Management of International

Health and Safety

Element 1: Foundations in Health and
Safety

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 Meanings and Distinctions
• Health - absence of disease
or ill health.

• Safety - absence of risk of

serious personal injury.

• Welfare - access to basic

facilities.

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 REASONS FOR MAINTAINING AND
PROMOTING GOOD STANDARDS OF
HEALTH AND SAFETY
.

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 Why Manage Health and Safety?

Moral reasons.

Legal (or social) reasons.

Economic (or financial)

reasons.

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 Group Exercise

Why might the management

of an organisation not
consider health and safety
to be a priority?

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 Group Exercise - Answers

Key points include:

• Competes with other business aims:
‐ Requires time and resources.
• Seen as a “cost” to business:
‐ Ignorance of true costs of injury/illness.
• Ignorance of legal duties.
• Ignorance of hazards.

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 The Size of the Problem

Global statistics from the International Labour

Organisation (ILO) SafeWork Programme:
• 270 million accidents and 160
million diseases a year due to
work.
• 2 million fatalities a year.
• 4% of global GDP is lost.
• 355,000 on-the-job fatalities
each year.

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 Group Exercise
An employee at your workplace has been
seriously injured in a workplace accident.
In groups, as indicated by the tutor, list the
possible effects and implications of this
accident on the:
• Injured employee.
• Company.
• Line manager.

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 Group Exercise - Answers
Key points include:
• Injured employee:
– Pain and suffering, lost time/wages, impact on
family, on-going impact on work.
• The company:
– Payment of sick pay, overtime cover for employee,
recruitment costs for replacement, insurance claims,
fines/prosecutions, increased insurance premiums.
• The line manager:
– Loss of skills from team, time and cost of retraining
replacement, effect of overtime cover on shifts.

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 The Legal and Social Expectation

International standards from the International

Labour Organisation (ILO).
A country’s own health and safety standards.

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 Who’s Responsible for
Health and Safety?
Everybody - but most of the responsibility lies
with the employer to provide:
• Safe place of work.
• Safe plant and
equipment.
• Safe systems of work.
• Training, supervision and
competency of staff.

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 The Business Case
Accidents and ill health cost money.
Costs may be:
• Direct - measurable costs arising directly from
accidents.
• Indirect - arise as a consequence of the event but
may not directly involve money.
Often difficult to quantify.
‐ H&S failure can affect the
broader economy, as well as
individual companies.

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 Group Discussion

An employee has been injured at work.

Identify potential:
• Direct costs of the accident.
• Indirect costs of the accident.

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 Group Discussion - Answers

Direct costs include:

• First-aid treatment, sick pay,
lost production time.
• Fines and compensation.
Indirect costs include:
• Lost time for investigation.
• Lost morale and damaged worker
relationships.
• Cost of recruitment of replacement staff.
• Lost reputation.
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 The Cost of Accidents at Work
Insured Costs £1

• Fire.
• Worker injury/death.
• Medical costs.
£8 - £36
Uninsured Costs
• Loss of raw materials due to accidents.
• Sick pay.
• Overtime.
• Equipment repairs.
• Lost materials.
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 End-of-Section Quiz

1. What are the 3 main reasons for managing

health and safety?
2. What should an employer provide to
ensure health and safety:
• Safe place of _______________
• Safe plant and ______________
• Safe _______ of work
• Training, _____ and competency of ______

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 .

ROLE OF NATIONAL GOVERNMENTS

AND INTERNATIONAL BODIES

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 Roles of National Governments and
International Bodies
International Labour Organisation (ILO)
• Agency of United Nations.
• Most countries are members.
• Sets international standards for
H&S by publishing:
– Conventions.
– Recommendations.

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 The International Framework

Conventions
• Create binding obligations or policies to
implement their provisions.
• No legal authority, unless ratified by the
member state into its own legal structure.

Recommendations
• Provide guidance on policy, legislation and
practice.

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 Examples of Regulatory
International Frameworks
Regulations adopted by the International Labour
Organisation (ILO):
• Occupational Safety and Health Convention (C155)
- a goal-setting policy for companies and nations.

• Occupational Safety and Health Recommendation

1981 (R164) - supplements C155 and gives more
guidance on how to comply with its policies.

We'll talk about these a lot during the course!

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 Employers’ Responsibilities
Article 16 of C155 identifies obligations placed on employers
to:
• Ensure that workplaces, machinery, equipment and work
processes are safe and without risks to health.
• Ensure that chemical, physical and biological substances
and agents are without risk to health when protective
measures have been taken.
• Provide adequate protective clothing and equipment to
prevent risks of accidents or adverse health effects.

