Safety, Health and Environmental

Management

Presenter: Mohammad Talip

Environmental Programmes

Project Assessment (Areas of concerns):

1. Health and Safety Plans are generic and not operational specific;

2. Legal appointments are not done;

3. SHE representatives are not appointed and trained;

4. Additional First Aiders are not appointed;

5. First Aid boxes not adequately stocked;

7. Vehicles do not comply with all standards;

8. Chainsaw operations do not comply with all safety standards;

9. Herbicide operations do not comply with all safety standards;

10. Project sites lack fire preparedness;

11. SHE meetings are not held in all projects;

12. SHE minutes are not properly kept

13. HIRA are not site specific;

14. Safe work procedures, registers & inspection forms are not implemented;

16. Damaged PPE are not replaced immediately & not SANS approved;

17. Incident Management are not adequate implemented;

18. Contingency plans are not in place;

19. Medical Surveillance programme to be implemented.

Health and Safety

Representatives

“Presentation Information supplied by SHERQ Tech”

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Herbert Heinrich (1931)

Analysis of 75 000 industrial accidents revealed the following:

Unsafe acts 88%

Unsafe conditions 10%

Providence 2%

100%

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Health and Safety

Representative (Sec. 17)

An employer and his employees and/or their representatives must consult in good faith regarding the procedures for the nomination, election, appointment, training and period of office of the health and safety representatives

NOTE: The words “Consult in Good Faith” means an agreement between the two parties

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Ratio

One Representative for every 50 employees or part of 50 / and for each

workplace or section of a workplace

OHSAct – Full time H&S Representatives?

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Health and Safety

Representatives

OHSAct provides for a high level of employee

participation

SHE programmes without employee participation are

not effective

Because of this H&S Reps must be diligent and well

trained

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Nomination and Election

Employer and employees

shall consult

No one shall dictate

Consult implies good faith and the

parties to the consultation should apply

their minds to the selection of diligent

Health and Safety Representatives (this

implies an agreement to be drawn up)

There should be no hidden agendas

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Arrangements and

Procedures

Employees working in a section must nominate

and thereafter elect persons to be a health and

safety representative

OHSAct does not prescribe for how long a H&S

Representative must be appointed… 2 years

Appointment must be in writing

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Replacement of

Representatives

If he fails to attend meetings without a

good reason

After expiry of office, or

If his employment is terminated, or

If he resigns as a health and safety

representative

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Eligibility

OHSAct only lists two requirements

1. To be employed in a full-time capacity

2. Must be acquainted with the working conditions

The employee shall also meet with the following criteria:

Able to read and write

Able to attend courses and pass examinations

Must be able to communicate successfully

Must be a motivated person

Must be able to function independently

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Functions of a Representative

(Sec.18)

He has numerous functions and these functions must be carried out during normal working hours

Review the effectiveness of health and safety measures

Identify potential hazards at the workplace

Examine the causes of accidents

Investigate complaints relating to health and safety

Communicate health safety concerns to the employer

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Functions (continue)

to represent your employee electorate’s interests in terms of occupational health and safety;

to carry out health and safety inspections of your workplace, as designated above, prior to health and safety committee meetings;

to serve on the appropriate health and safety committee;

to bring to the attention of your supervisor any deviations of health and safety issues that come to your attention;

to investigate, or assist with the investigation, of incidents in your area of responsibility

Communicate health safety concerns to the employer

Inspect the workplace, including any objects, substances, machinery and health and safety equipment

Participating in consultations with inspectors

Review information from inspectors

Remember NO remuneration as a SHE Representative

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H&S Representative

Inspection

Know what to look for

Practice inspection

Keep an open mind

Beware of general impressions

Guard against the habit of familiarity

Make personal contacts

Record findings

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Seven Ways to kill H&S Reps

1. Responsibility + accountability with no authority

2. Negative assigned persons, Sec.16(2) & Sec.

8(2)(i)

3. No dynamic health and safety committees

4. Not involved in accident investigations

5. No feedback on decisions taken

6. No management support

7. No ownership

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Rights of a Health and Safety Rep

Visit the site of an accident and attend

any investigation

Participate in any health and safety

audit in his area of responsibility

Accompany a technical advisor on any

inspection

Accompany an inspector on any

inspection within his area

Inspect any document which the

employer is required to keep in terms of

this Act

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Civil Liability

Health and safety representatives and members of health

and safety committees shall not incur any civil liability

by reason of the fact only that they failed to do

anything which they are required to do in terms of the

Act

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Health and Safety

Committees (Sec. 19)

