Creating Safe & Conducive Working Environments: A Must-Do For Organizations - Essay Sample

Introduction

It is very crucial for each and every organization to ensure the safety of its employees at the worksite. Employees should enjoy a conducive working environment while undertaking their daily operations and duties. A good and safe working platform motivates the employees and ensures that they deliver optimally and that the productivity is highly increased. Failure to manage safety results in work injuries and impacts on financial losses, human conflicts and civil penalties (Hadikusomo and Rowlinson, 2004). For these safety to exist however, there must be a special team that specializes in maintaining good working conditions and this team is the safety team comprised of safety engineers and safety managers.

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The two are very distinct in terms of their field of operations but work towards a common goal. Safety engineers play a greater role to ensure safety at the worksite. They focus mainly on hazard recognition which is an important element in the occurrence of an accident. Hazard recognition allows them to provide for relevant procedures to counter uncertainty. These engineers are tasked with the responsibility of developing procedures and designing systems that protect people from harm and also ensure that property is free from damage. It is also their duty to install these systems after design. They install devices such as fire suppression systems or instead give directions on how they can be installed. Before installation, the engineer must inspect all the equipment to be used in the design and ensure that they comply with safety codes according to the Occupational Health and Safety Act (OSHA). The engineer also inspects buildings to identify areas that can create risk and responds appropriately to counter such risks. They also constantly review employee safety programs and may recommend improvement including keeping up to date with new regulations concerning health and safety at the worksite.

On the other hand, the safety managers are mainly tasked with the managerial role. They educate the employees on the safety measures and ensure that they are updated. Creating a safety culture requires participation and commitment to occupational health and safety by everyone (Muniz et al., 2009). It also their mandate to ensure that employees use the right tool or equipment for the right job. They are also mandated to keep a check at all tools to ensure that repair and maintenance go on smoothly so as to ensure that the tools are fully operational. In case of any hazards around the worksite, it is their duty to inform the safety engineer so that appropriate action can be taken. The managers also record, manage and analyze any data that is linked to safety. They also ensure that the basic first aid kits are constantly available. It is their duty also to ensure that their respective organization is compliant with the relevant safety legislation.

The engineers and managers interact severally. For example during the installation of a fire suppression system, the engineer installs the system accompanied by the manager and after installation directs the manager on how the system should be maintained and used. In case of a failure in scaffolding during construction, the manager consults the safety engineer who in turn develops a new design on how the scaffolding should be set.

References

Fernandez-Muniz, B., Montes-Peon, J. M., & Vazquez-Ordas, C. J. (2009). Relation between occupational safety management and firm performance. Safety science, 47(7), 980-991.

Hadikusumo, B. H. W., & Rowlinson, S. (2004). Capturing safety knowledge using a design-for-safety-process tool. Journal of construction engineering and management, 130(2), 281-289.