»Improve Your Systems Improve Your Systems For Managing OHS Risks

Improve Your Systems

Improve Your Systems For Managing OHS Risks

This section of the CD ROM contains;

OHS Systems Benchmarking Process
(Click here for the pdf version of the OHS Systems Benchmarking Process)

OHS Reference Guide Part 2
(Click here for the pdf version of Part 2)

OHS Reference Guide Part 3
(Click here for the pdf version of Part 3)

OHS Systems Benchmarking Process

The OHS Systems Benchmarking Process document has been broken down into the following areas. For a pdf version of each of these sections please click and download any of the links below.

Bringing your OH&S management system to life

The role you play along the journey

Good safety is good business

The MLA OHSMS benchmarking process

Shatter the myths

Element guidelines

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Reference Guide Part 2 - OHS Management Systems

2.1 Occupational health and safety management systems

Introduction

“Every organisation will find that it has elements of an OHSMS in place. What is less common in the linking of these elements into a coordinated overall system to improve the OHS performance.”
AS/NZS 4804: Occupational health & safety management systems - General guidelines on principles, systems and supporting techniques, 2001, p 8.

To ensure that important occupational health and safety issues are not overlooked, employers need to adopt a systematic approach to managing health and safety. The starting point in establishing a management system that is effective in solving health and safety problems is for health and safety to be an integral part of the management function. No matter how systems are developed, to be effective, there are some general elements that are required.

The following material is generally based on AS/NZS 4804: Occupational health & safety management systems - General guidelines on principles, systems and supporting techniques. In AS/NZS 4804 there are five elements of an OHS management system (OHSMS):

management commitment and policy
planning
implementation
measurement and evaluation
review and improvement

For additional information on key features on OHS management systems, refer to the MLA OHSMS Benchmarking Process document

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Management commitment and policy

Management commitment is essential for the success of a health and safety management program. In practical terms this means that top management within the organisation:

Determines the current status of OHS management within the organisation
Commits sufficient resources, both financial and human, to maintain or improve the OHS program
Determines responsibilities, authorities, and most importantly systems of accountability
Coordinates planning and follow through
Assesses performance and makes changes where/if necessary
Demonstrates own commitment to health and safety through own actions and the consistent application of policies and procedures.

Understanding the current status of OHS management within the organisation, and acting to improve is an on-going management responsibility. Information for the review/analysis can be gathered by interviews, checklists, inspections, audits, records reviews, or comparisons with similar organisations (ie benchmarking – refer to MLA OHSMS Benchmarking Process document).

Data can also be sourced from accident, incident and first-aid records, workers compensation data, or other data that the organisation holds eg, absenteeism, sick leave or industrial disputation.

Policy

A visible statement of management commitment is a health and safety policy statement that is endorsed by both management and workers and distributed throughout the organisation. The policy should:

express a commitment to occupational health and safety management
recognise the requirement for legislative compliance with the applicable State or Territory, including the duty of care
adopt a preventative approach
outline the responsibilities and accountabilities of all managers and workers (see below)
outline the consultative mechanisms within the organisation
outline the organisation’s duty of care to all workers including labour hire, contractors
and sub contractors, volunteers and visitors
recognise the hazard management approach ie, hazard identification, risk assessment
and control.

Supporting policies and procedures should outline clearly the practicalities of task
requirements linked with safe operating procedures.

Accountability and responsibility

It is important that there are clearly defined occupational health and safety roles and responsibilities. The following outlines a comprehensive set of roles and responsibilities for consideration both when implementing your occupational health and safety management system and for inclusion in your health and safety policy.

Top management

Top management has the overall responsibility to provide a healthy and safe workplace for workers and to ensure that adequate resources are provided to meet the organisation’s health and safety objectives and implementation strategies (refer to earlier section).

Managers

Managers have a responsibility in their areas of control to ensure that:

they carry out their roles and responsibilities as detailed in the relevant health and safety policies and procedures
they effectively implement relevant health and safety policies and procedures
all risks to health and safety are identified, assessed and effectively controlled in consultation with workers and their representatives
the effectiveness of risk control measures are regularly monitored and deviations from standards are rectified
supervisors and workers have adequate knowledge and skills to carry out their health and safety responsibilities
workers and their representatives are consulted on any proposals for, or changes to, the workplace, work practices, policies or procedures which may affect the health and safety of workers

Supervisors

Supervisors or workers with supervisory responsibilities have a responsibility to ensure:

they carry out their roles and responsibilities as detailed in the relevant health and safety policies and procedures
relevant health and safety policies and procedures are implemented in their areas of control
all risk control measures in their areas of responsibility are implemented, regularly monitored and maintained
the workers under their control are provided with the necessary information, instruction and training to effectively and safely carry out their jobs.

Workers

Workers have a responsibility to:

take care to protect their own health and safety and to avoid adversely affecting the health and safety of any other worker.
report any incident or hazard at work to their manager or supervisor
carry out their roles and responsibilities as detailed in the relevant health and safety policies and procedures
obey any reasonable instruction aimed at protecting their health and safety while at work
use any equipment provided to protect their health and safety while at work
assist in the identification of hazards, the assessment of risks and the implementation of risk control measures
consider and provide feedback on any matter which may affect their health and safety.

