Health And Safety In The Workplace

Health And Safety In The Workplace Human resources are one of the most important features of many businesses. A business success relies heavily on the effectiveness to which this resource is managed. Policies and practices used by the firm, set out the standards to which they seek to aspire. They are designed to govern the operation of the business; especially in todays economy where there is such a rise in service industries (Biz/ed, 2010). This topic is of importance to us because it has proven to be a neglected field in todays corporate world; especially in Grenada. In this regard, this paper seek to highlight the importance of Workplace Health and safety to the business, to develop an understanding of how its effective management can affect the performance of a business, outline how this can be effectively carried out with the interest of the company in mind. It is often said that, the health of a nation is the wealth of a nation (Fraser, 2004), the same concept applies to business. The health and safety of a companys human resource is an enormous contributor to the success of that business. Human resources account for a large proportion of many companys costs; it is the people that invariably drive a business (Biz/ed, 2010) According to the Bureau Veritas, Workplace Health and Safety refers to, the evaluation of risks relating to the health and safety of an organizations workers and others (including the public) who may be affected by its activities (Bureau Veritas, 2007). Who establish workplace health and safety? The health and safety of a workplace is established through different sources. Firstly, on a national level occupational health and safety is instituted in accordance with legal regulations that were created by legislative decisions and is enforced and monitored by agencies such as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), for the U.S., and the Ministry of Labour in Grenada. OSHA, an agency of the U.S. Department of Labour, has the responsibility of assuring the safety and health of Americas workers by setting and enforcing standards; providing training, outreach and education; establishing partnerships; and encouraging (OSHA, n.d.). On a national and/or on a company level there are also instances of regular inspections by a safety representative. This can be self requested or legally mandated. This is done to ensure that companies follow the stipulated guidelines that are set to govern the safety and health of the workplace. Also, from a corporate standpoint, the health and safety standards of the company can be establish by the declaration of it in the Companys general worker manual and/or in the separate manual set aside for clearly laying out, the standards by which the company seek to keep its work environment and the people that use it safe and healthy. A more informal, but still an effective method is employee observation. This is simply employees reporting hazards that go unnoticed to the inspection representative and/or management. These options are in place to ensure accordance of a company to monitor and control the health and safety of the workplace, and to maintain it. In-adherence of regulations set by the above regulatory bodies can result in an employer being fined or sentenced to jail time (Cascio, 1998). Reasons for Maintaining Workplace Health and Safety There are reasons why a business should maintain a safe and healthy workplace. It purges the environment of possible risks to everyone that uses the facility. An organizations productivity is directly related to the health and safety of its workforce. Therefore, proper health and safety practices safeguard the productivity of its employees. When the workforce is unhealthy it affects productivity; quantity and quality. Proper practices maintain the health of the workers and it protects human rights; the human right to a safe and healthy environment and the human right to a safe and healthy workplace (PDHRE, n.d.) A major reason for maintaining health and safety in the workplace is that failure to do so cost too much. The consequences of not up keeping proper health and safety practices can range from having expensive monetary payouts, to death (users of the workplace). Other repercussions are Lower productivity levels sick or injured worker do not produce the same quality and quantity as do health workers. Poor quality products and services the direct relation between quality of workforce and quality of products or service they produce. High levels of complaints from customers lower quality of products or services delivered to customers would make them unhappy. Loss of customers and subsequently lower revenues if the quality of the production isnt addressed it can result in a loss in the customer base and later loss in revenues because of lower sales. Higher costs this increase in cost can come from different sources including: payment of insurance claims for damages, cost of substitution for sick or injured workers (training and wages), and benefits for sick or injured workers. Higher staff turnover as persons get sick or injured on the job they tend to leave. If the health and safety practices of the workplace are dreadful employees would not stay therefore higher turnover. Poor industrial relations poor health and safety practices would attract attention from unions who fight for the rights of employees. Thus, addressing safety and health issues in the workplace saves the employer money and adds value to the business (OSHA, n.d.). When workers remain safe and healthy, the direct cost-savings to businesses include: lower workers compensation insurance costs reduced medical expenditures smaller expenditures for return-to-work programs fewer faulty products lower costs for job accommodations for injured workers less money spent for overtime benefits Safety and health also result in substantial decreases in indirect cost (OSHA, n.d.). This is as a result of: increased productivity higher quality products increased morale better labour/management relations reduced turnover better use of human resources Employees and their families benefit from safety and health because (OSHA, n.d.): their incomes are protected; no financial shock because of illness or injury their family lives are not hampered by injury; no loss of income destabilization because of illness and injury they have less stress; because of a com Workplace health and safety extend way beyond the boundaries of the worksite. The families of workers and other users of the worksite can also be impacted by health and safety in the workplace (OSHA, n.d.). It is of a misconception that health and safety in the workplace only entails ensuring that there arent any hazards on the worksite however it should be noted that the hazard can be the employees themselves. Employees who are sick (communicable/non communicable), who have a drug or alcohol problem, who have psychological problems can also pose great threat to the health and safety of others in the workplace. Violent employees can also be classified as a hazard (Cascio, 1998). In this regard testing of the individual together with the worksite is necessary; drug and alcohol testing, psychological tests etc. Whose responsibility is it? The health and safety of a workplace should be part of the business HR strategy. It should be an initiative that is deeply rooted into the culture of a business. No one person should be responsible for it. Given this, all employees, supervisors and managers should undergo training in this area to suit their position. Managers especially should possess an attitude that support good health and safety practices because it is usually mirrored by employees; if the manager care about health and safety, the employees will do too (OSHA, n.d.). Both the employer and the employee are responsible for ensuring that the workplace is healthy and safe for all users. Employers are legally obligated to maintain and provide a working environment that is conducive for comfortable operations. They also have to provide safe systems of work and facilities that would sustain the welfare of its employees. They are also responsible for providing employees with any information, instruction, training and/or supervision that is needed to ensure that workers are safe during operations no matter the job. As a result of this responsibility to ensure employees are safe at work, an employer may institute regulations and policies that would call for the attention from and compliance of employees (Directgov, 2010). Employees are also expected to play a part in ensuring proper health and safety of the workplace. They are to make certain their own personal health and safety and that of other persons in the workplace; whether colleague, customer, supplier, etc. Importantly, workers are expected to adhere to the directions given by management to guarantee health and safety. If workers are to ignore these directives it creates a hazard in the workplace not only for themselves but also for others (Directgov, 2010). Effective management of the resource Each workplace is different and dynamic. Therefore the strategy used to effectively manage the human resource should also be different and dynamic. This strategy should include clear and concise plans for the addressing the types of accidents that and exposing the health and safety hazards that could occur at the worksite (OSHA, n.d.). An effective plan, as based upon the safety and health program management guidelines given by OSHA in January 1989 is the Four Point workplace Program. The Four Point Workplace Program as its name suggests, it is a program that contains four elements in approaching optimum effective health and safety standards. These elements Commitment and Employee Involvement The manager or management team leads the way, by setting policy, assigning and supporting responsibility, setting an example and involving employees. Worksite Analysis The worksite is continually analyzed to identify all existing and potential hazards. Hazard Prevention and Control Methods to prevent or control existing or potential hazards are put in place and maintained. Training for Employees, Supervisors and Managers Managers, supervisors and employees are trained to understand and deal with worksite hazards. Conclusion: The success of a business rests to a large degree on the quality of the workforce successful management of this crucial resource is critical (Biz/ed, 2010) The Employer has a responsibility to ensure that his/her employees are safe at work, and so may institute regulations and policies to ensure this. It is now the responsibility of the employee to make certain that they follow these rules. As an employee, one has rights and responsibilities for their own wellbeing and that of their colleagues and by extension the public (customers) (OSHA, n.d.). The key to the success of a safety and health plan is to see it as a part of the business operation and to see it reflected in the day-to-day operations.  As the implemented plan is incorporated into the business culture, health and safety consciousness will become engrained into the psyche of everyone. (OSHA, n.d.). Protecting people on the job is in everyones best interest our economy, our communities, our fellow workers and our families. Safety and health add value to businesses, workplaces and lives (OSHA, n.d.).

