Occupational Health and Safety Employee Handbook 2011 WORKING TOWARD AN OCCUPATIONAL ILLNESS AND INJURY FREE MHC
Emergency Contact Numbers In the event of an Emergency call 911 Internal Security: 403-529 - 3911 Facility Operations : 403-529-3919, or 3920 Manager EH&S: 403-502-8439, or 403-952-8340 Medical Office: 403-502-8437 External Poison Control Centre: 1-800-332-1414 Environmental Emergency: 1-800-222-1514 AB Mental Health Crisis Line: 1-800-779-5057 MH Police Drug Unit: 403-529-8400
Table of Contents Introduction... 4 Health and Safety Policy... 4 Who is responsible for my health and safety?... 4 Alberta Occupation Health and Safety Legislation... 5 Due Diligence... 5 What does reasonably practicable mean?... 6 Internal Responsibility System (IRS)... 6 How do I refuse to do unsafe work?... 7 How is Senior Administration involved in health and safety?... 8 What health and safety resources are available to employees?... 8 What hazards will I face in my job?... 8 How do I report a hazard?... 8 What types of incidents need to be reported?... 9 Do I need to report an injury on the job to Human Resources?... 10 What happens after an incident is reported?... 10 What first aid services are available to employees?... 10 How does the college handle emergencies?... 10 Does the college have an emergency alarm system?... 11 Does the college conduct emergency drills?... 11 What health and safety training is available to employees?... 11 Who provides personal protective equipment and training?... 11 How can I become involved in health and safety?... 12 How often is the health and safety program reviewed?... 12 What is WHMIS?... 12 What is a MSDS and where can I find one?... 12 How do I get workplace labels for controlled products?... 13 What security services are available on campus?... 13 3
Introduction This handbook is provided as a quick reference to assist employees in their understanding of their responsibilities in support of the college s occupational health and safety efforts. While at work, all employees are obligated to take reasonable care to protect their own health and safety and the health and safety of any other workers present at our work site. It is the college s intention to foster a collaborative and cooperative approach toward health and safety performance among all college stakeholder groups. Health and Safety Policy Medicine Hat College is committed to providing and promoting a healthy and safe environment for all members of the college community and will conduct activities in a manner that complies with all legal obligations. All individuals planning and conducting Medicine Hat College affairs or using college facilities will systematically integrate health and safety considerations into all activities that may impact Medicine Hat College, its employees, students, or other members of the college community. All employees, students and other members of the college community are expected to report unsafe conditions and activities so these conditions can be identified and corrected in a timely fashion. Who is responsible for my health and safety? All employees have responsibility for their own health and safety while at work. Medicine Hat College can not achieve an occupational illness and injury free work environment without all employees working toward this goal. Specific responsibilities for employees are spelled out in the Alberta Occupational Health and Safety Act (2009). Every worker shall, while engaged in an occupation, take reasonable care to protect the health and safety of the worker and of other workers present while the worker is working, and co-operate with the worker s employer for the purposes of protecting the health and safety of the worker, other workers engaged in the work of the employer, and other workers not engaged in the work of that employer but present at the work site at which that work is being carried out. 4
Alberta Occupation Health and Safety Legislation The Occupational Health and Safety Act, Regulation and Code are the legislation that sets standards for workplace health and safety. Their main purpose is to prevent injuries, diseases and deaths, due to workplace hazards. This legislation is administered by Alberta Employment, Immigration and Industry and is enforced by Occupational Health and Safety Officers. It describes specific requirements that must be met on the worksite. If the requirements are not met, the Officer has the authority to order corrective action or to shut the worksite down. The OHS Act The Act sets out the basic duties of owners, employers, workers, contractors and suppliers. It gives the government power to make regulations and codes (i.e. rules) about health and safety in the workplace. The OHS Act sets standards to protect and support the health and safety of workers throughout the province and gives Officers the authority to visit worksites and enforce the requirements. The OHS Regulation The Regulation addresses certain requirements related to government policy and administrative matters. The OHS Code The Code specifies all the technical standards and rules that employers and workers must comply with to fulfill their obligations. The Code covers 41 different topic areas, such as hazard assessment and control, general safety, noise, chemical hazards, violence in the workplace and first aid, to name a few. Due Diligence Due diligence is the level of judgment, care, prudence, determination and activity that a person would reasonably be expected to exhibit under particular circumstances. Failure to prove that an employer or worker had been duly diligent in complying with the OHS legislation can result in significant penalties. 5