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Planning

The first step in having a functioning OHS management system is the planning process. Planning is required to develop and establish a system, maintain the system and continuously improve the system. The initial planning should include OHS objectives, strategies and action plans/activities to be used to achieve the objectives. Strategies should suit the organisation and hence be site specific.

The planning activity may range from a simple process of internal review and a planning exercise to a detailed strategic planning exercise following an external audit. The elements of a plan may be developed over a specified period suitable to the available resources of the company. However the planning process should have a logical sequence.

Planning should consider factors likely to affect the achievement of OHS objectives, including the internal environment and culture of the organisation and external factors, such as the OHS laws, industry standards and codes of practice. The companies overall approach to the evaluation of OHS performance and the way the system is to be continuously improved should be determined.

The steps, detailed below, can be used whether the planning process is simple or complex. They are:

Review the current occupational health and safety status including the ‘management system’ (or lack of one)
Determine the overall objectives for managing OHS. For example
- ensure health and safety of employees, contractors and visitors
- comply with legislation
Link the organisational objectives to the OHS objectives
Determine the specific objectives for the OHSMS. For example
- reduction of the level of risk
- prevention of injury and illness
- effectively managing incidents that do occur
- returning injured or ill employees to meaningful work
Detail strategies (programs) and activities to achieve the specific objectives. The programs should include
- hazard management
- incident management
- emergency preparedness
- injury management
Set targets (key performance indicators) for each of the strategies / programs
Identify responsibilities
Set timeframes.

To plan effectively information about the company, the industry, and the legislation is required. This includes:

Applicable legislation, codes of practice and industry standards (refer to the relevant legislative bodies in the preface, or Parts 3 and 4 for some more detailed requirements)
Any state or territory OHSMS models that link health and safety to incentive or discount schemes with workers compensation insurance
Information on OHS specific to the industry – refer to information on this DVD for the meat industry
Risk management information and methods for managing risks
Method of measuring OHS performance
Objective status of the health and safety in the company. What exists, what requires revision, what are the gaps.

The planning process should result in a comprehensive documented plan detailing the programs and activities required to achieve the overall and specific objectives, the performance targets required, the responsibilities and timeframes.

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Implementation

Implementation covers a wide range of issues including:

allocation of resources
integrating of OHS into other management systems that may operate within the organisation including planning, design/purchasing/maintenance
coordination of all parts of the OHS system
designation of responsibilities to activate/implement the OHS plan, programs and procedures to achieve the policy objectives (also refer to general responsibilities in previous section)
systems to ensure accountability
consultation (as below - including issues relating to training and workplace diversity)
training and competency levels
support action that must be taken (including communication, reporting and documentation)
records and information management (including the recording of hazard identification, risk assessment and control)
hazard management (refer to Part 3 of this Guide)
contingency preparedness and response (emergency or disaster plans or critical incident recovery plans).

Unless all these administration activities are in place the system will not function optimally. These requirements are necessary for the implementation, the ongoing maintenance and the evaluation of the programs, procedures and outcomes.

Implementation strategies

The implementation strategies and activities required will depend on the status of OHS in the company and the management system that is put in place. The strategies should ensure that the system focuses on prevention particularly the implementation of the process to identify hazards, assess the risks and implement controls. Consultative mechanisms have to be put in place, initial training requirements have to be identified, developed and conducted, and the system documentation developed. It is very important the initial implementation activities be realistic and within the capabilities of the company. The system can be added to in stages. This is preferable to overloading everyone initially as this will generate negative attitudes to the process.

Consultation

Consultation involves employers sharing information and exchanging views with representatives of any bodies that must be consulted with, with the genuine opportunity for them to contribute effectively to any decision-making process to eliminate or control risks to health and safety.

Consultation between employers and workers is a fundamental element to a positive approach to health, safety and welfare and the workplace. Through consultation, managers and supervisors can become more aware of the hazards and OHS issues experienced by workers. Workers can also provide suggestions about how to solve health and safety problems.

Consultation should take place between employers and workers, and/or their elected representatives, including health and safety representatives, Likewise workers should make the health and safety representative aware of health and safety problems identified.

Health and safety committees may also be established to allow joint consultation between management and worker representatives. The main roles of OHS committees are to consider policy issues and try to find a solution to unresolved issues.

It is necessary for employers to consult in the following situations:

when identifying hazards
assessing risks
deciding on measures to control risks
implementing controls
reviewing the effectiveness of controls
reviewing or developing policies
investigating incidents
changing work practices and procedures
introducing new substances to the workplace
planning of new work or work processes.

Consultation with workers should take place in the initial stages of these processes, to take their experience and expertise into account.

Employer and workers should develop agreed procedures for consultation. For consultation to be effective, workers and their representatives should have access to relevant information, including information on hazards in the workplace, work conditions, the work organisation, plant, equipment or materials used in the workplace, the relevant State or Territory OHS legislation, statistics etc.

Enough time should be allowed for workers and their representatives to consider the implications of the information and to discuss it among themselves.

