Employee input

The first major element is Employee Participation [29 CFR 1910.119 (c)]. This requires that affected employees (those who could be affected by an incident) not only have access to pertinent Process Safety Management information, but also be allowed to provide input to its development and use. It is expected that affected employees will be trained in the standard s content. Many companies not only welcome employees input, but also involve them in the development and management of the individual elements. It is expected that all employee participation in PSM implementation will be documented. ... 

This program will provide continuous monitoring of safety hazards using employee input. This participation should stimulate employee awareness of safety and motivate the employees to work more safely. The continued use of the program should encourage the employees to have a vested interest in their safety and that of their fellow employees. This sense of involvement can carry over into improvement in individual work habits. 

Inform employees of the program. Acquire employee input in the developmental stages of the program. Inform labor organization, if applicable. 

Management seeks and considers employee input in company... 

Planning — As you design your safety meeting, one option is to use employee input when planning your session. You may be limited on the subject matter when a particular regulation changes, but input from your staff may reveal specific training needs or unique methods of presentation. 

The audit program provides a means for employee involvement in terms of the actual conduct of the audit and in terms of allowing employee input during the... 

Management systems for monitoring and performance measurement are to apply to such as workplace inspections, exposure assessments, incident tracking, employee input, and other needs as required by the employer s occupational health and safety management system. Findings deriving from those processes are to be communicated to interested parties. 

The effectiveness of the processes outlined in ZlO s Section 3.0, Management Leadership and Employee Participation, would be the basis of performance measurements on employee input. The provisions in Section 3.2, Employee Participation, states that The organization shall establish and implement processes to ensure effective participation in the occupational health and safety management system by its employees at all levels of the organization, including those working closest to the hazard(s). ... 

You may want to recognize the teams that report hazards or provide suggestions on new hazard control. Recognition can be based on the submission of reports and suggestions or on the quality of the employee input. Let your managers and supervisors know that when an employee brings a safety issue to your attention, you consider that a good reflection of the supervisor s leadership [3]. 

This is one of the things that we as management do not do well— getting employee inputs. Why do you think this is so hard The one reason that the authors have dealt with is simple. Management in many cases is afraid of what they hear. K they listen to employees, they may have to solve problems and really do not want to deal with it— I do not have the time. This is a common statement from many managers. After all who needs more problems The bottom line is that if you want true employee participation you must ask the question and accept what you hear, solve the issues, and continue to go about your business. Once the culture is developed and trust begins to build, issues will solve themselves because employees will start to solve issues on their own and only come to management when they cannot get the situation resolved. 

If you were to review any Japanese company, you would find that that there is an approach to employee participation. They have used their employees to help solve various types of quality-related issues. Some American companies are finally starting to realize the value of employee participation. Employee input in the United States is most common in the area of quality control. We now must take a broader approach on safety issues [5]. 

Results Expected Employee input on safety and health matters volunteers for participation programs Inspections investigations being performed Inspections that ID all hazards investigations that uncover root causes fewer incidents and accidents... 

Listen for employee input, providing timely feedback on input, methods of involvement, level of participation, level of communication. 

These questions are subjective and need to be so in order to establish what the employee is experiencing as opposed to what is occurring in the workplace. Once the data are collected from the employee, it can be measured to the work environment to identify possible solutions needed to increase safety and reduce ergonomic stressors, if any actually exist. Employee input is invaluable when identifying ergonomic issues. 

I know safety professionals who see their role from a power and control perspective as opposed to a consultative perspective. As long as safety is viewed as something someone else does, as a litany of rules and procedures that must be followed and policed, or as having power over and control of others, safety will continue to suffer from lack of employee input and isolation from the management mainstream, as it has for the past 40 years. 

Management commitment and employee involvement. Management leads, supports, and enforces the program, but employee input is essential for its success. 

I encourage participation by seeking my employees input and actively listen to their concerns... 

Results Employee input Inspections and Inspections that... 

Plans and procedures help define job roles and expectations. The individuals in an organization that best understandtheir roles, know what is expected, and know how to improve it, are the ones performing them. Plans and procedvures empower employees to make decisions that positively affect the bottom-line results of the company. Once an issue or activity of the company has been determined to need a policy, employee input should be solicited throughout the development and implementation process. 

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