Objectives and Scope of Audit
Written report on the status of review on WSH audit programme.
The main purpose of this assignment is conduct an audit for the purpose of analyzing the workplace safety standard which is incorporated in an organization. The organization which is selected for this assessment is engaged in the metal industry and the normal activities of the business involves wielding, spray painting, grit blasting, stamping. The workers who are engaged in such an industry are always prone to risks of safety. In addition to this, the overall need for audit in a workplace is to ensure that the business follows the relevant regulations which are established by the government for ensuring safety of the employee and environmental consideration (McCaughey et al. 2013).
The audit of a work place safety measure should be conducted by a team which is especially established for the purpose of conducting the safety audit of the business and also the business needs to ensure that the safety programs which are included in the business are apt to tackle any risks which might endanger the safety of the workers of the business (Hale and Borys 2013). The audit can also be conducted by an external auditor professional auditor and the audit will be following the relevant rules and regulations which the government has established which are related to fire hazards and other risks related to the operations of the business (Friend and Kohn 2014). In addition to this, the audit which is to be conducted on the administrative activities of the business needs to be in compliance with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standard which is related to workplace and worker’s safety and security (Occupational Safety and Health Administration 2016).
The hazards which are faced by businesses in a workplace are usually as per the nature of the business. An example which can be given is that of a manufacturing concern or a chemical industry where the employees of the business are more prone to risks of health and safety (Hallowell et al. 2013). The safety measures which are followed by a business both in respect of the employees, society and also the environment are effectively evaluated in case of a safety audit procedure as conducted by the business. Safety audits can help a business to determine how effective are the policies which are followed by the business for the purpose of the safety and environmental consideration of the business (Shea et al. 2016). Regular safety audit programs which the business initiates form an important part of the safety management scheme which is followed by the business. Safety audit can be conducted by anyone such as a supervisor or a team of employees, external party or even a professional auditor (Holt and Allen 2015). The reasons due to which a safety audit must be conducted especially in a mining, manufacturing or chemical business are given below in point form:
- The business needs to ensure whether the safety program which is incorporated by the business is effectively functioning or not.
- The safety of the employee and the well being of the employee are verified along with the risks which are related to safety issues.
- To verify the standards and regulations and ensure that the business follows the requirements of OSHA rules which are established as safety measure standard (Brauer 2016).
- To check the equipment, fire measures for avoiding and minimizing any hazards which can occur in a business.
Recommendations
The audit of the business which is concerned with the workplace safety and other environmental consideration. In such a case the business needs to follow consideration such as related to environmental auditing standards. It is the responsibility of the business to ensure that the workplace and work environment where the operations of the business will be conducted are kept safe and secure. A business normally faces the following kinds of hazards in a work place environment depending the nature of the business activities:
- Safety Hazards: The examples of such types of hazards which can be given which occurs in a workplace are unsafe work condition or environment and inadequate machine safeguard option or outdated machinery without any safety precautions.
- Biological Hazards: These are common in a medical or chemical business firm where the employees are subjected to work with chemicals and also deal with radioactive wastes. If proper safety measures are not incorporate serious damage can be caused to the employees in such an atmosphere.
- Ergonomic Hazards: Such Hazards are caused by anatomical, workplace factors which exerts considerable pressure on the employees. Theses hazards can be associated with ineffective workplace environment, poor workstation design, outdated equipment and several other factors as well.
- Physical Hazards: This can be noise, electricity, radiation which can be depending on the business. One of the most common hazards which are faced by most of the business irrespective of the business nature is fire which can be caused from various reasons and poses greatest threat to a business concern.
In the case of the case study which is given in the question, the company is engaged in metal works and the policy of the business is appropriate when concerned the safety of the workplace. The management has followed the policy of audit of workplace safety in order to identify the effectiveness of the control policies which are applied by the business (Reese 2015). The case study also shows that the business has appointed two auditors who have vast experience for a metal industry but does not have appropriate knowledge of conducting an audit for ensuring workplace safety as the auditors are conducting such an audit for the first time. The case study also shows that the two auditors are appointed by two different managers. In addition to this, the case study mentions that the auditor receives information about the internal SOPs 3 days earlier to the date of start of the audit program of the business.
The elements which are to be considered in such an audit by the auditors are the various rules and regulations which are established by the government are followed or not. Secondly the auditor need to consider the audit program and review the internal control process of the management to ensure that whether the work place safety programs are actually implemented or not and whether they are working efficiently or not. In addition to this, the auditor also needs to verify the machinery of the business such as wielding machines, grit blasters to ensure that the same are not outdated and have safety precautions incorporated in the machines. In addition to this, the case study has indicated that a worker who operated a machine faced serious injury and was amputated. The auditor needs to check the machine and evaluate whether the accident was a fault of the management due to ignorance of safety standards or a mere accident. Moreover, the case study reports of a fire incident which occurred during the course of the audit for which the auditor needs to conduct a detailed investigation. The auditors which are appointed by the business are qualified and have wide experience as shown in the case study.
Conclusion
The objectives of the audit which are to be conducted on the company are mentioned below in details:
- Identification of the risks and the level of risks which are present in the business as per the case study of the company (Lundgren and McMakin 2013).
