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The purpose of this assignment is to observe our working

environment, take pictures of a hazardous object and report to

the management for removal and compliance. As an office

bound employee, the example that will be studied here will be

an office workstation in an open plan office.

The task will identify all the hazards and reporting to the

management. But before that the context of risk, hazard and

danger will be explored to give a better understanding of the

assignment.

It can then be deduced that risk is the extent to which we are

exposed to the hazard.

An example of risk in this picture is the likely hood of having

a health issue.

An example of danger in this situation is the injury.

An example of hazard is the positioning of the workstation and

the type of monitor.

Health & safety act Compensations act Labour law with health and

safety

OHSA,

covers health

& safety in

general

MHSA,

covers

health and

safety in

mining

COIDA.

Covers

compensation

for accidents

and diseases in

sectors outside

the mining and

injury in

mining.

ODMWA

covers

compensation

for diseases

in the mining

sector.

BCEA,

covers basic

conditions of

employments

LRA

regulates

labour

relations

between

employer and

employee.

Dept. of

labour

Dept. of

mineral

and

energy

Dept. of labour Dept. of

labour

Dept. of

labour

Dept. of

labour

OHSA-Occupational Health and Safety Act

MHSA-Mine Health and Safety Act

COIDA – Compensation for Occupational Injuries and

Diseases Act

ODMWA- Occupational Diseases in Mines and Works Act

BCEA-Basics Conditions of Employment Act

LRA- Labour Relation Act.

Risk = Hazard x Exposure

While Hazard means the potential to cause harm, injury or

illness, Risk is the probability of something bad happening, is

the probability of a danger, the likelihood that it will happen

Safe Work Australia (2011) describe hazard as a situation or

thing that has the potential to harm a person, included but not

limited to noisy machinery, a moving forklift, chemicals,

electricity, working at heights, a repetitive job, bullying and

violence at the workplace.

For the purpose of this assignment hazard should be

considered as any object, substance or conditions found in the

workplace capable of causing injury or death of personnel, or

a loss of product or property.

The assessment helps to analyse and take appropriate action

that will either lead to removing the risk or at least mitigate.

This process determines whether there are any risks associated

with the identified hazards

Working out how severe the harm could be,

Working out how the hazards may cause the harm,

Working out the likelihood of the harm occurring;

This is how the risk will be dealt with. There are few methods

that can be used to mitigate the risk,

The risk control starts with the stratification of the risk in levels,

1 being the highest, 2 medium and 3 lower risks.

At level 1, the hazard should be eliminated, for example, if

chemical they should be disposed.

At level 2, the substitution, the isolation or the engineering

control mechanism can be used appropriately.

At level 3, one can rely on administrative tools such as

procedure manual, the use of personal protective equipment

The substitution. This consists of using a less hazardous material;

it can be a change in the process, or a change of the tools or

equipment. Substitution is the best way of dealing with the CRT

monitor; it can be replaced by the LCD or LED, with little harm on

the user. This implies that the risk of using the computer can be

classified as level 2.

Isolation. This method is the limitation of the exposure to those

employees who are working with the hazard. This can be

implemented by enclosing them into a structure or issue a warning

that those without the specialized skill should not come closer.

The ventilation. This helps control the airborne hazard. This

remove or replace the contaminated air with a fresh one, an example

can be the toilet that should have a ventilation system.

Human resources policies. Where people interact, it is important to

have a regulation which governs their interaction. The basic

conditions of employment prescribe the acceptable framework that

should be utilised in the workplace. This ensures that workers are

not exploited by working without leave or rest. On top of the basics,

every organisation is encouraged to have its code of conduct and

harassment, smoking policies

Depending on the level of risk and the practicability, an

appropriate control method will be chosen.

Because businesses evolve in a different environment, it is

therefore logical that every industry or workplace has its own

specific hazard and required a specific method of identifying,

removing or lessening the impact.

In terms of the natures, hazard can be classified in six

categories as follow:

:

Safety hazard,

Safety hazard which is the most common type of hazard is found in

almost every workplace. An example can be: electrical, working

with a ladder, wet floor, unprotected machinery etc...

Biological hazard,

The biological hazard is found in the environment where people

come in contact with plant, animal, people, infection: examples are

viruses, insect bite, animal…….

:

Physical hazard,

The physical hazard, which is factors that can harm us without us been in

contact with them. These are radiation, ultraviolet light, sunlight, loud noise,

extreme temperature hot or cold just to name a few.

Ergonomic hazards

The ergonomic hazards are related to the type of work, body position at work,

working conditions that might put strain on the body, leading to injury. This

type of hazard is not always identified immediately; the consequences might

have a long term effect on the health. Some examples are frequent lifting, poor

working positions, vibrations, or excessive use of force.

:

Chemical hazards

The chemical hazards are those which occurred when one comes in contact with

chemical either in preparation or usage, in the liquid, solid or vapour form. An example

can be cleaning products, paints, acid, solvents, gases, flammable, and pesticides.

Work organisations hazard or psychosocial.

This is the most difficult one to identify and even to prove. These are hazards associated

with workplace issues that manifest in the form of stress, burnout and many other forms.

People who are victims of this hazard are not always speaking out, hence the hazard

might be the unhealthy relationship at work, it might either be perceived as they are not

fit for the job and will therefore be relieved from their duty or it might cause the harm to

others

:

The most practical examples ( work organisation hazards) are

workload, harassment in all the forms, violence at the

workplace. One can think of an office romance with a colleague

that might go wrong, creating and unhealthy work environment,

which the consequences are more psychological

To conclude,the type of industry or working environment,

determine the type of hazard that is more dominant, and the

method for mitigating the risk or removing the hazard. That is

why OHS specialist always prescribes the fire fighting

equipment, the code of conduct based on the assessment of the

workplace and the industry standard. However, one place can be

subject to many categories of hazard, for example the work

organisation, which is the result of interacting in the workplace

can be found in any industry. It can therefore be concluded that,

the occupational health and safety is all about the hazard

identification, the risk assessment and the risk control and management.

