Grader4me
Senior Member
Stock, you get on your soapbox anytime you like. Great post with a good message. Thanks!
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Am I glad I live away from OSHA
- Thread starter stock
- Start date
willie59
Administrator
LoL...when the subject being discussed is safety and/or OSHA, I submit there's more directions we could go than OSHA could keep up with.
Let me climb upon the box for a spell. We have to put this in a nutshell, because the subject of safety is so huge in it's implementation. The employer, factory, general contractor, who/what ever, has a for sure responsiblilty to make sure there is a safe working environment as well as a defined safety protocol. With that said, I agree with you on how does the responsiblity in this case go back to the newspaper the reporter worked for? But back to the topic at hand, IMHO the employer is limited in "how safe" an environment can be. I mean, they define the protocol; "wear hard hats, safety glasses, hi-viz vest, keep area clean, etc. etc. But, as you stated in your last post ultimately the person that looks back at you in the mirror is the only one completely responsible for you're safety, and that's an undeniable component in safety issues, and one that's not easy for an employer to have complete control. Say an employer hires a new guy, does he then assume the new hire has a brain and experience that can grasp safety and be able to recognize potential hazards that could kill the fool? So for obvious reasons, and employer should train each employee with at least the basics of what is required for safety. But once the employee is "out there", well, let's hope he's smart enough to be safe, or is working around persons with experience that can watch out for him. And, by virtue of their inexperience, I think it's more hazardous for young folks climbing the ladder, as they haven't experienced the lifes lessons that us older hands have lived. Not long ago, I had to remove the tilt cylinder and tilt adjusting arm on the blade of a Komatsu D65EX-12 dozer. I welded (2) 2 x 2 x 1/4 steel angles between top of dozer blade and front of tractor. A young pup that works around me walked by and asked "what's the steel angles for?" I was shocked, but then not, more amazed! Recognising that he really didn't forsee the danger at hand, I decided to take the time to give him a little safety lesson. "Owen, you really don't know why the angles are there? Look at it for a moment. If I knocked the pins out of the cylinder and adjuster, the blade is going to come crashing backward into the front of the tractor!" He looked for a moment and said, "yeah, I see what your saying." To which I gave him a rather adamant discussion about working around things that have the potential to kill you and to take the time to give thought to what your doing. We all have to watch out for ourselves, but let none of us fail to keep in mind there may be others around you that truely don't have either the capacity or the experience to recognize dangers that can hurt them, as well as me/you. And I'm kinda partial to my continued existence.
Man...this soapbox makes one get a little crazy, eh?
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stock
Senior Member
For us here anyone employed in construction or a business that interacts with a construction site has to have a minimum of a safe pass.
Safe Pass is a one-day safety awareness programme aimed at general construction workers, craft workers and "on site" security personnel in the construction industry. The aims of the programme are to:
Raise the standard of safety awareness in the construction industry
Ensure that site personnel after completing the one day awareness programme can make a positive contribution to the prevention of accidents and ill health while working on the site
Maintain a register of personnel who have received training
Provide participants with a Safe Pass registration card, indicating that the holder has attended a formal course in health and safety awareness.
Then when a employee presents for work at a new site they have to be inducted,this basically reaffirms what was covered in the safe pass; more of a refresher and then more so into specific risk to be encountered on that site,this happens (suppose to )on every site for every contractor or sub.
The list for is slowly increasing with the introduction of new classifications every year,
(a) Scaffolding - basic;
(b) Scaffolding - advanced;
(d) Tower crane operation;
(e) Self erecting tower crane operation - where the employee has not been trained in tower crane operation
(f) Slinging/signalling;
(g) Telescopic handler operation;
(h) Tractor/dozer operation;
(i) Mobile crane operation;
(j) Crawler crane operation;
(k) Articulated dumper operation;
(l) Site dumper operation;
(m) 180 excavator operation;
(n) Mini-digger operation - where the employee has not been trained in the operation of a 360o excavator digger
(o) 360o excavator operation;
(p) Roof and wall cladding/sheeting;
(q) Built-up roof felting;
(c) Mobile tower scaffold - where the employee has not been trained in basic or advanced scaffold
(r) Signing, lighting and guarding on roads;
(s) Locating under-ground services;
(t) Shotfiring;
(u) Assisting in Road-works
So now every employer has a duty of care to his employees to ensure a safe place of work a safe system of work as far as is reasonably practicable ,i e you are guilty as an employer and the only way to reduce your guilt is by training .
