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MGMT2718

Human Resource Management

Lecture 5

Occupational Health and Safety

Introduction:

each year in Australia

2,900 work related deaths

650,000 work related injuries economic losses $34Billion

ILO 4% GDP worldwide. Aust - $60.6 billion 8% ofGDP.

Health and safety concerns reflect an organisations strategicconcern for employee productivity and quality of work life.They should be linked with the organisation strategicbusiness objectives to seek competitive advantage bypromoting employee commitment, a safe culture, thecompanys image as a preferred employer, reduced costs andincreased productivity. (Stone)

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Introduction: Unitarism in OHS (cont)

Interests of workers and employers do not neatly coincidealthough obviously there is overlap

James Reason: safety lives in the tension betweenproduction (profits) and protection.

Cost-cutting and profit seeking can erode protectionsagainst workplace hazards

Workplace safety is linked to public safety eg aeroplanesare workplaces; BP Deep Water Horizon disaster

Two Definitions: OHS =

the promotion and maintenance of the highest degree of

physical, mental and social wellbeing of workers in alloccupations

The physical, physiological and psychosocial conditions of anorganisations workforce, related to aspects of work and the workcontext

Intro (Continued): Background

Obviously a role for state intervention/regulation fines forviolating employers, and compensation system for theinjured

Since the 1970s,

shift from detailed regulation of standards and specifichazards (eg levels of chemical exposure)

to general duties and regulation of process (Robens) has coincided with work reorganisation (intensification,

outsourcing, offshoring, downsizing) and the rise of HRM

And neoliberalism: light touch regulation

This has led to new hazards especially psychosocialhazards bullying, stress, poor life/work balance

Challenges for regulation as well as HRM

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Lecture Aims and Structure

Show the importance of preventive OHS practices Describe the major features of the legislative context for

OHS in Australia

Identify the basic features of an OHS management system,and criteria for its effectiveness

Identify characteristics of a positive safety cultureandexpose this concept to critical scrutiny

1. The ABC of OHS2. Risk Management: The Reason Model

3. Safety Culture and the Management of OHS

4.Australian Regulation of OHS

5. Hazards Old and New

1. The ABC of OHS

Approaches to understanding workplace injury

Blaming the victim focuses on individual characteristicsand behaviours that contribute to injury

Blaming the system focuses on the organisational, socialand economic environments in which injury and disease

occur the employers duty of care is the starting point

Even if worker negligence has contributed, the employeris directly liable or vicariously liable if harm is done byan employee to another

Although there may be mitigating circumstances

There are a variety of measures available to the injuredparty, from common law action to workers compensation

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Workplace Hazards, Risk Assessment, RiskManagement

Workplace hazardsare circumstances, proceduresor environments that expose individuals to possibleinjury, illness, damage or loss Physical hazards

Chemical and other hazardous substances

Ergonomic hazards

Psychosocial hazards

Risk assessment is the process of identifyinghazards It assesses the severity of the risk in terms of how likely the

hazard is to occur, and the severity of the hazard

Risk Management is the process managing risk

based on the assessment.

2. The Reason Model of Risk Management

Understanding safety in complex high reliabilityorganisations esp aircraft maintenance, nuclearpower, medical

Tension between profits/production and protection

Safety is a dynamic non event the absense of an

accident does not mean a system is safe

During the absense of a disaster, safety marginsare being eroded and a given system may actuallybe becoming increasingly unsafe!

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Swiss Cheese Model

Defences against accidents are like layers of swisscheese.

Holes are like breaches in the defences when they lineup an accident trajectory may occur

The protective layers are continually being eroded bycost cutting

Especially by managers who dont appreciatetechnicalities

Accidents come from human error (or deliberatedepartures from procedure), interacting withorganisational latent factors

such as management decisions, practices, governmentpolicy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIQQhqpVY80

Show first few seconds, then From 30 mins > 41

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Implications

Rarely one single cause - Human error involved Latent factors

organisational characteristics, even aspects of publicpolicy (training or regulation) broad concept

The investigation pointed to systemic failures ofmanagement in the engineering hangar

Time pressure - for on time departure; supply of bolts

Engineer departed from procedure incautiously

Not the full story in the official accident report dueto pressure from the airline

Argument the investigators denied natural justice to theengineer by not informing him that he was underinvestigation

3. Safety Culture and the Management of OHS

Positive safety culture is a set of values, perceptions,attitudes and patterns of behaviour with regard to safetyshared by members of the organisation, reflecting a highlevel of concern and commitment to the prevention ofaccidents and illnesses

objective is to create an atmosphere in which employees

are aware of the risks in their workplace, are continually onguard against them, and avoid taking any unsafeaction (Kramer et al, 2014:123)

employees are more likely to comply with safetyprocedures because they are more aware and havegreater ownership of those procedures

BUT positive safety climate cannot be developed withoutconsideration of the daily constraints on employees

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Reporting Culture

Reporting culture is when people are prepared toreport errors, near misses, unsafe conditions,inappropriate procedures and any other concernsthey may have about safety

Some concerns:

Reporting ones own errors can lead to disciplinary action

Importance of no blame or aka just culture (anotheraspect of SC).

