Columbia Southern University Safety and Health Management Discussion InstructionsYou were recently hired as an occupational safety and health consultant for
Gemstone Fabricators, a medium-sized manufacturing facility that makes
stainless steel counters, containers, and carts for the food prep and
restaurant industries. Several years ago, Gemstone decided it wanted to become
an Occupational Safety and Health Adminstration (OSHA) Voluntary Protection
Program (VPP) site. It also wants to send the application to OSHA in the
upcoming year. Further, there is a keen interest to align with the ANSI/AIHA
Z10 standard. In going through the application submission materials, you noticed
something that threw up a red flag, however. Although there was an
accountability requirement specified in front-line workers’ performance
evaluation documentation for safety performance, there was no such requirement
in the performance evaluation documentation for supervisors, managers, or
executives. Your discussions with employees also suggest that, although the
employer wants the front-line workers to be heavily involved in the safety
effort, they are not always sure exactly what they are supposed to be doing to
help move the company’s safety programs forward. Another issue that concerns you is that the effort to implement a safety and
health management systems approach appears to be somewhat piecemeal. You are
finding it difficult to identify a clear Plan-Do-Check-Act approach to
continuous improvement. Please compose a two-page document for your client to include your
evaluation of these deficiencies along with an explanation of the significance
of these problems in relation to the safety and health management systems
approach. Your goal is to help the employer understand why these issues need to
be attended to prior to submitting your application. In your response, be sure
to do the following things:
include an introduction that establishes the issues and provides
necessary background information,
assess the importance of establishing safety accountability measures
for managers, employees, and safety professionals,
appraise the assignment of safety-related job tasks, and
apply the Plan-Do-Check-Act framework to resolve a safety deficiency.
Your paper must be a minimum of two pages in length, and it should be in
APA format. You must use a minimum of one scholarly resource. Any information
from this source should be cited and referenced in accordance with APA
guidelines. UNIT III STUDY GUIDE
Planning, Leadership, and
Employee Involvement
Course Learning Outcomes for Unit III
Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to:
2. Evaluate how accountability affects performance management in safety management programs.
2.1 Assess the importance of establishing safety accountability measures for managers,
employees, and safety professionals.
3. Analyze the importance of clarity in assigning safety-related job tasks.
3.1 Appraise the assignment of safety-related job tasks.
6. Relate continuous improvement principles to safety management concepts.
6.1 Apply the Plan-Do-Check-Act framework to resolve a safety deficiency.
Course/Unit
Learning Outcomes
2.1
3.1
6.1
Learning Activity
Unit lesson; Chapter 6; Chapter 8; Essay
Unit lesson; Chapter 10; Essay
Unit lesson; Chapter 7; Chapter 9; Essay
Reading Assignment
Chapter 6: Safety Professionals as Culture Change Agents
Chapter 7: The Plan-Do-Check-Act Concept (PDCA)
Chapter 8: Management Leadership and Employee Participation: Section 3.0 of Z10
Chapter 9: Planning: Section 4.0 of Z10
Chapter 10: Implementation and Operation: Section 5.0 of Z10
Unit Lesson
In this unit, we will be considering a key, central concept of safety and health management systems. Given
that safety and health management approaches are based on the central tenets of Total Quality Management
(TQM), this unit lesson is reminiscent of what one might read in a quality management class. In essence,
management systems are based on a continuous improvement cycle that involves planning, self-evaluation,
and acting. As you read through the materials for this unit, you will see that this cycle works in a fashion that
allows organizations to base decisions and actions on information in order to improve.
Planning is an essential part of our daily activities. We plan on what time to get up in the morning, what to
prepare for breakfast, and what route we will take to get to work. The remainder of the day usually follows a
similar pattern of planning. Sometimes our plans do not work the way we intended. We planned to have eggs
for breakfast, but there were no eggs in the refrigerator, so we had cereal. The point is that effective planning
requires the right information at the right time. If we knew that we did not have eggs, then they would not have
been included in the choices. Did we know we had English muffins? They might have been a better choice
than cereal.
