Workplace Health & Safety

• Learn to recognise potentially dangerous situations
• Learn how to respond to identified risks
• Be prepared for when things go wrong
• Self Paced 100 hour course
• Expert, highly qualified and experienced tutors

Lesson Structure

There are 10 lessons in this course:

1. Introduction
   • Nature and Scope of Workplace Health and Safety
   • Work Related Fatalities
   • Duty of Care: employer, employee, other person, manufacturer
   • Significance of Illness
   • Protective Equipment; personal protection, machinery, equipment, signs and information
   • Further Information and Resources
2. Legislation
   • Legislation across different countries: Australia, UK, Canada, USA, NZ etc
   • Examples: Worksafe Australia, Health & Safety Commision UK, Occupational Health & Safety Commission USA, etc
   • International Commission on Occupational Health
3. Protective Equipment
   • Introduction
   • Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
   • Selecting and Maintaining PPE
   • Hand Protection
   • Eye Protection
   • Hearing Protection
   • Respiratory Protection
   • Body Protection
   • Knee Protection
   • Foot and Leg Protection
   • Sunscreen
   • Head Protection
   • Machine and Equipment Guards
   • Flooring
   • Protective and Temporary Barriers
   • Temporary Signs
   • Protecting Hearing
4. Handling Chemicals
   • Storage and Disposal
   • Transporting Chemicals
   • Protecting theEnvironment
   • Protective Clothing
   • Safe Use and Mixing Chemicals
   • Toxicity of Pesticides
   • Safe Application of Pesticides
   • Hazardous Substances
   • Personal Protective Equipment Plan
5. Handling Equipment
   • General Safety Rules
   • Manual Handling
   • Employer Responsibilities
   • Employee Responsibilities
   • Safety with Different Types of Equipment
   • Handling Tools and Equipment Safely
   • Machinery Safety
   • Machine Hazards
   • Machine Guards
   • Welding Equipment, Compressors, Conveyor Belts
   • Horticultural Equipment; Mulchers, bruch cutters, mowers, chainsaws
   • Tool Maintenance
   • Safety with Electricity
6. Handling Objects
   • How to Lift
   • Strategies for Manual Handling
   • Skin Penetrating Injuries
   • Risk Categories
   • Preventative Measures
   • Treating Wounds: First Aid
   • Case Studies of Manual Handling Injuries
7. Using Computer Work Stations
   • Using VDU's
   • Eyesight
   • Repetative Strain Injuries
   • Carpel Tunnel
   • Headaches
   • Radiation
   • Creating a Healthy Work Station
   • Rest Breaks, Stretching, Posture
8. Working Alone
   • Duty of Care, Responsibilities
   • Common Tasks Undertaken by a Lone Worker
   • Mobile Workers
   • Risk Assessment
   • Risk Management
9. Standards and Rules
   • Introduction
   • Identifying Risks
   • Hazard and Risk Management
   • Workplace Policy
   • Risk Assessment Safety Audits
   • Identifying Risks
   • Audit Forms
   • Safety Audit
   • Safety Outdoors; fire, bites, potential accidents, cuts, strains, poisoning, allergies, etc
   • First Aid; Shock, Fainting, Fractures, Strains, Sprains, Heat Exhaustion, etc
   • Skin Cancer
   • First Aid Supplies
10. Signs and Signals
    • Introduction to standard signs and signals
    • Conventions in different countries; UK, Australia

Each lesson culminates in an assignment which is submitted to the school, marked by the school's tutors and returned to you with any relevant suggestions, comments, and if necessary, extra reading.

Aims

• Determine procedures followed in the workplace to control workplace health and safety practices.
• Determine workplace health and safety legislation which is relevant to your industry and locality.
• Identify procedures for the safe use of chemicals in the workplace.
• Identify procedures for the safe use of equipment, including tools and machinery, in the workplace.
• Identify procedures for the safe manual handling of objects in the workplace.
• Develop workplace health and safety rules and practices, for a specified workplace.
• Identify standard signs and hand signals used in workplace health and safety in Australia.