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Measurement and evaluation

The aim of measurement and evaluation is to establish whether the objectives of the OHSMS and its components are being met. Monitoring and evaluation applies to all aspects of OHS programs. Regular audits of the management system are advisable to determine whether the system is meeting its stated objectives.

For the monitoring and evaluation process to be effective it requires OHS objectives to be established, performance measures developed, relevant information collected and results analysed. That is, what measures are to be used, how the information will be collected, when and how often it will be collected and who will do it.

General monitoring and inspections

The monitoring and evaluation process should be linked to on-going regular activities as well as to specific corrective actions being taken. It also requires all control measures implemented as part of the hazard management process, emergency preparedness procedures and incident investigations to be monitored for their effectiveness.

General monitoring and inspections need to be scheduled and conducted. These may take the form of routine checks, inspections, tests, measurements and examinations. They include:

Routine checks in the work areas covering issues such as machine guarding, housekeeping, storage etc
Observation of safe work procedures
Workplace inspections
Specific tests, examination and testing by competent persons. This may include:
- tests on lifting equipment, ventilation, noise levels, fire extinguishers etc
- health surveillance of individuals e.g. hearing tests.

Timetables such as that outlined in 2.4.1 can be very helpful in monitoring that routine planned activities are being conducted. Logs such as that outlined in 2.4.2 can assist in monitoring that more newly identified or proactive activities are being completed in a timely way.

Performance measures

To evaluate the system, programs, procedures and practices measurement are required. The measures should be planned when developing the programs. The measurements used may be quantitative, qualitative, process or timeline based. They may involve short or long term requirements. The measurements should be applicable to the activity being evaluated.

Quantitative measurements include lost time injury rate, number of lost time injuries, percentage of identified hazards that have been actioned, 100% of hazardous substances have a MSDS, number of accidents, number of injured employees requiring rehabilitation, return to work rate as a percentage of all claims, the number of employees trained etc.

Qualitative, process and timeline measurements include: all employees are aware of the policy; all legislative requirements are identified; purchasing procedures ensure OHS requirements are considered; the training timetable is being met; the timetable for implementation of strategies / programs is being met; workplace inspections and fire drills are scheduled and conducted; accidents are investigated within specified timeframe, maintenance requests are acted on within a specified time and so on. Information on all the measurements being used has to be collected. This involves what information is collected, in what format it is collected and who does it.

Performance summaries/matrixes, such as that outlined in Table ?? below, can be very helpful in monitoring the degree to which OHS activities are being completed.

Table 4: Sample Performance Indicators

Performance Criteria	Performance Indicator/ Measure
Planned activities are completed: • OHS Training Plan • OHS Inspections • OHS Action Log • OHS Meetings eg OHSCC, toolbox	No. and/or % of planned activities completed according to plans (refer to sample planned activities timetable/schedule, 2.4.1) individually and collectively calculated pre project and for last 3 months of project
Reporting and investigation of near misses, incidents and accidents	• No. of: o near-miss/incident/accident reports (want to see increased reporting initially) o accidents/incidents investigations (want to see more investigations of incidents ct accidents) • No./type of changes made as result of investigations
Worker’s attitude to safety & perception of company’s attitude to safety	• Outcomes of Culture Survey • Feedback from OHS Representatives • No. of suggestions/safety reports from workers
Risk being managed	• % of plant with completed Risk Control Summaries • Average Residual Risk Rating (initial, then annual comparison) • No. of detailed Risk Assessments conducted • Also refer to WC indicators below
Less injury to workers (compare last 2 yrs)	• Costs of new claims – total and average – last 3 mths ct total and average of same period in last 2 years • Workers Not on Full Duty (NOFD)

Regardless of the information collected or used, it must be reviewed and analysed to be effective. This will indicate whether the activity or strategy is meeting the standards or objectives set. Action must then be taken by those with the responsibilities for the work area, procedure, program or system.

Review and improvement

Reviewing and improving the management system is essential, and senior management should be involved in the review process. The continuing review of the system leads naturally to continual improvement of the occupational health and safety management system.

A review of OHS management systems should be conducted at scheduled intervals. The review process may also occur after analyse of performance indicators (as above), an investigation into an incident or due to changed or new legislative requirements.

Auditing is a structured approach to evaluating the OHSMS. There are many auditing processes including those developed by each state and territory legislative authority. A review and/or audit may be conducted internally or externally.

The review should consider the health and safety policy, the objectives and targets, the adequacy of resources, any results from audits, investigations, and any changed conditions that are impacting on the workplace. The information obtained should be evaluated. It should identify where targets and objectives are not being met.

Recommendations should be generated to improve the system. Corrective actions and improvements to the system should then be implemented. This process is often referred to as ‘continuous improvement’.

A sample of a Review Summary document is outlined in 2.4.3. It is a helpful way of summarising progress over the year as well as highlighting areas for improvement.

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2.2 The importance of a safety culture in the meat industry

Introduction

There has been considerable focus on interventions that address engineering and ergonomic aspects of safety in the meat industry. However, it is increasingly recognised that behaviour, attitudes and beliefs - in short, culture – is a critical element of safety performance.

