WSH roles, responsibilities and authorities of employees

WSH roles, responsibilities and authorities of employees   

Organization should effectively communicate to all the stakeholders whom they affect at all levels within the organization about their WSH responsibilities and authorities. Communication is important because it ensure the stakeholders understand the scope and the interfaces between the various functions and the channels to be used to initiate action.

 To ensure the effective establishment and implementation of the Workplace Safety & Health
 Management System, it is necessary to assign responsibilities and authorities if employees within
 the organization where responsibility is accountability for carrying out duties properly. And
 authority is the right to make decisions and direct the work of others

Means of communicating WSH Documents

 There are various ways an organization can use to communicate the roles, responsibilities and
 authorities to the stakeholders and this includes but not restricted to the following

a) One-on-one session by supervisors, where briefing is conducted by the supervisor to his 
   subordinate on an individual basis

b) Through job descriptions where a copy of the employee job description is given to the employee
   when he joins the company

c)Through appointment letter where a copy of the employee appointment letter is given to the
   employee when he joins the company and is acknowledged by the employee on his acceptance of
   his job appointment

Means of Communicating WSH Documents
Stakeholders	Means of Communications
Site Coordinator	1)Appointment Letter 2)Job descriptions
WSH Professionals	1)Appointment Letter 2)Job descriptions
Workers	1)One-on-one session by supervisors 2)Job descriptions 3)Appointment letter
Supervisors	1)One-on-one session by managers 2)Job descriptions 3)Appointment letter
Line Management, managers	1)Appointment Letter 2)Job descriptions
Top Management,	1)Appointment Letter 2)Job descriptions
Contractors	1) Contract Agreement 2)Job descriptions

Continual WSH Management System Improvement

Continual improvements to organization’s WSH management system                        

An organization can  improve it’s WSH management  system by identifying  management opportunities to continually improve organization’s WSH management system based on both internal and external factors where continual improvement is defined as a process or productivity improvement tool intended to have a stable and consistent growth and result in a direct performance enhancement

There are many ways an organization can adopt to improve it’s WSH management system and this may include but not restricted to

a)Accuracy of risk assessment

b)Effectiveness of control measures

c)Improvement in legal compliance

d)Setting of more challenging WSH objectives

e)Clear definition of employee’s roles and responsibilities

f)Enhancement of communication and consultation process with stakeholder

g)Enhancement in WSH organizational structure

h)Effectiveness in communication on WSH matters

i)Improvement of documentation control procedures

j)Enhancement of emergency response preparedness and response

k)Improvement in performance monitoring process

Internal factors & external which an organization should take into consideration for improvement of its management system are

For internal factors

a)WSH Risk Assessment

The results of the risk assessment can help the organization to determine what more the organization has done to prevent them and in this work assignment, the foundry 6 identified medium risk activities have prompted the top management to relook into developing safe work procedures to lower the risk level to low level

b)WSH Performance results

By setting , collating and monitoring on WSH performance indicators and HSE objectives, the organization can better manage and controlled the safety and health risk of it’s workforce. And in this work assignment,( refer to results of HSE performance indicators monitoring) several HSE performance indicators are set by the management with the objective to ensure they addressed the health and safety issues faced by the organization and those identified by both internal or external audits or even to adapt to changes to the changes in the local WSH regulations

c)WSH audit results

The objectives of both internal and external audits are to identify potential gaps between the organization management system and procedures against the auditing standards for improvement purposes. Results of an audit shall be taken seriously and action items identified by the auditors shall be followed through and implemented within the given timeframe

For external factors

a)Changes in the legal and other requirements

Organization shall maintain a legal register that monitor changes made in the legal requirements to ensure it’s continual compliance to the relevant local legislation and such register shall be maintain and updated at all times and be accessible to all stakeholder

b)External stakeholder’s feedback

An organization should also gather feedback from it’s external stakeholder which may include but not restricted to customers; union, even insurance companies feed backs as an influencing factor for raising standards by developing survey on it’s  WSH policy and objectives to determine the relevancy based on the identified five areas of the set WSH policy and objectives

Tabulated below is an example of HSE performance indicators based on the relevant information collected from the organization which includes

a)Organization risk assessment results
b)HSE statistics
c)HSE performance results
d)External /internal audit results and
e)Internal and external factors that organization should consider for WSH Management System improvement

