Global and Environmental Health Issues

This document discusses the global and environmental health issues that companies face and the legislative requirements for health and safety at work. It covers topics such as risk assessment, identification of vulnerable populations, and key agencies governing work health safety. The case study of Myer Holdings Ltd is used to illustrate these concepts.

Global and
Environmental Health
Issues

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................1
MAIN BODY ..................................................................................................................................1
Work safety risk assessment........................................................................................................1
Identification and description of vulnerable populations and proposing solutions to mitigate
risks..............................................................................................................................................4
Identification and description of key agencies or institutions which govern work health safety
for the working environment type and policies relevant to maintain safe work environment....5
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................5
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................7

INTRODUCTION
Health is defined as mental, social as well as physical well being wherein disease
addition to infirmity are absent. Health issues occurs at the time when normal metabolism of
body altered or failed because of pathogen or pollutant which causes problems that are disease.
In present era, there are various types of global and environment health issues that are creating
complexities for a company to manage its operations. For this, legislative requirements are
implemented which govern health safety at work. To understand global and environmental health
issues, Myer Holdings Ltd is selected. It is mid market department store chain having
headquarters in Victoria, Australia (Myer Holding Ltd, 2020). The company was founded by
Sidney Myer in the year 1900 and have presence at nearby 60 locations. Its key products are
electrical toys, womenswear, general merchandise, beauty, mensware and homewares.
The present assessment includes working through steps of completing work safety risk
assessment and a template that includes identified hazards, current controls in place, relative risk
level and controls which are required for reducing risk. It also includes identification and
description of vulnerable populations and solutions to mitigating risks for the groups.
MAIN BODY
Work safety risk assessment
Risk is defined as chances of something bad happening. It encompasses uncertainty about
implications or effects of operations with respect to things which are valued more by humans,
often emphasising on negative and undesirable consequences (Kokangül, Polat and Dağsuyu,
2017). Work safety risk assessment is procedure to determine the hazards which currently exist
and impact on safety of employees at work. It includes list of hazards which have huge
possibilities to harm employees and other stakeholders of business. It is absolute requirement
under Heath and safety legislation. It includes steps that are as follows:
Identification of hazard: In this stage, hazards are identified by managers of company.
Hazards are the situations that may harm workers at premises. In Myer Holdings Ltd, managers
identify the hazards are work on other stages for assessing the impacts and devising solutions .
Deciding who might be harmed: herein, managers of Myer Holdings Ltd decides that
what hazards might harm to employees and in what manner. The entire situation are analysed
and then decisions are taken.
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Evaluation of risk and working of precautions: Herein, identified risk are evaluated
and working to mitigate them are performed. The actions that are needed as precautions are
decided by administrators of Myer Holdings Ltd.
Recording of findings and implementation: Findings are recorded in risk assessment
register and execution of proposed solution are done so to protect employees from implications
of risks and hazards (Choe and Leite, 2017).
Review of assessment and updation: The entire assessment is reviewed in this stage and
if required then major updates are also done by managers of Myer Holdings Ltd to mitigate
effects of risks in the situation wherein risk is inherently present.
As per the mentioned steps to complete occupational safety risk assessment, following
are identified hazards and other information of risks in Myer Holdings Ltd:
Scenario Hazards Associated
harm
Existing risk
controls
Curr
ent
risk
ratin
g
Requirements of
additional
controls
Residual
risk rating
When
workers
perform
operation
with
hazardous
substances
that impacts
on heath of
employees in
Myer
Holdings Ltd
Chemical
hazard
The
associated
harm with
chemical
hazard are
skin
irritations,
blindness,
explosions
and
respiratory
system
irritation.
Existing risk
control of
chemical
hazards are
personal
protective
kits,
administrativ
e controls
and isolations
facilities
(Yazdi and
Zarei, 2018).
5 out
of 10
Additional
controls required
to protect workers
against chemical
hazard are
elimination of
excessive usage
of chemical
adhesive,
substitution with
other products
that includes
lower risks and
engineering
8 out of 10
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controls.
When
employees
handles
heavy weight
and work in
poor posture.
Ergonomi
c hazards
The harms
associated
with the
hazard are
musculoskel
etal
disorders
that includes
injuries or
pains in
musculoskel
etal system
of
employees.
Current risk
control in
Myer
Holding Ltd
for
Ergonomic
hazards are
team lifting,
musculoskele
tal self care
and rest.
4 out
of 10
Proper handling
techniques,
workplace lifting
training, proper
handling
techniques and
kits, stretch
breaks, job
rotation and
workplace
improvements
(Suter II, 2016).
8 out of 10
Employees
working in
excess stress
or violence at
Myer
Holdings
Ltd.
Psychoso
cial
hazards
It affects
mental
health
addition to
well-being
of
employees.
Current risk
control for
the hazard
includes
training to
work in all
types of
environment,
social
gatherings
and support
system.
2 out
of 10
Proper allocation
of work to each
employee that
reduces stress on
an individual,
improving
organisational
communication
and enhancing
values placed on
safety as well as
heath in
workplace.
9 out of 10
While
performing
Physical
hazards
It may cause
pains as
Existing risk
control of
6 out
of 10
The required
additional
9 out of 10.
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operations at
heights, there
are chances
that people
slips, trips
and fall.
well as
injuries to
employees
that work at
height and
also develop
disease or
possibility
of disability
(Sadiq and
Beauchemin
, 2017).
physical
hazards in
Myer
Holdings Ltd
are
collaborative
protection
equipments,
personal
protection
kits and
engineering
controls.
controls are
training and
monitoring of
work procedures,
availability of
first aid all the
time and
maintaining
standard
equipments for
working.
Identification and description of vulnerable populations and proposing solutions to mitigate risks
Vulnerable population are said to individuals who have greater risk associated with poor
physical as well as social heath status. These may be less able to forecast, cope-up, resist and
recover form impact of come hazard. Myer Holding Ltd is a large company in Australia that
have large number of employees working in distinct department at at different employment.
There are multiple number of vulnerable employees such as economically disadvantaged,
younger workers, pregnant female employees and workers with language disability (Kurniawan
and Et. Al., 2017). in the entity that are more vulnerable to effects of safety risk than other
employees. Following are proposed solutions to mitigate safety and other related risks for these
groups:
Personal protective equipments: PPE are the equipments which safeguard users against
safety addition to heath risks to vulnerable groups at workplace. It includes tool such as eye
protection goggles, safety footwear, safety helmets, high visibility clothing, gloves etc. When
vulnerable groups including old workers and pregnant females in Myer Holding Ltd provides or
make avialbe these equipments then it have huge chances to mitigate risks related to heath and
safety.
4

