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Managing workplace health and safety

CQU HRMT20024

Week 10

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Objectives

Trace the development of WHS programs in Australian industry

Recognise the various perspectives of employers, unions and employees, and the influences of medical, paramedical and legal professions on WHS theory and practice

Explain recent WHS legislation in Australian national and state government jurisdictions, and analyse its respective advantages and disadvantages

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Objectives (cont.)

Describe the scope of WHS programs

Determine the roles of senior, middle and line managers as well as human resource management specialists in the management of WHS issues at the workplace

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Introduction

  • Healthy and safe work environment both desirable and cost-effective.
  • WHS pervades all aspects of HRM.
  • Costs of workplace accidents, diseases and other injuries have begun to be calculated in terms of other costs.

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The extent of the problem

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  • 2009–2010: 337 fatalities and a fatality rate of 1.9/100 000 workers
  • 2013–2014: Almost 135 000 serious workers’ compensation claims
  • Direct and indirect WHS costs
  • Potential hazards include:
  • physical factors
  • chemical agents or other hazardous substances
  • workplace organisation
  • stress
  • violence or physical harm from work colleagues.

THE EXTENT OF THE PROBLEM (CONT.)

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WHS AND STRATEGIC HRM

  • Adopt strategic interventions and use these as evidence of HR specialist contributions to business productivity and profitability.
  • Focus on the common causes and trends of site accidents and injuries.
  • Develop appropriate preventive work systems or more effective administrative and rehabilitation programs.

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PERSPECTIVES OF WHS IN AUSTRALIA

  • Developed through social reform and humanitarian movement
  • Professionals’ interest in WHS

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PERSPECTIVES OF WHS IN AUSTRALIA

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  • An emphasis on the diagnosis and treatment of, rather than the prevention of, illnesses and disease.
  • Medical or physical approaches often seem narrowly focused or unable to fully explain causes or devise suitable preventative strategies.

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PROFESSIONALS’ INTEREST IN WHS

  • An emphasis on the diagnosis and treatment of, rather than the prevention of, illnesses and disease.
  • Medical or physical approaches often seem narrowly focused or unable to fully explain causes or devise suitable preventative strategies.

PROFESSIONALS’ INTEREST IN WHS (CONT.)

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  • Epidemiologists research ‘epidemics’, the incidence of diseases and illnesses in workplaces, and attempt to establish their causes and solutions.

  • The study of employees’ psychological reactions to their workplaces.

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  • The study of interpersonal communications and relationships in the workplace.
  • Four-level causative model of injury/disease (Dwyer 1982):
  • reward systems
  • command structure
  • work organisation
  • individual factors.

PROFESSIONALS’ INTEREST IN WHS (CONT.)

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  • Aim to eliminate risks and improve productivity by modifying the physical arrangements and conditions of the workplace.
  • Drawing on scientific management theories.

  • Legal action has increased since the passing of more comprehensive WHS legislation in most Australian states during the 1980s and subsequent years.

PROFESSIONALS’ INTEREST IN WHS (CONT.)

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  • ACTU adopted a ‘Vision 2005–2015’:

Support employers, employees and all those in the supply chain to develop cultures and attitudes, and accept responsibilities, that achieve safer places of work and safer methods of working so that Australian workplaces are free from death, injury and disease.

  • Cooperating with governments to harmonise the present state and federal WHS laws towards standard national WHS legislation.

PROFESSIONALS’ INTEREST IN WHS (CONT.)

WHS AND HRM

  • Requires substantial input and consultation from all parties at the workplace.
  • Issues include:
  • strategic level of current issues, from legislation to new work processes
  • operational level, from presence on workplace committees to support and advice.

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WHS LAW IN AUSTRALIA

  • A wide range of Acts and statutes concerning specific occupational risks and hazards:
  • common law
  • national WHS legislation
  • federal and state laws.

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WHS LAW IN AUSTRALIA

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  • National model WHS legislation was formulated in 2011.
  • Three broad thrusts:

prevention

compensation

rehabilitation.

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HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENTS

  • 1970s: concern with costs
  • UK and US influences lead to similar legislation in most Australian states during the 1970s and 1980s.

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PREVENTIVE WHS LEGISLATION

  • The concept of ‘occupational wellbeing’ and the awareness of employee welfare signified a more preventive approach to WHS.
  • WHS is ‘the protection and maintenance of the highest degree of physical, mental and social wellbeing of workers in all occupations’.
  • Self-regulation; cautions preferred to punishment.

