Supervisor's Guidebook

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Supervisors

Guidebook


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Contents

1. Introduction 02

2. ProBE Programmes 2008

Programme 1: Machines Dangerous to Hands 03

Programme2:FlammableandHazardousSubstances(FHS) 05

Programme3:Work@Heights 07

3. How ProBE Works

KeyThrusts 09

ProBEProcess 10

Contents

1. Introduction 03

2. RolesandResponsibilitiesofSupervisorsinWorkplaceSafety 04

3. AreasRequiringSpecialAttention 05

4. FallPreventionMeasures 06

5. SpecificAreasofWork 11

6. Acknowledgements 14


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Statistics have shown that 1 out o 3 atalities at the workplace are attributedto workers alling rom height. Many more workers sustain serious injuries

as a result o alls rom height every year.

With the increased need or work activities to be carried out at height, the

exposure o workers to alling hazards also increases. This is especially so in

the marine and construction sectors.

Investigation o past cases suraced the ollowing ascontributing actors to alls rom height: Unsae work environments;

The absence o risk assessment prior to work commencement;

The absence o sae work procedures;

Lack o proper supervision;

Inadequate training; and

Failure to observe saety rules and practices by workers.

Sae work procedures must be implemented to control the risks and tackle the contributing

actors as inexperienced workers may not be capable o eectively identiying or avoiding

hazards posed by an unsae work environment.

1. Introduction


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The main role o supervisors is to provide direct and close supervision othe tasks perormed by the workers under them.

Supervisors are amiliar with the work processes and with their experience, are best able to

identiy hazards at the workplace. As such, they are able to contribute signicantly to the risk

assessment process.

This should be ollowed by regular and thorough inspections which will enable supervisors to

identiy and manage potential hazards at the worksite.

2. Roles and Responsibilities oSupervisors in Workplace Saety

Areas o inspection should include: The condition o working platorms;

Open sides o buildings;

Openings in the ground; and

The general state o housekeeping at the site.

Incorporating basic guidelines into daily work routines

is only the rst step. These guidelines should then be

clearly and regularly communicated to workers through

platorms such as toolbox meetings.

Supervisors are also responsible or ensuring that their

workers are properly trained in the required area o work

and educated on the importance o maintaining a sae

work environment.

Following which, they must ensure that saety rules

and proper work procedures are adhered to withoutcompromise.

Most importantly, supervisors should do their best to

lead by example.

Supervisorscancommunicatesafetyguidelinestotheworkersduringtoolboxmeetings.


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Common sources o hazards: Scaolds;

Floor and lit shat openings;

Ladders and stairs; Open sides o oors;

Formworks; and

Working platorms.

Common causes o allsrom height:(Physical environment)

No proper hand hold or oot hold;

Improperly erected scaolds - metal, timber and

gondola;

Improperly constructed working platorms;

Unguarded scaolds or working platorms;

Uncovered or un-barricaded oor openings;

Deective ladders;

Unguarded stairs;

Poor housekeeping; and

Poor lighting.

(Human actors)

Lack o sae work procedures;

Risk assessment not perormed;

Lack o training or worksite orientation o workers;

and

Failure to wear or anchor a saety belt or harness.

3. Areas Requiring Special Attention

When working at height, the ollowing have been identied as areas thatrequire the special attention o supervisors. The list is not exhaustive and

the items listed are not in any particular order o importance.

Theworkerisworkingbeyondanunguardedsidewithoutworkingplatform.Theworkerisalsonotwearingasafetyharness.

Theworkerisworkingonanimproperworkingplatformandtheboardsarenotsecured.Theworkerisalsonotwearingasafetyharness.


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General sae work practices: Use scaolds, working platorms and proper accesspoints provided;

Perorm checks on equipment and tools beore use;

Carry out regular maintenance and inspection o

equipment and tools; and

Avoid overloading any equipment.

4. Fall Prevention Measures

Equipment,suchasscaoldsneedtobecheckedandapprovedbeforeuse.

