Client Site Evaluations and Touring Potential Job Sites

Why evaluations are necessary

OSHA General Duty Clause

Insurance Program Requirements

Other Reasons…

The General Duty Clause

Section 5 (a) Each Employer:

– Shall furnish to each of his employees, employment and a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause, death or serious harm to employees

– Shall comply with occupational safety and health standards promulgated under this Act

What does this have to do with Insurance?

Assesses risk due to knowledge of existing hazards and the controls in place to deal with them

Provides additional due diligence information for marginal class code exposures

Heavily weighted as an essential element of a loss control program by A-rated insurance carriers

What are the elements of a good evaluation?

Preparation

Interviews

Facility Tour

Record Reviews

Follow up

Preparation

1. Know about the customer

2. Know about the process

3. Know about the market

4. Look at the OSHA history

5. Ask for help if you need it

Interviews with the Customer

Job duties

Hours, breaks, etc.

Safety training

PPE issues/requirements

OSHA Log issues

Accident and Injury protocols

Interviews with the Employees

May or may not be verbal

Observe/ask about PPE issues and safety rules

Observe enforcement by supervisors

Ask about safety meetings/training

Touring the Facility

You should be prepared for:– Ergonomic Concerns– Machines and Tools– Chemical hazards– Housekeeping– Signage

Job Observations– Lifting (Patient Handling)– Use of PPE

Discuss your findings with the client.

Records Review

Safety Programs:– Bloodborne Pathogens– Emergency Evacuation– Infection Control– Hazard Communication

OSHA Logs and Summaries, including Needle Stick Logs

Workers Comp history (EMR) Posted materials such as accident trends or

reports Emergency Evacuation Drills Check for a posting area dedicated to safety

Making a Decision

Would you work at this site?

Would you want a family member to work there?

Why or why not?

Do you see any safety hazards?

There are guarding and housekeeping concerns

Would you send an employee to this job site? Why or why not?

Unguarded fan

Chemical issues

Housekeeping

This is a site where people work. How many hazards can you find?

Which storage is safer?

A.

B.

If the decision is to take on this new customer:

Follow up with the employees that you assign there– Safety rules

– Overall culture

Follow up with the customer concerning the safety performance of your employees– Following rules

– Obeying orders

Viewing Job Orders & Facilities

We Need a Clean Up Person

It is a basic construction site

Nothing special, just a few pieces of equipment and there are some other contractors working in the area

Your employee will not have to do any construction work, just clean up

What do you think? Let’s take a look…

How many safety issues can you find?

Working under a suspended load

Fall hazards

Poor lifting technique, look at the guy bending at the waist

Excavation issues

We need a laborer to help out at the plant

There is some elevated work, but we use fixed metal ladders and handrails.

We have some equipment, but your employee won’t have to operate anything, maybe just help the operator from time to time.

Can we count on you to help us out?

Creative Engineering

Look at the “fixed ladder” in this photo

What are some safeguards that can prevent injury from press operations?

We need a mechanic helper

It is a nice little garage, we don’t do a lot of fancy stuff

We wash a few cars and do basic repairs

Your employee will just be sort of a “jack-of-all-trades”

We really would like to do business with you, can we count on you?

What do you think?

Most of our placements are clerical

Is it that important to check out the site?

Could changing a light be dangerous?

Could a simple air compressor be dangerous?

Review

Doing CSE’s is a legal and insurance program compliance issue.

There are 5 essential elements of the process.

– Prep

– Interviews

– Facility Tour

– Records Review

– Follow Up

They should be done for all new clients prior to assigning employees and for existing clients if changes in management or processes create new hazards.

Follow up at intervals not exceeding 90 days with a facility tour and interviews as needed.

Review

Job orders may not always be what they seem to be, people do not have to lie to deceive.

How we view a job site is a function not only of what we know about safety, but what we want to see. Train yourself to look for hazards and to offer solutions to the client rather than criticism.

If you would not allow a loved one to work at a site that you evaluate for fear of illness or injury, why would you allow an employee to work there?