OHSAct places a duty on the employer

to establish at least one health and

safety committee, where two or more

H&S reps have been appointed

They can convene at often as may be

necessary, but the minimum

requirement is to meet once per

quarter

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Committee Members

Employer representatives

Employee representatives

Co-opted members (no voting power)

Note: The number of employer representatives must never be more than the number of Health and Safety Representatives

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Committee Minutes

During the health and safety committee

meetings recommendations must be

made to the employer, and minutes

must be kept

The minutes must be signed by the

employer or a representative of the

employer

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Discussion

Additional to the recommendations, the committee

must consider all safety aspects;

Agenda (Items of discussion)

Welcome & attendance

Confirmation of previous minutes

Matters arising from previous minutes (action list)

Safety inspections

Incidents

Safety Management Systems review

General

Date of next meeting

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Functions of the Committee (Sec. 20)

Review and discuss all health and safety

representative inspection logbooks

Discuss any accidents and near misses reported

to the committee

Discuss potential hazards reported

Discuss employee complaints

Discuss occupational diseases submitted by the

occupational health practitioner

Make recommendations on all the above and

consult with employer

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Senior Management Health and

Safety Committee

Consideration should be given to establish an

executive health and safety committee.

Alternatively Health and Safety must be on the

agenda of all Management meetings for discussion

EP National SHE meeting (quarter)

EPIP SHE Regional meeting (quarter)

PPM SHE meetings (quarter)

Project SHE meetings (monthly)

Functions of the Committee

To initiate, develop, maintain, manage and review Safety, Health and Environmental Management Systems (policy, standards and procedures) to ensure the health and safety of employees, visitors and contractors within NRMP;

Review the effectiveness of health and safety measures in field;

Review minutes of Regional SHE Committee meetings and monitor whether corrective actions are closed out or not;

Make recommendation on new measures to be put in place to address risk areas;

Identify potential hazards and potential major incidents at the workplace;

To identify areas of safety training needed;

To discuss and implement any matter referred to by Regional SHE Committee’s, SHE representatives or any employee, on matters affecting the health & safety of employee’s at the workplace and make recommendations;

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Functions of the Committee

Discuss and implement items from the SHE Representative's

inspection reports, which could not be dealt with at Regional

SHE Committee meetings;

Discuss all incidents and document the preventative action

that will be taken to avoid the reoccurrence of a similar

incident;

Ensure action is initiated to correct high-risk condition or

human error reported by the SHE Representative;

The National SHE Committee must also amend policy where

necessary based on occupational health and safety

performance reviewed by the committee;

The committee needs to keep record of all recommendations

made, of the improvement of health & safety in the

workplace;

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Functions of the Committee

Keep written minutes of every meeting for five years;

Keep all the records of the Health & Safety inspection

summary reports for five years;

May make recommendations to the employer and, if these

are not resolved, refer them to an inspector of the

Department of Labour;

Must discuss any incident in the workplace in which or in

consequence of which any person was injured, became ill or

died;

Must perform any other functions as may be prescribed;

Members may participate in any internal or external safety

audit;

Keep a record of all recommendations and reports made to

the employer and/or the inspector.

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Discussion

The agenda for Area/Regional/National SHE Committee meetings must include the following:

Attendance

Apologies

Absentees

Approval of agenda

Approval of previous minutes

Report of actions taken as a result of items arising from the previous minutes

Review of quarterly/monthly incidents

Reading Committee reports

Inspection reports

Audit reports

Training statistics

Standing Committee reports

Other matters/General

Date of next meeting

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First aiders

The team will nominate and elect a First Aider (1 per field team);

Person selected must show interest in accepting the responsibility;

Person must be able to carry out First Aid.

Duties

to ensure that the first aid box or boxes under your control remain properly stocked to meet all foreseeable

incidents which may occur in your designated area of responsibility;

to ensure that first aid boxes are properly safeguarded, that the position of such boxes is properly demarcated and

that the names of aiders are conspicuously displayed on, or at, first aid boxes;

to ensure that you keep your first aid certificate current at all times for the duration of this appointment;

should the activities in your area of responsibility involve the use of hazardous chemical substances you must

familiarise yourself with the material safety data sheet (MSDS) for the particular substance/s, with particular

reference to the first aid measures to be applied in case of an emergency; and

to be readily available during working hours/shifts to administer first aid when required.