‘... a poor safety culture will encourage an atmosphere of non-compliance to safe
operating practices. Violations are likely to be most common in organisations where the
unspoken attitudes and beliefs mean that production and commercial goals are seen to
outweigh those relating to safety.’
(Reason 1998, p 297)

A recognition of the impact of safety culture (or the lack of it) on the meat industry, led to a study in two States (South Australia and Queensland) during 2000. The study identified a relationship between safety culture and costs, with a good safety culture being associated with lower injuries and claim costs. Investigations into major accidents have also found that a poor safety culture is a key contributor. For example, in January 2003, a passenger train derailed near Waterfall in NSW. The accident killed 7 people and injured 42 others. The subsequent investigation found that the State Rail Authority had:

“profound weaknesses in the management of safety ... particular areas where deficiencies in safety management were the most significant …[were]

senior managers lacked awareness of contemporary safety management principles and practice …;
risk management was conducted on a reactive rather than a proactive basis; …
systems for holding managers accountable for safety performance were lacking;
a “blame culture” made it difficult for staff to raise safety issues; and
drivers were induced to violate rules and procedures to meet on-time running requirements.”

McInerney 2005 Waterfall Rail Accident Final Report, pp ix-x

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How to build a culture of safety

While safety at work is everyone's responsibility, the behaviour of management and the messages they send are crucial to building an effective safety culture.

Some of the basic steps to take are:

Demonstrated leadership by management. If it is perceived that the managers consider OHS important, then it will have a filter down effect.
Ensure employees are informed about OHS issues and are given regular feedback on progress with health and safety matters
Use genuine consultative processes so employees consider they have ‘ownership’ of the program and their knowledge and skills are sought and used – if staff opinions are not taken into account they will not report or participate, and valuable information and insights are lost
Employees must believe they are able to speak up about safety issues without fear of retribution from either management or their peers
Employees must know and agree on the difference between acceptable and unacceptable behaviour and they must understand that unsafe behaviour will not be sanctioned
Employees must be sure that if they report safety problems those problems will be acted upon. Ignoring a safety issue reported by an employee, no matter what the manager thinks about the issue, will lead to safety problems not being reported
Build health and safety issues into all management processes, such as when designing, purchasing or making any business decision
Ensure managers and supervisors have appropriate knowledge and skills, know what is happening in their area, have appropriate authority to act, are accessible/approachable and are held to account
Foster a learning culture where workers are supported and trained and there is a focus on reflecting and innovating. This includes consideration of the various ways that workers understand and learn information (refer to workplace diversity section below).

The commitment must be more than just words or employees cannot be expected to take safety seriously either. Resources such as financial, staffing and access to expert advice must be provided to back up the commitment to health and safety.

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2.3 Training

General

All Australian State and Territory OHS legislation requires OHS training as a fundamental part of providing a safe place of work for workers. This includes such information, instruction, training and supervision as is necessary to enable the workers to perform their work in a manner that is safe and without risk to health.

A comprehensive training needs analysis or survey is provided in 2.4.4 (below) and outlines a proforma to identify the needs of suggested target groups that may require training. Such target groups may include workers, managers and supervisors, engineers, new workers (induction) and training for specific tasks or hazardous work that workers may be required to undertake.

Training objectives should be clear for any training program and the contents of the course should be well documented, with training methods utilised such that the training of those with special needs (such as inexperience, disability, ethnicity and literacy issues) are well covered.

Training should be evaluated and reviewed too, in consultation with workers to ensure that the overall objectives of training programs have been achieved.

All training should be documented, including a signed record that training took place.

Numerous resources are available to support training and assessment in the meat Industry. Contacts for obtaining assistance are outlined in the Preface.

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Safety induction

Introducing new workers to the workplace is important for many reasons. It can enhance productivity and avoid later problems in the employment relationship. And it is particularly important in relationship to OHS as employers have a legislated duty of care to provide a healthy and safe workplace for workers. This duty may be breached by not informing and training workers in safety procedures and policies.

This information and training should be given:

at the induction stage
at regular intervals to ensure information and skills are retained and appropriately applied
when new equipment or procedures are being introduced.

Inexperienced and new workers face particular hazards associated with their new jobs and their work environment. Occupational health and safety legislation requires employers to provide adequate training and supervision for new workers. The employer should provide information about likely hazards, safe work procedures, the organisation’s health and safety policy and the consultative arrangements for health and safety.

On-going training and supervision should support initial training. Managers or supervisors should assess whether the new worker has actually gained the required competencies. Supervision should include correcting any behaviour which has the potential to cause a risk to health and safety.

Fellow workers have an important role in demonstrating safe work practices, assisting the new worker and encouraging them to ask questions and raise any issues about health and safety. A new worker also needs to be informed of the emergency procedures for the workplace and what to do if they are injured, including reporting requirements.

It is important for management to focus on aspects related to safety for the sake of both new workers and other workers. New workers should receive appropriate training in OHS as part of their usual induction training.

