Workplace safety is a critical management concern, as it determines whether an organization makes the best out of its employees. Manuele (2019) asserts that companies tend to encounter accident-related challenges, some of which escalate to lawsuits leading to compensations for injured personnel if they overlook safety. However, having a comprehensive occupational safety and health plan requires the involvement of an occupational safety and health administration (OSHA) professional. The type of risk exposures arising in the workplace should inform the choice of a safety and health approach. Nevertheless, the failure to consult with a professional, as has been the case with Gemstone Fabricators, leads to safety deficiencies, even if the organization seeks to be a voluntary protection program (VPP) site. The company may seldom procure OSHA’s approval and certification unless it implements a comprehensive safety and health plan, which should be founded on the Plan-Do-Act approach.
The nature of Gemstone Fabricators’ operations requires a holistic safety and health approach since employee interactions with machines are significantly high. However, the current safety approach does not include any accountability requirements for supervisors, managers, and executives. As it is, the plan is centered on front-line workers. Nevertheless, the company’s employees have a blurred view of the safety effort required of them, as there is hardly any detailed documentation on safety expectations and procedures. As a result, the employees are unsure of what they should do to guarantee a safe workplace environment. A critical analysis of the current safety and health strategy shows that the company relies on a piecemeal approach, which can seldom ensure the desired level of safety to warrant OSHA certification. Ostensibly, these concerns must be addressed and solutions incorporated in the application forms before the submission to OSHA.
Gemstone Fabricators should develop a plan to include and involve supervisors, managers, and executives in the safety plan. Manuele (2019) posits that workplace safety is a collective responsibility, which requires the involvement of all persons accessing and operating within a particular premise. Managers and other senior employees are equally exposed to the risk of workplace accidents to warrant their exemption from the company’s safety programs. The company must further develop a strategy defining employees’ responsibilities and expected code of contact necessary for a safe workplace environment. For instance, the company should have a clear incident-reporting plan, which should be known to all workers. In essence, every employee should be aware of individual responsibilities towards the company’s safety programs. The details of all personnel’s inclusion and responsibilities must be captured articulately in the application statement.
A safe work environment calls for a holistic strategy rather than a piecewise approach. The recommendation for inclusivity is informed by ANSI/AIHA Z10-2012 (R2017) voluntary requirement standards, which require organizations to have clear statements on employee participation, corporate leadership roles, safety objectives, and review processes to be considered conformant to OSHA standards (Manuele, 2019). However, An OSHA professional’s role cannot be overemphasized, as this is the party mandated to oversee the company’s safety initiatives and procedures for the certainty of adherence to set standards. Other than just the inclusion and involvement of all personnel within the facility, the management should also adopt a regular assessment plan based on the Plan-Do-Check-Act approach. Incorporating this process in the company would involve the establishment of an incident reporting procedure, which must be reviewed periodically, probably every three months, and a report generated with improvement recommendations.
In overview, Gemstone Fabricators should review and amend its safety and health strategy to ensure conformance with OSHA’s standards. The company must establish accountability measures for all employees, including line workers, managers, and supervisors, as no one is immune to the risk of workplace accidents, which can easily lead to injuries and fatalities. The management might have to organize workshops and seminars centered on safety sensitization for all workers. Details of the comprehensive safety and health programs should be included in the OSHA application forms to warrant the agency’s approval of Gemstone Fabricators as a VPP site.
Reference
Manuele, F. A. (2019). Occupational safety and health management. In S. Z. Mansdorf (Ed.), Handbook of Occupational Safety and Health (pp. 653-669). John Wiley & Sons. Web.