Task analysis, safety performance measurement

All recruitment and selection activities should begin with a job analysis. Job analysis allows the task requirements of a job to be precisely determined. Furthermore, job analysis allows the safety risks associated with a job to be determined, and also the identification of the knowledge, skills, and abilities required to work, both safely, and at a satisfactory performance level. It is well established that the occupation or job a person is performing substantially influences accident vulnerability (Ford and Wiggins 2012). In other words, it is vital for safety, for the specific hazards and risks associated with a job to be identified, and conducting a job analysis is an approach which can be used to collect this information. Without the essential information which job analysis provides, it is impossible to provide job applicants with a realistic safety preview for the job (see Chap. 3, Sect. 3.7.2.1), and difiicult to know what competencies a new employee needs to bring to the job, and therefore what should be measured in a selection program. 

A job safety assessment or analysis should be performed at the start of any task or operation. The designated competent or authorized person should evaluate the task or operation to identify potential hazards and determine the necessary controls. This assessment should focus on actual worksite conditions or procedures that differ from or were not anticipated in the related project or phase hazard analysis. In addition, the authorized person should ensure that each employee involved in the task or operation is aware of the hazards related to the task or operation and of the measures or procedures that workers and visitors must use to protect themselves. Note The job safety assessment is not intended to be a formal, documented analysis, but instead is more of a quick check of actual site conditions and a review of planned procedures and precautions. A more detailed explanation of job safety analysis is provided in Chapter 12. 

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