Health and safety induction and retraining should:

specify the objectives of training and the level of proficiency expected
outline the organisation’s occupational safety and health policies
highlight potential hazards existing in the workplace
make new workers aware of the appropriate handling and emergency procedures for various chemicals used
emphasise facilities such as the location of safety showers and first aid stations
cover aspects such as care and use of protective equipment
provide instruction on provisions contained within State and Territory legislation.

Safe working practices should be reinforced by periodic retraining as appropriate.

MINTRAC has developed a generic induction manual which can be customised to suit individual workplaces, as well as Traineeship induction kit. Both of these products are aimed at increasing employee retention, but have OHS applications.

Sample induction checklist

It is ideal that the employer makes a checklist of issues to discuss with the worker. Using the checklist ensures that everything has been covered and that all new workers are given the same or similar advice. A sample checklist is provided in 2.4.5 below.

This is a general induction, which demonstrates how you can include health and safety.
You can use this as a guide and tailor it to suit your own workplace and workers, including particular language and literacy needs. The items covered in each section are relevant to all employers, but the amount of detail provided for each section of the induction program will vary depending on the size of your business.

Remember to combine paperwork, introductions to key people and on-site training. Use
a variety of methods to convey information, including written and verbal instructions, and practical demonstrations. Ask the new worker to show you that they understand the information and encourage them to ask questions. On completion of the induction process, both the employer representative and the worker should sign the induction checklist or record, and their training record updated accordingly.

This is only the beginning of what should be a long-term investment in the training of your workforce. Close supervision should be provided until the worker has demonstrated competence. Information and training should be continued throughout their time with your company

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Working with workplace diversity

Workers also have various needs in relation to how information is best given to them. The workplace is made up of workers with various and diverse backgrounds. Language, literacy, disability and culture may impact on how workers will require health and safety information to be delivered.

A number of strategies might be used in the workplace to assist in enhancing the way health and safety information and training is provided to workers.

It is important not to stereotype or make assumptions about worker communications styles when providing health and safety information and/or training. Workers will provide the most relevant information on what is best for them. The following strategies offer some ideas that may be useful.

Ensure that you know the profile of your workplace and include the following appropriate strategies in your health and safety training and management program:
provide supervisors, managers and other relevant workers with training to enhance their understanding of how cultural factors, language, disability and English literacy issues can impact on the delivery of information
never rely on, or expect, a worker to obtain assistance from their family, friends or colleagues to go through or explain information about workplace health and safety. In particular never use children as interpreters
allow additional time to ensure you don’t have to rush through any information
provide English language and literacy training for workers who cannot communicate or read well in English (eg, in some cases DETE has English language courses through its Workplace Education Service)
ensure organisational budgets allocate funding annually to enable these strategies to be used when required
ensure that all written and verbal communication is in plain English and avoid the use of jargon or technical language
develop a mentor or buddy system
demonstrate or show workers what you want them to do together with verbal instructions
check that workers know what they have been told in induction and training, ask them to show you what they have been taught, rather than tell you (as appropriate)
use safety symbols on signs (international signage - pictorial) and ensure that workers know what they mean
have audiotapes produced of written information if an worker has difficulty reading or has a visual impairment
use videos in training, wherever possible use subtitles
use interpreters where necessary eg, group training situations. NAATI/sign language accredited interpreters can also be used to communicate in a language other than English or Deaf Sign
language interpreting services are often available for telephone discussions as well as for face-to-face meetings.

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2.4 Relevant forms and resources

2.4.4 Sample Occupational Health and Safety Training Needs Analysis and Training Plan

Download Sample Occupational Health and Safety Training Needs Analysis and Training Plan in word format

2.4.5 Sample General Induction Checklist

Download Sample General Induction Checklist in word format

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Reference Guide Part 3 - OHS Management Systems

3.1 Risk Management Overview

An essential step in the management of occupational health and safety in the meat industry or in any industry is ensuring that all hazards are identified, the risks assessed, and effective control measures are developed and implemented. This approach is a fundamental principle enshrined within all OHSW legislation in all States and Territories across Australia. This section deals with the general provisions of risk management (RM). Part 4 examines more specific/common hazards found in the meat industry and includes further hints on identification, risk assessment and control options.

What is risk management?

Risk management is a component of the general field of management. Risk management is “the culture, processes and structures that are directed towards realising potential opportunities whilst managing adverse effects” (AS/NZS 4360: 2004, p 4).

However, many organisations tended to only focus on obvious ‘adverse events’, that is, hazards where injuries were occurring. This can lead to not adequately addressing hazards:

with a low probability of occurring but with a severe consequence if they do occur or
with a perceived low risk/minor issue

This in turn leads to a threat to employees, and also to the continuation of the business. The investigation into the Waterfall train accident highlighted the problems associated with this approach.

“SRA had insufficient safety and risk management expertise and had not systematically identified hazards to its operations or effectively controlled all the risks that had been identified. It had a reliance on accident trends to identify risks …. Which demonstrated a ‘reactive’ approach to risk management”
McInerney 2003, Waterfall Railway Safety Investigation Final Report p 5

The term risk management is used widely. It can be applied to all areas of an organisations operation and is not just used to apply to health and safety. For example banks, insurance companies and other financial institutions apply ‘risk management’ to their financial transactions; organisers of public events consider security as part of risk management; product development includes risk management.