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THE CURRENT NATIONAL WHS LEGISLATION

  • The ‘harmonisation’ process towards the new national WHS laws commenced between 2008 and 2012
  • Some states conform to the new legislation, some do not.

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THE CURRENT NATIONAL WHS LEGISLATION (CONT.)

  • New definitions of ‘employer’ and ‘employee’
  • New PCBU duties
  • New rules for union participation
  • New penalties

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WORKERS’ COMPENSATION AND REHABILITATION LEGISLATION

  • Rehabilitation should be:

industry-based

function-oriented

based on early intervention

multidisciplinary

based on a shared responsibility.

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CREATING A SAFE, HEALTHY AND ETHICAL WORK ENVIRONMENT

‘While the success of a WHS program depends largely on managers, supervisors, union representatives and employees themselves, HR professionals can be involved in strategic, operational, coordinating and administrative roles that support all their activities.’

– p. 497 of the textbook

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ISSUE 1: WORKPLACE ACCIDENTS

  • Need to be able to:

– assess extent and costs to industry and society (imprecise)

– identify cause and build in prevention

– develop an effective framework.

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ISSUE 2: WORKPLACE STRESS

  • Increased pressure on employees
  • Legal precedents
  • Series of research studies
  • No agreed definition of stress
  • Symptoms: fatigue, exhaustion, physical or emotional breakdown
  • Effects

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STRESS AND JOB PERFORMANCE MODEL

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EMPLOYER RESPONSES

  • Five-step program:

1. formulate a preventive strategy

2. develop a stress diagnostic system

3. involve top-level management

4. evaluate current programs

5. document what has been done.

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ISSUE 3: THE RISKS OF INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL

  • Increased terrorism
  • Recent disease outbreaks
  • Bird flu and swine flu
  • Deep vein thrombosis (DVT)
  • Adverse effects on travellers’ physical and mental health, as well as disruptions to their families

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ISSUE 3: THE RISKS OF INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL (CONT.)

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  • Employers advised to:
  • monitor levels of travel required
  • develop alternatives
  • establish codes of practice
  • discuss risks personally
  • examine and communicate levels of insurance and workers’ compensation entitlements.

ISSUE 4: WORKPLACE BULLYING

  • Causes significant financial damage to organisations.
  • Bullying is ‘the repeated less favourable treatment of a person by another or others in the workplace, which may be considered unreasonable and inappropriate in the workplace’.

– p. 506 of the textbook

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ISSUE 5: SHIFT WORK

  • ‘unusual or irregular hours, usually involving evening and night work’ (p. 507 of the textbook).
  • interrupts workers’ circadian (or body) rhythms – the light/dark cycle – resulting in increased levels of workers’ sickness and interruptions to productivity.

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ISSUE 6: EMPLOYEE PERSONAL PROBLEMS

  • Supervisors receive training and support
  • On-site counselling services
  • External employee assistance programs

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WELLNESS PROGRAMS

  • Develop broad preventive programs concerned with overall employee lifestyle issues
  • Regular exercise, proper nutrition, weight control, and the avoidance of heart and lung disease.

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MANAGING WHS PROGRAMS

  • Successful WHS programs require:
  • top management commitment
  • extensive safety and health promotion, and communication, training and development activities that are integrated and cost-effective
  • adequate protective and medical/first aid, diagnostic and treatment facilities

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MANAGING WHS PROGRAMS (CONT.)

  • risk management, recording, analysis and development systems
  • consultative mechanisms to investigate, monitor and prevent actual and potential workplace issues
  • integrated approaches to accidents/injury/disease, rehabilitation and workers’ compensation.

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WHS INFORMATION SYSTEMS

  • Comprehensive workplace data
  • Accurate records
  • Disease and accident cost-management
  • Control of cost reimbursement from insurance companies
  • Clear details of rehabilitation programs
  • Medical programs
  • Interface with other HR processes

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SOURCES OF INFORMATION AND ASSISTANCE

  • Safe Work Australia
  • The Australian Safety and Compensation Council
  • Comcare
  • WorkCover (NSW); WorkCare (VIC)
  • State rehabilitation and labour councils
  • Workers’ health centres in most states.

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SUMMARY

  • Single largest growth issue in HRM
  • Range of interest groups involved
  • Comprehensive Australian legislation dates from the 1980s and continues today
  • Focus is on consultation and prevention
  • Diverse and changing range of WHS issues
  • Key area in which HRM can demonstrate contributions

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