Equipmentwhicharedeemedunsafeforuse,needtobelabeledassuchtopreventunauthorisedusage.

Risk assessmentRisk assessment must be carried out beore any work at height commences in order to identiy

any potential hazards. Saety measures can then be implemented to manage these hazards.

Beore work commences, workers should be orientated with the sae work procedures and

equipped with the necessary saety equipment. In addition, they should be trained and

amiliarised with the use o the saety equipment.


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Ensure that both hands are kept ree when climbing

ladders;

Avoid climbing or leaning over, or sitting on

guardrails;

Ensure that saety harnesses are properly strapped on

and securely anchored;

Wear saety harness (instead o saety belt) or workers

all protection; and

Ensure that the lanyard is o correct length or the

height that the work is carried out.

Scaolds and working platorms: Scaolds should be properly erected; Working platorms should be properly constructed;

Planks or boards orming the working platorm should

be properly secured;

Working platorms should have guardrails and toe

boards on all open sides; and

Proper means o access and egress (such as ladders)

must be provided/made available.

Workingplatformwithguardrailsandtoeboardsinstalled.

Propermeansofaccesstoscaoldsneedtobeprovided.

Safetyharnessesaretobewornproperlyandsecurelyanchored.

Useproperaccesspoints.


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Openings on oor suraces Openings (such as manholes or gaps in the oor) should

be properly covered or barricaded; and

Warning signs to caution others must be displayed.

Ladders and stairs In addition to ensuring that ladders are sturdy and in

good condition; they must be secured in positionbeore use; and

Stairs should be tted with handrails and kept ree o

objects that may cause trips and slips.

Barricadewithreextinguisherforliftshaftopening.

Guard-railsforamanholeopening.

Stairsarettedwithhandrails.

Handrailsatopenedgesofstairway.


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Open sides o oors and ormworks Open sides o oors should be properly barricaded;

Bricking o walls should ollow closely with the casting

o oor slabs;

Warning signs to caution others must be clearly

displayed; Standing on ormworks should be prohibited; and

Working platorms should be provided to acilitate the

work being carried out.

HousekeepingAccidents are oten caused by workers tripping over

objects or slipping on slippery suraces. A simple yeteective way o preventing such accidents is to carry

out good housekeeping regularly. This not only brings

about a saer and healthier work environment, it increases

productivity and costs next to nothing.

Recommendations Plan or the proper disposal o debris beore

commencing work;

Allocate sufcient storage space or building materials

beorehand to avoid having to store these along

staircases and passageways at a later stage;

Continually review and modiy housekeeping measures

accordingly as work progresses and working conditions

shit; and

Regularly carry out cleaning, clearing and tidying up so

as to keep the worksite sae and neat at all times.

Barricadesforopensides.

Goodhousekeepingpracticeshelpreduceaccidentsduetotrippingandfallinghazards

Barricadesforopensides,markedwithtapeforbettervisibility.

Poorhousekeepingpresentstrippinghazards,whichmayleadtofallsfromheight.


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LightingInadequate lighting at a workplace can lead to serious

consequences. It is necessary that a reasonable level o

lighting at a worksite is maintained at all times.

Eliminating conditions o contrasting light at the worksite

is just as crucial. Workers entering into dark areas rightater being out in bright light, or vice versa, are at risk o

alling and tripping due to temporary blindness.

Recommendations Ensure proper lighting in dark areas such as stairwells;

and

Ensure that all hazard warning signs are clearly visible

during both day and night.

Theriskoftrippingandfallingisincreasedindarkareas.

Adequatelightingshouldbeprovidedfordarkareas.


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Roofng and ceiling-worksThe potential hazards present in both roong and ceiling

works are very similar and oten result in two main

accident types:

Falls through roos; and

Falls rom steep roos.

Roong materials are not sturdy enough to support the

weight o a worker, even without any additional load

being carried. Under no circumstances should a worker beallowed to tread directly on any type o roo surace, be

it glass, plastic, acrylic or any other material. As a general

guide, all roo suraces should be considered ragile.

