Introduction to Workplace Safety and Health Management

A Systems Thinking Approach

Yang Miang Goh

• Éditeur: WSPC
• Année: 2018
• ISBN:
  9789813274136
• Sujet: Technology & Engineering
• Sous-sujet: Industrial Health & Safety

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Workplace safety and health (WSH) is an important area of any business or organisation. A serious accident or ill health incident can cause much suffering and distress to workers, co-workers, and the victims' family and friends. In addition, the organisations involved in the WSH incident will have to manage negative consequences including increase in insurance premium, lost time and delays, morale issues, union and community protests, and reputation losses. On the other hand, good WSH can lead to organisational excellence.

This book takes a systems-thinking approach to allow readers to understand how WSH is an integral part of any organisation. The different chapters are strung together by an overarching model of incident causation and underpinning models are presented to allow a strong conceptual foundation. Practical WSH knowledge are also discussed in relevant chapters to ensure that beginners have an introduction to the fundamentals of WSH hazards and controls. Besides the strong emphasis on conceptual framework, readers will also be exposed to the details of a WSH management system and practical WSH processes, hazards and controls. A series of online quizzes are available to readers to help them to reinforce the concepts of each chapter.

Undergraduates and post-graduates will benefit from the systematic introduction to the foundations of WSH management. Practitioners will strengthen their conceptual understanding and widen their perspective by re-visiting the foundations of WSH management through a systems-thinking lens.

--> Chapter Quizzes:
Introduction
Incident Causation
Incident Investigation
Incident Investigation
Risk Management
Risk Management
WSH Management System
WSH Management System
Safety Culture
Design for Safety
WSH Legislations
Sample Chapter(s)
Chapter 1: Introduction

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--> Contents:

• Overview of Workplace Safety and Health Management
• Workplace Safety and Health Management Legislations and Standards
• Incident Causation
• Risk Assessment
• Design for Safety
• Safety and Health Management System
• Safety Culture and Leadership
• Incident Investigation
• Improving Workplace Safety and Health Management
• Change Management
• Workplace Safety and Health Management Hazards and Controls
• Accident Case Studies

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Readership: Professionals and students (undergraduate and above) concerned with or studying workplace safety and the management of worker and overall workplace health.
-->Workplace Safety;Occupational Health;Workplace Safety and Health;WSH;Workplace Safety and Health Management Legislations and Standards;Incident Causation;Risk Assessment;Design for Safety;Safety and Health Management System;Safety Culture and Leadership;Incident Investigation;Hazards and Controls;Organisational Change00

Chapter1

Introduction

1.1Importance of Workplace Safety and Health Management

Neglecting workplace safety and health¹ (WSH) management can cause accidents and ill health, which can lead to severe consequences for individuals, families, communities and organisations. However, as WSH incidents are uncertain events which may not occur even if work is conducted unsafely, many organisations do not see the importance of WSH. Managers may also neglect WSH management when there are other pressing issues related to revenue, schedule and client expectations that require their attention and resources.

This book is written for current and future managers overseeing and managing high risk workplaces like construction projects, shipyards and factories. Even if a manager is not managing operations directly, s/he makes decisions that have significant influence on WSH. Thus, this book is also relevant to professionals like project managers working for clients, contracts managers, engineers and architects, who are involved in the design, selection and planning of products and operations. Knowledge of WSH management will also allow managers to identify contractors with a strong WSH competency. In addition, with legislations such as the WSH (Design for Safety) Regulations (‘DfS Regulations’), all stakeholders are expected to be proactive in WSH management. Design for Safety (DfS) (also known as prevention through design, safe design and Construction (Design and Management)) promotes early consideration of safety and health hazards during the design phase of a construction project. Similarly, in other industries, considerations of safety during upstream stages have significant benefits. With early intervention, hazards can be more effectively eliminated or controlled leading to safer workplaces and processes.

1.1.1Accidents

Accidents happen, and when they happen, people suffer. However, many people simply do not register this simple fact. Even in relatively low risk environments like universities, there have been incidents of fire, which have caused property damage. For example, the National University of Singapore (NUS) had fires on in August 2012, October 2012 and April 2014,² fortunately, these fires did not result in any major injury or fatality. In 2008, a tower crane collapsed in NUS,³ killing three workers. In Singapore, the Nicoll Highway collapsed on 20 April 2004 (Goh and Soon 2014), and it remains one of the worst industrial accidents that Singapore has had. The Nicoll Highway collapse led to four deaths, and the body of the foreman, Mr Heng Yeow Peow, who saved several workers during the collapse, was never found. Though the four deaths were very significant, and the impact on the families of the victims was immeasurable, it must be remembered that the scale of the collapse of the Nicoll Highway, a busy road linking to the central area of Singapore, could have easily led to more fatalities. After the accident, senior managers of the main contractor, Nishimatsu (partner in the Nishimatsu-Lum Chang Joint Venture), were severely fined (Goh 2008). The Professional Engineer (PE) cum project coordinator had made severe errors in the design of the diaphragm wall and strut system, which led to the collapse of the cut and cover tunnel. The PE from New Zealand was fined S$160,000 in April 2006 and banned from practice for two years. In addition, Nishimatsu was fined S$200,000, the design manager was fined S$160,000 and the project director was fined S$120,000. The former Land Transport Authority (LTA) project director was fined S$8,000 for failing to exercise due diligence in monitoring excavation works and assessing readings of soil monitoring instruments. The Nicoll Highway station project was delayed by four years and millions of dollars were spent on reconstructing the highway and adjacent roads. The Nicoll Highway collapse showed not only that accidents cause human suffering and project failure, but that project managers and executives can be taken to task for not ensuring safety.