The OHS Act states: 2 (1) Every employer shall ensure, as far as it is reasonably practicable for the employer to do so, (a) the health and safety of (i) workers engaged in the work of that employer, and (ii) those workers not engaged in the work of that employer but present at the worksite at which that work is being carried out, and (b) that the workers engaged in the work of that employer are aware of their responsibilities and duties under this Act and the regulations. What does reasonably practicable mean? At first glance, reasonably practicable looks like a pretty subjective way of determining guilt or innocence. However, reasonably practicable is a legally defined term that is assessed using the reasonable person test. What would a dozen of your peers consider reasonable in a similar set of circumstances? Your peers would likely look at what you did and compare it against what they do. Some of them might do more, others less. Industry standards and practices would also be considered. The result would be a balanced and wise judgment that could be defended. Due diligence puts the onus on an employer and workers to ensure they are working in compliance with the OHS Act, Regulation and Code. Internal Responsibility System (IRS) The IRS refers to an internal system where each individual has direct responsibility for health and safety as an essential part of his or her job. It does not matter who a person is or where the person sits in the organizational structure, they achieve health and safety performance through a collaborative and cooperative approach to hazard identification and control. Each person takes initiative on health and safety issues and works to solve problems and make improvements on an on-going basis. For the IRS to function successfully, each employee of Medicine Hat College must accept their personal obligations toward health and safety performance. 6
Health and safety legislation in most Canadian jurisdictions, including Alberta, is based on the IRS concept and includes rights and obligations that allow all of us to participate in the process to continually improve health and safety performance in our workplace. There are three tenets that anchor the IRS. The Right to Know all employees have the right to know about hazards that may impact them at a workplace. The employee also has a right to know about control measures put in place to protect them from the identified hazards. The Right to Participate all employees have a right to participate in the creation of a healthy and safe work environment. Employees are asked to participate in the development of health and safety programs and to participate in hazard identification and control exercises. The Right to Refuse all employees are statutorily obligated to refuse work that they feel would pose a risk of imminent danger and are free to do so without the risk of reprisal. Imminently dangerous refers to any danger that is not normal for the job or any dangerous conditions under which a worker would not normally carry out the work. If workers think their work may put them or another worker in imminent danger, they must refuse to do it. How do I refuse to do unsafe work? If you believe that your work may put you or another worker in imminent danger, you are obligated to refuse to perform the work in question. Notify your supervisor as soon as practicable about the refusal and explain why you stopped work. Your supervisor must report the refusal to the Environment Health and Safety Office, investigate the situation and take action to correct the danger. Your supervisor may assign another worker to do the work if that worker is trained to handle the danger. If your supervisor does not agree that there is a danger, or if you can not agree on a way to fix the problem contact the Environment Health and Safety office for further assistance. 7
How is Senior Administration involved in health and safety? Senior administration have approved policies and committed resources towards the ultimate goal of having an occupational illness and injury free work site. Senior administration is involved in continuous health and safety improvement efforts and regularly emphasizes the importance of health and safety to their employees. Senior administration stays abreast of health and safety initiatives on campus and participates in regular briefings on health and safety performance and is actively involved in the health and safety planning process directing the college s occupational health and safety efforts. What health and safety resources are available to employees? The Environment Health and Safety Office is located in F-Wing. The Office is open between 0800 and 1600 on weekdays or contacted by email at rsloan@mhc.ab.ca. Health and Safety information is distributed through the EHS SharePoint Site available internally on campus. What hazards will I face in my job? The college has implemented an ongoing process of hazard assessment for each functional occupation on campus. Employees along with their supervisors must complete a hazard assessment of their jobs to identify any hazards that might exist. The Health and Safety Committee reviews the hazard assessments on a regular basis to ensure hazards are controlled and worker exposure is minimized. Supervisors must review the hazard assessments on a regular basis and when new tasks are added or working conditions change to the point where new hazards are introduced to the worksite. The hazard assessments are compiled into a master collection which is available for review in the Environment Health and Safety Office. Additionally, on line review and update is available by selecting the Hazard Assessment link on the EHS SharePoint site. How do I report a hazard? Chemical, biological, physical or psychosocial hazards exist in all workplaces and our college is no exception. Our health and safety program strives to identify and control hazardous situations before they result in incidents. Our employees are a large part of our hazard recognition and 8
