plan and an accident and incident investigation system;
X
Z establishing a reliable risk assessment process for COSHH;
X
Z involving employees in preparing workplace precautions;
X
Z completing all manual handling assessments by the end of the current year;
X
Z providing a new guard for a particular machine;
X
u specifications for management arrangements, risk control and workplace precautions; and
X
u performance standards for implementing the health and safety management system, identifying the contribution of individuals to implementing the system (this is essential to building a positive health and safety culture).
Health and safety targets will need to be set so that the agreed performance standards are approached and met. Since there may well be many standards, it will be necessary to prioritise important standards and associated targets. These prioritised targets are known as Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). The targets must be realistic and a procedure known as
2
X
u directors and senior managers (responsible for setting policy, objectives and targets);
X
u supervisors (responsible for checking day-to-day compliance with the policy);
X
u health and safety advisers (responsible for giving advice during accident investigations and on compliance issues);
X
u other specialists, such as an occupational nurse, chemical analyst and an electrician, responsible for giving specialist advice on particular health and safety issues;
X
u health and safety representatives (responsible for representing employees during consultation meetings on health and safety issues with the employer);
X
u employees (responsible for taking reasonable care of the health and safety of themselves and others who may be affected by their acts or omissions);
X
u fire marshals (responsible for the safe evacuation of the building in an emergency);
X
u first-aiders (responsible for administering first-aid to injured persons).
For smaller organisations, some of the specialists mentioned above may well be employed on a consultancy basis.
For the health and safety organisation to work successfully it must be supported from the top (preferably at board level) and some financial resource made available.
It is also important that certain key functions are included in the organisation structure. These include:
X
u accident investigation and reporting;
X
u health and safety training and information;
X
u health and safety monitoring and audit;
X
u health surveillance;
X
u monitoring of plant and equipment, their maintenance and risk assessment;
X
u liaison with external agencies;
X
u management and/or employee safety committees – the management committee will monitor day-to-day problems and any concerns of the employee health and safety committee.
The role of the health and safety adviser is to provide specialist information to managers in the organisation and to monitor the effectiveness of health and safety procedures. The adviser is not ‘responsible’ for health and safety or its implementation; that is the role of the line managers.
Finally the job descriptions, which define the duties of each person in the health and safety organisational structure, must not contain responsibility overlaps or blur chains of command. Each individual must be clear about his/her responsibilities and the limits of those responsibilities.
since people are a key resource. Organisations want a fit, competent and committed workforce rather than simply preventing accidents and ill-health. This integrated approach will extend to people outside the organisation with policies for the control of environmental pollution and product safety. Organisations often fail to manage health and safety effectively because they see it as something distinct from other managerial tasks. The principles and approach to managing health and safety are exactly the same as those required for managing quality or the environment.
Well-managed health and safety is important in business terms because stakeholders (such as shareholders, customers and the general public) are influenced by any bad publicity resulting from poor health and safety standards. The identification, assessment and control of health and safety and other risks is a managerial responsibility and of equal importance to production and quality. There is good evidence that good health and safety management also produces good quality products at a reasonable cost.
However, the practical implications of health and safety must be carefully thought through to avoid conflict between the demands of policy and other operational requirements. Insufficient attention to health and safety can lead to problems with production – for example, work schedules that fail to take into account the problems of fatigue or inadequate resources allocated to training.
The considerable advances in information technology have been very helpful in the development of health and safety management systems. It has enabled the rapid identification of data that is critical to the management of health and safety (e.g. accident and ill-health trends, health and safety performance variations between departments within the
organisation). It has also simplified the collection and analysis of essential data.
Research by the HSE found that ‘in many
organisations the visible leadership and emphasis on continual improvement with respect to health and safety lagged behind that for quality of a product or service’.
2.3.3 Organisation of health and safety
This section of the policy defines the names, positions and responsibilities of those within the organisation or company who have a specific responsibility for health and safety. Therefore, it identifies those health and safety responsibilities and the reporting lines through the management structure. This section will include the following groups together with their associated responsibilities:
emergencies and for information, instruction, training and supervision are also covered. Local codes of practice (e.g. for fork-lift truck drivers) should be included.
The following list covers the more common items normally included in the arrangements section of the health and safety policy:
X
u employee health and safety code of practice;
X
u employee consultation procedures X
u accident and illness reporting and investigation procedures;
X
u emergency procedures, first-aid;
X
u fire drill procedure;
X
u procedures for undertaking risk assessments;
X
u control of exposure to specific hazards (noise, vibration, radiation, manual handling, hazardous substances, etc.);
X
u machinery safety (including safe systems of work, lifting and pressure equipment);
X
u electrical equipment (maintenance and testing);
X
u maintenance procedures;
X
u permits to work procedures;
X
u use of PPE;
X
u monitoring procedures including health and safety inspections and audits;
X
u procedures for the control and safety of contractors and visitors;
X
u provision of welfare facilities;
X
u training procedures and arrangements;
X
u catering and food hygiene procedures;
X
u arrangements for consultation with employees;
X
u terms of reference and constitution of the safety committee;
X
u procedures and arrangements for waste disposal.
The three sections of the health and safety policy are usually kept together in a health and safety manual and copies distributed around the organisation.
2.3.5 Review of health and safety policy
It is important that the health and safety policy is monitored and reviewed on a regular basis. For this to be successful, a series of benchmarks needs to be established.