In recent years, the Singapore Ministry of Manpower (MOM) has been taking project managers and appointment holders to task for failure to ensure safety on site. In one instance, a project coordinator cum lifting supervisor was sentenced to four weeks’ imprisonment. Thus, managers must be competent in and committed to WSH management.

1.1.2Ill health

In contrast to safety, occupational health is frequently neglected in many industries. Unlike accidents, ill health takes years to develop and the illness may not be clearly linked to the work that the victim conducted many years ago. According to the International Labor Organization (2009), each year, about 2.3 million people die from work-related accidents and diseases. Out of the 2.3 million deaths, about 360,000 are due to accidents, while the remaining 1.95 million are fatal work-related diseases. Even though most of the deaths occur in developing countries and the statistics include all types of workplace, the astonishing numbers signal the impact of occupational diseases. Some of the occupational health issues common in the industries include excessive noise, skin dermatitis, musculoskeletal disorders, cancer, and occupational asthma.

1.1.3Environmental pollution

Environmental pollution includes local pollution problems like noise and odour, and global pollution issues like the depletion of natural resources, inefficient use of energy, emission of carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases, air pollution, water pollution, land pollution, and loss of biodiversity. Both local and global environmental pollution are undesirable, but global pollution, particularly with regard to climate change-related issues, is becoming more and more important. With the global average temperature on the rise and more extreme and erratic weather occurring, the industry has to study the environmental aspects (synonymous to hazards in WSH terminology) and impacts (synonymous to accidents or ill health) carefully.

Environmental problems are closely related to WSH. Accidents such as major fires and structural collapses can release substances and dust into the environment and will also lead to pollution and other environmental impacts. As in the case for WSH, the Singapore National Environmental Agency (NEA) has been very strict in their enforcement of Environmental Protection and Management legislations and construction sites have to ensure they have a systematic approach for environmental management.

1.1.4Cost of incidents

WSH incidents are costly. According to Bird et al. (2003) (see Figure 1.1), for each dollar of insured cost, there is another $6 to $53 of uninsured costs. Just like a ship captain who only sees the tip of the iceberg, many organisations are focused on the insured costs, but they may not have noticed the massive hidden uninsured costs.

1.2Workplace Safety and Health Statistics

WSH statistics help us understand how different industries are performing in terms of WSH. The WSH statistics in Singapore are reported by the Workplace Safety and Health Institute (WSHI). Before interpreting the statistics, it is important to know that as of 2014, the WSH statistics report:

Figure 1.1The cost of incidents

a.Included work-related traffic injuries

b.Reclassified work-related back injuries due to ergonomic risks, such as work-related musculoskeletal disorders, as occupational diseases, and

c.Expanded the number of workers to include those working in all workplaces covered under the WSH Act.

As such, the workplace injury rates for 2014 are not strictly comparable with those from previous years.

The workplace fatal injury rate for all workplaces declined from 4.9 per 100,000 employed persons in 2004 to 1.9 per 100,000 employed persons in 2015 (MOM et al., 2016). However, the construction industry has remained an area of concern. In the first half of 2016, it was responsible for 43% (18) fatalities. The persistently poor safety and health performance of the construction industry made it important for all stakeholders to do their part to improve the situation.

Nevertheless, other industries such as the process and energy industries cannot be complacent because unlike the construction industry or marine industry, the process industry can cause major accidents with the extremely severe consequence of hundreds or thousands of injuries and deaths. For example, the Bhopal gas leak disaster in India (3 December 1984) killed at least 4,000. In addition, thousands of others were injured, and many more were plagued with ill health. Major accidents like Bhopal are stark reminders that major hazard industries must have high WSH standards.

1.3Workplace Safety and Health Act

The Singapore Workplace Safety and Health Act (WSHA) is heavily influenced by the UK Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act 1974, and similar legislations in Europe and Australia. As an illustration of the performance-based approach to WSH legislation, the WSHA will be discussed herein. The WSHA was enacted in 2006 after three major accidents in 2004: the Nicoll Highway collapse on 20 April 2004, the collapse of steel latticework at the Fusionopolis Building worksite on 29 April 2004, and the fire on Almudaina at Keppel Shipyard on 29 May 2004. The overall intent of the WSHA was to improve the safety culture of the industry and encourage stakeholders to take reasonable practicable steps to improve WSH proactively. The WSHA is based on three basic principles:

1. Reducing risks at the source by requiring all stakeholders to eliminate or minimise the risks they create;
2. Instilling greater ownership of safety and health outcomes within the industries; and
3. Preventing accidents through higher penalties for compromises in safety management.

In contrast to the repealed Factories Act (a prescriptive legislation that details WSH requirements specifically), the WSH Act is a performance-based legislation which requires the industry to conduct risk assessment so as to proactively identify the hazards, evaluate the hazards, determine controls for the hazards, and implement and review the hazards and controls. One key feature of a performance-based approach is the concept of “as low as reasonably practicable” (ALARP). Based on the case of Public Prosecutor v Hong Jun Development Pte. Ltd [2017] SGMC 68, ‘reasonably practicable‘ contains the following principles:

1. The risk of accident has to be weighed against the measures necessary to eliminate the risk, including the cost invo...

Table des matières

• Cover Page
• Title
• Copyright
• Contents
• About the Author
• 1 Introduction
• 2 Incident Causation
• 3 Incident Investigation
• 4 Workplace Safety and Health Risk Management
• 5 Design for Safety
• 6 Overview of Workplace Safety and Health Management Systems
• 7 Safety Culture and Leadership
• 8 Improving Safety Culture
• 9 Overview of WSH Legislations
• 10 Accident Case Studies
• Index