Occupational Safety and

Health

Darwin R. Gevaa
Introduction:

Safety
Workers safety is one of the
most basic issue in job design.
It needs constant attention from
1. Management
2. Employees
3. Designer
Management / Employer Standpoint:

Accidents are undesirable because they

are expensive (insurance and
compensation)
Accidents usually involve damage to
equipment and/or products that will result
to hiring, training and make up work.
Accidents Generally interrupt work.
Employees / Workers Standpoint:

Accidents mean physical

suffering, mental anguish, potential
loss of earnings.
Accidents mean disruption of
work routine.

*Workers cannot be motivated if they

feel they are in physical danger.
Causes of Accidents:

1. Workers Carelessness
1.1 Unsafe Acts
Examples:
a.Driving at high speed
b.Drinking and driving
c.Failure to use protective
equipment
d. Overriding safety control.
e. Disregarding safety
procedures
f. Improper use of tools and
equipment
g. Failure to use reasonable
caution and danger zone.
1.2 Unsafe Conditions

Example:

a. Unprotected pulleys, chains,

material-handling equipment,
machinery, and so on.
2. Accident Hazards

Examples:

a.Poorly lit walkways, stairs, and

loading docks
b.Toxic waste, gases, and
radiation hazards.
Precautions Against Hazards:

1.Involve the use of proper

lighting, clearly marked danger
zones, use of protective
equipment(hard hats, goggles,
earmuffs, gloves, heavy shoes
and clothing).
2. Involves the use of safety
devices (machine guards, dual
control switches)
3. Involves the use of emergency
equipment 9emergency showers,
fire extinguishers, fire escapes,
eye washers)
4. Involve the use of instruction
(manual) in safety procedure
(MSDS)
5. Involves the use of regular and
emergency equipment.
6. Housekeeping.
All of these are useless without
the cooperation of both:

Workers
-Must be trained in proper
procedure and attitudes
-Must contribute to a reduction in
hazards by pointing out hazards
to management.
Management
-must enforce safety procedures
and use of safety equipment.
LETS TALK ABOUT SAFETY AND
HEALTH

Question: What are the Osh standards?

Answer: The Occupational Safety and
Health Standards (OSHS) are rules and
regulations governing work safety and
health as mandated in PD 442, Book
IV, Article 162, of the Labor Code of the
Philippines.
Question: What industries are
covered by the OSH standards?

Answer: The OSHS covers all

workplaces except for mining and
transportation.
Mining safety is under the
Department of Environment and
Natural Resources and the
Environment Management
Bureau. The Land Transportation
Office (LTO) takes care of the
safety in our land, sea, and air
transport vehicles, respectively.
Question: What is the Gravest
penalty for violation of the OSH
Standards?
Answer: according to Rule 1010
of the OSHS, any work
environment that expose its
employees to imminent danger
will be suspended or stepped
until the company corrects the
unsafe conditions.
This is why it is important to
follow the OSHS or the
company’s operation will be
stopped indefinitely.
Question: What agency of the
Department of Labor and the
Employment can we approach
regarding work safety and health?
Answer: Contact the Occupational
Safety and Health Center (OSHC)
for any concerns on work safety and
health. OSHC conducts researches,
training and information programs,
and technical services on OSH for
many sectors.
Question; What are the training
programs conducted by the
OSHC?
Answer: First is the 40 hours
Basic Occupational Safety and
Health Training Course which is
required by the DOLE for aspiring
safety practitioners.
OSHC also has special courses
on construction safety, crane and
safety inspection, work
environment measurement,
chemical safety, AIDS
prevention, as well as drugs and
alcohol prevention in the
workplace, etc.
Question: How often should we
rest our eyes when using the
computer?
Answer: You should rest your
eyes for 10 to 15 minutes every
hour. One way of resting the
eyes is to look at a distance for
several minutes.
Question: aside from eye
problems, what other health
problems are associated with the
prolonged use of computers?
Answer: Neck, shoulder, back
and wrist pains are the common
health problems are associated
with the prolonged use of the
computer.
Question: How Can we prevent
these health problems from
occurring?
Answer: These problems can be
prevented by stretching the body
while resting the yes. A properly
designed work area can
effectively prevent body pains
and increase productivity.
Properly designed work areas
adapt the equipment and
organization to the worker’s body
measurement and needs.
Question: What will happen if we do
intensive visual work?
Answer: You may experience eye
strain manifested by redness or
dryness of the eyes, blurring of
vision or a feeling of something
blocking the eyesight as well as
tiredness and headaches. In
addition, people doing intensive
visual work also suffer from pain in
the neck and back.
Question: What are the ways to
prevent eye strain and muscle
pains?
Answer: Rest your eyes for 10 to
15 minutes every hour. Close
your eyes or do other work. This
is called work enlargement. For
Example, if you work entails
using the computer while resting
Also, adapt your equipment and
work area to your body. This is to
prevent neck-shoulder strain and
low-back pain.
Question: What is work station
design?
Answer: This refers to proper
arrangement of the work station. It is
important that the work station designs
fits perfectly the body of the worker as
well s the work undertaken. The
proper design of the work area gives a
worker comfort and prevent low back
and neck pains.
Question: Are workers wearing
Personal Protective Equipment
(PPE) 100% safe from any
danger?
Answer: No. PPE is considered
as the last line of defense in any
danger. If possible, all
engineering and administrative
controls must be used.
For example, if a workplace is
dusty, the first step is to install
appropriate local exhaust
ventilation of if the company is too
hot, lessen the number of work
hours in hot area. It is better if
engineering and administrative
controls in workplace are used
first. Use PPEs only as a support
to proper controls in the workplace.
Question: What is ZERO
ACCIDENT PROGRAM (ZAP)?
Answer: ZAP is one of the
flagship programs of the
Department of Labor and
Employment spearheaded by the
Occupational Safety and Health
Center
 ZAP aims to create and increase
the awareness and commitment
of all sectors on work safety and
health. It advocates OSH
principles, concepts, and
government sectors.
Question: How can ZAP achieve
goals?
Answer: ZAP achieves these
goals through advocacy, training,
compliance, institutional network,
and productivity link-ups.
Question: Who can join ZAP?
Answer: All employees and
workers can be part of ZAP.
Question: What are the benefits
of ZAP membership?
Answer: As a member, you can
help attain a safe and healthy
environment for the workplace of
the 21st century.
You can have access to the latest
news and trends on safety and
health concerns that matter most in
your workplace and your
community. In doing these, you
become a leader who can integrate
ZAP principles guaranteed to save
lives, cut costs and raise
productivity in your workplace.