Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
The. employer. must. provide. employees. with. opportunities. for. participation. in.
establishing,.implementing,.and.evaluating.the.program..The.employer.must.regu-
larly.communicate.with.employees.about.workplace.safety.and.health.matters..She.
or.he.should.provide.employees.with.access.to.information.relevant.to.the.program..
In. turn,. there. should. be. established. processes. for. employees. to. become. involved.
in. hazard. identiication. and. assessment,. prioritizing. hazards,. training,. and. pro-
gram. evaluation.. Ways. should. be. established. for. employees. to. promptly. report.
job-related.fatalities,.injuries,.illnesses,.incidents,.and.hazards..There.should.also.be.
an.easy-to-use.system.to.make.recommendations.about.appropriate.means.to.control.
these.hazards—then.promptly.respond.to.such.reports.and.recommendations.
Do.not.discourage.employees.from.making.reports.and.recommendations.about.
fatalities,.injuries,.illnesses,.incidents,.or.hazards.in.the.workplace,.or.from.other-
wise.participating.in.the.workplace.safety.and.health.program.
H
AzArD
i
DEntifiCAtion
AnD
A
ssEssmEnt
The.employer.must.systematically.identify.and.assess.hazards.to.which.employees.
are.exposed.and.assess.compliance.with.the.General.Duty.Clause.and.OSHA.stan-
dards..The.employer.must.conduct.inspections.of.the.workplace;.review.safety.and.
health. information;. evaluate. new. equipment,. materials,. and. processes. for. hazards.
before.they.are.introduced.into.the.workplace;.and.assess.the.severity.of.identiied.
hazards.and.rank.those.hazards.that.cannot.be.corrected.immediately.according.to.
their.severity.
Identiication. of. hazards. includes. those. items. that. can. assist. you. in. identifying.
workplace.hazards. and. determining.what.corrective.action. is.necessary.to.control.
them..Actions.include.worksite.safety.inspections,.accident.investigations,.meetings.
of. safety. and. health. committees,. and. project. safety. meetings.. To. accomplish. the.
identiication.of.hazards,.the.following.should.be.reviewed:
•.
Periodic.site.safety.inspections.involve.supervisors
•.
Preventive.controls.in.place.(personal.protective.equipment.(PPE),.mainte-
nance,.engineering.controls)
•.
Action.taken.to.address.hazards
•.
Establish.safety.committee,.where.appropriate
•.
Document.technical.references.available
•.
Enforcement.procedures.implemented.by.management
The. employer. must. carry. out. an. initial. assessment. and. then. reassess. as. often.
thereafter.as.necessary.to.ensure.compliance..Reassessment.should.be.done.at.least.
every.two.years..When.safety.and.health.information.or.a.change.in.workplace.con-
ditions.indicates.that.a.new.or.increased.hazard.may.be.present,.the.employer.should.
also. conduct. a. reassessment.. The. employer. should. investigate. each. work-related.
death,.serious.injury.or.illness,.or.incident.(near-miss).having.the.potential.to.cause.
death. or. serious. physical. harm.. The. employer. should. keep. records. of. the. hazards.
identiied,.their.assessment,.and.the.actions.the.employer.has.taken,.or.plans.to.take,.
