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Copyright © 2017 Pearson Education, Inc.
Part Five
Enrichment Topics in Human Resources Management
Chapter 16
Safety, Health, and Risk Management
Lecture Outline:
Introduction: Safety and the Manager
Why Safety Is Important
Improving Performance: HR as a Profit Center
Management’s Role in Safety
Improving Performance: The Strategic Context
The Supervisor’s role in Accident Prevention
Manger’s Briefing on Occupational Safety Law
OSHA Standards and Record Keeping
Inspections and Citations
Responsibilities and Rights of Employers and Employees
Improving Performance: HR Tools for Line Managers and Small Businesses
Trends Shaping HR: Digital and Social Media
What Causes Accidents?
What Causes Unsafe Conditions?
What Causes Unsafe Acts?
How to Prevent Accidents
Reducing Unsafe Conditions
Diversity Counts: Protecting Vulnerable Workers
Reducing Unsafe Acts
Reducing Unsafe Acts Through Screening
Reducing Unsafe Acts Through Training
Improving Performance Through HRIS: Online Safety Training
Reducing Unsafe Acts Through Posters, Incentives, and Positive Reinforcement
Improving Performance: HR as a Profit Center
Reducing Unsafe Acts by Fostering a Culture of Safety
Reducing Unsafe Acts by Creating a Supportive Environment
Reducing Unsafe Acts by Establishing a Safety Policy
Reducing Unsafe Acts by Setting Specific Loss Control Goals
Reducing Unsafe Acts Through Behavior-Based and Safety Awareness Programs
Reducing Unsafe Acts Through Employee Participation
Trends Shaping HR: Digital and Social Media
Conducting Safety and Health Audits and Inspections
Employee Engagement Guide for Managers
Milliken & Company—World-Class Safety Through Employee Engagement
Involvement-Based Employee Engagement
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Workplace Health Hazards: Problems and Remedies
Chemicals and Industrial Hygiene
Improving Performance: HR Practices Around the Globe
Know Your Employment Law: Hazard Communication
Asbestos Exposure at Work and Air Quality
Alcoholism and Substance Abuse
Stress, Burnout, and Depression
Solving Computer-Related Ergonomic Problems
Repetitive Motion Disorders
Infectious Diseases
Workplace Smoking
Occupational Security and Risk Management
Enterprise Risk Management
Preventing and Dealing with Violence at Work
Securing the Facility
Company Security and Employee Privacy
Business Continuity and Emergency Plans
Trends Shaping HR: Digital and Social Media
Twitter Notifications
Terrorism
Chapter Review
Where Are We Now..
The main purpose of this chapter is to provide you with knowledge managers need to reduce
workplace safety and health problems. The main topics we discuss are safety and the manager;
manager’s briefing on occupational safety law; what causes accidents; how to prevent accidents;
employee engagement based safety programs; workplace health hazards – problems and
remedies; and occupational security and risk management.
Interesting Issues:
When it comes to safety strategy, the explosion and fire on British Petroleum’s (BP’s)
Deepwater Horizon rig in the Gulf of Mexico back in 2010 still stands out for what can go
wrong. The blast took the lives of 11 workers. Reports from the scene said a malfunctioning
blowout preventer failed to activate, causing the disaster. Past critics of BP’s safety practices
weren’t so sure.
Learning Objectives:
16-1: Explain the supervisor’s role in safety.
16-2: Explain the basic facts about safety law and OSHA.
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16-3: Answer the question, “What causes accidents?”
16-4: List and explain five ways to prevent accidents at work.
16-5: Describe how one company uses employee engagement to improve workplace safety.
16-6: List five workplace health hazards and how to deal with them.
16-7: Discuss the prerequisites for a security plan and how to set up a basic security program.
Annotated Outline:
I. Introduction: Safety and the Manager
A. Why Safety Is Important – safety and accident prevention concern managers for several
reasons, one of which is the staggering number of workplace accidents.
B. Improving Performance: HR as a Profit Center
C. Management’s Role in Safety – reducing accidents often boils down to reducing
accident-causing conditions and accident-causing acts. Most safety experts would agree
that safety should start at the top.