Recommendations Provide sufcient and suitable crawling boards or roo

ladders where work is to be carried out;

Assign only trained and qualied workers to carry outroong works;

Set up a saety mesh under the roo, install

catch platorms or barriers at the edges in addition

to employing the compulsory use o saety belts

and securely anchored lie lines to saeguard

workers rom alling through or o a roo;

Construct proper walkways on or adjacent to the roo;

Ensure that workers do not throw debris o rom the

roo; Put up signs at noticeable positions to warn workers

against stepping onto the roo sheeting, such as along

walkways, and at various access points to the roo;

Provide proper working platorms and secure ootholds

or workmen to utilise;

Ensure adequate lighting; and

Put the necessary all arresting or restraining

devices in place, ensuring that secure lielines and

sufcient anchor points are available.

5. Speci ic Areas o Work

Neverstepdirectlyontofragileroongmaterial.Itwillnotbeabletosupporttheweightofaworkerandmaycollapse,asshownabove.

Workersworkingatrooftopshouldwearsafetyharnesssecurelyanchoredtoasuitableanchoragepointorstaticline.Crawlboardscanmakeworksaferaswell.


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Erection o steel structuresThe erection o steel rames or multi-storey buildings

and similar structures put workers at great risk o alling

rom heights. This calls or extra prudence and meticulous

housekeeping to avoid trips and atal alls.

Common hazards that steel workers are exposed to include:

Slips and alls rom both high and low levels; Being struck by alling objects such as tools and materials which are dropped rom

higher levels;

Walking or bumping into objects at the worksite; and

Eye injuries caused by ying objects, welding and other operations that entail burning.

Indirect causes o alling rom height:Workers hurry to complete tasks, paying less attention to saety and their surroundings.

As a result, workers end up in alls caused by:

Walking or knocking into objects;

Being struck by alling objects;

Being struck by moving objects (e.g. steel member stringing rom a cane or a sprung cable

whipping through the air); or

Electric shocks rom live cables/wires.

Recommendations: Ensuring proper usage o personal protective equipment will help protect workers rom injury

or death due to alls rom height; and

Installing lie lines, saety harnesses and saety nets will help minimise injury and the likelihood

o a atal accident even i alls rom height do occur.

Steelerectionmayresultinworkershavingtoworkonhigh,narrowworkingsurfaces.


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Marine worksMarine workers are predisposed to working in an unstable

environment with unpredictable changes brought

about by waves and tides. As such, operations such as

the construction o wharves, marine piling operations,

dredging and other seabed-related work, pose some

unique concerns as ollow:

Drowning becomes a hazard when marine workers all

into the water;

Workers tend to have the mentality that the ability

to swim is enough to saeguard themselves against the

possibility o drowning; and

Fail to realise that the ability to swim is o no use i they

are struck unconscious by an object beore alling into

the water.

Recommendations: Install proper gangways and railings to help prevent

workers rom alling into the water; and

Ensure that workers who have to carry out work at

heights such as pontoon piling work, use saety

harnesses which are anchored onto secure lie lines.

Workingnearthewatersedgepresentstheadditionalriskofdrowning,shouldworkersfall.


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The Workplace Saety and Health Council wish to acknowledge the ollowing organisations or theuse o images:

Bovis Lend Lease

Keppel Shipyard Limited

Singapore Contractors Association Limited

Easi-Dec Access Systems Ltd

6. Acknowledgements


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PublishedinNovember2008bytheWorkplaceSafetyandHealthCouncilincollaborationwiththeMinistryofManpower.

All rights reserved. This guide may notbe reproduced or transmitted in any

orm or by any means in whole or inpart, without prior written permission.

The inormation provided in this guideis accurate as at time o printing. Pleasenote that all inormation in this guideare meant or learning purposes only.

The learning points and inormationare not exhaustive and should notbe taken to encapsulate all theresponsibilities and obligations o theuser o this guide under the law. The

publishers o this guide do not acceptany liability or responsibility to anyparty or losses or damage arising romollowing this guide.

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Supervisor's Guidebook

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