control efforts. If you identify a hazard, it is your responsibility to report it to your immediate supervisor. The hazard must also be reported to the Environment Health and Safety Office by using the incident report form. The form can be completed on line and submitted electronically. In the event that the hazard requires immediate control please contact the Environment Health and Safety office directly. The report form is a multi-use form used for the reporting of hazards, near misses and incidents involving injury, property damage and material loss. The report form can also be printed and completed by hand. The primary goal is to have the identified hazard addressed to ensure that it will not negatively impact any of our stakeholders. Concerns identified by any member of the college community can also be forwarded to any member of the college Health and Safety Committee. A listing of current committee membership can be found on the College Website through the Environment Health and Safety link on the EHS SharePoint site home page. What types of incidents need to be reported? All injury, property damage and material loss incidents occurring at Medicine Hat College require formal reporting. Incidents include any event that caused or had the potential to cause injury, damage or material loss. This broad definition includes events typically referred to as near misses. A near miss is an incident that under slightly different circumstances could have resulted in injury, damage or material loss. Near miss reporting is an extremely valuable tool in the health and safety continuous improvement efforts. The reporting of near misses allows for the identification of improvement opportunities within our health and safety program, without having suffered damage to our facility or more importantly injury to one of our people. Employees should follow the same process for reporting incidents involving injury, property damage or material loss as they do for reporting identified hazards. For example, an employee was moving a large compressed gas cylinder and it fell off of the cart it was being transported on. The cylinder did not receive any damage, there was no damage to the facility as a result of the cylinder falling and the employee was not injured when the cylinder fell. The employee was able to stand the cylinder upright and place it back on the cart without further incident. The potential for far more serious consequences existed and by reporting this near miss event, control measures were implemented that included additional means of securing cylinders when they are being transported. 9
Do I need to report an injury on the job to Human Resources? Yes! The workers compensation board of Alberta requires that all workplace injuries be reported within 72 hours. Please contact the HR office directly. What happens after an incident is reported? Every incident report is reviewed by the area supervisor and the Manager, Environment Health and Safety. They will attempt to identify all causal factors so that control measures can be implemented to prevent recurrence of the incident. Additional follow up and formal investigation is conducted where warranted. After reporting an incident or hazard you can expect a follow up call from the Environment Health and Safety office. What first aid services are available to employees? First aid supplies are located in numerous locations across the campus. Locations providing first aid supplies are identified by a sign above the doorway to the room where the supplies are kept. A list of qualified First Aiders is also posted in this area. The college first aid room is located in F-Wing. Contact Security, Facility Operations, or the EHS Manager for access. FIRST AID From September through May an independent medical office staffed by a physician is available for employees and students. The medical office works on a walk in basis and is open Monday through Friday from 0900 to 1330. KIT How does the college handle emergencies? The college has a comprehensive emergency response plan covering all reasonably foreseeable events. This plan is implemented under the direction of an appointed Emergency Director, usually a member of the executive team. Individual emergency response procedures are provided to all employees upon hiring and are available through the college website and sharepoint site. 10
