HRMN DQ 6

Workplace Health and Safety

It is an employer's responsibility to provide a healthy and safe environment for its employees. If

the work environment in an organization is unsafe, the employer risks losing some of its greatest

resources its employees. An employer also has an obligation to provide a healthy and safe work

environment because society expects employers to protect their employees from harm while the

employees are working. Many laws and regulations deal with the employer's obligation to have a

healthy and safe work environment. If an employer does not provide that safe environment,

employees may sue the employer, or the employer may be investigated and shut down, fined, or

prosecuted by a government agency.

Major Laws Related to Workplace Health and Safety

Workers' compensation is required of all employers. Employers pay into an insurance fund

that may be state-sponsored or private. When employees are injured on the job, they can have

their medical expenses and a portion of their lost pay covered by this insurance, regardless of

who was at fault. Workers' compensation can be expensive (this author paid more than $1,800 a

year for the equivalent of three full-time retail employees when he owned a business). If the

safety record of the business is poor or the business is of a high-risk nature, the rates for

workers' compensation insurance will be higher. Workers' compensation programs are required

but vary considerably from state to state.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) oversees the health and safety

of workplaces in the United States. OSHA develops standards for workplace safety and enforces

those standards, as well as any other standards that an employer should know are needed to

provide a safe workplace. OSHA requires employers with 11 or more employees to keep records

of occupational injuries or illness. Whenever a workday is lost, or a person is obviously seriously

injured, it must be recorded. OSHA has the right to inspect a workplace and provides

consultation and training to help organizations provide a safe workplace.

Ways to Encourage Workplace Safety

Factors that affect safety in the workplace are:

• personnel selection

• employee awareness

• training

• workplace behavior

• incentives

• clear communication of safety rules

• listening to employee safety concerns

Personnel selection can have a significant effect on workplace safety. Although an employer

cannot require a physical exam of a prospective employee until it has extended an offer of

employment, the employer can legally withdraw the offer if the prospective employee fails the

physical exam. An employee's physical condition may have a serious effect on workplace safety.

It is unsafe to employ someone who may faint while operating dangerous machinery or to rely

on someone who has a bad back to share the lifting of heavy objects. It is also an important

safety issue to hire people who have the skills and certifications to carry out the tasks that the

employee must perform. For example, you would not want a driver hauling hazardous materials

who did not know how to haul those materials safely.

Making employees aware of their workplace and surroundings is essential to workplace safety.

Placards and signs can make employees aware of potential safety hazards. Periodic training on

safety issues also may help keep employees aware of potential safety hazards. The best safety

program, however, is to foster a culture in the organization that makes everyone in the

organization safety-conscious.

Training programs can be related directly to safety issues or related to how to do specific jobs

better. Training programs on safety issues may involve simple things such as how to lift objects

and how to safely work at a computer all day without getting repetitive-task injuries. These

training programs may also lead to a reduction in workers' compensation insurance rates.

Specific job-related training programs help the employees know how to operate equipment or

interact with clients or other employees safely.

Some behaviors in the workplace may seem innocent but may lead to safety hazards or injury. If

employees are "horsing around" in close proximity to potentially dangerous equipment or

substances, it presents a safety hazard. Managers have a responsibility to monitor employee

behavior to ensure that employees are behaving in a safe manner at all times.

Incentives can provide the impetus needed to make employees aware of their own safe or unsafe

behavior and can be individual or group in nature. Individual incentives may provide rewards for

good driving records, years without an injury, development of safety programs, or any other

behavior that promotes safety. Group rewards may be provided for the best safety record among

divisions, groups, or teams. This can create a competitive environment in which everyone in the

group or team helps everyone else to be aware of safety considerations.

Setting definite safety rules and clearly communicating those rules to employees can help them

be safer. Managers can communicate safety rules by posting them in places where employees

will see and read them. The safety rules may also be part of employee handbooks. Managers can

play a major role in reminding employees of the safety rules, and these rules may be conveyed

to employees in safety training sessions.

If an employee expresses safety concerns, it is important that management acts upon those

concerns. Listening to employees is the best way to become aware of potential safety problems.

If employees complain about safety issues and the managers do nothing about those issues,

those managers may be held criminally liable if someone is injured.

Health and Safety Issues

Drugs cause safety concerns because of the inattentiveness they may cause among employees.

When there is a transportation accident, the driver, engineer, or pilot is required to undergo a

drug test. Many accidents are caused by the use of drugs (including alcohol). Prospective

employees can be required to undergo drug testing after they are offered a job. If they fail the

drug test, the job offer can legally be withdrawn. Employees can be required to undergo drug

tests if there is cause to believe that they are using drugs or if the tests are done in a way that

all the employees or a truly random sample are given the test.

Secondhand smoke in the workplace has been proven to cause health problems in nonsmokers.

Many states have laws that prohibit people from smoking where others may be exposed to their

smoke. There are also secondary issues with smoking, such as increased health insurance costs

for everyone in the organization, greater expense for remodeling facilities, and, potentially, more

frequent breaks for smokers to smoke. A smoking area must be either be

• indoors, in an area where the ventilation system is separate from other areas in the building, or

• outdoors, where the smoke will not affect other people

Violence in the workplace is more common than most people seem to think. Almost half of all

employees experience violence in the workplace in a given year. This violence can be from other

employees or from clients or customers. Some of the violence can be avoided by carefully

screening employees before hiring them. Running a criminal-record check may help employers

determine if someone has violent tendencies and is required in many states for some employees,

such as child care workers. Being aware of stress levels and potential conflicts between

employees will help managers control violence in the workplace.

Stress in the workplace can be reduced by providing clear directions and then letting employees

have the autonomy to do their job. People under stress are inattentive and more susceptible to

injury or illness. Support of others in the workplace, especially when things aren't going well, can

help employees feel that people at work do care and help alleviate the alienation that often

comes from stress. Providing opportunities for exercise and allowing employees to have times

when they can relax (short naps may increase creativity and productivity) can help with stress.

Programs such as child care and flexible schedules may help to alleviate stress. Stress can be a

great motivator, but it can also lead an employee to burnout, to become unproductive, or even

to leave the organization.

Two programs that help to deal with health and safety issues in organizations are Employee

Assistance Programs (EAPs) and wellness programs. EAPs are designed to provide

employees with help for personal problems. These programs emphasize counseling for problems

such as substance abuse, stress management, anger management, marital counseling, family

counseling, and depression. Organizations usually contract with a local mental health facility for

their EAP programs. Wellness programs are designed to educate people as to how to lead a

healthier life and prevent health problems. Wellness programs often provide access to physical

fitness facilities and to health evaluation and education programs. Included in wellness programs

are smoking-cessation classes, healthy eating education, physical evaluations, lifestyle

evaluations, and so on. Organizations often hire a nurse or other health care professional to run

wellness programs.

Both EAPs and wellness programs are usually cost-effective. They can pay for themselves with

lower health insurance premiums and with less employee absenteeism. It also appears that

these programs may help to increase productivity.

An organization cannot exist without healthy employees. The healthier and safer employees are,

the more productive and loyal they are. Being aware of employee health and safety also helps to

avoid possible lawsuits and may also avoid criminal prosecutions. Having programs that promote

health and safety in the workplace is good business practice and, in the long run, is also

essential to having a successful organization.