D. Improving Performance: The Strategic Context
E. The Supervisor’s Role in Accident Prevention – local supervisors are responsible for day-
to-day inspections. Daily inspections should be part of a supervisor’s routine.
II. Manger’s Briefing on Occupational Safety Law – Congress passed the Occupational Safety
and Health Act of 1970 “ to assure so far as possible every working man and woman in the
nation safe and healthful working conditions and to preserve our human resources.” This act
created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) within the Department of
Labor.
A. OSHA Standards and Record Keeping – under OSHA, employers with 11 or more
employees must maintain records of, and report occupational injuries and occupational
illnesses, which are any abnormal conditions or disorders caused by inhalation,
absorption, ingestion, or direct contact with toxic substances or harmful agents.
B. What The Employer Must Report – employers must report all occupational illnesses and
injuries, specifically those that result in medical treatment (other than first aid), loss of
consciousness, restriction of work, (one or more lost workdays), restrictions of motion, or
transfer to another job.
C. Inspections and Citations – are how OSHA enforces its standards. The agency has limited
funds so it tries to encourage cooperative safety programs as well.
1. The Inspection – it begins when the OSHA officer arrives at the workplace. He or
she displays credentials and asks to meet an employer’s representative. (The
credentials must include photograph and serial number). The OSHA inspector
looks for all types of violations, but some areas grab more attention. The five
most frequent OSHA inspection violations are: scaffolding, fall protection, hazard
communication, lockout/tagout (electrical disengagement), and respiratory
problems.
2. Penalties – OSHA can impose penalties. These generally range from $5000 up to
$150,000 for willful or repeat serious violations but can be far higher. In general,
OSHA calculates penalties based on the gravity of the violation and usually takes
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into consideration things like the size of the business, the firm’s compliance
history, and the employer’s good faith.
D. Responsibilities and Rights of Employers and Employees – employers are responsible for
providing a hazard-free workplace, being familiar with mandatory OSHA standards, and
examining workplace conditions to make sure they conform to applicable standards.
Employers have the right to seek advice and off-site consultation from OSHA, request
and receive proper identification of the OSHA compliance officer before inspection, and
be advised by the compliance officer of the reason for an inspection. OSHA can’t cite
employees for violations of their responsibilities. Employees are responsible for
complying with all applicable OSHA standards, for following all employer safety and
health rules and regulations, and for reporting hazardous conditions to the supervisor.
Employees have a right to demand safety and health on the job without fear of
punishment. The act forbids employers from punishing or discriminating against workers
who complain to OSHA about job safety and health hazards.
E. Improving Performance: HR Tools for Line Managers and Small Businesses
F. Trends Shaping HR: Digital and Social Media
III. What Causes Accidents? – there are three basic causes of workplace accidents: chance
occurrences, unsafe conditions, and employees’ unsafe acts.
A. What Causes Unsafe Conditions? – unsafe conditions are a main cause of
accidents such as improperly guarded equipment, defective equipment,
hazardous procedures around machines or equipment, unsafe storage,
improper illumination, and improper ventilation.
1. Safety Climate – work schedules and fatigue can affect
accident rate. The workplace “climate” or psychology is very
important. A strong pressure to complete the work as quickly
as possible, employees who are under stress, and poor safety
climate were some of the psychological conditions leading to
accidents.
B. What Causes Unsafe Acts? – unfortunately, there are no easy answers to the
question of what causes unsafe acts. The consensus is that accident proneness
is situational. Some accident repeaters are just unlucky, or they may be more
meticulous about reporting. Certain traits have been identified with accident
proneness. For example, people who are impulsive, sensation seeking,
extremely introverted, and less conscientious (in terms of being less fastidious
and dependable) have more accidents.
IV. How to Prevent Accidents
A. Reducing Unsafe Conditions – reducing unsafe conditions is always an employer’s first
line of defense. Safety engineers should design jobs to remove hazards, and supervisors
and managers should help identify and remove potential hazards.
1. Job Hazard Analysis – performing a job hazard analysis involves looking at the
situation and asking the following questions: What can go wrong? What are the
consequences? How could it happen? What are other contributing factors? The
job hazard analysis should provide the basis for creating countermeasures.
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2. Operational Safety Reviews – are conducted by agencies to ascertain whether
units under their jurisdiction are complying with all the applicable safety laws,
regulations, orders, and rules.
3. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) – protective gear should fit properly, be
easy to care for, maintain, and repair; be flexible and lightweight; provide comfort
and reduce heat stress; have rugged construction, be relatively easy to put on and
take off; and be easy to clean, dispose of, and recycle.
B. Diversity Counts – Protecting Vulnerable Workers – in designing safe and healthy
environments, employers should pay special attention to venerable workers, such as
young, immigrant, aging, and women workers.
C. Reducing Unsafe Acts – human misbehavior will short-circuit even the best safety
efforts. Sometimes misbehavior is intentional. Unfortunately, just telling employees to
“pay attention” isn’t enough, employers should identify and try to eliminate potential
risks, reduce potential distractions, and carefully screen and train employees.
D. Reducing Unsafe Acts through Screening – the basic aim is to identify the trait that might
predict accidents on the job in question, and then screen candidates for this trait. Studies
suggest that the Employee Reliability Inventory (ERI)—which measures reliability
dimensions such as emotional maturity, conscientiousness, safe job performance, job
simulation test, and physical capabilities—is also used.
E. Reducing Unsafe Acts through Training – training is especially appropriate for new
employees. You should instruct employees in safe practices and procedures, warn them
of potential hazards, and work on developing a safety-conscious attitude. OSHA’s
standards require more than training. Employees must demonstrate they actually learned
what to do. OSHA has published two booklets: “Training Requirements under OSHA”
and “Teaching Safety and Health in the Workplace.” The main aim is to impart the
knowledge and skills required to reduce accidents.
F. Improving Performance Through HRIS: Online Safety Training – many employers are
turning to the Web to support their safety and training programs.
G. Reducing Unsafe Acts through Posters, Incentives, and Positive Reinforcement – safety
posters are one, incentive programs are another, in which the emphasis is on non-
traditional incentive like recognition, which should be a part of the comprehensive safety
program.
H. Improving Performance: HR as a Profit Center: Using Positive Reinforcement – many
employers use positive reinforcement to improve safety. This segment discusses the
experience of a wholesale bakery. The firm set and communicated a reasonable goal;
trained the employees; then posted a graph with their pre-training safety record plotted
and a list of safety rules. Observers walked through collecting safety data to provide
workers with feedback on their safety performance as a form of positive reinforcement.
I. Reducing Unsafe Acts by Fostering a Culture of Safety – employers and supervisors
should create a safety-conscious culture by showing that they take safety seriously. A
workplace with a safety-oriented culture exhibits the following: teamwork,
communication and collaboration, shared vision, assignment, continuous effort, and
encouragement.
J. Reducing Unsafe Acts by Creating a Supportive Environment – “Organizations can
develop a supportive environment by training supervisors to be better leaders,
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emphasizing the importance of teamwork and social support, and establishing the value
of safety.”
K. Reducing Unsafe Acts by Establishing a Safety Policy – the company’s written safety
policy should emphasize that accident prevention is of the utmost importance at your
firm, and that the firm will do everything practical to illuminate or reduce accidents and
injuries.
L. Reducing Unsafe Acts by Setting Specific Loss Control Goals – set specific safety goals
to achieve. For example, set safety goals in terms of frequency of loss-time injuries per
number of full-time employees.
M. Reducing Unsafe Acts through Behavior-Based and Safety Awareness Programs – this
involves identifying the worker behaviors that contribute to accidents and then training
workers to avoid these behaviors.
N. Reducing Unsafe Acts through Employee Participation – there are at least two reasons to
get the employees involved in designing the safety program. First, those actually doing
the jobs are often management’s best source of ideas about what the potential problems
are and how to solve them. Second, it is generally easier to get employees to accept and
enthusiastically follow the safety program when they’ve had a hand in designing it.
O. Trends Shaping HR: Digital and Social Media
P. Conducting Safety and Health Audits and Inspections – managers should inspect all
premises for possible safety and health problems, using checklists as aids. All accidents
and near misses should be investigated. A system should be in place for employees to
notify management about hazardous conditions.
