Safety Rules

01 Oct 2005 Safety in the workplace is not a luxury, but a necessity. Are organisations prioritising OSH compliance in the workplace? HRM's Ananya Mukherjee investigates A recent explosion in a coalmine in northern China claimed 26 lives, only weeks after a gas explosion in another north-western district killed 83 people. Last year, two construction workers were killed and another 29 injured in Singapore's Ayer Rajah Road, when the top layer of steel bars for the reinforcement cage of the foundation fell onto the workers below. Not to mention the infamous Nicoll Highway accident. If you think these are only stray incidents that happen to workers employed in high-risk zones, think again. Knowing and understanding the potential hazards that can be presented in a confined workspace is the critical part of any occupational health and safety programme. In today's corporate landscape, employers and employees need to focus on risk management and get involved in improving the standards of occupational safety and health (OSH). In a positive bid to drive OSH initiatives, the Government of Singapore has been proactively working in partnership with all industries. "This is not only the right thing to do, it's also the smart thing to do. Investing in safety and health is your best insurance against business disruptions and productivity loss due to accidents, poor health or rectification efforts," Dr Ng Eng Hen, Singapore's Minister for Manpower and Second Minister to Defence, was quoted as saying at the Annual Safety Performance Awards 2005. Also, in order to reduce loss of lives at work, top managers and leaders in Singapore have been playing a fair role in prioritising safety and health in the workplace. "British Petroleum (BP) is committed to the health and welfare of all its staff, including the contractors who come into our offices or buildings, as well as the community who gets touched by our activities. My focus is primarily on the trading and supply team of about 300 office staff based mainly in the BP Singapore office. They are involved in trading and supply of crude products and petroleum products in Asia and are linked with our London and Chicago trading offices," says Sharann Johnson, health, safety, security and environment manager from BP. Also, BP has a policy, which is, "Our goal is (to have) no accidents, no harm to people, no damage to the environment," Johnson informs. "And I think that is pretty special, as the message is clear and our staff understand what is expected of them. Our current performance for the business is zero injuries to our staff and we work very hard at that. When people come into our business, one of the first activities is the HSSE induction. On day one we make sure they know how to deal with an emergency, how to get out of this building, where the muster point is, and what the procedures are. Within a week, preferably, I do an HSSE induction with the staff and during that I take them through what are the risks for our business," she elaborates. Her colleague, Rohit Zutshi, senior HR advisor from BP Singapore, corroborates, "Besides the policy, it's a way of living in BP. It is the whole mindset. I think we have been very

successful in doing that. Before somebody joins us, there is an attached document called HSSE, which talks about the terms and conditions for HSSE and the employee has to sign and say 'yes, I am committed to HSSE'. So it's a way of living for us where we want to make sure that everything happens in a safe secure manner." Most companies clearly understand that injury prevention is a part of creating competitive advantage. "Injuries cost money and its cost undermines competitiveness," remarks Evangeline Low, HR manager, DuPont Singapore. She says that safety at DuPont is one of its core values. "We have put OSH as a corporate priority for over 200 years, long before other companies realised its importance," she adds. Prevention is part of DuPont's programme to improve the quality of life of each employee. "Experience also has demonstrated that an effective programme avoids the high cost associated with disability/absence, work disruption, morale problems, regulatory noncompliance and litigation," observes Low. One of management's fundamental responsibilities is to lead the safety effort in a sustained and consistent way, establishing safety goals, demanding accountability for safety performance, and providing the resources to make the safety programme work, she says "For the arena of occupational health, we take a two-sided approach. We understand people's lifestyle to predict its impact on the work environment, and concurrently monitor the work environment to predict its impact on personnel lifestyle. The synergy of these will influence the actual programmes and their implementation," she adds. To quote an example for the first approach, Low says: "An employee wants to look stylish. By selecting a safety glass that meets the intent of eye protection and looks good at the same time, the employee will use it willingly. Thus, using the safety glass is now a fashion statement instead of a push from the management. Again, if leather gloves are required for a certain task to be carried out in the plant, the selection of the gloves must not only meet the requirements of providing the protection required, the material selected should also not cause concern to the people using it." Equally important is the safety and health of our employees away from work. "The same fundamental support programme is applied for non-work occurrences. Pain and suffering and business impact occurs when an individual is injured away from work. Thus, as one of our corporate principles, off-the-job safety is as important as on-the-job safety. We incorporate off-the-job safety awareness and training as part of our total Occupational Health and Safety Philosophy/Programme," maintains Low. Johnson and Zutshi from BP echo Low's statement. "One of the key risks for our people is travel. I think we try to ensure that this is done safely and there are contingencies in place if something happens to them. For example, before you can travel to certain countries, we have countries classified into certain risk categories," says Johnson. "We have databases for travel approval, so we also know where our people are at any point of time. In addition, we are so concerned about our staff welfare that when the Tsunami hit on 26 December last year, when most of our people were on a holiday, we organised our line managers to ring all their staff, so we could account for everyone, and made sure everyone was safe. It's important for us that even if something happened to you on a holiday, we have a commitment. BP takes a much more holistic approach towards staff these days," adds Johnson.

So, whether it is ensuring good ergonomics in office space, or using leather gloves, or making the entire work space a non-smoking zone, the ultimate aim of HR is not to wait for an accident to occur, but to relentlessly advocate the importance of behaviour-based safety, and to identify and reinforce a risk-free experience. Since employees care about their lives, and want to work safely, they will adopt it. HRM DuPont's Evangeline Low BP's Rohit Zutshi Number of Industrial Accidents by industry 1995 - 2004 Source: Ministry of Manpower Quick tips for a safe workplace

Protect yourself. Wear eye protection to protect your vision. Choose eye protection that matches the job. For example, wear a face shield when using acid and goggles when working around excessive dust. Select safety glasses with shatter-proof lenses. Make sure glasses fit comfortably and snugly while providing a clear field of vision. The clothing you wear to work is your most important safety equipment. Dressing right for the job gives you all-around protection against the ordinary hazards of construction. The right clothing, boots and helmets can reduce and/or prevent many minor injuries such as cuts and bruises that are painful and decrease productivity. Further, a helmet can save your life by protecting you from falling objects. When dealing with chemicals or acids, if a spill occurs, work clothes should be changed immediately. An emergency shower should be in the immediate vicinity to wash off toxic chemicals. Reading labels can save your life. One way to help control your exposure to hazardous and toxic substances is to read and pay attention to labels on material containers (bags, tubes, and so forth). Container labels give the name of the chemical in the container, the name/address of the manufacturer and a hazard warning statement and/or graphic. If you read and obey warnings, labels can help protect you. Do not panic. Try to gauge the situation and seek help as soon as you can.