Yet no blame is incompatible with performancemanagement (accountability) culture

Tensions with pluralism unitarist assumptions

Also in tension with new HRM practices, esp PM

Elements of a safety culture

Reasons safety culture concept also contains unitarism

[in addition to] Reporting culture

Informed culture

values and propagates knowledge of safety principles

Just (no blame) Culture

People are not blamed for their errors, as long as they

own up Flexible Culture

Delegates decision making power to expertise

Eg aircraft maintenance engineers make decisions torelease the plane to service, and will delay if there is asafety concern

but sometimes non-technically trained managers willcontest and override

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OHS safety management systems

a combination of the planning and review, themanagement organisational arrangements, theconsultative arrangements, and the specific programelements that work together in an integrated way toimprove health and safety performance

Policy and programs that cover the planning,implementation, evaluation and improvement of OHS inan organisation

OHS policy: a written statement approved by top

management, typically accompanied by a set of OHSprograms, rules and instructions, that identifies OHSaccountabilities and sets out how OHS compliance willbe met

OHS safety management systems

1. Organisation, responsibility and accountability

Shared among HR, Exec, Line mgt, Employees (unions?)

Overt commitment by senior mgt important, as are policies andperformance management systems

2. Consultative arrrangements

OHS representatives, committees and broad employeeparticipation

3. Specific program elements

OHS program: a plan designed for policy implementation thatidentifies the OHS procedures, practices and people necessaryto reach policy objectives

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Elements of OHS management systems

OHS program elements include:

rules and procedures, training programs

workplace inspections

incident reporting and investigation

principles for hazard prevention/control

data collection, analysis, record keeping

OHS promotion and information provision

emergency procedures medical/first aid facilities and procedures

NB Also organisational learning feedback loops

Barriers to an effective OHSmanagement system

Not customising systems to organisational needs, impositionwithout consultation, weak senior management commitmentand poor employee involvement

Application in hostile contexts (small business, precariousemployment, contractors and labour hire companies)

Inappropriate use of audit tools (where they become an endin themselves, are governed by misplaced managementobjectives and are conducted without sound auditor skills,standards and criteria)

NOTE also ability of OHSMS to continuously improve, itsability to detect hazards, assess and manage them.

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4. Australian Regulation of OHS

Approaches to OHS regulation and inspection in general

have changed as the introduction said

Earlier (pre-80s) voluminous regulations detailing technicalworkplace hazards

British Robens report mix of general duty of care,performance standards and process standards

Internal processes especially worker (union?) representationin OHS committees and other processes essential

But unitarist assumptions

Need systems to involve workers and expertise at workplace

Criticised by OHS experts as having failed

due to erosion of union influence? Representation gap?

leaning too far to self regulation especially SafetyManagement Systems (SMS)

Much depends on external auditing and inspection >regulated self regulation

Australian Regulation

Principles: Employers Duty of Care.

requirement for everything reasonably practicable to bedone to protect the health and safety of the workplace

Each state had own laws large volume of legalrequirements, particularly for employers operating in

more than one state and own WorkCover (workers compensation) system -

some were stronger than others

By 2009, there were 10 OHS Acts, at least 50 otherregulatory instruments and 282 codes of practiceconcerned with workplace health and safety acrossAustralia

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Harmonisation process

Labor 2008 began harmonisation

Used Victorian legislation as a model

NSW held out

wanted right to jail employers

Strong right of entry for unions and to closedown a business

all state governments (except Western Australia)agreed to enact legislation identical to the federalmodelAct by the end of 2011

Not completed yet complex mix of state regulations,moving towards national harmonisation based onFederal WHS Act

Work, Health and Safety Act 2010.

Organisations will have to ensure workplaces are safeand without risks to all types of workers carrying outactivities on behalf of the organisation, and any otherperson affected by those activities

Workers will have an obligation to undertake reasonable

care for themselves and for others, and to cooperate withany reasonable instruction by the organisation

State and territory OHS Acts are enforced through aprocess of inspection, investigation, education andprosecution, a process that will continue under the newnational system

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Work, Health and Safety Act 2010.

