Health, Safety & Environment
in the Workplace 1
OM1075 - 3
Rasha A. Abdelrahim
Dr. Faris Omer
Dr. Raju
Health and Safety Culture
Definition
The safety culture of an organisation is the shared
attitudes, values, beliefs and behaviours relating
to health and safety.
It will be positive or negative.
The Relationship between Culture and Performance
Positive Culture: Negative Culture:
• People think that safety is • Lots of people think safety is of
important. low priority.
• Safety is considered in all • Safety is not considered in
management decision- decision-making at any level.
making. • People will only work safely if
• People work safely because they are told to and think that
they want to, not because they will be caught and
they are told to. punished if they don’t.
• All workers are positively • All workers are negatively
influenced by this peer- influenced by this peer-thinking
thinking and behaviour. and behaviour.
Indicators Used to Assess Culture
• Accidents.
‒and the standard of investigation.
• Sickness rates.
• Absenteeism.
• Staff turnover.
• Compliance with safety rules.
• Worker complaints about conditions.
Influence of Peers
Put people together in groups
1. Interaction occurs.
2. Influence is exerted.
3. A hierarchy forms:
‒ known as ‘pecking order’.
4. ‘Norms’ of behaviour are established.
5. Peer group pressure is exerted.
• Good indicator of H&S culture.
• Peer group pressure can be harnessed to encourage good safety-
related behaviour.
Group Exercise
What factors could result in the deterioration of
an organisation’s health and safety culture and
hence safety performance?
Improving Health and Safety Culture
Management Commitment and Leadership
• Senior management set policy.
• They also set priorities and targets.
• They must inspire and motivate.
• Their leadership cascades through the
organisation.
• Visible leadership:
‒ Behaving safely.
‒ Involvement in, e.g. safety meetings.
‒ Doing safety tours and audits.
‒ Promoting changes to improve safety.
‒ Enforcing rules through use of discipline.
Competent Workers
A competent person is someone who has sufficient:
• training,
• skills,
• experience, and
• knowledge,
and perhaps other attributes such as attitude or
physical ability to be able to carry out their job safely.
Group Exercise
Identify a few examples of workplace communication from
the following categories:
• Verbal communication.
• Written communication.
• Graphic communication.
What are the merits and limitations of each method?
Verbal Communication
Benefits: Limitations:
• Personal. • Language barrier.
• Quick. • Jargon.
• Direct. • Strong accent/dialect.
• Check understanding. • Background noise.
• Feedback. • Poor hearing.
• Share views. • Ambiguity.
• Additional information (body • Missing information.
language). • Forgetting information.
• No record.
• Poor quality (telephone or PA).
Written Communication
Benefits: Limitations:
• Permanent record. • Indirect.
• Reference. • Time.
• Can be written carefully for • Jargon/abbreviations.
clarity. • Impersonal.
• Wide distribution relatively • Ambiguous.
cheaply. • May not be read.
• Language barriers.
• Recipient may not be able to
read.
• No immediate feedback.
• Cannot question.
• Impaired vision.
Graphic Communication
Benefits: Limitations:
• Eye-catching. • Simple messages.
• Visual. • Expensive.
• Quick to interpret. • May not be looked at.
• No language barrier. • Symbols or pictograms may
• Jargon-free. be unknown.
• Conveys a message to a wide • Feedback.
audience. • No questions.
• Impaired vision.
Broadcasting Methods
• Notice boards.
• Posters and videos.
• Digital media.
• Toolbox talks.
• Memos and e-mails.
• Worker handbooks.
Group Exercise
What are the merits and
limitations of using
safety posters as a form
of propaganda?
Co-operation and Consultation
What is the difference between consulting and
informing workers?
Co-operation and Consultation
Consulting:
Two-way exchange of information and opinion between the
employer and employee.
Informing:
One-way flow of information to the employee.
Typical Issues to Consult On
• Introduction of new measures affecting
health and safety.
• Appointment of new advisers.
• Health and safety training plans.
• Introduction of new technology.
Methods of Consultation
Direct consultation:
• Employer talks to each worker and resolves
issues.
Through worker representatives:
• Committee is formed to represent workers.
• Regular meetings to discuss and resolve issues.
• Members may have rights in law.
Group Exercise
What makes an effective committee?
Health and Safety Committee/Forum
Effective committees will depend on:
• Who is on the committee.
• How often the committee meets.
• Who will act as chairperson.
• What authority the committee will have.
• What will be discussed.
• How the discussions will be recorded.
• How issues will be followed up.
Health and Safety Committee/Forum
Issues that may be considered:
• Study of accident and disease statistics.
• Review of reports from active monitoring.
• Examination of safety audit reports.
• Consideration of reports and information from HSE.
• Consideration of reports submitted by safety reps.
• Provide assistance in development of procedures and policy.
• Monitor the effectiveness of training.
• Monitor and improve safety communications.
Training
H&S training is the planned, formal process of acquiring and
practising knowledge and skills in a relatively safe
environment.
Training has a dramatic effect on safety-related behaviour.
Without training, workers try to do their jobs by:
• Copying others.
• Doing the job the way they think is best.
Training
Training helps workers to understand:
• Hazards and risks.
• Rules and precautions.
• Emergency procedures.
• Who to contact with concerns.
• Limitations and restrictions.
• Personal safety responsibilities.
• Consequences of breaking rules including
disciplinary procedures.
Training Opportunities
Induction training − New employees
Job change − New hazards following a change in
job
Process change − New hazards associated with new
ways of working
New technology − New hazards associated with plant
and machinery
New legislation − Implications of new legislation
Induction Training
• Health and safety • Consultation
policy. arrangements.
• Emergency procedures. • Safety rules.
• First aid.
• Specific site hazards • Personal protective
and controls. equipment.
• Welfare facilities. • Safe working and
• Safe movement. permits.
• Accident and incident • Risk assessment.
reporting. • Responsibilities of
individuals.
• Disciplinary procedures.
Human Factors Which Influence
Safety-Related Behaviour
Human Factors Influencing Safety-Related Behaviour
Organisational Factors
• Safety culture.
• Commitment and leadership.
• Resources available.
• Work patterns.
• Communication.
• Levels of supervision.
• Peer group pressure.
• Consultation and worker involvement.
• Training.
Job Factors
• Task.
• Workload.
• Environment.
• Displays and controls.
• Procedures.
Individual Factors
• Competence:
• Attitude
‒ Knowledge.
‒ Ability. • Motivation - the thing that
‒ Training. is making a person do what
‒ Experience. they do:
‒ Rewards/incentives.
• Skills
‒ Positive or negative.
• Personality
Attitude
A person’s point of view or way of looking at something;
how they think and feel about it.
Can be changed by:
• Education and training.
• High-impact interventions.
• Enforcement.
• Consultation.
• Involvement.
Risk Perception
Perception: the way a person’s brain interprets
information sent to it by their senses:
• Sight.
• Hearing.
• Smell.
• Taste.
• Touch.
Group Exercise
You will be shown the following slide for
20 seconds.
You are asked to count the number of ‘F’s.
Risk Perception
Factors that can distort a person’s perception of hazard and
risk include:
• Illness.
• Stress.
• Fatigue.
• Drugs and alcohol.
• Previous experiences.
• Training and education.
• Use of PPE.
• Workplace conditions, e.g. high noise levels.
References
• Hughes, P. and Ferrett, E., 2021. International health and safety at
work: For the NEBOSH international general certificate in
occupational health and safety. Routledge.
