PUBH6002 Health Protection and Environmental Health - Work Safety

This report provides a comprehensive overview of work safety, emphasizing its importance in organizational operations and employee well-being. It includes a work safety risk assessment conducted at a local factory, identifying potential hazards and suggesting control measures. The report also addresses the specific risks faced by vulnerable worker populations, such as newly recruited employees, and proposes solutions like training programs and close supervision. Furthermore, it highlights relevant policies and legislation aimed at ensuring work safety and recommends measures for the factory to create a safer work environment, including regular risk assessments, machinery maintenance, and the use of safety gear. The report concludes by stressing the link between employee satisfaction with safety policies and overall organizational growth, advocating for proactive measures to protect workers and improve workplace conditions. Desklib provides access to similar solved assignments and study tools to aid students.

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Work Health Safety Assessment

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Contents
Introduction.................................................................................................................................................3
Workplace risks and hazards.......................................................................................................................3
Work Safety Risk Assessment.....................................................................................................................4
Risk towards vulnerable population and solution........................................................................................5
Relevant policies for work safety................................................................................................................6
Recommendations.......................................................................................................................................6
Conclusion...................................................................................................................................................7
References...................................................................................................................................................8

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Introduction
Business organisations are focused on developing their overall quality of business operations and for that
purpose the organisations are adopting a number of strategies. Employees are integral part of an
organisation. Therefore, the management must be implementing suitable policies and legislations for
them so that they are able to boost the productivity of the organisation (Hofmann, Burke & Zohar, 2017).
Work safety is an important aspect which works behind the effectiveness of the employees of an
organisation. The safety of the workers is the topmost priority and the companies should be focused about
improving it. This report provides the reader a brief idea about work safety in the country. Work safety
risk assessment has been done on a chosen organisation along with proper recommendations to improve
the work condition and safeguard the workers from workplace hazards. It also highlights important
policies regarding work safety and work health to help the readers to gain better understanding of the
situation.
Workplace risks and hazards
Risks and hazards are not same. Hazard is regarded as a condition or act which is capable of
causing damage to the people or things around it. On the other hand, risk is likelihood of future
consequences. Every organisation is likely to have certain risks which might impact the overall
well-being of the workers. The risks are not only harmful for the workers, but also for the entire
organisation in the long run (Amponsah-Tawiah & Mensah, 2016). The business organisations must
identity the risk factors associated with the business operations so that the employee safety can
be assured. If an employee feels safe and protected, it affects their productivity in a positive way;
thereby, boosting the overall growth of the organisation (Lundgren & McMakin, 2018). The
presence of risk factors for a long time can result in unwanted hazards which might impact the
efficiency of the workers. To ensure that such hazards do not take place, an employer is required
to identify the risk factors present in the organisational scenario and take needful measures to
eliminate those (Kearney, Rodriguez, Quandt, Arcury & Arcury, 2015). It is highly necessary for the
organisations to have proper risk management practices at place. There are six steps of risk
management through which an organisation can eliminate the risk factors present in its system
and keep its workers safe. At first, the hazards should be identified, followed by concise
identification of the risks. Then thorough risk assessment is to be conducted to assess the risk

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factors. Then risk control techniques should be adopted to ensure that the risks are eliminated
positively (Brauer, 2016). Afterwards, the related information needs to be documented in an
appropriate manner. At last, the risk management procedures are to be monitored in order to
review the effectiveness of the same (Chari et al. 2018).
Work Safety Risk Assessment
As discussed earlier, work safety is a major concern for every business organisation. It is of
utmost importance to make sure that the workers are safeguarded from potential risks through
well-structured risk management processes. The foundation of proper risk control techniques is
an accurate work safety risk assessment, on the basis of which the entire risk control is planned
(Howard, 2017). Inaccuracy in risk assessment can result in improper risk management, leading to
higher levels of employee dissatisfaction and employee turnover. To gain better understanding
regarding proper work safety risk assessment, the potential risks of a local factory is assessed and
elaborated accordingly.
Name of Assessor: Jonathon Brown Location: Melbourne
Date: 23rd June, 2018 Review Date:
Hazards involved: Risk Rating:
(high, medium, low)
Control Measure: Person responsible: Date Completed:
1. Unguarded gear
wheel which is
likely to draw the
clothing or limbs
of a worker into
the machine and
cause physical
injuries.
High Provision of long-
lasting protection
guard over the
wheel to ensure it
does not get
contacted with the
clothing or limbs
of the workers.
Company
management
3rd March. 2018
2. An unlabelled
acid container
which can cause
severe burn in skin
High Labelling all the
acid containers
which are
unlabelled and
Resources
handling
department
21st March, 2018

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if not handled
carefully.
keeping them in a
safe place.
3. Poor handling of
flammable liquids
in front of ignition
sources.
High Keeping ignition
sources as far as
possible when
flammable liquids
are being handled.
Workers 6th April, 2018
4. Massive noise
coming from an
old machine which
is not properly
maintained like the
new ones. This
might impact the
hearing of the
workers onsite.
Medium Provision of noise
protector to the
workers and
making them
aware about its
usage. Also,
Mandatory
maintenance of old
machines.
Company
management
22nd May, 2018
5. A small rod,
which is hanging
dangerously over
the entrance, can
cause injuries if it
falls down.
Medium Removal of the
rod from the
entrance and check
for other hanging
rods or vice versa.
Company
management
28th May, 2018
Risk towards vulnerable population and solution
Vulnerable workers are the ones who are most likely to be affected by the potential risks associated with
the business operations. The vulnerable workers can be of different types such as newly joined workers,
young workers, poorly trained workers, less skilled workers, unmindful workers, new immigrant workers
etc (Zwetsloot, Leka & Kines, 2017). In the above scenario, the factory is having a wide number of
workers who are associated with the business operations conducted inside the factory. In this particular
factory, the most vulnerable work population is the workers who are newly recruited and has no prior
experience of working in a factory setting. These workers are likely to be unaware about various work
practices taking place in a factory. In addition to this, freshly recruited workers with no prior experience
usually have to practical knowledge of handling heavy large-sized machineries (Holt & Allen, 2015).