Legally enforceable rights to participation, consultationand representation for workers

Workers can elect representatives on OHS committees

Strong powers to H&S rep at workplace can orderstopwork issue Infringement Notice

Responsibilty for OHS extends down the supply chain tocontractors

principal OHS statutes throughout Australia areaccompanied by workers compensation regulation, which

sets out the rights and obligations of employers andemployees following a work-related injury

Workers Compensation

Workers compensation and rehabilitation legislationprovides for compensation to injured employees,regardless of who is responsible for the workplaceillness or injury

Injured workers are entitled to (1) compensation forlost wages while injured and medical and relatedexpenses, and (2) be offered suitable duties or theirpre-injury employment to help the rehabilitation ofinjured workers and safeguard them against dismissal

Return to work approach is based on the jointassumptions that it will benefit injured workers andreduce the costs of compensation

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5. Workplace Hazards Old and New

Traditional falls, trips and spills, exposure todangerous substances, like Asbestos Smokingincluding passive, and Substance abuse

New Occupational Stress

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v-3wDQJEHdI

Some new hazards are exacerbated by HRM practices,like outsourcing, offshoring, (the dark side of) flexibility especially precarious work

Long Work Hours andboundariless work' Obesity

Sitting is the new smoking

Muscular sceletal disorders (RSI; etc)

Some Current Health and Safety Issues (cont)

Lack of work-life balance, and Work-familyconflict

Tensions between traditional work hours, especially longdays, depends on traditional domestic role of women career impediment for the latter

And long hours not necessarily a problem work time isnot necessarily negative some people thrive on it

Intra-family tension can create a work hazard, as well asbeing the result of it, especially in case of

Home-based work

need policies because its a workplace yet employersoften cant control should they be liable?

Technology can be a trap inability to break free fromwork (smartphones; iPads)

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New classes of psychosocial injury

Occupational stress: the adverse emotional and/orphysiological reaction to excessive pressures or othertypes of demands placed on a worker

A condition of strain that affects ones emotions, thoughtprocesses and physical condition

Sources of Stress = stressors

Highjob demands combined with inability to controlhow you work (Karosek and Theorell)

Workplace bullying (next OHD)

Challenge for OHS design OHSMS and Regulatory/auditing/inspection to manage risk of psychosocialinjury depression etc > workplace death

Management bystress - dangers

Japan in the 80s and 90s

Put people under stress (overload) so they find betterways of organising work drives innovation but alsokaroshiand suicide

Workplace Bullying

Hard to define Kramar (p. 133):

Bullying at work: workplace bullying is any behavior that is repeated, systematic and directed towards an

employee or group of employees that a reasonable person,having regard to the circumstances, would expect to victimize,humiliate, undermine or threaten which creates risk to health andsafety

Can take in a lot, new forms of management as well as

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MC32nbGVuJM

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Workplace Bullying: workplace factors conducive to

A workplace culturethat promotes conformity and regardsdiversity as a threat

Work organisation involving poor job design, which promotes roleambiguities and role conflicts, coupled with a low level of individualworker control including a lack of involvement in setting workobjectives

Leadership styles that are excessively authoritarian or laissez-faire

To deal with:

Develop a workplace bullying policy

Have a clearly stated no toleranceapproach

Establish expectations of appropriate behaviours andconsequences for not meeting those expectations

Develop a complaint-handling and investigation procedure thatincludes due process and natural justice

Policies to deal with workplace bullying (cont)

Provide training, information and awareness on workplacebullying to all employees, irrespective of their level within theorganisation

Ensure all who have responsibility for employees are awareof their need to assist their employer in complying with abullying-free workplace

Nominate a contact person

Provide clear job descriptions, which outline specific roles/responsibilities

Take disciplinary action against employees and managersengaged in bullying

Limitations on redress available tendency to fall throughthe cracks see

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Case Study

View this Documentary (10 minutes): the Human Cost ofWorkplace Bullying in Australia

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HA49hYJiGsU&spfreload=10

WA Ambulance will be the case study next week.

http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2015/s4345509.htm

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2016-03-24/families-of-dead-paramedics-call-for-st-john-ambulance-to-change/

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Conclusion

OHS is changing but its difficult to be optimistic onthe analysis of this lecture

Shift from detailed, standards regulation andinspection, to process regulated self regulation, incontext of light touch regulation creates difficulties

At the same time, new hazards associated with workreorganisation (outsourcing, offshoring,intensification) and new management techniques

Psychosocial hazards particularly difficult redressdifficult to get

Continued decline in job quality likely

Not just a workplace, but a public health issue

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References

Kramar,et al, 2014, ch 4

Parliament of Australia (2012) Workplace Bullying: We just want it tostop. House of Representatives Standing Committee on Educationand Employment, Canberra http://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/House_of_Representatives_committees?url=ee/bullying/report.htm

Quinlan, M (2007) Organisational restructuring/downsizing, OHSregulation and worker health and wellbeing, International Journal ofLaw and Psychiatry, 30, 385-399

Reason, J. (1997), Managing the Risks of Organisational Accidents,Aldershot: Ashgate

Walters, D et al, (2011) Regulating Workplace Risks: A ComparativeStudy of Inspection Regimes in Times of Change, UK: Edward Elgar,chs 1-5, 12-13, passim