Stricter DUI Penalties Needed! Essay -- drunk driving, argument, alcoh

Alcohol is the main beverage for parties and special occasions in the United States. Many people decide to drink alcohol because it helps them relax, ease tension and socializing. Even most non-drinkers are forced to drink alcohol because of peer pressure. Hebert Moskowitz, the president of the Southern California Research Institute in Los Angeles, concedes that â€Å"alcohol has been so popular these days; it seems as though alcohol is a requirement for parties† (Moskowitz, 13). Unfortunately, most UNM students do not know their limits for alcohol consumption. By the time a party is over, they fail to realize that they had one too many drinks and they decide to drink and drive. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety and Administration (NHTSA), in 2009 there were approximately 10,839 reported student drunk driving fatalities. Even though the number of alcohol-related crashes decreases every year, driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol should not be underestimat ed. Approximately every twenty-two minutes, one in every fifty American drunk drivers crashes due to alcohol (NHTSA, 2009). Many UNM students under the influence of alcohol do not understand the consequences as they get into their car. It is our duty as students to take action against student drunk drivers, in order to make our campus and roads safer. The solution is simple. As students, we need to be re-educate UNM students about DUI and petition to ask the Government of New Mexico for harsher penalties against drunk drivers. There have been many awareness campaigns, such as the current, â€Å"You Drink, You Drive, You Lose Campaign.† Many campaigns have tried to let UNM students understand the dangers of drinking while driving. However, many students still conti... ...ws, Sports, Entertainment, Jobs, Classifieds And Advertising. 21 Feb. 2011. Web. 04 Apr. 2011. . Moskowitz, Hebert, and Marcelline Burns. "Effects of Alcohol on Driving Performance." Alcohol Health & Research World 17.4 (1993): 12-15. NHTSA. "Traffic Safety Facts 2009." National Center for Statistics and Analysis: 13-143. Web. 8 Apr. 2011. . Pacheco, Angela. "Transportation Safety Law Center." Transportation Safety Law Center Home Page. Web. 08 Apr. 2011. . Sen, Anindya. "WILL STRICTER PENALTIES DETER DRUNK DRIVING?" Policy Options (1999): 54-60. Print. Think Quest. "1.4 Underage Drinking - ThinkQuest." Oracle Think Quest Education Foundation. Web. 8 Apr. 2011.

