I’m asked from time to time, “What sort of injury or event should be reported to WorkSafe.” Meaning : How bad does it need to be, to report.
To go back a step. Work related injuries or near misses (or health issues) need to be recorded, internally. Its not just for the purposes of recording. (More paperwork!) 1)It’s to formally analyse what happened and why it happened and perhaps more importantly, “What we plan to do to prevent reoccurrence”. This sort of investigation should be carried out impartially and without “blame”. In a small firm it would usually be the business owner or manager that carries it out. 2)It’s important to review incident and accident records on a regular basis. Is there a pattern emerging? eg Is the same event repeating? If so, it’s important to sort it. So, at what level do I report it to WorkSafe? There are some guidelines outlined on the WorkSafe website here. It outlines specific injuries, events, and health concerns. https://www.worksafe.govt.nz/notifications/notifiable-event/what-is-a-notifiable-event/#lf-doc-39643 This helps sum it up (From WorkSafe) All injuries or illnesses that require (or would usually require) a person to be admitted to hospital for immediate treatment are notifiable. Admitted to a hospital means being admitted to hospital as an inpatient for any length of time – it doesn’t include being taken to the hospital for out-patient treatment by a hospital’s Emergency Department, or for corrective surgery at a later time, such as straightening a broken nose. However, it’s important to read the webpage above. (Scroll down the page) There are circumstances where a person may not be admitted to hospital, that need to be reported. Bottom line, if in doubt, report it. You can go online and answer a few simple questions that will clarify if it needs to be reported, or not. Here https://www.worksafe.govt.nz/notify-worksafe/ If you have a minute, go online now, and check it out. You will get a better idea.
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Health and Safety is not something you are thinking about constantly. There are so many pressures you face in a day, around staff, productivity, customer expectations, financial concerns, the list goes on.
However it is important to assess whether the safety (and health) controls you have in place are effective and being used by your staff.
1)ACT : Take action on lessons learnt 2)PLAN : Assess the risk and identify suitable control measure (Talk with staff about this. ) 3)CHECK : Monitor the performance of the control measure. (This includes workers reporting incidents and accidents. These may well show an ineffective control) 4)DO : (implement control measures that effectively eliminate or minimise the risk) WorkSafe point out that PPE should not be the first or only control. In other words, the risk needs to be reduced or eliminated by other means first. Here’s the recognised method as outlined in the HS Regulations: 1)Eliminate the risk altogether. If not possible : 2)Substituting a safer method or piece of equipment for the job. (a simple example is using battery operated tools instead of 240v tools. There’s no chance of being electrocuted!) 3)Isolating the risk. This might be fencing off the area being worked on, or putting a noisy piece of kit away from the work area 4)Engineering controls. Eg redesigning the tool to include guards. Or even making sure guards are always used! 5)Administrative controls. Eg Safe methods of work. Rotating jobs to reduce boredom etc 6)PPE. Earplugs, Gloves, Safety glasses etc Start at the top. Get as many controls as you can in the first five areas. Then “mop up” the residual risk with PPE It’s important to check and test, on a regular basis, all equipment that’s being used to ensure safe operation.
I recommend an Equipment and PPE schedule. Go over your gear on a regular basis. Sign off the fact that you have checked it and the date this was carried out. Make a note of any maintenance that needs to be carried out and when you did that. Make a note of any PPE that needs to be replaced and when this was done. It might just seem like extra paperwork, but a written record is not just proof of maintenance, it helps provide you with a routine around PPE and Servicing your Gear. It might be weekly, monthly or for some gear 3 monthly. It just becomes part of your routine. If you haven’t a template that you can use and would like one, let me know. No charge. Some small business owners and employers, find H&S conversations both awkward and difficult — especially if they are trying to get people to change their behavior.
This is often because they:
Despite all this, empowering workers to take appropriate H&S actions — and supporting them to confront anyone not doing so — is a massive H&S step. It’s also an extremely important part of keeping people safe. If you need to have a conversation about an H&S issue with a worker, a great approach is to follow the five steps below. Conversations need to be tailored to the audiences and you’ll know how best to speak to your workers. By following these principles, you’ll know you’re taking a great approach to getting your H&S message across. Steps to talking about H & S issues Step 1. Approach your worker with a friendly and problem-solving attitude A major reason workers have unsafe habits is because they’re not aware they’re being unsafe in the first place. Indeed, unsafe behavior is often an ingrained habit. Start these conversations without blame and don’t assume a worker is deliberately being unsafe. Step 2. Describe their behavior objectively and say why you’re concerned Be clear and avoid a criticizing tone. For example, don’t say: “I can’t believe you climbed the ladder that way! Don’t you know what could happen?” Instead, say something like: “I saw the way you climbed that ladder and I’m concerned you could get hurt.” By explaining it this way, you’re letting the person know you’re personally worried for their welfare. Step 3. Tell them what action is expected and what the benefits are Give clear instructions about the right behavior and explain the rationale for this. For example, say: “I’d prefer that you get someone to hold the ladder for you. We want you to go home safely. If that means taking time to get help, I’d rather you do that than rushing and risk getting hurt.” Step 4. Check they understand and get a commitment to the new behavior Studies show that by asking people to commit to a changed behavior they’re more likely to actually change. After your chat, check they understand what you’re asking of them. Then you could say: “Can I count on you to do this?” or “Do you agree to this?” Step 5. Tell them you’ll back them up if anyone questions their new behavior, or if they identify a risk on their own It’s important to lead by example and be consistent with H&S if you’re going to create a new H&S culture. This means saying things like: “If anybody questions why you’re doing it this way, I can help explain it to them and let them know I expect all staff, including me, to do it this way.” Make it worker-led
Your workers are the eyes and ears of your business and may know about H&S risks and issues you aren’t aware of. Encourage them to speak up and offer suggestions and solutions. If they can share their stories, give demonstrations and call out issues, they’ll know they’re valued and you’re all in it together Be hands-on and practical Let workers see and try out how things actually work day-to-day. Bring tools to your talks. Show workers the safe and right way of using them, and let them have a go. If possible, hold talks where the risks are located. Share stories, not numbers Numbers don’t tell the whole story. Share real-life stories — of the good and the bad. Say what happened before, during and after an incident. Use stories from your own business or from the news. Hear issues, reward behaviour Encourage your workers to feel comfortable telling you about risks or issues. Thank them. Act on it. At the next talk, explain what’s been done. Also recognise when H&S is done well. Give a prize or award, or simply share the good story and say “nice work”. Consider language and culture H&S talks need to suit the audience. Ask workers how best to communicate with them. Think about the language, the type of words, and who delivers the messages. Use photos and real tools. Chat about it to check everyone understands. A bit of a deviation form Health and Safety this week. But important information, nevertheless.