As my signature says common sense is not common practice./SIZE]
To close recently I was on a competitor site and they had a system in place where for the first month on-site the newbie wore a blue helmet ,and I mean everyone,even visitors to the site had to wear the blue ,after a month banksmen wore an orange vest,and foremen wore white gangers red.good idea I thought.
Safe Pass is a one-day safety awareness programme aimed at general construction workers, craft workers and "on site" security personnel in the construction industry. The aims of the programme are to:
Raise the standard of safety awareness in the construction industry
Ensure that site personnel after completing the one day awareness programme can make a positive contribution to the prevention of accidents and ill health while working on the site
Maintain a register of personnel who have received training
Provide participants with a Safe Pass registration card, indicating that the holder has attended a formal course in health and safety awareness.
Then when a employee presents for work at a new site they have to be inducted,this basically reaffirms what was covered in the safe pass; more of a refresher and then more so into specific risk to be encountered on that site,this happens (suppose to )on every site for every contractor or sub.
The list for is slowly increasing with the introduction of new classifications every year,
(a) Scaffolding - basic;
(b) Scaffolding - advanced;
(d) Tower crane operation;
(e) Self erecting tower crane operation - where the employee has not been trained in tower crane operation
(f) Slinging/signalling;
(g) Telescopic handler operation;
(h) Tractor/dozer operation;
(i) Mobile crane operation;
(j) Crawler crane operation;
(k) Articulated dumper operation;
(l) Site dumper operation;
(m) 180 excavator operation;
(n) Mini-digger operation - where the employee has not been trained in the operation of a 360o excavator digger
(o) 360o excavator operation;
(p) Roof and wall cladding/sheeting;
(q) Built-up roof felting;
(c) Mobile tower scaffold - where the employee has not been trained in basic or advanced scaffold
(r) Signing, lighting and guarding on roads;
(s) Locating under-ground services;
(t) Shotfiring;
(u) Assisting in Road-works
So now every employer has a duty of care to his employees to ensure a safe place of work a safe system of work as far as is reasonably practicable ,i e you are guilty as an employer and the only way to reduce your guilt is by training .
As my signature says common sense is not common practice./SIZE]
To close recently I was on a competitor site and they had a system in place where for the first month on-site the newbie wore a blue helmet ,and I mean everyone,even visitors to the site had to wear the blue ,after a month banksmen wore an orange vest,and foremen wore white gangers red.good idea I thought.
Grader4me
Senior Member
I'm involved in a similar program in which I teach. Its a program that's aimed at our youth between the ages of 15 - 29 years of age. They recieve 7 hours of Occupational Health & Safety and 7 hours of first aid for free. Once successfully completed each student recieves a "Passport" indicating they have had this training. Below is a link explaining it more.
I've been mainly teaching High School students, and so far it's been a very rewarding experience.
http://www.safetystart.gnb.ca/
xcavator120
Well-Known Member
Most employers want all their employees to practice and adhere to safety policies. However I've seen it, even recently, where you have the typical tail-gate safety meeting, and the topic is generally decided upon by something that someone was seen, caught doing by one of the "office" shirts within the prior week. Then during the day you see the foreman violating what he just hours before preached on.
Currently our company was placed in a "high-risk" insurance category. We were told that if we're involved in an accident, we would be probably be terminated. So I guess if some one runs into us, and we survive, we're out of job. Oh the incident that was cited during the safety meeting, was that a van that is provided by the company to transport workers to the worksite, was rear-ended by another vehicle, during a very heavy rainstorm. Luckily there were only 2 people in the van, both of them were injured, placing them on work-comp leave for a couple of months. Had there been the typical 5 or 6, those in the rear seats would most likely have been killed.
Currently our company was placed in a "high-risk" insurance category. We were told that if we're involved in an accident, we would be probably be terminated. So I guess if some one runs into us, and we survive, we're out of job. Oh the incident that was cited during the safety meeting, was that a van that is provided by the company to transport workers to the worksite, was rear-ended by another vehicle, during a very heavy rainstorm. Luckily there were only 2 people in the van, both of them were injured, placing them on work-comp leave for a couple of months. Had there been the typical 5 or 6, those in the rear seats would most likely have been killed.
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