Beggars should be abolished Essay

‘Beggars should be abolished: for it is annoying to give to them and it is annoying not to give to them.’ Said Friedrich Nietzsche. In simple terms beggary is a state of extreme poverty but now a days it has become a profession for most of the people. Those 15 seconds, when you’re anxiously waiting for the red signal that is just about to turn green- a small child comes up to your car sticking his face in the window as hard as he can to make himself seen, or holding consumer goods, like tissue packets, biscuits, combs etc. asks you to buy something from him. Sometimes, they run to your front windscreen and start wiping the windscreen with water looking so dirty as if it was an algae habitat. Or sometimes, they just come to you selling their prayers for minimal change. And the ordinary man, thinking that he can do a good deed for the day takes out a shiny 5 rupee coin or a ten rupee note, and hands it over to that child. Of course not all beggars can be professiona l therefore there are some valid causes that cause such issue to be raised in our society. The causes can be classified as economical, social, religious or other. Economically talking about beggary people have no sufficient means to support themselves and their families or rather they are unemployed or under employed. Socially, the breakups and disorganization of families who are surrounded with poverty leads to increase in beggary. Many of the beggars migrate to different countries because of what they see in their elders and therefore they even follow this as a profession. Many of the beggars are physically disabled or mentally disabled and due to this they have to move towards this way of living. Among other reasons may be mentioned those who are forced to beg. There are persons upon whom beggary is enforced. There are orphans that are sometimes deliberately maimed in order that their guardians or some other persons may earn their living. Many normal parents also trade on their children’s illness using these as sources of supplementary income.. Whether walking down the busy streets of Zam Zama Karachi, or the congested lanes of Sadar Lahore, there is a common feature that highlights the weakness of the atmosphere- beggary. There is no surprise in seeing a man of nearly sixty with a crooked back pointing out like a lever, which sets on the art of begging on one side and hardship on the other. Beggary is one of the most crucial problems that overspread the streets of Pakistan. Appalling statistics show that amongst the 180 million  citizens of Pakistan, 25 million are professional beggars, meaning that beggary is the main source of income for these individuals. Not only our country but in Japan and India even the walls are lined with the sleeping homeless, snoring through their beards on a bed of cardboard. According to a survey Beggar Children earn 200 or 250 rupees per day and handover entire money to the Mafia (Which works for this profession) and that Mafia keep a big chunk of earning and leave minimum amount with to these children to take home. This Mafia is taking more benefits of the Street Begging. The Mafia also makes sure that the beggar children are addicted to street-life. Slightly older children are given drugs and intoxicants, permitted to enter places where drugs are sold, incited to beg or borrow and exposed to sedatives. Many rescued beggar children narrate horrific stories about forcible chopping off of limbs. According to certain special investigations by the media, in countries like India, many well qualified doctors are also shamelessly involved in this business and aid the Beggar Mafia. Some other unfortunate young children are â€Å"bought† by the Beggar Mafia from relatives or custodians who cannot afford to keep them or simply do not want them. These chil dren are first brutally beaten, burnt and starved for days in order to make them look miserable and then sent to the streets to beg because â€Å"A hungry stomach has no faith.† In any phenomenon there are effects , the effects of street begging that visitors will take fallacy about the country and they will never come again , also this phenomenon assimilates negative prescription and shadow about the country another effect brining rank and file alien to the country because the beggars didn’t have any parchment or witness from schools and they refuge to begs so that effect on national development , In addition the crimes will increase and the stealing will increase also these are some of the consequences or effects . There are plenty of ways of ensuring that your money is spent on finding real solutions to homelessness and drug and alcohol addiction. Support local homelessness charities that are working with people in need. You can make a donation or offer up your time as a volunteer. Finally, we are not asking you to just ‘walk on by’. By all means engage street homeless people in conversation, even buy them a cup of tea or food. But ple ase don’t give them money. Your kindness could kill. But people like you and I who are fooled by their emotional blackmailing tactics. We want to help and make a difference  in their lives, but we are discouraged by their dishonesty and it is hard to gauge who is sincere and who isn’t. I have come to understand that ‘professional’ beggars are not needy, they are greedy! Ask any one of them to work instead of begging, and you’re met with deadly stares and rude remarks that shake the ground you’re standing on. Request them to leave you, and the knocking on your car’s window gets vengeful and even more persistent. Some even fire choice cuss words at you, while warning you that they will pray for you and your family’s demise. Well, begging cannot be removed overnight. It requires time, patience and wise leadership. All the governments of respective countries have to take note of all these things and then formulate a plan to eradicate beggars instead of compensating them with money. It is always better to show them how to earn money by working instead of feeding them free and social awareness about this subject has to be created or else this problem will only grow.

Theoretical Perspectives On Language Development - 1590 Words

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