The most common way risk management is used in relation to health and safety is specific to the hazard management element. That is:

Hazards are identified
The risks are assessed
Control measures are determined and implemented
Organisations monitor and review to ensure risks are effectively managed.

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3.2 Hazard identification

A hazard is something that has the potential to harm the health, safety or welfare of people at work. Hazards can be immediate and obvious, as in safety hazards (eg, knives, bandsaws, unguarded machinery) or longer term and more difficult to identify as in health hazards (hazardous substances, noise, zoonotic diseases from working with animals). A hazard can be either a health hazard or a safety hazard, or it can be both, causing both acute and chronic effects (eg, a single loud noise as in a rifle shot to control an escaped animal can cause an acute noise-induced hearing loss that may or may not be reversible, whereas long-term exposure to noise over 85 dB(A) during a period of years can also lead to irreversible noise-induced hearing loss, in this case building up gradually over years of exposure).

To identify hazards to health, safety and welfare, a wide variety of methods are available. An organisation can:

Review legislative requirements of own state/territory including Act(s), Regulations, Codes of Practice, Guidelines, Standards (Australian and ASCC)
Check records of injuries and incidents (including near misses) that have occurred in your plant or in other similar workplaces. If you are referring to data supplied by your workers compensation claims agent, it is helpful to refer to the mechanism of injuries, as they will often point more directly to the hazard in the workplace
Utilise industry knowledge through talking to experienced workers, reading meat industry specific sources of information (such as training manuals and this reference guide) or attending industry meetings
conduct walk-through inspections of the plant using a checklist to identify potential hazards (refer to Part 3.6.1 for a sample hazard identification checklist)
consult with workers to find out what problems they have in their jobs
Conduct incident/accident investigations that highlight contributing hazards/factors (refer to Part 3.6.2 for more information on incident investigation).
Review specific risk assessment checklists (eg manual tasks, electrical, hazardous substances)
Review complaints
Review maintenance records
Conduct health and environment monitoring
Conduct task analysis to identify all hazards of a particular task.
Conduct formal safety audits
Access sources of information on hazards from ‘parent’ or related companies
Review publications and guidance material produced by other state and territory legislative bodies
Obtain expert advice.

It is a then necessary to document the hazards that have been identified. A sample hazard register has been supplied in Part 3.6.3. This hazard register can then serve as both an action plan for hazard control and a legal record of the work that you have done to identify hazards in your plant. A breakdown of the location of the hazard and the job/task can help to pinpoint the specific hazard more effectively.

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3.3 Risk assessment

Risk assessment is a process of analysing and evaluating the identified hazards. The process may be used to:

set priorities for the management of all identified hazards
detail all the risk factors in a particular hazard
analyse a task or process to establish the relative risk level of all the hazards present.

Unfortunately there is no consistency in reference material with regard to the above applications of the ‘risk assessment’ stage. The assessment is a process of gathering information and making decisions.

There is no 'right' answer. People will make certain decisions about risk because they have differing ideas about what is acceptable. For this reason it is important that those who will be affected by the decisions made (the employer, relevant workers and their representatives) should be involved in the assessment.

For the purposes of this guide, the setting of priorities and analysing the risks in a particular hazard, is presented as 2 linked components.

Component 1

The first component is to determine the level of risk of all the hazards identified in the workplace or part of a workplace.

This assessment is often best done in two stages:
A Assessment of hazards if no controls in place – the Initial Risk Rating (IRR)
B Assessment of hazards with current controls in place – the Residual Risk Rating (RRR).

This staged approach provides two features:

It allows the organisation to document how well it is controlling its overall risk (comparison of IRR compared to RRR)
Examination of the RRR then allows priorities to be established for more detailed assessment and action.

Component 2

The second component is to conduct a more detailed analysis of the identified highest risk hazards. This will require assessment of all the factors contributing to the risk level.

Deciding on the ‘level’ of risk

Estimating the level of risk requires consideration of the severity of the consequences and the likelihood of an accident.

That is risk = consequence x likelihood.

In the workplace the existing controls in place will affect both the consequences and the likelihood, which is the level of risk. Thus a hazard may exist in one workplace and be controlled and exist in another workplace and not be well controlled.

The Queensland Workplace Health and Safety Risk Management Code of Practice: Supplement 2 (2007), outlines some of the most useful factors to consider when assessing consequences and likelihood. They are summarised below.

The consequence is the measure of expected severity. That is, the worst consequence that could occur as a result of the hazard and associated risks. The consequences may range from death to a minor injury requiring first aid.

Numerous factors can impact on the consequences and include:

Potential for ‘chain reaction’ ie where a situation could escalate to create a worse hazard
Speeds of projectiles or moving parts
Concentration of a substance e.g. a diluted versus concentrated hazardous substance
Position of worker relative to the hazard eg working close to a high noise level machine versus working a distance from a high level noise machine
Volume of a substance eg a small leak of ammonia versus the release of a large amount
Energy gained eg falling a small distance versus falling a number of metres
• Energy in equipment eg bandsaw compared to hand tool.