Does the college have an emergency alarm system? The college has an alarm system for fire and life safety. Alarm pull stations are located throughout the campus and there are automatic fire detection devices located through all campus buildings. Each area of the college is served by a volunteer Emergency Warden who acts under the direction of the Campus Fire Marshall. Emergency Wardens help direct faculty, staff, students and visitors out of the building to assembly points during alarm situations. All employees and students are required to follow the directions of Emergency Wardens during and event. Failure to follow directions will be reported to the area supervisor. Does the college conduct emergency drills? Yes, at the start of each semester. Without emergency drills, emergency procedures will not work effectively. When an alarm is sounded, personnel do not have the time to read manuals and determine how to react. It is important that all personnel participate in drills and treat every alarm as though it were a real event. Emergency drills do not take a great deal of time to complete and although they may seem like an inconvenience they are an important and mandatory part of our fire and life safety efforts. Please cooperate with Emergency Wardens in your area. If you are supervising students, please make a habit of reviewing emergency procedures with them at the start of each semester and reviewing the evacuation maps posted in each classroom. What health and safety training is available to employees? Senior administration at Medicine Hat College supports the continued training of all staff in occupational health and safety topics. The Environment Health and Safety Office coordinates mandatory and voluntary training opportunities in a variety of delivery formats. Mandatory training topics will be coordinated through your department or division and voluntary training opportunities are available year round. Training is offered in a variety of formats including classroom, self teach and on-line delivery. E-learning modules on a variety of general interest topics are available on the EHS SharePoint site. First Aid training is offered on a regular basis free of charge to college employees. Contact the Environment Health and Safety office. Who provides personal protective equipment and training? The college has a responsibility to provide required personal protective equipment to its staff in certain situations. The college also has the right to require specific types of personal protective equipment be supplied and used by employees. Each employee who is required to use personal protective equipment must be properly trained in its use, maintenance and limitations. This training may be formal as in the case of respiratory 11
protective equipment or informal as in the case of protective footwear. The requirement for personal protective equipment must be identified during the hazard assessment process. How can I become involved in health and safety? All employees are expected to be actively involved in the health and safety efforts of the college through participation in health and safety training, application of health and safety concepts on the job and through hazard and incident reporting. The college maintains an active Joint Health and Safety Committee made up of employee representatives from all divisions as well as students. The committee meets monthly and participates in inspections of the campus and provides educational opportunities for faculty, staff and students on a wide variety of occupational health and safety issues. Participation is voluntary and if you would like to become involved in the committee, contact the Environment Health and Safety office for additional details. How often is the health and safety program reviewed? The program is reviewed on an ongoing basis by the Environment Health and Safety Manager. On an annual basis the health and safety program goes through a formal internal evaluation against provincially accepted criteria. Every three years Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System the college health and safety program is formally audited by a certified external auditor to ensure that provincial program requirements are being upheld. What is WHMIS? The Workplace Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS) is a program developed to ensure that all workers are informed about chemicals and other hazardous materials they may use, handle, store or dispose of at the worksite. WHMIS compliance is the responsibility of all college employees. Container labeling, Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS), workplace inventories and training are some of the major requirements of a WHMIS program. What is a MSDS and where can I find one? A Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) is a document of detailed health and safety information about a specific chemical. Each department using controlled products maintains a manual containing MSDS of all controlled products they use. MSDS can be obtained through the Health and Safety office or by searching the MSDS database available on the OHS SharePoint site under the Hazardous Materials Information link. 12
How do I get workplace labels for controlled products? When chemicals are decanted from their original containers to another container a WHMIS workplace label is required on the new container. Labels can be requested from the Health and Safety office by sending an email to rsloan@mhc.ab.ca or by phoning the Health and Safety office. What security services are available on campus? Security services are provided seven days a week, twenty-four hours per day through a contracted service provider under the direction of the EHS Office. These services include; room lock/unlocking, Safewalk, Working alone monitoring, emergency notification, as well as other general security duties. All incidents are preventable! Identify hazards before you start work. Assess the potential risk to yourself and others. Implement appropriate control measures. Staff Handbook updated Jan 2011, electronic copies available through the EHS office by calling Loc 8439. 13