HSE Performance Indicators	HSE Objective	Actual performance after implementation of WSH policy & objective	Action Item/Action Officer
Zero incident of H5N1 infectious disease	Zero incident of H5N1 infectious disease	0	To develop H5N1 medical emergency response procedures by end Oct 2011
Day & time loss due to plant medical emergency situation shut down (days)	Zero Day Loss	0 days Loss 0 production time loss	To develop business continuity plan & crisis management plan
Musculoskeletal Disorder	Less than 5% of work force	3%	Injury Prevention Program Training –to achieve 100% employee participation rate
Fatality Accident Rate (Automotive deaths)	0	Fatalities Accident Rate have gone down when compared to last year but still there are 5 cases of fatalities involving automotives	Implement a)Driver training& qualification b)Journey Management Standard c)Implement wearing of seat belt as condition of employment for both driver and passenger d)Substance Abuse Policy e)Driver Improvement Monitors f)Use of Cellular Phone
# of Risk Assessment With Medium Risk Level	Less than 5 RA	0	Safe Job Procedures mandatory whenever the risk level identified for activity is at medium risk level
Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate	0.87 1.03	Employee -0 Contractor-0	Employee Hazard Identification Program, & Risk Control Program -100% Participation Rate
Maintenance of Legal Register for local Regulatory Agency & Organizational Procedure, Code Of Practice, Singapore Standard	Implement .maintain & update legal register	Online Legal Register for local Regulatory Agency & Organizational Procedure, Code Of Practice, Singapore Standard set up & responsible by HSE department	HSE department responsible for maintaining and updating the legal register online and provide stakeholders updates each time there are changes made
Maintenance of Toxic Industrial Waste Register	Implement .maintain & update legal register & toxic waste inventory register Toxic Industrial Waste Management Training NEA, Electronic Consignment Note System Training	Online Legal Register for local Regulatory Agency & Organizational Procedure, Code Of Practice, Singapore Standard set up & responsible by HSE department Online Toxic Waste Inventory Register set up for waste generators Toxic Industrial Waste Management Training Conducted to all waste generators Logging Of Toxic Industrial waste qty into NEA electronic consignment notes system training conducted to all waste generators	HSE department responsible for maintaining and updating the legal register online and provide stakeholders updates each time there are changes made
Provision of information to employees on dealing with medical emergency situation in the workplace	Medical Emergency Response Plans	Develop and implement medical emergency response plan	Online medical emergency response plan incorporated into the organization intranet and communicated to all employees

Effective Tracking of WSH policy & Objectives

To track the relevancy and effectiveness of the WSH policy and objectives, the organization shall develop and implement efficient method of tracking and  monitoring their HSE performance by developing suitable HSE performance indicators . 
                             
 In this post, we assume HSE performance indicators have been set so as  to  place sufficient demands and challenges upon people in order to  motivate them to achieve th e targets of the HSE objectives.

And the results of the monitoring of the set HSE  performance indicators are presented below:

Results of HSE performance indicator monitoring

WSH Policy	HSE Performance Indicators	HSE Objective	Actual performance after implementation of WSH policy & objective	Action Item/Action Officer
Be operationally attuned and emergency prepared to respond to any health or medical emergency •           To ensure our business are not affected by any emergency situations or crisis through developing and implementing business continuity plan and crisis management plan	Zero incident of H5N1 infectious disease	Zero incident of H5N1 infectious disease	0	To develop H5N1 medical emergency response procedures by end Oct 2011
To ensure our business are not affected by any emergency situations or crisis through developing and implementing business continuity plan and crisis management plan	Loss due to plant medical emergency situation shut down (days)	Zero Day Loss	0 days Loss 0 production time loss	To develop business continuity plan & crisis management plan
Protect the health and safety of our people at all times and in all circumstances by ensuring our people are not constantly exposed to occupational diseases & workplace hazards through sound risk management & health management programmes	Musculoskeletal Disorder	Less than 5% of work force	3%	Injury Prevention Program Training –to achieve 100% employee participation rate
Driving is the greatest accident risk faced by our employees. To minimise this risk and to ensure worldwide standard for driving qualification and practices are followed, all employees at all locations shall adhere to the driving policy	Fatality Accident Rate (Automotive deaths)	0	5	Implement a)Driver training& qualification b)Journey Management Standard c)Implement wearing of seat belt as condition of employment for both driver and passenger d)Substance Abuse Policy e)Driver Improvement Monitors f)Use of Cellular Phone
Provide the best Hazard Identification, Risk Assessment & Risk Control Programmes & regularly review these programmes to achieve zero occupational disease & workplace accidents	# of Risk Assessment With Medium Risk Level	Less than 5 RA	0	Safe Job Procedures mandatory whenever the risk level identified for activity is at medium risk level
Provide the best Hazard Identification, Risk Assessment & Risk Control Programmes & regularly review these programmes to achieve zero occupational disease & workplace accidents	Lost Time Injury Frequency Rate	0.87 1.03	Employee -0 Contractor-0	Employee Hazard Identification Program, & Risk Control Program -100% Participation Rate
Develop and implement Develop and implement document control systems for the collection and maintenance of master organizational procedures, local regulatory requirements, WSH Acts, local standards and Code Of Practice	Maintenance of Legal Register for local Regulatory Agency & Organizational Procedure, Code Of Practice, Singapore Standard	Implement .maintain & update legal register	Online Legal Register for local Regulatory Agency & Organizational Procedure, Code Of Practice, Singapore Standard set up & responsible by HSE department	HSE department responsible for maintaining and updating the legal register online and provide stakeholders updates each time there are changes made
Develop and implement document control systems for the collection and maintenance of master organizational procedures, local regulatory requirements, WSH Acts, local standards and Code Of Practice	Maintenance of Toxic Industrial Waste Register	Implement .maintain & update legal register & toxic waste inventory register Toxic Industrial Waste Management Training NEA, Electronic Consignment Note System Training	Online Legal Register for local Regulatory Agency & Organizational Procedure, Code Of Practice, Singapore Standard set up & responsible by HSE department Online Toxic Waste Inventory Register set up for waste generators Toxic Industrial Waste Management Training Conducted to all waste generators Logging Of Toxic Industrial waste qty into NEA electronic consignment notes system training conducted to all waste generators	HSE department responsible for maintaining and updating the legal register online and provide stakeholders updates each time there are changes made
Provision of information to employees on dealing with medical emergency situation in the workplace	Medical Emergency Response Plan	Develop and implement medical emergency response plan	Online medical emergency response plan incorporated into the organization intranet and communicated to all employees	To identify other types of emergencies situation relevant to the organization

WSH Policy And Objectives Audit Checklist

WSH Policy And Objectives Audit Checklist

Senior Management   shall devise an audit checklist with questions targeted  at WSH policy and objectives to determine the relevancy based on the identified five areas of the set WSH policy and
objectives and key  staff members in charge of critical safety areas  shall be consulted

S/N	Question	Select Answer as appropriate
		Yes	No
1	Does the WSH policy statement express a commitment to health and safety? Are obligations towards employees made clear?
2	Does it say which senior officer is responsible for seeing that it is implemented and for keeping it under review, and how this will be done?
3	Is it signed by senior executive?
4	Have the views of managers and supervisors, safety representatives and safety committees been taken into account?
5	Were the duties set out in the statement discussed with the people concerned? Do they understand how their performance is to be assessed and what resources they have to carry out their tasks safely?
6	Does the statement make clear that cooperation on the part of all employees is vital to the success of the health and safety policy?
7	Does it say how employees are to be involved in health and safety matters, for example, by being consulted, by taking part in inspections, or by sitting on a safety committee?     Does it show clearly how the duties for health and safety are allocated, and are the responsibilities at different levels described?
8	Does it say who is responsible for the following matters?         Investigation reports and accident records.         Fire precautions and evacuation procedures.         First aid.         Safety inspections.         Training program.         Ensuring legal requirements are met.
9	Is management solely responsible for providing a safe and healthy working environment?
10	Is employer's concern for health and safety as great as concern for economic financial and marketing matters?
11	Does it include the names of individual managers who are responsible for making the safety policy work in specific areas or departments?
12	Does it include the names of individual managers who are responsible for making the safety policy work in specific areas or departments?
S/N	Question	Select Answer as appropriate
		Yes	No
13	Does it state the employers duty to give instruction and training in health and safety to all employees?
14	Does it outline the development and maintenance of health and safety roles and procedures?
15	Does it include planned programs for health and safety at work?
16	Does it ensure that health and safety matters will be taken into account when planning new methods processes or premises?
17	Does it include arrangements for disclosing information, including multilingual information, on health and safety and welfare matters?
18	Does it include arrangements for disclosing information, including multilingual information, on health and safety and welfare matters?
19	Does it explain how money is to be made available to health and safety
20	Do all employees have copies of their employer's safety policy?
21	Are workplace representatives consulted about periodic revisions and updating of the employer's safety policy?
22	Has the policy been reviewed with the health and safety committee?
23	Does it state who will review the policy and how often it will be reviewed?
24	Are there effective arrangements for drawing the policy to the attention of all employees?
25	Is the delegation of duties logical and successive throughout the organization?
26	Is it clear that the ultimate responsibility for safety rests with senior management?
27	Are the responsibilities of senior managers written into the policy or into job descriptions?
28	Are there procedures and controls in place that ensure accountability?
29	Is safety and health performance an essential ingredient of performance appraisals?
30	Do line managers understand and accept the nature of their safety and health responsibilities?
31	Are there arrangements for liaison with contractors?
32	Are all individuals aware of their legal responsibilities?