V. Employee Engagement Guide for Managers
A. Milliken & Company—World class Safety Through Employee Engagement – founded in
1865 and is privately owned. It is the only company to consistently rank as a “most
ethical company” for 15 years running. A survey of the employees found an 80%
positive engagement level, based on questions concerning employees’ commitment, pride
in the company, and empowerment efforts. Its extraordinary low workplace illness and
injury rates means it consistently rates as one of the safest companies in which to work.
B. Involvement-Based Employee Engagement – this is the centerpiece of Milliken’s safety
program. Employees staff the safety steering and safety subcommittee system, who then
submit “opportunity for improvement” suggestions weekly, review each suggestion, and
provide feedback on every suggestion.
VI. Workplace Health Hazards: Problems and Remedies
A. Chemicals and Industrial Hygiene – first, the facility’s health and safety officers must
recognize possible exposure hazards. The evaluation phase involves determining how
severe the hazard is. Finally, the hazard control phase involves taking steps to eliminate
or reduce the hazard so that it no longer ranks as dangerous.
B. Improving Performance: HR Practices Around the Globe
C. Know Your Employment Law – Hazard Communication
D. Asbestos Exposure at Work and Air Quality – there are four major sources of
occupational respiratory diseases: asbestos, silica, lead, and carbon dioxide. Of these,
asbestos has become a major concern. Air Quality –“Green” office buildings produce
illnesses such as itchy eyes and troubled breathing. The solution is to monitor the air
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quality whenever they expect the level of asbestos to rise to one-half the allowable limit
(0.1 fibers per cubic centimeter).
E. Alcoholism and Substance Abuse – about two-thirds of people with an alcohol disorder
work full-time. Some estimate that almost 13 million workers use drugs illicitly.
Alcoholism may cost U.S. employers about $226 billion per year in higher absenteeism
and accidents. For many employers, dealing with substance abuse begins with substance
abuse testing. Drug-free workplace programs include five components: 1) A drug-free
workplace policy, 2) Supervisor Training, 3) Employee Education, 4) Employee
Assistance, and 5) Drug Testing.
F. Stress, Burnout, and Depression – can sometimes lead to alcoholism and drug abuse,
which are problematic for both the employee and employer. A variety of external
workplace factors can lead to job stress. Personal factors also influence stress – no two
people react to the same job in the very same way. Human consequences of stress
include anxiety, depression, anger, and various physical consequences. Organizational
consequences include reductions in the quantity and quality of job performance,
increased absenteeism and turnover, increased grievances, and increased health care
costs. Stress is not necessarily dysfunctional; it can lead some people to be more
productive and/or creative.
1. Reducing Job Stress – employees can reduce stress by getting more sleep, eating
better, and negotiating with managers for realistic deadlines on important projects.
The three-step stress-reduction technique involves developing awareness,
adjusting attitudes, and taking action. The HR department can take a positive role
in reducing stress.
2. What The Employer Can Do – supportive supervisors and fair treatment are
important. Reducing personal conflicts on the job and encouraging open
communication between management and employees can help. Some employers
use “resilience training” to help employees deal with stress.
3. Burnout – is the total depletion of physical and mental resources caused by
excessive striving to reach an unrealistic work-related goal. Some suggestions for
alleviating burnout include breaking your patterns; getting away from it all
periodically; reassessing your goals in terms of their intrinsic worth; and thinking
about your work.
4. Employee Depression – organizations must ensure that depressed employees use
available support services. Employers need to train supervisors to identify
depression’s warning signs and to counsel those who may need such services to
use the firm’s employee assistance program. Depression is a disease.
G. Solving Computer-Related Ergonomic Problems – short-term eye problems (like burning,
itching, tearing, eyestrain, and eye soreness), backaches, and neck-aches are common
complaints among video display operators. The National Institute for Occupational
Safety and Health (NIOSH) has several recommendations for reducing these problems.
H. Repetitive Motion Disorders – such disorders include carpal tunnel syndrome and
tendonitis. Employees can reduce the issue if the pace of work is altered.
I. Infectious Diseases – with many employees traveling to and from international
destinations, monitoring and controlling infectious diseases like H1N1, Ebola, and SARS
has become an important safety issue. Obviously, employers must make provisions for
ensuring that a returning employee does not inadvertently infect one or more colleagues.