There are several reasons for a review of the health and safety policy. The more important reasons are that:
X
u significant organisational changes may have taken place;
X
u there have been changes in key personnel;
X
u there have been changes in legislation and/or guidance;
X
u new work methods have been introduced;
X
u there have been alterations to working arrangements and/or processes;
X
u there have been changes following consultation with employees;
2.3.4 Arrangements for health and safety
The arrangements section of the health and safety policy gives details of the specific systems and procedures used to assist in the implementation of the policy statement. This will include health and safety rules and procedures and the provision of facilities such as a first-aid room and washrooms. It is common for risk assessments (including COSHH, manual handling and personal protective equipment (PPE) assessments) to be included in the arrangements section, particularly for those hazards referred to in the policy statement.
It is important that arrangements for fire and other Figure 2.6 Working with employees and providing information is a good policy
Figure 2.7 Providing guidance and training is essential
2
X
u improve production processes;
X
u improve the public image of the organisation or company.
It is apparent, however, that some health and safety policies appear to be less than successful. There are many reasons for this. The most common are:
X
u the statements in the policy and the health and safety priorities not understood by or properly communicated to the workforce;
X
u minimal resources made available for the implementation of the policy;
X
u too much emphasis on rules for employees and too little on management policy;
X
u a lack of parity with other activities of the organisation (such as finance and quality control) due to mistaken concerns about the costs of health and safety and the effect of those costs on overall performance. This attitude produces a poor health and safety culture;
X
u lack of senior management involvement in health and safety, particularly at board level;
X
u employee concerns that their health and safety issues are not being addressed or that they are not receiving adequate health and safety information.
This can lead to low morale among the workforce and, possibly, high absenteeism;
X
u high labour turnover;
X
u inadequate or no PPE;
X
u unsafe and poorly maintained machinery and equipment;
X
u a lack of health and safety monitoring procedures.
In summary, a successful health and safety policy is likely to lead to a successful organisation or company. A checklist for assessing any health and safety policy has been produced by the HSE and has been reproduced in Appendix 2.1.
2.4 Further information
The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 Employers’ Health and Safety Policy Statements (Exception) Regulations 1975
The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 (as amended)
Managing for health and safety, HSG65 third edition 2013, HSE Books, ISBN 978-0-7176-6456-6 http://
www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/priced/hsg65.pdf
HSE, ‘Managing for health and safety’ http://www.hse.
gov.uk/managing/
HSE, The Health and Safety Toolbox: how to control risks at work http://www.hse.gov.uk/toolbox/
Health and safety made simple, INDG449, HSE Books, http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg449.htm
Plan, Do, Check, Act – An introduction to managing for health and safety, INDG275 (rev 1), HSE books, http://
www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg275.htm X
u the monitoring of risk assessments or accident/
incident investigations indicates that the health and safety policy is no longer totally effective;
X
u information from manufacturers has been received;
X
u advice from an insurance company has been received;
X
u the findings of an external health and safety audit have been received;
X
u enforcement action has been taken by the HSE or Local Authority;
X
u a sufficient period of time has elapsed since the previous review.
A positive promotion of health and safety performance will achieve far more than simply preventing accidents and ill-health. It will:
X
u support the overall development of personnel;
X
u improve communication and consultation throughout the organisation;
X
u minimise financial losses due to accidents and ill-health and other incidents;
X
u directly involve senior managers in all levels of the organisation;
X
u improve supervision, particularly for young persons and those on occupational training courses;
Figure 2.8 The policy might be good but is it put into practice – unsafe use of a ladder
2.5 Practice revision questions
1. (a) Outline the key elements of a health and safety management system.
(b) Outline the actions involved in delivering effective arrangements as described in the HSE publication ‘Managing for health and safety’ (HSG65 Third edition).
2. Review (evaluation) is one of the key elements of a health and safety management system.
Identify three components of this element AND give an example in each case.
3. (a) Identify the economic benefits that an organisation may obtain by implementing a successful health and safety management system.
(b) Outline factors that should be considered during the planning stage of a safety management system.
(c) Discuss the possible results of a poor implementation of a health and safety management system.
4. (a) State the legal requirements for an employer to prepare a written health and safety policy.
(b) Identify the three main sections of a
health and safety policy document and explain the purpose and general content of each section.
(c) Outline the responsibilities of a Chief Executive in relation to the health and safety policy.
5. (a) Explain the purpose of the ‘statement of intent’ section of a health and safety policy.
(b) Outline the SIX topics that may be addressed in this section of the health and safety policy.
(c) Explain why a health and safety policy should be signed by the most senior person in an organisation.
(d) Outline the indications that the objectives within the ‘statement of intent’ of the health and safety policy are not reflected in the health and safety performance of an organisation.
6. (a) Outline the key functions that should be included in the health and safety organisational structure of a company.
(b) Identify the categories of persons that would be found in the health and safety organisational structure.
(c) Identify SIX employee responsibilities which could be included in the ‘organisation’ section of a health and safety policy.
7. The ‘arrangements’ section is an important part of a health and safety policy.
(a) Identify the information that should be contained in it.
(b) Outline the key areas that should be addressed within it.
8. (a) Outline the occasions when a health and safety policy should be reviewed.
(b) Describe FOUR external AND FOUR internal influences that might initiate a health and safety policy review.
9. (a) Explain why it is important for an organisation to set performance targets in terms of its health and safety performance.
(b) Outline SEVEN types of performance target that an organisation might typically set in relation to health and safety.
10. Health and safety performance targets can be measured using benchmarking.
(a) Explain the term ‘benchmarking’.
(b) Give TWO examples of health and safety performance information that can be used for benchmarking.
Occupational Health and Safety Assessment Series (OHSAS 18000): Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems OHSAS 18001:2007
ISBN 978-0-5805-9404-5; OHSAS18002:2008 ISBN 978-0-5806-2686-9
The following checklist is intended as an aid to the writing and review of a health and safety policy. It is derived from HSE Information.