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A recurring framework in ANSI/AIHA Z10 is Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA). The four
in theGUIDE
process are not
UNITsteps
x STUDY
linear but represent a continuous cycle for continuous improvement. Indeed, one
does not necessarily have to
Title
start at a given point in the cycle. One could start on any of the four points. For instance, one could choose to
check on the preliminary results of a project, choose to plan how to improve a project that has been
implemented, or decide to move forward with implementation of an agreed-upon plan. Going back to the
breakfast example, if I already have eggs because of good planning in making the grocery list, then I could
cook them for breakfast, or Do. If I find I do not have them, that is, Check, then I can pick some up later in the
day, or Act. That will make planning for the next day’s breakfast a bit easier. This is a simplified example, but
you get the point. Continuous improvement requires that one apply a systematic means of evaluating the
situation and acting on the findings. The Plan, Do, Check, Act approach helps to provide a system that has
proven to work well in the management world.
The bottom line here for our purposes is that the
PDCA cycle, although borrowed from other
successful management systems efforts, is
important for an effective safety management
system (SMS) as well. Also, it is important to
remember that the purpose of an SMS is to reduce
the risk of occupational injuries, illnesses, and
fatalities.
In applying this concept to evaluating a given
workplace, first, we need to determine if there is a
management system in place. At this point, we have
already moved over to Check. If there is a system,
and usually there is some kind of system though it
may only cover the basics, we then need to
evaluate how well it identifies, analyzes, prioritizes,
The PDCA Cycle
(Karn-b, 2009)
and controls workplace conditions that can cause
injuries, illnesses, and fatalities. If there is no SMS
or if the SMS is not particularly sophisticated, then we will need to establish processes that identify, analyze,
prioritize, and control these unwanted conditions.
Two very important components of any successful safety management system are management leadership
and employee participation (Manuele, 2014). In essence, management leadership is significant to the success
of the safety and health efforts because it is critical that the leadership of the organization makes it clear that
safety and health is a core value of the organization. This is often accomplished when key leaders
consistently stress the importance of safety in the organization. They walk the talk, support the efforts of
employees and employee committees on safety-related issues, and provide funding necessary to assure
implementation of hazard control measures. Celebrating success of the program with employees can also go
a long way toward building a culture that embraces safety. Employee involvement is important because
allowing employees to have input and control over safety related policies and practices helps to ensure their
buy-in of the program. Consider something as simple as selecting safety glasses for workers. If employees
are offered a number of styles to choose from and have input on what styles are made available, it just makes
sense that they will be more likely to wear them as compared to purchasing the cheapest, nerdiest looking
safety glasses on the market.
While it is recognized that management leadership and commitment must come first, the management
system cannot succeed without employee involvement. Together, management and employees define the
system of expected behavior, or culture, that drives the occupational safety and health (OSH) program.
Committed leadership that leads by example and engaged, empowered employees can take the organization
where it needs to go with respect to both safety and quality.
With all this said, where does the safety professional fit in? The safety professional has a number of critical
roles to play to ensure the success of the organization’s safety and health efforts. He or she serves as the
resident subject matter expert on more technical aspects of safety and health. There is also a coordinating
role, however, in keeping the organizational leadership and employees involved and engaged in the safety
effort. Thus, the safety professional acts as a rudder and recommends adjustments in activities that will keep
the safety culture moving in the desired direction. Again, this can be considered a part of Check in the PDCA
BOS 3651, Total Environmental Health and Safety Management
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cycle. The safety professional will likely play other routine, typical functions asUNIT
well such
as overseeing
x STUDY
GUIDE and
coordinating compliance and training efforts.
Title
Manuele (2014) stresses that a successful safety culture starts with a clearly defined set of expectations for
all levels of an organization in regards to the OSH program. Responsibility and authority must be clearly
defined, and all must be held accountable for their actions or inactions. As previously discussed, opportunities
for employee involvement are critical. Opportunities to participate through activities such as hazard reviews,
incident investigation, health and safety committees, inspections and audits, and the development of training
programs and procedures should be given to employees. Once again, making workplace safety a participative
activity will encourage employees to take ownership of their own safety and the safety of those around them.
Inadequate management, leadership, and
employee involvement have been identified as
critical causal factors in a number of serious
incidents in recent years, most notably the BP
refinery explosion in Texas in 2005 and the
Columbia shuttle disaster in 2003. Lessons
learned from these and other incidents should be
incorporated into every safety management
system.