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Employers can take a number of steps to prevent the entry or spread of infectious diseases
into their workplaces. These steps include:
1. Closely monitor the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) travel
alerts. Access this information at www.cdc.gov.
2. Provide daily medical screenings for employees returning from infected areas.
3. Deny access for 10 days to employees or visitors who have had contact with
suspected infected individuals.
4. Tell employees to stay home if they have a fever or respiratory system symptoms.
5. Clean work areas and surfaces regularly. Make sanitizers containing alcohol
easily available.
6. Stagger breaks. Offer several lunch periods to reduce overcrowding.
G. Workplace Smoking – the nature of the problem is serious for employees and employers.
Smokers have significantly greater risk of occupational accidents and higher absenteeism
rates than nonsmokers. Smokers increase the cost of health and fire insurance.
VI. Occupational Security and Risk Management – workplace security relates to protecting
employees from internal and external surety risks.
A. Enterprise Risk Management – is “the process of assessing exposures to loss within an
operation and determining how best to eliminate, manage, or otherwise reduce the risk of
an adverse event from having a negative impact on the business.” Companies face a
variety of risks, only some of which are direct risks to employees’ health and safety.
Specific risks include, for instance, natural disaster risks, financial risks, and risks to the
firm’s computer systems. Human capital risks would rank high. These include safety
risks like those we discussed in this chapter as well as, for instance, risks from
unionization and from inadequate staffing plans.
B. Preventing and Dealing with Violence at Work – violence against employees is one such
internal preventable enterprise risk, and a huge problem. Human Resources can take
several steps to reduce workplace violence risk which include the following: heighten
security measures, improve employee screening, use workplace violence training, use
guidelines for firing a high-risk employee, and awareness of violence toward women at
work.
C. Securing the Facility – in simplest terms, instituting a basic security program requires
four steps: analyzing the current level of risk, and then installing mechanical, natural, and
organizational security systems.
D. Company Security and Employee Privacy – employers must consider employee privacy
when using monitoring to investigate possible employee security breaches. Security
programs often entail monitoring employee communications and workplace activities.
E. Business Continuity and Emergence Plans – the possibility of emergencies prompted by
fires, attacks, and similar issues means that employers need facility continuity and
emergency plans. One source estimates that 40% of companies never reopen after
suffering business disruptions from a major catastrophe, so putting a disaster plan in
place is imperative. Such plans should cover early detection of a problem, methods for
communicating the emergency externally, and communications plans for initiating an
evacuation.
F. Trends Shaping HR: Digital and Social Media – Twitter notifications.
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G. Terrorism – the employer can take several steps to protect its employees and physical
assets from a terrorist attack. These steps, now familiar at many workplaces, include:
1. Screen the identities of everyone entering the premises.
2. Check mail carefully.
3. Identify ahead of time a lean “crisis organization” that can run the company on an
interim basis after a terrorist threat.
4. Identify in advance under what conditions you will close the company down, as
well as the shutdown process.
5. Institute a process to put the crisis management team together.
6. Prepare evacuation plans and make sure exits are well marked and unblocked.
7. Designate an employee who will communicate with families and off-site
employees.
8. Identify an upwind, off-site location near your facility to use as a staging area for
all evacuated personnel.
9. Designate in advance several employees who will do headcounts at the evacuation
staging area.
10. Establish an emergency text-messaging policy and procedure to notify affected
individuals that an emergency may exist.
Chapter Review
Chapter Section Summaries:
16-1: The subject safety and the manager concerns managers for several reasons, one of
which is the number of workplace accidents.
16-2: All managers need to be familiar with occupational safety laws.
16-3: There are three basic causes of workplace accidents: chance occurrences, unsafe
conditions, and employees’ unsafe acts.
16-4: In practice, how to prevent accidents boils down to reducing unsafe conditions and
reducing unsafe acts.
16-5: The centerpiece of Milliken’s safety process is its involvement-based employee
engagement program.
16-6: Most workplace health hazards aren’t obvious, like unguarded equipment.
16-7: Most employers today have occupational security and risk management programs.
Discussion Questions:
16-1: Explain how to reduce the occurrence of unsafe acts on the part of your employees.
This item can be assigned as a Discussion Question in MyManagementLab. Student
responses will vary.
16-2: Explain the supervisor’s role in safety.
