Contemporary Safety & Health Management in the Workplace
If you have ever worked outside the home, you probably know about OSHA. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration exists to keep the workplace safe and productive for employees. It is also responsible for making the workplace fair. Not only does it enforce fairness for workers, it takes actions to ensure that quality work is done within this safe and equitable environment.
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Saftey in the Workplace
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Safety and health management in the workplace has evolved over the years from simple things such as requiring workers to wear hardhats in a construction area to requiring many in the American workforce to take lifesaving courses.
Free of Danger
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The original act came into law in 1970 to guarantee that employees work in a safe place, free of hazards such as toxic items and gases, dangerous machines, unsanitary conditions or any overly stressful or threatening situation.
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Railroad Safety
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In fact, in 1893, a law went into effect that required safety equipment in the workplace. It only covered the railroad business, but was a start. Employee safety in the workplace has been increasing ever since. Along with addressing obvious bodily dangers, many studies on the mental health of employees have been conducted. The extent of regulations to this effect remains to be seen.
Management
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When manageres set up guidelines for the safety and health of the employees, they need to realize that it is not optional. Because management cannot be there to watch all employees all the time, everyone is responsible for following the guidelines. If the guidelines are not being followed, management must take responsibility and act. This may lead to termination of an offending employee. Considering the consequences of not playing it safe, following these guidelines should be second nature for every employee.
The Staggering Statistics
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About 4.1 million people a year suffer from a workplace injury or illness, according to KnowYourRights.com. Approximately 1000 deaths a year occur because of work-related illness or injuries. Workplace illness, injuries and death cost us as a society nearly $155.5 billion dollars yearly. Construction workers, in one of the most dangerous jobs of all, account for one out of every five workplace deaths. Statistics like this truly underscore the need for enforcement of workplace safety.
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References
- Photo Credit Image by Flickr.com, courtesy of National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
