Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
the oBservAtIon
The.employee.observed.should.be.aware.of.the.observation.from.time.to.time..Inform.
all.employees,.as.part.of.their.orientation,.that.planned.job.safety.observations.are.
a.phase.of.the.safety.and.health.program..All.employees.must.fully.understand.the.
reason.for.incidental.and.planned.observations.
With. this. in. mind,. there. is. another. consideration. in. preparing. for. the. planned.
safety.observation..Should.you.inform.the.employee.in.advance.about.the.observa-
tion?.Under.certain.conditions,.the.employee.should.have.advance.notice.
If.you.want.to.ind.what.an.employee.knows.and.does.not.know.about.job.safety.
procedures,.tell.the.employee.in.advance..If.any.unsafe.practices.are.revealed.under.
this.condition,.the.supervisor.can.conclude.that.the.employee.does.not.know.safety.
procedures..If.the.supervisor.tells.the.employee.in.advance,.he.or.she.will.learn.what.
is.known.or.not.known.about.job.safety.procedures.
If.the.employee.is.new,.or.one.who.has.relatively.little.experience,.tell.him.or.her.
in.advance..This.is.also.true.for.an.employee.who.may.have.experience.but.has.never.
been.checked.using.a.planned.safety.observation.
Do.not.tell.the.employee.in.advance.about.the.observation.if.the.objective.is.to.
learn.how.the.employee.normally.does.the.job..When.the.supervisor.knows.that.an.
employee.understands.how.to.do.a.job.safely,.the.supervisor.must.then.ind.out.how.
the. employee. works. when. no. one. is. observing.. To. determine. this,. the. employee.
should.not.be.told.in.advance.about.the.job.safety.observation..Most.employees.work.
safely.under.the.eyes.of.the.supervisor,.especially.when.they.are.told.of.the.observa-
tion..If.the.employee.does.not.show.unsafe.practices,.the.supervisor.can.assume.that.
the.employee.usually.works.safely..If.the.same.person.is.later.observed.doing.some.
part.of.the.job.unsafely,.the.supervisor.must.believe.that.work.is.performed.unsafely.
at. other. times.. The. supervisor. may. know. that. the. employee. can. perform. the. job.
safely.from.past.observation..From.observing.employees.without.their.knowledge,.
the.supervisor.may.learn.that.they.are.not.putting.into.practice.their.job.knowledge.
The.supervisor.should.never.try.to.observe.an.employee.from.a.hidden.position..
The.supervisor.may.learn.by.the.observation,.but.respect.and.human.relations.may.
be.lost..After.informing.the.employee.of.the.observation,.the.supervisor.must.stand.
clear.of.the.employee's.work.area..The.employee.must.be.given.plenty.of.room.to.
work..The.supervisor.must.not.create.a.hazard.by.standing.too.close.or.distracting.
the.employee.
The.supervisor.should.avoid.work.interruptions.unless.absolutely.necessary..It is.
better.to.save.all.minor.corrections.until.the.observation.is.complete..However,.if.the.
employee.does.something.in.an.unsafe.manner,.stop.him.or.her.immediately..The.
supervisor.should.explain.what.has.been.done.wrong.and.why.it.is.unsafe..Call.the.
employee's.attention.to.the.JSA/JHA.when.training.was.originally.conducted.within.
the. framework. of. a. JSA/JHA. program.. Check. to. see. if. the. employee. fully. under-
stands.the.explanation..This.can.often.be.done.by.having.the.employee.tell.and.show.
the.safe.way.to.do.the.job.
