Braden Black CEO
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Friday, February 4, 2011
Personal Protective Equipment
Workers and management don’t always see eye to eye on every issue, but the importance of proper and properly used safety equipment is universally acknowledged. Still, confusion can arise when it comes to determining exactly what constitutes proper equipment, when it must be used, and whose job it is to determine these guidelines. The following suggestions will go a long way toward ensuring no safety considerations fall through the cracks because someone though someone else was taking care of it.
The person in charge of safety on the jobsite, whether a safety director or manager in a large construction company or the designated safety person, should develop, implement, and administer the firm’s site-specific safety standards, including the personal protective equipment policies. A big part of this responsibility involves assessing the jobsite and cataloging the potential safety hazards in order to choose the safety equipment that will mitigate the hazards. Working with supervisors and the project manager, the safety person should walk the jobsite prior to construction, the first day on the job, and at intervals throughout the project, especially when a new construction phase begins, new equipment is put into use, or an accident or near miss occurs.
The safety person then should evaluate the hazards identified in the walkthroughs to fully understand the risk in order to consider the types of PPE that are available to deal with them, and the pros and cons of each option. It’s this person’s responsibility also to ensure his or her choice is effective, made for the specific hazard and working conditions, and, of course, OSHA approved.
Once she has obtained the correct equipment, the safety person will inform the specific employees who will be required to use it, instruct them on the proper usage, fitting, maintenance and reasons for its use.
Supervisors, in addition to assisting the designated safety person with the hazard-assessment walkthrough must ensure the appropriate PPE is available on site and employees are fully trained in its use. This should include much more than “eyeballing” a worker as he dons his safety equipment and giving a thumb’s up, “good to go” approval. Formal training is required, and it must be documented. Each person who receives training should sign a company form to that effect, to be collected and filed by the safety professional. As the ranking company employee at the jobsite daily, the supervisor also must serve as a liaison with the safety professional, ensuring he knows when new hazards are created on or brought to the site, when safety equipment must be replaced or supplemented and enforcing PPE usage policies and all safety procedures.
Though they’re the ones with the most to lose, employees are not always the most conscientious when it comes to safety and use of PPE, especially when they’re performing tasks that have become mundane and routine. Because of this tendency toward complacency toward, even contempt for, safety, construction companies should adopt a zero tolerance toward blatant disregard for PPE. But even the threat of disciplinary action, comprehensive training, and the constant drilling into their heads on the possible tragic consequences of disregarding safety equipment may not be enough to ensure compliance with company policy.
Foremen, Supervisors, and managers must insist employees adhere to the policies, which should be in writing. PPE policies should demand employees wear PPE when required and in the proper manner; attend mandatory sessions to learn when, where, and how the equipment should be used; Maintain and clean equipment as necessary, and inform supervisors when equipment is in need of replacement. Incidentally, it’s a good policy for the employer to supply all safety equipment to ensure it complies with OSHA regulations. Only doctor-ordered equipment should be supplied by the worker, and the employer’s equipment should be housed in the company office or in locked storage facilities at the jobsite.
By including penalties for failure to comply with proper PPE use, contractors deliver the message that they consider safe work practices a prerequisite for employment. A serious accident can devastate a family, but it also can ruin a business. Owners and CEOs owe it to themselves to insist their workers abide by the safety policy. Enforcement often requires both the carrot and the stick. Companies can host outings or lunches for crews who maintain safe standards, but they also must punish workers who thumb their noses at safety policies. A reasonable disciplinary policy might include:
1. An oral reprimand delivered by a company supervisor as soon as the violation is discovered, for a first offense.
2. A formal, written reprimand to be included in the employee’s personnel folder, for a second violation.
3. Time off or termination in the event of a third serious violation.
Remember that PPE is considered safety’s last resort. Other jobsite measures should be used whenever possible to mitigate risks. PPE only protects the person wearing it; measures controlling the risk at source protect everyone in the workplace.