- Identification of the strength and weaknesses of the safety programs which are incorporated in the business workplace safety program.
- Ensure that the business is following the OSHA guidelines and also other regulations which are relevant to the business in order to ensure that the business is legally compliant.
- Ensure that all the necessary documentations which are required to be maintained by the business to prove the workplace programs and environmental friendly activities are maintained by the management of the company (Witter et al.2014).
- Investigating the accident which is related to the machinery and the fire which occurred in the business and identify the cause of the same (Basner et al.2014).
- Recommending to the business various steps which can be applied by the business for the purpose of rectifying the control and workplace safety measures applied by the management.
As per the findings of the situation which is clear from the audit of workplace safety which was conducted shows that the business has ineffective workplace safety programs and the management is also a bit careless as shown evident in the providing the internal SOPs to the auditor. The audit must be provided with the all information way ahead of the audit process so that the audit can plan the audit process accordingly. In addition to this, the accident which occurred to the employee when operating the machines can be a fault of the management as there was no safety precautions taken while operating the machine and the employee was disabled due to such an incident. In addition to this, the fire incident which took place can also be pointed to be the fault of the management and the business had to suffer losses due to absence of proper fire safety measures in the business. Therefore the audit of the workplace safety measures of the company revealed that the business had ineffective management and safety programs and the senior management need to implement proper safety measures in order to avoid any such incidents in future which can cause harm to the business or the employee or the environment.
After analyzing the case of company and the various safety programs of the business, the following measures can be recommended to the management of the company for the purpose of improving the safety standards of the business:
- The management of the company should form a Health and safety committee whose sole objective will be to look after the needs of the employee and also ensure that the environment in which the workers operate are safe and all the safety measures are incorporated. The committee will be reporting to the senior management if any discrepancies occur.
- The management should check the equipment and machineries which are used by the employees so that to confirm whether the equipment is in order and not in any way risky to the employees of the business. In addition to this, the machinery which the business uses need to be replaced whenever the machinery gets outdated.
- The business needs to also consider the environmental consideration of the activities of the business and therefore need to follow environmental regulations which are introduced by the government in various Act.
- The management also needs to incorporate regular internal checks so that the business can be sure whether the safety programs which has been implemented and that the same is working effectively. If it is possible the business should conduct a workplace safety audits after an interval so as to check whether the safety measures which are implemented by the business are working efficiently or not.
- The management of the company needs to regularly review the workplace safety measures so as to ensure that no employee or worker gets injured in the work process.
- The company needs to incorporate fire safety measures in the business internal processes. The management needs to set up sprinklers in every working area of the business so that the same can prevent any fire incidents in the business
Conclusion
The analysis of the case study which is provided in the assessment reveals that the work place safety programs which is currently in place for the company is ineffective and therefore the management needs to revise the same. The audit of the work place safety is important as it ensures that no injuries takes place in the workplace and there is also the reason to verify whether the OSHA standards are followed and complied by the management of the company so as to prevent any workplace hazards which are so common in a metal business as various equipment are involved and there is high chances of injuries if proper maintenance of workplace safety measures are not followed.
References
Basner, M., Babisch, W., Davis, A., Brink, M., Clark, C., Janssen, S. and Stansfeld, S., 2014. Auditory and non-auditory effects of noise on health. The Lancet, 383(9925), pp.1325-1332.
Brauer, R.L., 2016. Safety and health for engineers. John Wiley & Sons.
Friend, M.A. and Kohn, J.P., 2014. Fundamentals of occupational safety and health. Bernan Press.
Hale, A. and Borys, D., 2013. Working to rule or working safely? Part 2: The management of safety rules and procedures. Safety science, 55, pp.222-2
Hallowell, M.R., Hinze, J.W., Baud, K.C. and Wehle, A., 2013. Proactive construction safety control: Measuring, monitoring, and responding to safety leading indicators. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management, 139(10), p.04013010.
Holt, A.S.J. and Allen, J., 2015. Principles of health and safety at work. Routledge.
Lundgren, R.E. and McMakin, A.H., 2013. Risk communication: A handbook for communicating environmental, safety, and health risks. John Wiley & Sons.
McCaughey, D., DelliFraine, J.L., McGhan, G. and Bruning, N.S., 2013. The negative effects of workplace injury and illness on workplace safety climate perceptions and health care worker outcomes. Safety science, 51(1), pp.138-147.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration, 2016. Occupational Exposure to Respirable Crystalline Silica. Final rule. Federal register, 81(58), p.16285.
Reese, C.D., 2015. Occupational health and safety management: a practical approach. CRC press.
Shea, T., De Cieri, H., Donohue, R., Cooper, B. and Sheehan, C., 2016. Leading indicators of occupational health and safety: An employee and workplace level validation study. Safety science, 85, pp.293-304.
Witter, R.Z., Tenney, L., Clark, S. and Newman, L.S., 2014. Occupational exposures in the oil and gas extraction industry: State of the science and research recommendations. American journal of industrial medicine, 57(7), pp.847-856.
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