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 Employers’ Responsibilities
Article 10 of R164:
• Provide and maintain workplaces, machinery and equipment
and use working methods that are safe.
• Give necessary instruction, training and supervision in
application and use of health and safety measures.
• Introduce organisational arrangements relevant to activities and
size of undertaking.
• Provide PPE and clothing without charge to workers.
• Ensure that work organisation, particularly working hours and
rest breaks, does not adversely affect occupational safety and
health.
• Take reasonably practical measures with a view to eliminating
excessive physical and mental fatigue.
• Keep up to date with scientific and technical
knowledge to comply with the above.
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 Regulatory Frameworks
ILO has also published Conventions associated with
specific hazards:

• C115 - Radiation Protection (1960)

• C162 - Asbestos (1986)
• C167 - H&S in Construction (1988)

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 What Employers Must Provide
• Safe place of work - and safe access and
egress.
• Safe plant and equipment - the need to
inspect, service and replace machinery will
depend on the level of risk.
• Safe system of work - should be safe in all
circumstances - appropriate review, planning
and control ensure continued safety of
methods.
• Training and supervision to ensure
competency.
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 What is “Competence”?

K - NOWLEDGE
A - BILITY
T - RAINING
E - XPERIENCE

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 Group Exercise

Apart from employees, who else must the

employer protect?

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 Group Exercise - Answers

Anyone affected by their business activities:

• Visitors:
– Invited/uninvited.
– Lawful/unlawful (law differs from country
to country).
• Contractors.
• Members of the public.

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 Workers’ Responsibilities
Article 19 of C155 also places obligations on
workers, expanded in R164 as follows:
• Take reasonable care of their own safety and
that of other people.
• Comply with safety instructions and procedures.
• Use all safety equipment properly.
• Report any situation that they believe could be a
hazard and which they cannot themselves
correct.
• Report any work-related accident/ill health.

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 Workers’ Rights
Article 19 of C155 states that every worker must be:
• Given adequate information on actions the
employer has taken to ensure safety and health.
• Given the right to the necessary training in safety
and health.
• Consulted by the employer on all matters of safety
and health relating to their work.
• Given the right to leave a workplace that he has
reason to think presents an imminent and serious
danger to his life or health, and not be compelled
to return until it is safe.
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 Enforcement Agencies

• No harmonised global standard.

• Country-specific agencies may include:
– H&S Enforcement Agency.
– Fire Authority.
– Insurance companies.
• Police may be involved in enforcing H&S law
in some countries.

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 Consequences of Non-Compliance

Breach of H&S legislation is usually a criminal

offence, leading to:
Enforcement action:
• Improvement.
• Prohibition.

Prosecution:
• Organisation may be fined.
• Individuals may be fined or imprisoned.

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 Claims for Compensation

Fault-Based Compensation Systems

• Worker brings claim against
employer.
• Civil legal system.
• Must prove employer was negligent and
therefore to blame for injury/ill health.
• UK and USA.

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 Claims for Compensation

No-Fault Systems
• National or regional
schemes.
• No need to prove negligence.
• Decided by a panel of
experts.
• No lawyers or courts.
• New Zealand and Sweden.

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 Other International Standards
International Organisation for Standardisation
World’s largest developer of management standards,
for example:
– ISO 9001 - Quality Management
– ISO 14001 - Environmental Management
– ISO 12100 - Safety of Machinery

These standards are not “law”, they’re good

management practice.
They lead to a worldwide common approach to good
management.
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 Other International Standards

Internationally-recognised standard for

Occupational Health and Safety is
OHSAS 18001
Compatible with ISO 9001 and ISO 14001

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 Source Organisations
International Labour Organisation (UN agency)
[Link]
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (USA)
[Link]
European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU)
[Link]
Health and Safety Executive (UK)
[Link]
Worksafe (Western Australia)
[Link]/WorkSafe
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 .
ORGANISATIONAL HEALTH AND
SAFETY ROLES AND
RESPONSIBILITIES

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 Standards for Organising

Responsibility for ensuring that the workplace

is safe and free of health risk rests with the
employer.
As we noted earlier, this responsibility is made
clear in:
• ILO Convention C155.
• ILO Recommendation R164.

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 Reminder - What are the Employer’s
Four Duties?

Safe Place of Work

Safe Plant and Equipment

Safe System of Work

Training and Supervision

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 Organisational Health and Safety
Roles and Responsibilities
• Employer.
• Directors and senior managers.
• Middle managers and supervisors.
• Safety specialists.
• Workers.
• Controllers of premises.
• Self-employed.
• Suppliers, manufacturers, designers.
• Contractors.
• Joint occupiers of premises.
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 Employer

The employer carries ultimate

responsibility for ensuring
that the workplace is safe and
free of health and safety risks.