Likelihood is the chance of the event actually occurring. That is how often you would expect the event to occur. It includes the combination of exposure and probability. Likelihood may range from ‘it could happen regularly’ to ‘it probably never will happen’.

There are numerous factors that impact on the likelihood. Some of these factors include:

how often the situation occurs
the duration of the exposure
how many people are exposed
environmental conditions
the skills and experience of persons exposed
position of worker relative to the hazard
distractions
environmental conditions
quantities of materials or multiple exposure points involved
condition of equipment e.g. preventive maintenance versus not maintained
effectiveness of existing control measures.

Thus, estimating risk is a subjective judgement based on the available information. There are numerous formulas to estimate the level of risk to establish the priorities. The level of risk may be represented by a matrix, a score or as a graph. This is an exercise based on the skills and knowledge of those carrying out the activity. Again there is no ‘correct’ one or definitive answer.

Component 1

This stage of the risk assessment gives a basis for ranking hazards in terms of level of risk. As stated, these scores are useful for comparison of:

Improvements that have been made
Priorities for further assessment and action.

The scores give a guide to the order the hazards and associated risks should be addressed. For example those hazards that fall into the higher risk category should be addressed more urgently than those in the less risky category. The number of risk values and risk categories for assigning risk can vary from one risk assessment tool to another. For example each state health and safety authority has its own risk rating matrix and a variety of assessment tools are described in the HB436 Risk Management Guidelines – Companion to AS/NZS 4360 (the Australian Standard for Risk Management). Examples of these are provided in Tables 5 and 6 below. An example of using a matrix to determine risk is outlined in Part 3.6.6.

In the second stage of Component 1 risk assessment you will then assess how big the risk is with the measures you have in place to make the task safer. If the risk rating does not improve to an acceptable level, this makes it a priority to improve. Initially you may be trying to reduce the risk rating of tasks to a mid-risk. Once this is achieved you will continue to work to decrease the rating for all tasks.

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Table 5: Sample Risk Assessment Matrix from State OHS Authority

	How Severely Could it Hurt Someone?
How Likely is it to Hurt Someone? (If NO controls in place)	Kill or Cause Permanent Disability or Ill Health	Cause Long Term Illness or Serious Injury	Medical Attention and/or Several Days Off Work	First Aid Only
Very likely – could happen regularly	1	1	2	3
Likely – could happen occasionally	1	2	3	4
Unlikely – could happen, but only rarely	2	3	4	5
Very unlikely – could happen, but probably never will	3	4	5	6

Source: Hazpak - WorkCover NSW

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Table 6: Sample Risk Assessment Matrix

View Matrix Table

Component 2

Once priorities are established the next component is the detailed analysis of the hazards with the highest priorities. Every hazard has particular factors that contribute to the level of risk and these are termed ‘risk factors’. For example the risk factors contributing to the level of risk for manual tasks include types of movements and posture including bending, stretching, twisting, the distance the load moved, the weight, whether the load is awkward, the frequency, if the floor surfaces are uneven and so on. Assessing a specific hazard in a task or process requires reviewing information on the hazard, identifying and investigating all the risk factors and considering the current methods of managing those risk factors. Relevant regulations, codes of practice or industry guidance material should be referred to.

When conducting the risk assessment for a specific hazard, by examining the risk factors, you will often also be given a clear idea of what controls should or could be in place.

The assessment of different types of hazards should involve those with the appropriate level of expertise. For example electrical hazards will usually involve the maintenance staff.

This approach of analysing the risk factors for the level of risk may also be applied to processes or tasks that contain a number of hazards. This is often referred to as task analysis. As with other aspects of assessing risk it may be a relatively simple process where a workplace team may be able to carry out the assessment or it may be a complex task requiring specialist technical skills and knowledge.

Thus risk assessment may be applied to all the hazards in a workplace to set priorities, to specific tasks or processes involving more than one hazard, and to specific priority hazards in a task or process. The goal of all risk assessment is to ensure all risk factors and their relative importance is considered. This leads to the development of effective controls.

There are formats for rating hazards overall to set priorities, for addressing risk factors specific to types of hazards such as manual handling and hazardous substances and for rating different hazards within a particular task or process as in task analysis. Each company should adopt methods that are suitable to its needs and are able to be carried out competently by the designated employees. Where the complexity of the task is beyond the skills and resources of the company, external expertise should be obtained.

Resist the temptation to bypass the risk assessment stage, as you may find the control you choose is inappropriate, creates another hazard, or doesn't adequately address the hazard eg, where a worker slips and falls down metal steps, and non-slip tread is applied to each step, but the steep incline of the steps and the lack of a handrail have not been addressed and the risk of falling still remains largely uncontrolled.

Re-assessment

Re-assessment needs to be done at regular intervals, dependant upon on type of workplace and/or hazards present. Further risk assessment needs to also be undertaken whenever:

there is a change in the workplace, which could affect health, safety or welfare
when there is new information about a hazard
when legislation changes
following an incident or accident.