What You Will Do

• Define workplace health and safety, for a specified industry.
• List different individuals and groups within a workplace who have a responsibility with respect to workplace health and safety.
• Identify the role of the workplace health and safety officer in a workplace.
• Explain the operation of consultative processes in the management of workplace health and safety.
• Define duty of care, for a specific industry.
• Outline the scope of federal legislation in workplace health and safety.
• Outline the scope of state legislation in workplace health and safety.
• Explain workplace health and safety regulations within a specified industry.
• Explain the legal standing of workplace health and safety codes of practice.
• Assess different specified workplace situations to determine which are liable to prosecution, and which are not liable to prosecution.
  • including:
  • petroleum products
  • cleaning chemicals
  • explosives
  • pesticides
• Explain factors that contribute towards problems with dangerous chemicals.
• Analyse a workplace situation to determine potential safety problems with dangerous chemicals.
• Recommend changes in the workplace in response to the potential safety problems with dangerous chemicals.
• List legal requirements for storage and use of dangerous chemicals in a specified workplace situation.
• Explain appropriate storage procedures for different types of chemicals, including:
  • pesticides
  • petroleum products
  • cleaning chemicals
  • explosives
• Explain appropriate disposal procedures for different types of dangerous chemicals.
• Identify potential problems in the workplace with different types of dangerous chemicals.
• List factors that contribute towards safety problems with equipment.
• Analyse a workplace situation to determine potential safety problems with equipment.
• Recommend changes in the workplace in response to the potential safety problems with equipment
• Develop a procedure for the safe operation of a piece of machinery.
• List factors that contribute towards problems with manual handling, in a specific industry.
• Analyse three different case studies of injuries which resulted from incorrect manual handling.
• Recommend changes in three different specified workplaces, in response to the analysis carried out on manual handling injuries.
• Determine health risks in a specified workplace.
• Determine accident risks in a specified workplace.
• Develop a code of practice to minimise health risks in a specified work place.
• Develop a code of practice to minimise accident risks in a specified workplace.
• Distinguish between different classes of dangerous goods, for a specific industry
• Interpret different standard hand signals used in a specific workplace.
• Interpret different standard signs used in the workplace, including:
  • hazardous chemicals
  • vehicle and pedestrian
  • fire
  • dangerous machinery
  • noise
  • eye protection

DUTY OF CARE

Most WH&S laws require that participants in the workplace observe certain obligations to ensure that WH&S measures are effective and that practical steps are taken for that purpose. These responsibilities, referred to as 'duty of care', apply to all staff and employers. A particular onus is placed on those people controlling workplace activities to determine necessary and appropriate WH&S standards and to make sure these standards are maintained.

(A) Employer duties.

Employers are required to:

• take all practical steps necessary to protect the health and safety of employees,
• provide a healthy and safe working environment,
• take all practical steps necessary to protect the health and safety of other people at or near the workplace, such as sales representatives and pedestrians,
• provide a healthy and safe environment for people visiting the workplace.

(B) Employee duties.

Employees are required to:

• act responsibly and perform their work in accordance with established WH&S standards
• take reasonable care to protect the health and safety of other staff, non-staff and others.

(C) 'Other person' duties.

People other than employers or employees are required to:

• comply with the WH&S standards and obey directions of staff at the workplace.

(D) Manufacturer duties.

Designers, manufacturers, importers and suppliers of equipment, materials or substances are required to:

• provide such items at a reasonable and acceptable standard,
• provide all information relating safe use and handling,
• provide for suitable safety mechanisms within the design of the item used in the workplace.

WORK PLACE SAFETY

Accidents do happen but can be prevented by making sure ‑

• The job being done and all surrounds are safe,
• Educate your employees to practice safety,
• Enforce safety rules and be sure employees practice safety.

Accidents occur in five major areas ‑

1. Wherever materials are handled
2. Around machines (every type, even computers)
3. Wherever people walk
4. Wherever hand tools are used
5. Lifting:

A supervisor should stress safety at all times: it is his problem when an accident occurs, and production is reduced, machinery is damaged, etc.

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF ILLNESS

Sickness or injuries can result in:

• Monetary loss to the worker
• Suffering & stress for the worker & his family
• Loss of production
• Cost of repairs to equipment damaged by injuries
• Loss of material spoilt in injury
• Cost in money & time to train replacement staff
• In case of repeated accidents, other employees may exhibit unwillingness to do that particular job.
• Accidents which result in damage or injury to non-company people or property can result in bad publicity and high compensation payments.
• Employees who are not in peak of health do not work their best.
• Employees who are stressed, suffer from tension or nervous disorders and can be less productive themselves, and cause tension and stress amongst their work mates.