Education and training: Education and training strengthens skills and knowledge of
person to perform working and mitigating risks (Toensmeier, 2016). For example, young
workers and employees with language disability are provided education and training then it
makes then efficient, productive and competent to manage working and reduce possibilities of
occurrence of risks. Managers of Myer Holding Ltd can implement the prosed solution to
mitigate risks and continue working without occurrence of any types of hazard.
Identification and description of key agencies or institutions which govern work health safety for
the working environment type and policies relevant to maintain safe work environment
Safe Work Australia is one of Australian Government statutory agency that govern
work health safety for type of working environment. It represents genuine partnership among
unions, industry addition to government, works with goals of reducing disease, injuries as well as
death in workplace (Kerwin and Furlong, 2018). The main responsibility of the agency is to
improve heath and safety of employees and compensation arrangements of workers across
Australia. Addition to this, Occupational Safety and Health Administration is another agency
that govern work health safety for organisations. The mission of the agency is to assure safe
together with healthy working situations for all types of working men addition to women through
devising and enforcing standards.
The policies that are relevant for maintaining safe safe work environment are as follows:
Occupational health and safety policy: The policy defined objectives for occupational
health addition to safety in company and for operations which promotes working capacity of all
types of populations. In this policy, responsibilities and aspects to organise cooperation measures
to maintain safe work environment are clearly defined. In Myer Holding Ltd, the policy covers
work of company, social relationships, working conditions as well as effects of environment on
physical as well as health of staff members. The content and goals of policy are devised for
maintaining safe work circumstances and promote suitable work practices.
Social security policy: The policy provides vulnerable population in companies with
financial safety net. It intends to mitigate risks or problems faced by people exposed to situation
of provision of entitlements as well as enforcements (Gunningham and Sinclair, 2017). By
adhering the policy, managers of Myer Holding Ltd have build a plan for its vulnerable workers
so to provide safe work place and retirement benefits.
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CONCLUSION
From the assessment, it is summarised that risks are situations or scenario that includes
exposure of danger. Work health safety assessment describes overall method in which hazards
are identified to mitigation or additional actions. The key hazards that impacts health and safety
of employees at workplace are physical hazards, psychosocial hazards, ergonomic hazards and
chemical hazard. Proposed solutions for managing risks for vulnerable population are personal
protective equipments, education and training. To resolve identifies work safety risks, it is
recommended to company to forecast situations and devise additional actions so that they can be
used fro mitigating hazards.
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REFERENCES
Books and Journals:
Choe, S. and Leite, F., 2017. Assessing safety risk among different construction trades:
Quantitative approach. Journal of construction engineering and management. 143(5).
p.04016133.
Gunningham, N. and Sinclair, D., 2017. Leaders and laggards: next-generation environmental
regulation. Routledge.
Kerwin, C. M. and Furlong, S. R., 2018. Rulemaking: How government agencies write law and
make policy. Cq Press.
Kokangül, A., Polat, U. and Dağsuyu, C., 2017. A new approximation for risk assessment using
the AHP and Fine Kinney methodologies. Safety science. 91. pp.24-32.
Kurniawan, R., and Et. Al., 2017. The effects of vulnerability mitigation strategies on supply
chain effectiveness: risk culture as moderator. Supply Chain Management: An
International Journal.
Sadiq, N. W. and Beauchemin, D., 2017. Simultaneous speciation analysis of arsenic, chromium,
and selenium in the bioaccessible fraction for realistic risk assessment of food
safety. Analytical chemistry. 89(24). pp.13299-13304.
Suter II, G. W., 2016. Ecological risk assessment. CRC press.
Toensmeier, E., 2016. The carbon farming solution: a global toolkit of perennial crops and
regenerative agriculture practices for climate change mitigation and food security.
Chelsea Green Publishing.
Yazdi, M. and Zarei, E., 2018. Uncertainty handling in the safety risk analysis: an integrated
approach based on fuzzy fault tree analysis. Journal of failure analysis and prevention.
18(2). pp.392-404.
Online:
Myer Holding Ltd. 2020. [Online]. Available through: <http://www.myer.com.au/>
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