The importance and effect of participation was
demonstrated in the 1920s in what are now called
the Hawthorne Studies (Roughton & Mercurio,
2002). What started out as research into employee
productivity related to various working conditions
revealed that the simple act of management
Extinguishing fires at the BP refinery in Texas City following a
allowing employees to participate in discussions
2005 explosion
regarding work-related improvements improved
(Chemical Safety and Hazards Investigation Board, 2005)
productivity even if no changes were made. This
led researchers down a new path to investigate the social environment in the workplace. The full implications
of the Hawthorne Study results continue to be debated, but the essence remains true: employee involvement
improves the culture.
Thus far, this unit lesson has discussed employee involvement, management commitment, and the PDCA
approach. There were some allusions to the relationship between the two, but a clear explication of the
relationship is worth exploring further. In essence, organizational leaders must be committed not only to the
day-to-day routine of a given facility’s safety and health efforts, but they must also be committed to continuous
improvement, and the PDCA approach has been demonstrated time and time again to serve as a useful tool
for organizational self-evaluation and improvement. Likewise, the need for employee involvement in order to
make the safety program a success is also closely tied to the PDCA approach because it is the employees
themselves who are doing a good portion of the work with respect to safety and health program
implementation. This high level of involvement makes them key players in the PDCA process, which also
helps to ensure a safer workplace in return for their efforts.
This unit lesson has focused on the importance of leadership commitment and the involvement of employees
in successful safety-management-systems-based programs. These observations were also integrated with a
discussion of the Plan-Do-Check-Act approach common to management-systems-based continuous
improvement efforts. These are all important, closely related approaches necessary for safety cultures to take
hold in organizations. They are also responsible for successful quality and safety efforts implemented by
many companies throughout the world.
References
Chemical Safety and Hazards Investigation Board. (2005, March 23). BP plant explosion-1 lowres2 [Image].
Retrieved from http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:BP_PLANT_EXPLOSION-1_lowres2.jpg
BOS 3651, Total Environmental Health and Safety Management
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Karn-b. (2009, February 5). PDCA-Cycle [Image]. Retrieved from
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PDCA-Cycle.png
UNIT x STUDY GUIDE
Title
Manuele, F. A. (2014). Advanced safety management: Focusing on Z10 and serious injury prevention (2nd
ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.
Roughton, J. E., & Mercurio, J. J. (2002). Developing an effective safety culture: A leadership approach.
Boston, MA: Butterworth-Heinemann.
Suggested Reading
In order to access the following resources, click the links below.
The articles and webpages below are suggested readings or resources that can provide further information on
operational safety and training:
Hansen, L. L. (2005). Stepping up to operational safety excellence. Occupational Hazards, 67(5), 43–47.
Retrieved from
https://libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direc
t=true&db=bth&AN=17425351&site=ehost-live&scope=site
Occupational Safety & Health Administration. (2001). How to plan for workplace emergencies and
evacuations (OSHA Publication No. 3088, Rev. ed.). Retrieved from
https://www.osha.gov/Publications/osha3088.pdf
Occupational Safety & Health Administration. (1998). Training requirements in OSHA standards (OSHA
Publication No. 2254, Rev. ed.). Retrieved from https://www.osha.gov/Publications/osha2254.pdf
Learning Activities (Nongraded)
Nongraded Learning Activities are provided to aid students in their course of study. You do not have to submit
them. If you have questions, contact your instructor for further guidance and information.
Evaluating Management Leadership and Employee Participation
Note: This activity can be used as one of the building blocks of the Unit VIII Project.
Using Chapter 8 of the course textbook and the other readings in this unit as guides, evaluate management
leadership, Occupational Health and Safety Management Systems (OHSMS) policy, responsibility and
authority, and employee participation at your current organization or an organization with which you are
familiar. For objective evidence to support your evaluation, look for organizational documents such as safety
manuals and instructions, safe operating procedures, and job hazard analyses and records such as emails or
letters from management to employees, safety meeting minutes, mishap logs, audit reports, OSHA citations,
inspection reports, risk assessments, and training records. Interview management personnel, supervisors,
and employees, and walk through some workplaces to observe conditions for yourself.
Prepare a report to management that summarizes the positive and negative results of the evaluation and
provides recommendations for improvement.
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