Written Safety and Health Program

The standard requires each employer that falls under nrunber one or two above to develop and implement a written safety and health program which includes an emergency response plan (ERP). Those who fall under nrunber three must develop an ERP. An employer who will evacuate employees from the danger area when an emergency occurs, and who will not permit employees to assist with the emergency, is exempt from the ERP requirement if an emergency action plan is developed in accordance with 29 CFR 1926.35 is prepared. 

This chapter looks at examples of plans and programs for achieving safety and health. References offer additional details and help when dealing with specific laws and regulations. There are also consulting companies that provide services to develop written safety and health program documents. 

Although OSHA does not require a written safety and health program, they strongly encourage it. In fact, they demonstrate a model program that emphasizes management commitment and employee involvement. 

Structuring should begin with a written safety and health program. There is a need to assess your accident/incident history and develop a good accident and injury... 

The need for safety and health programs in the workplace has been an area of controversy for some time. Many companies feel that written safety and health programs are just more paperwork, a deterrent to productivity, and nothing more than another bureaucratic way of mandating safety and health on the job. But over a period of years, data and information have been mounting in support of the need to develop and implement written safety and health programs. 

A written safety and health program is of primary importance in addressing these items. Have you ever wondered how your company is doing in comparison with a company without a safety and health professional and a viable safety and health program Well, wonder no more. 

A decrease in occupational incidents that result in injury, illness, or damage to property is enough reason to develop and implement a written safety and health program. 

All three of these are good reasons to have a health and safety program. It is also important that these programs be formalized in writing, as a written program sets the foundation and provides a consistent approach to occupational health and safety for the company. There are other logical reasons for a written safety and health program. Some of them are... 

The safety director will supplement this written safety and health program by ... 

This written safety and health program establishes procedures and responsibilities for the identification and correction of workplace hazards. The following activities will be used by this company to identify and control woikplace hazards ... 

This is a sample written safety and health program and should be used as a template that would be added to or revised to meet the specific needs of a company. No one example like this one would meet the needs of all companies. 

Safety and health program. The employer shall develop and implement a written safety and health program for employees involved in hazardous waste operations that shall be available for inspection by employees, their representatives and OSHA personnel. The program shall be designed to identify, evaluate and control safety and health hazards in their facilities for the purpose of employee protection, to provide for emergency response meeting the re-... 

Recordkeeping A written safety and health program must be kept on site. 

Development of a written safety and health program tailored to your husiness, which includes a statement of management commitment This commitment is demonstrated hy an allocation of funding (budget) as well as an assignment of accountability and responsibility for safety and health. 

Written safety and health programs have a real place in modem safety and health practices not to mention the potential benefits. If a decrease in occupational incidents that result in injury, illness, or damage to property is not reason enough to develop and implement a written safety and health program, the other benefits from having a formal safety and health program seem well worth the investment of time and resources. Some of these are... 

Although federal regulations do not currently require employers to have a written safety and health program, the best way to satisfy OSHA requirements and reduce accidents is for employers to produce one. In addition, distributing a written safety and health program to employees can increase employee awareness of safety and health hazards while, at the same time, reducing the costs and risks associated with workplace injuries, illnesses, and fatalities. 

More details on this element of a written safety and health program can be found in Chapter 13. 

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