Cost consideration in risk assessment

When considering ‘consequences’ it can sometimes be useful to consider the estimated cost of injury. This can be sourced either from your workers compensation statistics, or from benchmarking with other organisations. If taken from your claims costs data, the direct cost should be multiplied by at least five times, to conservatively outline the cost of this specific hazard to your organisation. This more accurate cost outlines both the immediate or obvious costs, but more importantly expands on the hidden or indirect overheads that really cause financial losses within your organisation ie, losses incurred with production downtime while the accident is being investigated, costs of recruitment and training of other personnel to fill the position temporarily (or permanently) vacated by the injured worker, costs of investigation from regulatory bodies and documentation required, not to mention simple time lost with transfer of the injured worker to first aid, medical or hospital care and loss of morale among other workers. This estimated cost of injury can then be compared with the cost of the control of the hazard, and this simple form of cost benefit analysis can prove a profound motivator for adequate control of the hazard.

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3.4 Risk control

Once the hazard has been assessed, control options for eliminating or reducing the risk of exposure to the hazard must be implemented.

Types of controls

In OHS there is a well-established set of steps for managing risks. These steps (known as the hierarchy of control – refer to Figure 8) range from the most effective to the least effective methods for managing risk. Heath and safety legislation generally requires the hierarchy of control to be used particularly in relation to plant, noise, manual handling and hazardous substances.

The more the controls are from the ‘top’ of the hierarchy (ie Elimination or Substitution), the less risk there will be involved for the task. This is because, using controls from further down the hierarchy:

do less to distance the recipient (ie person) from the hazardous energy source
rely heavily on human behaviour. Hence they also generally require a larger amount of monitoring from supervisors and managers and more checks/reviews to be conducted to ensure they are being followed.

Measures from the bottom of the hierarchy should be regarded as interim measures until preferred ones can be implemented.

Other considerations

In addition, when selecting control measures it is important to make sure that the controls:

do not create other risks eg equipment to assist with manual tasks introduces plant hazards that are not well controlled
allow workers to do their work without undue discomfort or distress.

Figure 8: The heirarchy of control measures table

heirarchy of control measures table

Control options/ideas

Information about how to control the risks to health and safety can be found by:

checking the regulations and approved codes of practice that provide control measures for the particular hazard
checking meat-industry-specific guidelines that advise control measures for the particular hazard (refer particularly to Part 4 of this guide and the redmeathub )
consultation with workers who are exposed to the hazard
seeking information from employer and worker organisations and unions
seeking information from relevant manufacturers or suppliers of hazardous substances or plant
obtaining advice from occupational health and safety consultants
contacting government agencies and other sources of health and safety information.

Once you have identified the control mechanisms that are most appropriate for the hazard, enter this on your hazard register (Part 3.6.3), as a record of hazard control, or as an action plan item if the hazard is yet to be adequately controlled. Depending on the range of controls that are needed, controls will probably need to be classified into short, medium and long-term options. The action plan outlining responsibilities, timeframes and monitoring mechanisms (see Figure 9) can then be implemented.

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The risk management process is then repeated for each identified hazard, in order of priority, until each one is adequately controlled

Figure 9: Sample entry to a hazard register - view pdf of this figure

Figure 9 Sample entry to a hazard register

How do you control risks at the planning and purchasing stage?

Management of hazards should include preventing hazards from entering the workplace. State and Territory legislation requires health and safety to be addressed at the design and planning stages. This requires employers to develop procedures to ensure health and safety is considered at the planning and purchasing stages. These procedures should include consultative mechanisms with employees or their health and safety representatives on all proposed changes to the workplace, plant and substances.

There are numerous strategies to prevent hazards from entering the workplace. These include

considering OHS in the design of all new buildings and maintenance projects
including OHS as a criteria in the purchasing procedures
conducting risk assessments on all new plant, equipment and tools
including OHS requirements in preventive maintenance for all mechanical and electrical equipment and plant
consider OHS in the development and review of all procedures and systems
including OHS in the process of employing contractors.

The goal is to avoid bringing hazards into the workplace. This is the most cost effective approach to the control of hazards.

An example of a purchasing checklist that can be useful in this process can be found in Part 3.6.6.

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3.5 Monitor and review control measures

Each hazard

The controls implemented for each hazard should be assessed to determine:

have they been implemented as planned/intended
if they created other hazards or risks
if they have provided the anticipated reduction in risk
how they have impacted on:
- the residual risk
- injury rates and severity
- staff satisfaction with the changes made
if anything has changed that may impact on the hazard or affect the residual risk.
The timeframe for undertaking this review should be undertaken at the same time as the risk is assessed and controls determined.

Plant-wide

The controls implemented across the plant should also be assessed as part of the overall OHSMS review and evaluation. Similar criteria to those used above can be used. This review of the overall impact of the changes made should be undertaken on a six-monthly or an annual basis.

On-going

The management of OHS hazards is an on-going activity. This can be due to:

Number of risks that need to be managed
Research findings changing risk severity or controls required
Changes in technology and techniques
Changes in business focus.

Hence there is a need to continue to reduce risk by implementing the risk management process. This is most readily done if the risk management activities are programmed into the overall business plans for the company into the foreseeable future.

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