Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
PurPose oF joB sAFety oBservAtIon
The.basic.idea.of.a.JSO.is.simple:.It.is.a.special.effort.to.see.how.employees.do.their.
jobs..Planned.safety.observation.involves.more.effort.than.an.occasional.or.inciden-
tal.observation.of.job.procedures..This.chapter.describes.various.ways.of.determin-
ing.unsafe.practices.and.violations.of.safety.rules..This.accident.prevention.method.
emphasizes.the.importance.of.a.proper.supervisor-employee.relationship..Becoming.
more.interested.in.the.employee.through.observations.will.lead.to.greater.cooperation.
in.the.safety.and.health.program.
tyPes oF joB sAFety oBservAtIons
There.are.many.different.types.of.JSOs..The.two.that.are.reviewed.in.this.chapter.are.
incidental.observation.and.planned.observation.
i
nCiDEntAl
s
AfEty
o
bsErvAtions
Detecting. and. correcting. any. unsafe. behavior. is. an. important. duty. of. any. super-
visor..Supervisors.must.give.this.type.of.observation.as.much.attention.as.possible.
by.pausing.occasionally.to.discuss.the.actions.of.employees.and.observe.employees,.
and.by.observing.both.for.safe.and.unsafe.behaviors..This.observation.is.often.done.
by.a.casual.glance..These.actions.are.incidental.safety.observations..This.is.a.very.
informal.observation.approach.
P
lAnnED
s
AfEty
o
bsErvAtions
In.a.planned.observation,.the.supervisor.selects.the.employee.and.the.job.to.observe..
The.supervisor.also.decides.the.most.suitable.time..Some.supervisors.may.want.to.
make. assignments. for. planned. job. safety. observations.. The. basic. tool. for. making.
a. planned. observation. is. job. safety/hazard. analysis. (JSA/JHA).. (If. a. JSA/JHA. is.
not. used,. the. supervisor. must. be. completely. familiar. with. the. job. steps,. job. haz-
ards,.and.safe.job.procedures.).The.supervisor.should.observe.the.employee.doing.
a.complete.job.cycle,.paying.attention.to.safe.or.unsafe.procedures.and.conditions..
A. Planned. Job. Safety. Observation. Form. should. be. used. (see. Table 14.1).. All. safe.
practices.noted.should.result.in.a.sincere.compliment.to.the.employee.involved.while.
any.unsafe.actions.call.for.appropriate.corrective.measures..In.either.instance,.the.
supervisor. should. make. an. observation. record.. A. planned. safety. observation. is. a.
valuable.loss.prevention.tool.
selectIng A joB or tAsk For A PlAnned
joB sAFety oBservAtIon
To.conduct.a.planned.safety.observation,.a.method.must.be.established.to.select.
jobs. to. observe.. The. same. selection. method. used. in. job. safety. analysis. can. be.
used.in.the.job.observation.selection..These.selections.are.divided.into.four.areas.
listed.below.