Ensures the safety of workers

and “others”, e.g. visitors and
contractors.

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 Directors and Senior Managers

Directors and senior managers:

• Give an organisation its direction.
• Set its priorities.
• Allocate resources and appoint competent persons.
• Allocate responsibilities.
• Are responsible for ensuring that all of the legal
requirements are met.

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 Directors and Senior Managers

Directors and senior managers can have

enormous influence over their organisation
and its priorities.

The way they are perceived by those lower in

the management hierarchy is very important;
they must demonstrate clear commitment
and leadership with regard to health and
safety.

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 Middle Managers and Supervisors
Middle managers and supervisors are involved in the
day-to-day operational running of the organisation so are
responsible for the health and safety standards within
the operations under their control.

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 Safety Specialists
Safety specialists (or
practitioners) are responsible
for giving correct advice to the
organisation so that the
organisation can meet its legal
obligations and achieve its
policy aims.

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 Group Discussion

What are the typical responsibilities of a

health and safety specialist?

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 Group Discussion
Typical responsibilities include:
• Providing advice and guidance on health and safety
standards.
• Promoting a positive culture.
• Advising management on accident prevention.
• Developing and implementing policy.
• Overseeing the development of adequate risk
assessments.
• Identifying training needs.
• Monitoring health and safety performance.
• Overseeing accident-reporting and investigations.
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 Workers
Workers have a responsibility
to take reasonable care of
their own health and safety
and that of other people who
might be affected by what
they do (or don’t do).

Workers must also

co-operate with their
employer on matters of health
and safety.

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 Controllers of Premises
To the extent that they have
control, controllers of
premises are responsible for
ensuring that the premises
are safe to use as a
workplace, and that there is
safe access to it and egress
from it.

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 The Self-Employed

The self-employed have

responsibilities that are similar
to employees’:
• To take reasonable care of
their own health and safety
and the health and safety of
others who might be affected
by their acts or omissions.

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 Suppliers, Manufacturers, Designers

Designers, manufacturers,
importers and suppliers of
items and substances form
the “supply chain”.
They have responsibilities to
ensure their products are
safe.

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 Clients and Contractors

If a client can be held responsible for an injury

caused by a contractor working for the client
then it must be in the client’s own best
interests to ensure that contractors do not
endanger workers or others.

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 Clients and Contractors
The way that a client manages contractors can be
broken down into four key areas:

• Selecting the contractor.

• Planning the work.
• Co-ordinating the work.
• Monitoring the work.

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 Selecting the Contractor
Things you should check:
• Health and safety policy.
• Risk assessments.
• Qualifications and training records.
• Membership of a professional organisation.
• Maintenance and equipment testing.
• Previous or current clients.
• Accident records.
• Enforcement action.
• Adequate resources.
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 Planning the Work
Information to be shared between client and
contractor:

• Hazards posed by the site and work carried out.

• Hazards posed by the contractor’s activities.
• Risk assessments.
• Method statements.

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 Co-ordination of Work
Arrangements between the client and contractor
include:
• Ensuring activities don’t conflict.
• Permit-to-work system to control activities.
• Key contacts, e.g. works foreman identified to
ensure continuity.

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 Monitor and Control
Clients must:
• Monitor the work to ensure
safety.
The client can:
• Stop the work if it involves
unsafe practices.

Auditing against agreed method

statements is a good technique.

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 Joint Occupiers of Premises
• ILO Convention C155 - Article 17
• ILO Recommendation R164 - Article 11
• Employers in shared facilities should communicate to
develop appropriate health and safety standards and
appropriate policies and procedures.

• This may include:

‐ Sharing of procedures, e.g. fire and emergency
response.
‐ Sharing of risk assessments.
‐ Joint management-committee meetings.

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 In this element we have:
Summary
• Introduced some of the key words that will be used in this course, such
as: health; safety; and welfare.
• Highlighted the three main reasons why an organisation has to manage
health and safety
• Set out the basic requirements of the international standards that govern
health and safety, i.e. the ILO Convention C155 and Recommendation
R164.
• Looked in some detail at the duties that these two standards place on
employers and on workers.
• Discussed the consequences for employers and workers of non-
compliance with legal standards, together with the possible issue of
worker compensation.
• Noted some sources of information on national health and safety
standards.
• To whom does an employer owe a duty with regard to health and safety?
• How can directors influence health and safety?
• What would you look for/check when selecting a contractor?
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• What are the key worker responsibilities?