Importance of Occupational Safety & Health

COSH Training
 Course Objectives
• To explain the status of safety, health and welfare among the
workers in the various fields of the construction industry.
• Understand the National Laws and Regulations on OSH.
• Be aware of the Philippine Statistics on accidents/injuries and
illnesses and the reporting requirements of the Department of
Labor and Employment.
• Understand the causes of accidents, identify
existing/potential safety and health hazards and risks at work,
and the mechanisms to prevent these hazards and risks.
• Describe the effects of OSH hazards on the worker.
 Course Objectives
• Enumerate the effects of occupational illnesses/accidents to
the workers, workplace, and society.
• Determine the appropriate control measures to prevent
hazards and risks.
• Conduct a simulated safety and health audit through a
site/plant visit.
• Cite the hazards related to different construction related
activities.
• Describe the roles of the supervisor in promoting an OSH-
friendly environment in his/her organization.
• Describe the components of a health and safety program.
 Course Objectives

• List and describe the benefits of an OSH-friendly

environment, the different government
organizations and non-governmental
organizations, private and academic institutions
that promote, regulate OSH and how they can
network with partners.

• Develop a personal re-entry plan.

What is Occupational
Safety and Health
(OSH)?
Occupational safety and health is a discipline
with a broad scope involving three major fields:

Occupational
Safety

Industrial Occupational
Hygiene Health
 Occupational Safety
• Deals with understanding the
causes of accidents at work and
ways to prevent unsafe act and
unsafe conditions in any workplace.
• Safety at work discusses concepts
on good housekeeping, proper
materials handling and storage,
machine safety, electrical safety, fire
prevention and control, safety
inspection, and accident
investigation.
 Occupational Health
• A broad concept which
explains how the different
hazards and risks at work
may cause an illness and
emphasizes that health
programs are essential in
controlling work-related
and/or occupational
diseases.
 Industrial Hygiene

• Discusses the
identification,
evaluation, and control
of physical, chemical,
biological and
ergonomic hazards.
 In its broadest sense, OSH aims at:

• the promotion and maintenance of

the highest degree of physical,
mental and social well-being of
workers in all occupations;
• the prevention of adverse health
effects of the working conditions
• the placing and maintenance of
workers in an occupational
environment adapted to physical
and mental needs;
• the adaptation of work to humans
(and NOT the other way around).
The Situation of OSH in
our Country and in the
World
Safety through the years
Safety through the years…
Safety through the years…
 International Labor Organization
(ILO)
• 65% deaths worldwide occurred in Asia (2015 report)
• Most work-related deaths and non-fatal accidents occur
in low- and middle-income countries of the region.
• “Every 15 seconds, 180 workers have a work-related
accident. Every 15 seconds, a worker dies from a work-
related accident or disease.”
• It was estimated that more than 7,500 people die every
day; 1,000 from occupational accidents and 6,500 from
work-related diseases – more than 2.7 million deaths
per year
• Over 374 million accidents occur on the job annually
Distribution of Work-related Mortality
by UN Geographical Regions
Work-related Mortality by Cause
 Factors that Contribute to
the Occurrence of Accidents
in the Construction Industry
a) Fall from heights is the predominant causes of accidents
b) Lack of supervision for workers working at heights
c) Workers lack awareness on OSH
d) Workers have limited trainings
e) Due to lack of training, workers
i. build improper temporary structures
ii. tolerate improperly guarded floors
iii. work with unstable/unsecured/ scaffolds
iv. use defective equipment
f) Accident reports lack relevant information
g) Proper investigations are hardly conducted
 Recommendations
• Policy Makers and Enforcers
– Strict enforcement of DO 13
– Strict implementation of reporting mechanism and revision of report
form
– Continuous development of Construction Safety Training
– Research on KAP

• Employers and Construction Companies

– Compliance to DO 13
– Provision of adequate trainings and information
– Supervision on works at heights
– Provision of adequate access and egress in construction sites
– Conduct of accident investigation3) Employees and Workers
– Comply with OSH rules and policies
– Take initiative in learning OSH
– Demand for approved type PPE
– Observe proper hand signals
– Report any hazard found
 A construction project need not be
expensive. Allotment for safety is 3%
of the project cost.
 Leading causes of fatalities in
construction
1.Falls from Heights
a.Temporary structures
b.Excavation
c.Roof
d.Moving vehicle and
equipment
 Leading causes of fatalities in
construction
2. Excavation and Trench
Work
a.Cave-in
b.Falling of persons,
materials and equipment
c.Asphyxiation
 Leading causes of fatalities in
construction
3. Construction Machineries and Equipment
a.Power tools
b.Woodworking machines
c.Heavy machines
 Leading causes of fatalities in
construction
4. Cranes and Elevators
a.Overloading
b.Lifting and carrying of loads
c.Erection and dismantling
 Leading causes of fatalities in
construction
5. Electrical Accidents
a.Electrical Shock and Burns
 Definition of Terms

• Frequency Rate (FR) – the total number

of disabling injuries per million employee-
hours of exposure.
Frequency rate
 Definition of Terms
• Severity Rate (SR) –the total number of
days lost or charged per million-employee
hours of exposure.
Severity Rate
Annual Report Form
 Definition of Terms
• Incidence Rate (IR) –
refers to cases of
occupational injuries with
workdays lost per 1,000
workers.
• Average Workdays Lost
– refer to workdays lost
for every case of
occupational injury
resulting to temporary
incapacity.
• Exposure is the total number of hours worked by all
employees in each establishment including employees
of operating production, maintenance, transportation,
electrical, administrative, sales and other departments.

• Disabling injuries - work injuries, which result in

death, permanent total disability, permanent partial
disability or temporary total disability.

• Non-disabling injuries (Medical Treatment) - injuries

which do not result into disabling injuries but required
first aid or medical attention of any kind.
 Definition of Terms
• Occupational accident – this is an
unexpected and unplanned
occurrence, including acts of violence
arising out of or in connection with
work which resulted in one or more
workers incurring a personal injury,
disease or death. It may have
occurred outside the usual workplace/
premises of the establishment while
the worker was on business on behalf
of his/her employer, i.e., in another
establishment or while on travel,
transport or in road traffic.
• Occupational injury – this is the case of an injury that
resulted from a work-related event or a single
instantaneous exposure in the work environment
(occupational accident). Where more than one person
is injured in a single accident, each case of
occupational injury should be counted separately.
• Temporary incapacity – this is a case where
an injured person was absent from work for
at least one day, excluding the day of the
accident, and
1) was able to perform again the normal
duties of the job or position occupied at the
time of the occupational accident or
2) will be able to perform the same job but
his/her total absence from work is expected
not to exceed a year starting the day after
the accident, or
3) did not return to the same job but the
reason for changing the job is not related to
his/her inability to perform duties and
responsibilities.
• Permanent incapacity - case where an injured person was
absent from work for at least one day, excluding the day of the
accident, and
1) was never able to perform again the normal duties of the
job or position occupied at the time of the occupational
accident, or
2) will be able to perform the same job but his/her total
absence from work is expected to exceed a year starting the
day after the accident.
• Fatal case - case where
a person is fatally
injured as a result of
occupational accident
whether death occurs
immediately after the
accident or within the
same reference year as
the accident.
 Activity:

San Juan Corporation had an incident involving

two workers. Both of them received injuries on
their feet, which resulted to 30 days away from
work. As of the moment, the company reached
187,000 man-hours.
Calculate the Frequency and Severity Rates.
Any questions?