lanka Construction Industry 

As Sri Lanka is a developing country, numerus construction works such as skyscrapers and industrial plants are in progress around the island. It is very important to accelerate these projects to provide boost to the Sri Lankan economy and increase employment opportunities. According to the construction industrial health and safety strategy, (2010) large number of unskilled and unqualified workers engage in this industry, due to this hazards on safety and health is paramount.

Therefore, to mitigate this situation Sri Lanka national institute of occupational and safety and health had laid down the following safety rules.
  1. All the construction sites should have OSH program and plan.
  2. All the employees must attend to the OSH trainings and meetings.
  3. All the injuries should be reported to the safety officer immediately and be taken to the medical treatment with minimum delay.
  4. Employees should be provided and wear hard hats all the times.
  5. Eye and face protection equipment should be worn when needed.
  6. Full body harness and lanyards should be provided.
  7. Shirts with long sleeve and long pants should be worn at all times and burners and welders must not ware polyester and nylon cloths.
  8. Sundry workers should be provided rigid boots.
  9. All the ladders, scaffolding and platforms should be maintained according to recommended specifications.
  10. Warning sign, barricades and tags should be used and be displayed as per the recommended color code.
  11. All tools should be calibrated and working in good condition. 
  12. Maximum driving speed on all the vehicles is limited to 10Kmph.
  13. Consuming illegal drugs and alcoholic beverages are prohibited at work place. 
Sri Lanka construction industry provides a much safer and healthier working environment to the employees with this stipulated safety protocols.

Conclusion   

Developing and managing an occupational safety and health program is essential to improve workers well-being, productivity and performance. The target of OSH should be to achieve health and a safe working environment as healthy workers will be much motivated and increase productivity. 


  

References

Alli, B. O., 2008. FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES OF OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY. FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES OF OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY, Volume 2.

Darshana, W., 2017. Improvement of Health and Safety in Construction Sites in Sri Lanka. The Institution of Engineers, Sri Lanka, Volume 1, pp. 53-70.

Tappura, S., Syvanen, S. & Saarela, K. L., 2014. Challenges and Needs for Support in Managing Occupational Health and Safety from Managers’ Viewpoints. Nordic journal of working life studies, Volume 4.

    

  

Comments

  1. Ruwan HerathApril 29, 2021 at 8:24 PM

    A safe work environment is a productive one. No matter the size or type of the business, procedures for safety in the workplace are a necessity for all staff.
    Safety measures protect employees as well as equipment and business property. Avoiding or minimizing injuries and damage to equipment and facilities will result in fewer expenses and more profit for a business.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Prasanga IllangakoonApril 30, 2021 at 8:25 PM

    The major priority of business is safety.it is very important thing,small investment can save big return from the business & protect employees as well.employees trust can help to maintain the ROI too.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Janashi LamahewaApril 30, 2021 at 10:40 PM

    With this crisis pandemic, most of the organizations strategic pillars of work safety are changing. This crisis has forced both workers and managers globally to be creative and adapt to new limitations of technology, time, remote communication challenges. OSHA’s regulations and rules are important, according to Yankovsky (2020), true workplace safety begins with the impression of each employee’s personal responsibility, cemented into the organizational culture. Employees should be trained to identify unsafe situations and avoid accidents.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Vishwa RathnayakeMay 1, 2021 at 9:31 AM

    Maintaining a safe workplace is essential for your employees and the overall success of your company. Using creative workplace safety ideas can help ensure that employees stay safe on the job, which can boost their productivity and morale. 

    ReplyDelete
  5. Chamath SoyzaMay 1, 2021 at 10:48 AM

    Health and safety is must in a organization and implementing protocols and manuals and process in a orgernization will ensure the smooth operation in a orgernization and employee productivity

    ReplyDelete
  6. Sajjad AhmedJuly 24, 2021 at 3:59 AM

    Nice Blog. Thanks for sharing with us. Such amazing information.

    Best Engineering College in Dehradun

    Best B.Sc. Agriculture College in Dehradun

    Best Private Polytechnic College in Dehradun

    Best BBA College in Dehradun

    Best MBA College in Dehradun

    Top 10 BBA Colleges in Dehradun

    Top 5 B.Tech Colleges In Dehradun

    Which are the best MBA colleges in Dehradun?

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Professional Dress Codes

Image
Professional Dress Codes      Introduction  Business attire can be described as employees dress code which they wear at the working place. Dress code can be identified as formal or informal ways to be worn appropriately as per situation. This may  differ as per the organization requirement and environment. Some organizations use the professional outfits to improve their reputation as well, its reflects professionalism and dedication to the organization. According to Refaeli & Pratt, (1993) organizational attire influence several organizational dynamics. Also work attire affects the extent to which employees fulfill role requirement, indicate creditability, influence organizational image and helps identify authority within the organization.  HR Role on Dress code While protecting the employees rights and avoiding discrimination, some organizations are required to develop the dress and appearance policies. Human recourse managemen...
Read more

Impact on Sexual Harassment at Work Place

Image
Impact on Sexual Harassment at Work Place Introduction Sexual harassments in work place can be described as wide range of physical and verbal unwelcome requests for sexual favors or conduct sexual nature behavior which makes a person offended and humiliated. Sexual harassments also notice as unfitting glance, rude jokes and sexual assault. According to Wikipedia organizational sexual harassment is a type of harassment involving the use of explicit or implicit sexual overtones, including the unwelcome and inappropriate promise or rewards in exchange for sexual favors.  Consequences of Sexual Harassment There are innumerable negative impacts occurring in an organization due this untechnical problem. Some are as follows  To the Victim  Suffering from embarrassment  Increase depression and stress  Lost in moral  Reduce motivation Addicting to drugs and alcohol Disinterested in employment Leaving the job Committing suicide...
Read more