You are most likely aware of changes to the Privacy Act. Often when a change like this happens we wonder how it will impact our business. I know I do. If you would like to put in place a simple, tailored Privacy Policy for your firm, have a look here (control click or copy and paste ) : https://privacy.org.nz/tools/privacy-statement-generator/ It literally will only take 5 minutes to complete the gaps and put together a Privacy Statement for your business. (I had to copy and paste the finished document to a word document to print out and save). What do you do when you take on a new employee? Obviously training is a priority. The individual needs to become productive as quickly as possible.
As part of that process the new staff member needs to be inducted into your Health and Safety processes. For their sake and for yours. I’m sure you are aware that a safe worker is a more productive worker. (Not to mention your responsibility under the Health and Safety Act). One of the things I ask business owners is “Do you have a written statement around your firms Commitment to Health and Safety”. If you do, get your new employee to read over it. It should include detail around your commitment as business owner and the staff’s commitment. You are in this together. (If you don’t have a written statement, flick me an email, I will give you some examples. No charge for that). Of course a written employment contract is a legal requirement for new employees (and all employee’s). Have a look at the following webpage from the ministry of Business and Innovation. It provides an excellent process for customising employment contracts. You just go though it step by step and print it off. It tells you what is mandatory and what is optional. It includes a great section around general workplace rules that the employee is expected to follow, rules around Kiwisaver, overtime, how to handle work related expenses, mobile phones, work vehicles, public holidays, annual leave, sick leave, health and safety, drug and alcohol testing, resolving conflict, serious misconduct and much more. https://eab.business.govt.nz/employmentagreementbuilder/startscreen/ Here’s a statement from their webpage: “Our new Employment Agreement Builder helps you create contracts tailored to your business and to each person you employ. It’s packed with tips to help you decide what to put in your agreement — and what NOT to put in. It covers what you must do by law, and also sets out common mistakes made by employers and how to avoid them.” Trusting the last month has been a productive one for your business, So what do you do when one of your staff goes out of your work place to another workplace to carry out a job?
Best practice is : 1 Your employee is trained around H&S measures they are likely to need when they arrive on site. They need an idea of what they are going to face. Sometimes we think common sense prevails. But it doesn’t always. (Like the guy who stuck a ladder on the deck of a elevated mobile platform and fell off. He only fell a few meters, but was seriously injured)! 2 There should be an induction process when the employee arrives on site. If it’s the same business that he/she has been going to for the last 5 years and it’s a low risk situation, there doesn’t need to be an induction every time (unless of course there are changes in hazards and risks faced.) There should also be a refresher from time to time. Trust that’s of some use! A couple of weeks ago we sent out a survey concerning Health and Safety. Here's a couple of responses that you may find of interest.
If you think you fall into either of those categories and would like to discuss how this might work for your business, flick an email back and I will be in touch. Remember as a family business, with low overheads, we will not be beaten on price Health and Safety may seem like a pain for small business owners. Yet even a low cost Health and Safety Plan can save dollars.
Its been shown that a safe working environment, not only means less time off work, (therefore saving money) but also makes employee's feel like the boss cares for them. We handle the Health and Safety needs for 130 clients. Being a family business our overheads are low . We pass the cost savings onto you, saving you money on Health and Safety. A recent survey we carried out showed that 43% of business owners find Health and Safety a pain. 44% said they would like to use a Health and Safety adviser available at any time at a reasonable cost. 43% said they would handle the day to day Health and Safety themselves, but use an external Health and Safety adviser for the big stuff. Bob Sinclair is a qualified Health and Safety Adviser, specialising in Small to Medium Size Business. txt 0274597296 for a quote. You maybe surprised. |
AuthorBob is passionate about good workplace Health and Safety. Hes experienced , qualified, easy to talk to and always available. Archives
August 2023
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