The hazard identification is the first step toward providing a safe

working environment; this is the process of identifying all situations

or events that could give rise to injury or illness.

The hazard identification can be done through the following steps:

The regular inspection of the workplace

The consultation with the workers as they might have experienced

some risk working with the tools or in the environment,

The review of the available info such as safety data sheet or

instruction manual in the case of a workshop with machinery

Ergonomic hazards

The effect of the computer use as hazard. .

Firstly the computer, which is a Cathode Ray Tube CRT. According to

Workesafe (2006:51-53), working with computers involves health and

safety issues directly related to sitting in front of screens, which have

potential physical, visual and psychological impacts on human beings..

It went further to pinpoint the Computer screens based on CRT

technology, which emit visible radiation (light) with a brightness that

is adjustable by the operator

In creating the display, small amounts of other types of

electromagnetic radiation (EMR) are also generated at extremely

low frequencies, including radio waves, infrared (heat),

ultraviolet and X-rays. The use of a computer, then is a hazard

for the workplace, especially the CRT design; the employer

should then take the necessary step to reduce the risk by

replacing the CRT with the LCD or LED which uses the liquid

or light, with less negative effect on the employee.

The absence of sunlight.

Secondly, the workstation situated in the middle of an open plan

office, with no daylight exposure. It also has been reported that

the absence of sunlight in the office can result in occupational

injury. National Institute of General Medical Sciences (2012)

found that the exposure to light turns the genes that control an

organism’s internal clock "on" and "off."

Circadian rhythms dictate: sleep-wake cycles, hormone release,

body temperature and other important bodily

functions. Disruptions of circadian rhythms are directly linked to

sleep disorders. Abnormal circadian rhythms have also been

associated with obesity, diabetes, depression., so not having a

light in the office is a hazard that can lead to serious injuries

mentioned above. The removal of this hazard consist of moving

the where day or sunlight can be found.

Work organization hazards.

This type of hazard is those that are the result of employee

interaction with colleagues. A workload, pressure or even

romance with a superior can lead to stress and burn out. The

build-up of stress has tremendous effect on human life, and can

therefore result in serious injury

It is important to review the control mechanism from time to time

and keep the risk register for compliance purposes. This will ensure

that the health and safety is not taken lightly at the workplace

To achieve an effective and efficient control measures

implementation, there should be a clear accountability for the health

and safety, the preventive maintenance should carry out regularly or

at least as per legal prescription, importantly the up-to-date training

and competency assessment, the up-to-date hazard information

check and the regular review or consultation if required.

The non-compliance can bear a high cost, especially when something goes

wrong. All will depend on the severity of the offense. Deloite (2012; 1)

reported that the risks that may stem from non-compliance with the OHS

legislation is costly, depends on the industry, the nature of the organisation.

Some of the penalties can be fines that the organisation will pay, in the form

of fine of guilt, imprisonment of executive for negligence, the withdrawal of

licenses, lawsuit and reputational risk. In our case, the environment might

comply with the regulation, however, it should be noted that the cost of the

hazard such as the CRT come in very high.

The excess use of power in comparison to the LCD,

The radiation that might increase breaks, reduce productivity,

The contingency liability that a worker might sue the

organisation should he experience eye problem or any sort of

injury mentioned earlier on.

All things considered, the legislator has provided the guidelines in the

form of acts, that enable the employer if implemented to provide a

safe working environment, however, the nature of the workplace, the

industry dictate the most appropriate mechanism or tools that will be

efficient to reduce workplace injuries. According to Deloite (2012:7),

the current business landscape, which is highly characterised by

changes in legislation and increase requirement in business

compliance, it is advisable that every organisation implement an

adequate structure to embed the culture of compliance, given the high

cost of noncompliance.

The onus is then on the employer to use those tools and the employee to

blow the whistle should he experience or found a hazard that might be

detrimental to his health. This will only be made possible when the

organisational culture promotes fairness, transparency or else employee

will fear victimization and therefore not reporting hazardous elements.

It is then recommended that the management should replace CRT monitors

with the LCD or LED. This will save the company some electricity, while

at the meantime increasing productivity as the workers will focus more. No

headache or eye strain from the CRT radiation.

The second recommendation is that, the management should

offer workers a better working spot, where they can enjoy

natural sunlight. That will also avoid any sort of contingency

liability as the result of occupational injury.

This has identified the hazard in the workplace as per picture

above, reported to the executives with the alternative

recommendation

Burton, j, 2010, WHO healthy workplace, framework and model, background and supporting literature and practices, . 45 Center Drive MSC 6200 Bethesda, MD USA.http://www.nigms.nih.gov/Education/Pages/Factsheet_CircadianRhythms.aspx

Deloite, 2012, Ensuring Regulatory Compliance, Integrating Risk Advisory and Assurance.

http://www.who.int/occupational_health/healthy_workplaces/en/index.html

National Institute of General Medical Sciences, 2012, Circadian Rhythms Fact Sheet,

Occupational Health and Safety in New Zealand: NOHSAC: Technical Report 7, http://employment.govt.nz/publications/nohsac/techreport7/031_content.asp

Safe Work Australia, 2011, how to manage work health and safety risks code of practice, www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au

WORKSAFE, 2006, office wise –,a guide to health & safety in the office, 222, Exhibition Street, Melbourne 3000,