Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
need.to.ix.or.invest.heavily.in.safety.and.health.in.the.workplace..In.the.past,.the.use.
of.the.cost.avoidance.has.usually.resulted.in.support.of.my.proposal.
For.example,.consider.a.worker.who.received.a.back.injury.from.lifting.150 lb,.
a.task.that.he.performs.two.times.a.week..For.a.cost.of.$10,000,.the.injury.would.
never.occur.again..Would.the.cost.to.ix.the.situation.be.worth.the.prevention.of.an.
injury?. First. of. all,. what. employer. would. allow. an. employee. to. lift. such. a. heavy.
load?.Simply.allowing.this.practice.is.a.risk.in.itself..With.that.said,.let's.consider.
the.options.
If. a. risk/cost. formula. is. applied,. it. would. determine. that. the. risk. assessment.
factor.is.not.very.high,.principally.because.the.lift.is.only.performed.twice.a.week.
and. not. regularly.. Also,. using. a. justiication. factor,. it. should. deinitely. be. ixed.
or. removed.. The. analysis. sends. a. mixed. message. to. management.. So. the. case. to.
have.the.problem.ixed.may.not.be.very.strong.in.this.situation..A.cost.avoidance.
approach. may. be. a. better. avenue.. First,. let. us. assume. that. a. worker. gets. injured..
What.are.the.costs.incurred?
•. Lost-time:. Normal. back. strains. require. 7. to. 15. days. of. bed. rest. for. the.
injured..Let's.say.an.employee.makes.$10.00.per.hour.×.40-hour.work.week.
=.
$400.00
per.week.
•. Replacement.worker.for.the.injured.=.
$400.00
per.week.
•. Environmental,.Health.and.Safety.(EH&S).department.doing.the.incident.
investigation:. Average. wage. $15.00. per. hour. ×. 8. hours. of. investigation,.
assessment,.and.interviewing.=.
$120.00.
(Note.that.hourly.wages.have.been.
grossly.understated.)
•. Employees/supervisor. involved. in. the. investigation. and. interviewing. pro-
cess:.Worker/witness.at.$10.00.per.hour.×.1.hour.=.
$10.00
.and.supervisor.
at.average.pay.of.$13.00.per.hour.×.2.hours.=.
$26.00.
•. Finance.personnel.to.do.workers'.compensation.forms.and.insurance.forms..
It.takes.about.3.to.4.hours.of.work.to.collect.the.data..Assume.the.inance.
employee.makes.a.salary.of.$10.00.per.hour.×.4.hours.=.
$40.00.
•. Take. into. account. loss. of. production. or. equipment. damage.. Process. shut.
down.for.2.hours,.resulting.in.two.pieces.of.equipment.not.manufactured,.
each.worth.$2,000.×.2.=
$4,000.00.
•. Also,. do. not. forget. the. injured. worker. who. now. has. to. start. therapy..
Normally.a.2-week.process.for.strains..This.will.cost.close.to,.or.more.than,.
$5,000.00,
.depending.on.medical.services.needed.
•. The. company. will. need. to. retrain. employees. on. proper. lifting. and. back.
safety.and.again,.looking.at.wages.of.employees'.training.time,.lost.produc-
tion.for.training,.and.the.EH&S.person's.time.to.do.the.training,.this.cost.
could.be.well.over.
$5,000.00.
•. And.this.does.not.include.the.rise.in.premiums.for.your.workers'.compen-
sation.assessed.by.the.company's.insurance.carrier.or.Workers'.Compensa-
tion.Commissioner.
This. is. well. over. the. cost. of. $10,000.00. to. prevent. the. accident. from. occurring.
again.and.ensuring.the.safety.of.the.employees.who.can.return.home.and.enjoy.life..