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Therefore, they are more prone to frequent accidents and are primary target of the hazards and risks in the
workplace. To safeguard the vulnerable workers, it is important for the employer to implement training
programmes for the new workers which will allow them to familiarize themselves with the work practices
and associated risk factors. The new workers should be motivated to use safety gears to protect
themselves. Also, the newly recruited workers should be provided with thorough knowledge about
handling heavy machineries (Tetrick, Perrewé & Griffin, 2017). The supervisors should keep a watchful
eye on the vulnerable workers so that they are safeguarded from potential hazards and physical injuries.
Relevant policies for work safety
The business organisations are focused on introducing new strategies to upgrade their business
operations. As employee satisfaction is directly related to organisational growth, it is essential for the
employers to take care of the requirements of the employees. One of the key requirements is health and
safety needs. The health of the workers is of much importance to ensure high levels of employee
satisfaction. If an employee is affected by the business operations then the job satisfaction level will
downgrade. Hence, the organisations should ensure that proper work safety policies are at place. There
are a number of policies in this context, such as, Work Health and Safety Act 2011, Machinery Act 1949,
Scaffolding and Lifts Act 1912, Dangerous Substances Act 2004, Fuels Control Act 1979, Workers
Compensation Act 1951, Dangerous Goods (Road Transport Act) 2009, Long Service Leave Act 1976 etc
(Scanlon, Lloyd, Gray, Francis & LaPuma, 2015). All these policies are aimed towards ensuring good
health and overall well-being of the employees. These policies not only safeguard the employees from
risks, but also cover them post any fatal accident at workplace (Donham & Thelin, 2016). Therefore, the
presence of well-defined policies is a must to ensure safe work environment.
Recommendations
The factory, on which the risk assessment has been done, must follow certain steps in order to ensure a
safe and secure work environment for the workers. It is recommended that,
 The management should conduct frequent risk assessments to ensure the workers are safe from
any unwanted mishaps,
 The old as well as new machineries should be maintained properly at least thrice a month,
 The supervisors must ensure the safety of vulnerable workers and monitor them for initial few
months,
 An unlabelled liquid should be labelled and unguarded sharp objects should be provided with
metal guards,

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 Training programmes should be conducted for the workers to upgrade the skills and practical
knowledge,
 Workers should be influenced to use needful safety gears, and the management must ensure
sufficient gears are available in accordance to the number of workers,
 Any abnormality in workplace or in machines should be reported to the supervisor at once,
 Work safety policies should be followed by the employers.
Conclusion
Work safety is a much anticipated subject as it is responsible for employee turnover and employee
dissatisfaction. The employers must ensure that their employees are well-protected. Once the employees
are satisfied with the safety policies and actions taken by organisation, their productivity at workplace
would increase, giving a positive boost to the organisational growth. This report contains a number of
factors associated with work safety. The report aims to provide the reader with a thorough idea about the
implications of work safety and needful measures to ensure a safe work environment.

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References
Amponsah-Tawiah, K., & Mensah, J. (2016). Occupational health and safety and organizational
commitment: evidence from the Ghanaian mining industry. Safety and Health at work, 7(3), 225-230.
Brauer, R. L. (2016). Safety and health for engineers. John Wiley & Sons.
Chari, R., Chang, C. C., Sauter, S. L., Sayers, E. L. P., Cerully, J. L., Schulte, P., ... & Uscher-Pines, L.
(2018). Expanding the paradigm of occupational safety and health: a new framework for worker well-
being. Journal of occupational and environmental medicine, 60(7), 589-593.
Donham, K. J., & Thelin, A. (2016). Agricultural medicine: Rural occupational and environmental
health, safety, and prevention. John Wiley & Sons.
Hofmann, D. A., Burke, M. J., & Zohar, D. (2017). 100 years of occupational safety research: From basic
protections and work analysis to a multilevel view of workplace safety and risk. Journal of Applied
Psychology, 102(3), 375.
Holt, A. S. J., & Allen, J. (2015). Principles of health and safety at work. Routledge.
Howard, J. (2017). Nonstandard work arrangements and worker health and safety. American journal of
industrial medicine, 60(1), 1-10.
Kearney, G. D., Rodriguez, G., Quandt, S. A., Arcury, J. T., & Arcury, T. A. (2015). Work safety climate,
safety behaviors, and occupational injuries of youth farmworkers in North Carolina. American journal of
public health, 105(7), 1336-1343.
Lundgren, R. E., & McMakin, A. H. (2018). Risk communication: A handbook for communicating
environmental, safety, and health risks. John Wiley & Sons.
Scanlon, K. A., Lloyd, S. M., Gray, G. M., Francis, R. A., & LaPuma, P. (2015). An approach to
integrating occupational safety and health into life cycle assessment: Development and application of
work environment characterization factors. Journal of industrial ecology, 19(1), 27-37.
Tetrick, L. E., Perrewé, P. L., & Griffin, M. (2017). Employee work-related health, stress, and safety.
In Handbook of employee selection (pp. 530-553). Routledge.

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Zwetsloot, G., Leka, S., & Kines, P. (2017). Vision zero: from accident prevention to the promotion of
health, safety and well-being at work. Policy and Practice in Health and Safety, 15(2), 88-100.