Question and Answers:
How do I work safely in the workplace if there is no supervisory assistance?
OSHA was established to provide rules and regulations for the safety of the workforce. This does not mean that the supervisor has to be present for safety to work properly. It is the responsibility of the worker themselves to work safely. If the worker does this he can take pride in knowing that he is doing the right thing. Before long everyone in the workplace are watching for safety issues and solving them properly.
Where can I find the answers to questions about safety issues?
The first place is your company’s policies and procedures guidelines. The company should have established guidelines for the safety of its workforce. If there are no established guidelines or they are vague in nature you can check the OSHA manual relative to your industry. The most recent version of the manual is on the OSHA website, www.osha.gov. The website provides up to date information and is easy to navigate. Don’t forget to check the “Letters of Interpretation” for answers to your question. In this area people who have written OSHA with questions are posted here with the answers. You can bet if you thought about it someone else has also. You may have the answer right there. The last way is to make a call to OSHA. Believe this or not, OSHA is there to answer questions that you may have about a problem. They are easy to work with and have the resources needed to properly answer the question.
Why doesn’t OSHA make more visits to facilities so accidents don’t happen in the first place?
OSHA is a government funded agency. They only have to funds and the manpower to go so far. They have established programs which target high risk industries and react to complaints but they are limited to getting to ALL the companies in their areas to make them safe. This gets back to question number one. You as the employee/employer have to take safety to the workplace. You have to make the effort to work safely. You are the person that wants to go home to their families at night. It’s you that are responsible for your actions. It starts and ends with you. OSHA may come and they may go but when they leave, you are the person that takes safety personally.
Who is responsible for safety at my facility?
OSHA sets the rules for safety and the way that it has to be in place at the facility. After that the respective company is responsible to establish policies and procedures in the way of safety. They should train their employees on what those policies and procedures are and make sure that the employee understands them. From that point the supervisory staff is in charge of making sure that these policies. The problem is that the supervisors can not be everywhere at all times. Again, as I have stated before, it is your responsibility.
What is the penalty for a facility if they don’t comply with the OSHA standards?
If OSHA comes into the facility and a violation is found, if it’s a first time offense, the penalty may start as low as $7000.00 and go up from there. For willful violations, those that have been pointed out in the past by OSHA and not corrected, the fines start much higher. OSHA may also start the violation from the time they can show the violation started in the first place. This simply means that they may find a violation and discover that it has been occurring over a period of weeks or months. They can assess a fine from the initial time that the violation started occurring to the time they found it. Also, if a facility is fined they have the right to appeal or work with OSHA to cut down the amount paid by the facility. This can be established through the purchase of equipment needed for the employee to work safely or to get the needed training for the employees so they work safer.
When is the best time to train the employee so they are working safely?
Training is a continuous activity. From the point that an employee is hired their training starts. That training continues throughout the employee’s tenure at the facility. It has to become second nature that the employee works safely. This is not accomplished by training them when they first come and the job and then forgotten. This is one of the reasons that OSHA has established certain safety training to be done annually and others every year or so. This way as new procedures are established they are brought to the training so the employee has the latest tools to prevent themselves from getting hurt.