Workers and management don’t always see eye to eye on every issue, but the importance of proper and properly used safety equipment is universally acknowledged. Still, confusion can arise when it comes to determining exactly what constitutes proper equipment, when it must be used, and whose job it is to determine these guidelines. The following suggestions will go a long way toward ensuring no safety considerations fall through the cracks because someone though someone else was taking care of it.
The person in charge of safety on the jobsite, whether a safety director or manager in a large construction company or the designated safety person, should develop, implement, and administer the firm’s site-specific safety standards, including the personal protective equipment policies. A big part of this responsibility involves assessing the jobsite and cataloging the potential safety hazards in order to choose the safety equipment that will mitigate the hazards. Working with supervisors and the project manager, the safety person should walk the jobsite prior to construction, the first day on the job, and at intervals throughout the project, especially when a new construction phase begins, new equipment is put into use, or an accident or near miss occurs.
The safety person then should evaluate the hazards identified in the walkthroughs to fully understand the risk in order to consider the types of PPE that are available to deal with them, and the pros and cons of each option. It’s this person’s responsibility also to ensure his or her choice is effective, made for the specific hazard and working conditions, and, of course, OSHA approved.
Once she has obtained the correct equipment, the safety person will inform the specific employees who will be required to use it, instruct them on the proper usage, fitting, maintenance and reasons for its use.
Supervisors, in addition to assisting the designated safety person with the hazard-assessment walkthrough must ensure the appropriate PPE is available on site and employees are fully trained in its use. This should include much more than “eyeballing” a worker as he dons his safety equipment and giving a thumb’s up, “good to go” approval. Formal training is required, and it must be documented. Each person who receives training should sign a company form to that effect, to be collected and filed by the safety professional. As the ranking company employee at the jobsite daily, the supervisor also must serve as a liaison with the safety professional, ensuring he knows when new hazards are created on or brought to the site, when safety equipment must be replaced or supplemented and enforcing PPE usage policies and all safety procedures.
Though they’re the ones with the most to lose, employees are not always the most conscientious when it comes to safety and use of PPE, especially when they’re performing tasks that have become mundane and routine. Because of this tendency toward complacency toward, even contempt for, safety, construction companies should adopt a zero tolerance toward blatant disregard for PPE. But even the threat of disciplinary action, comprehensive training, and the constant drilling into their heads on the possible tragic consequences of disregarding safety equipment may not be enough to ensure compliance with company policy.
Foremen, Supervisors, and managers must insist employees adhere to the policies, which should be in writing. PPE policies should demand employees wear PPE when required and in the proper manner; attend mandatory sessions to learn when, where, and how the equipment should be used; Maintain and clean equipment as necessary, and inform supervisors when equipment is in need of replacement. Incidentally, it’s a good policy for the employer to supply all safety equipment to ensure it complies with OSHA regulations. Only doctor-ordered equipment should be supplied by the worker, and the employer’s equipment should be housed in the company office or in locked storage facilities at the jobsite.
By including penalties for failure to comply with proper PPE use, contractors deliver the message that they consider safe work practices a prerequisite for employment. A serious accident can devastate a family, but it also can ruin a business. Owners and CEOs owe it to themselves to insist their workers abide by the safety policy. Enforcement often requires both the carrot and the stick. Companies can host outings or lunches for crews who maintain safe standards, but they also must punish workers who thumb their noses at safety policies. A reasonable disciplinary policy might include:
1. An oral reprimand delivered by a company supervisor as soon as the violation is discovered, for a first offense.
2. A formal, written reprimand to be included in the employee’s personnel folder, for a second violation.
3. Time off or termination in the event of a third serious violation.
Remember that PPE is considered safety’s last resort. Other jobsite measures should be used whenever possible to mitigate risks. PPE only protects the person wearing it; measures controlling the risk at source protect everyone in the workplace.
Labels: Commercial, Construction Industry, Industrial