Audit Results Of WSH Policy And Objective

The organization WSH policy and objectives shall be revised and aligned according to  the audit results which are based on the elements of
 
   . Management Commitment and Responsibility ;
   . Safety Accountability of Managers ;
   . Appointment of Key Safety Personnel ;
   . The Emergency Response Plan; and
   . Documentation 
                                       

S/N	Question	Select Answer as appropriate
		Yes	No
1	Does the WSH policy statement express a commitment to health and safety? Are obligations towards employees made clear?
2	Does it say which senior officer is responsible for seeing that it is implemented and for keeping it under review, and how this will be done?
3	Is it signed by senior executive?
4	Have the views of managers and supervisors, safety representatives and safety committees been taken into account?
5	Were the duties set out in the statement discussed with the people concerned? Do they understand how their performance is to be assessed and what resources they have to carry out their tasks safely?
6	Does the statement make clear that cooperation on the part of all employees is vital to the success of the health and safety policy?
7	Does it say how employees are to be involved in health and safety matters, for example, by being consulted, by taking part in inspections, or by sitting on a safety committee?
8	Does it show clearly how the duties for health and safety are allocated, and are the responsibilities at different levels described?
9	Does it say who is responsible for the following matters?         Investigation reports and accident records.         Fire precautions and evacuation procedures.         First aid.         Safety inspections.         Training program.         Ensuring legal requirements are met.
10	Is management solely responsible for providing a safe and healthy working environment?
11	Is employer's concern for health and safety as great as concern for economic financial and marketing matters?
12	Does it include the names of individual managers who are responsible for making the safety policy work in specific areas or departments?
12	Does it include the names of individual managers who are responsible for making the safety policy work in specific areas or departments?
S/N	Question	Select Answer as appropriate
		Yes	No
13	Does it state the employers duty to give instruction and training in health and safety to all employees?
14	Does it outline the development and maintenance of health and safety roles and procedures?
15	Does it include planned programs for health and safety at work?
16	Does it ensure that health and safety matters will be taken into account when planning new methods processes or premises?
17	Does it include arrangements for disclosing information, including multilingual information, on health and safety and welfare matters?
18	Does it include arrangements for disclosing information, including multilingual information, on health and safety and welfare matters?
19	Does it explain how money is to be made available to health and safety
20	Do all employees have copies of their employer's safety policy?
21	Are workplace representatives consulted about periodic revisions and updating of the employer's safety policy?
22	Has the policy been reviewed with the health and safety committee?
23	Does it state who will review the policy and how often it will be reviewed?
24	Are there effective arrangements for drawing the policy to the attention of all employees?
25	Is the delegation of duties logical and successive throughout the organization?
26	Is it clear that the ultimate responsibility for safety rests with senior management?
27	Are the responsibilities of senior managers written into the policy or into job descriptions?
28	Are there procedures and controls in place that ensure accountability?
29	Is safety and health performance an essential ingredient of performance appraisals?
30	Do line managers understand and accept the nature of their safety and health responsibilities?
31	Are there arrangements for liaison with contractors?
32	Are all individuals aware of their legal responsibilities?