Using the Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) model we discussed in Units I, II, and III, you will be developing a safety and health implementation plan. The plan will be developed in phases in this unit and the

MOS 5525, Integrated Safety Management Systems 1 Cou rse Learning Outcomes for Unit IV Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to: 1. Summarize the basic tenets of safety management systems. 1.1 Discuss the types of engagement strategies used in a safety and health plan for implementing concepts in a safety management system. 1.2 Organize the development of a safety and health training plan. 2. Explain the safe ty management systems approach to injury and illness prevention. 2.1 Recommend a plan for incorporating employee suggestions and input on injury and illness prevention into the safety management system . Course/Unit Learning Outcomes Learning Activity 1.1 Unit Lesson Chapter 8 Occupational Safety Health (OSH) Academy safety and health training plan Unit IV Scholarly Activity 1.2 Unit Lesson Occupational Safety Health (OSH) Academy safety and health training plan Unit IV Scholarly Activity 2.1 Unit Lesson Chapter 8 Unit IV Scholarly Activity Reading Assignment Chapter 8: Safety Leadership and Organization – Part 2, pp. 113 –11 5 In order to access the following resource, click the link below. This Occupational Safety Health (OSH) Academy document provides you with a sample of a safety and health training plan developed by the Geigle Safety Group and provides a guide for your unit assignment. OSHAcademy. (n.d.). Safety and health training plan . Retrieved from https://www.oshatrain.org/courses/pdf/trainingplan.pdf Unit Lesson Introduction In Unit III, we began our introduction to the core elements of the safety management system. Our primary focus in the previous unit was management commitment and leadership. In this unit lesion, we will be exploring the role of employees in the safety management system. We will review various types of employee engagement strategies that can be used during the implementat ion of a safety management system. We will also explore training and education as core elements of a safety management system. Fostering Employee Engagement UNIT IV STUDY GUIDE Fostering Employee Involvement and Training MOS 5525, Integrated Safety Management Systems 2 UNIT x STUDY GUIDE Title Now that we ha ve discuss ed the role of management and leadership in the safety management system, let us look at the role of employees and the importance of employee participation to the overall success of the system. In accordance with effective safety management and leadership, a high degree of employee involvement is another key component of a safe ty management system. The best safety management systems involve employees at every level of the organization (Topf, 2000). Every employee should be empowered and have a role in achieving the organization’s safety performance goals and objectives. Even tho ugh the employer has ultimate responsibility for safety in the workplace, employees are often an untapped resource when organizations are implementing a safety management system. Employees (particularly frontline employees) generally have knowledge and exp erience that is useful in identifying and mitigating hazards. Any organization that implements a systems approach to reducing/preventing accidents and improving safety performance will need the commitment and endorsement of employees to be successful. The engagement of employees within the safety management system starts with committed management and leadership. Employees should not be expected to be enthusiastic about conforming to top -down management programs or merely complying with OSHA regulations. Or ganizations must move away from leadership mandates to an approach that encourages active employee involvement in the activities meant to keep them safe. The single most powerful source of motivation is employee ownership of the accident prevention system. Every employee should take ownership of his or her personal safety and share the responsibility for the safety of others. Employers must ensure they provide the necessary levels of education, training, resources , and authority to allow employees to take o wnership of the safety process and have a stake in the success of the system. Safety should not be delegated to a certain group; it should be owned by all employees and entrenched throughout the organization. So , how does an organization get employees inv olved in the safety management system? The number one way to engage employees and encourage their participation is to allow them the opportunity to take part in the problem -solving process. Employees often have non -work -related skills that can be successfu lly leveraged to implement and continuously improve the safety management system. Contributing to the organization’s accident prevention system, this provides employees the opportunity to display skills that they likely do not use in their daily work tasks . Employers need only encourage participation , and employees will generally offer practical ideas for addressing safety concerns and making improvements. Affording employees these types of opportunities can create a culture of employee ownership of s afety within the organization. A basic requirement of any effective safety management system , regardless of the size or type of organization , is to ensure employee participation in the planning and implementation of the system. Employee participation means employees are not only encouraged , but also provided the purpose , resources, and opportunity to participate fully in the system. There are a number of different strategies for achieving employee participation in the safety management system. For example, recognition programs highlight and reinforce safe work behavior and encourage employees to integrate safe work practices into their job tasks . Establishing a safety committee is another way to ensure the active participation of a large number of employees in the safety management system (McKinnon, 2017). The committee serves as a resource for acting on suggestions and ideas submitted by employ ees or following up on the findings from safety inspections. Safety committees must have the full backing and support of top management ; otherwise , they are doomed to fail (McKinnon, 2017) . Safety contests and incentive programs are another strategy that can be used to create interest and participation in a safety management system. Contests should be designed to heighten awareness of worker safety and health and increase employee involvement and participation in safety -related activities such as safety in spections. Incentive programs , which focus on reducing accident rates , are not recommended as they tend to discourage injury and illnesses reporting. Other examples of effective employee involv ement include participation in:  review and investigation of i njuries and illnesses ,  procedure development ,  safety and health audits or surveys ,  development and implementation of safety and health training , MOS 5525, Integrated Safety Management Systems 3 UNIT x STUDY GUIDE Title  job safety analysis , and  recommendations for specific actions in response to employee safety suggestions. Ther e are numerous benefits organizations derived from fostering employee involvement in the implementation of a safety management system. Clearly, (frontline) employees are the individuals closest to potential safety and health hazards and thus have a stake i n recognizing and reporting hazards. In addition, employees who are encouraged to offer ideas and who feel their contributions are taken seriously are more responsible and committed to the success of the system. Finally, employees are more likely to suppor t and use the system if they are allowed to have input into it. Once managers recognize the benefits and involvement becomes expected, participation in sa fety is more readily achieved. Training and Education Training and education are regarded as two of the most important elements of a safety management system. The general training requirements of most safety management systems stipulate that training be: 1) provided for both management and employees, 2) conducted by competent and qualified persons, 3) provided initially and at appropriate intervals for refresher training, 4) inclusive of an assessment of the employee’s comprehension and retention of the training, and 5) reviewed periodically (Pardy & Andrews , 2010). Regardless of which safety management system an organization implements, if not all employees are aware of how to utilize it, the system is likely to be ineffective. Therefore, employees should be trained to ensure that they understand both how the safety management system will function and h ow they can participate in the system. Employees are constantly making decisions throughout the day that could potentially impact not only their safety but also the safety of others on the job. Those who have not been trained to perform their job safely a re more likely to be injured or to cause an injury. Therefore, safety training is of vital importance to both management and employees since it forms the knowledge base to build a comprehensive safety management system thus ensuring employees are sufficien tly informed about hazards to which they may be exposed while doing their job (McKinnon, 2017). In addition, training helps employees understand how to identify hazards and how to protect them selves and others from hazards. Initial safety training should start during the new employee orientation process, but it should not end with new employees. All employees have varying levels of knowledge in safety and health and may not have the competencies required to safely perform all of their job responsibilities. Hence, it is imperative that managers understand the qualifications and limitations of their employees before making job assignments. If employees are assigned tasks that they are not qualified to perform, the potential for an injury will significantly in crease because employees will likely take unnecessary risks. Therefore, the training needs of all employees should be assessed and subsequent safety training should be provided beyond new hire orientation to ensure employees are adequately prepared to perf orm their jobs safely. In addition, training should be ongoing to keep employees current on technological advances and refresher training should generally be provided annually. Well-trained employees are safer employees , which appears to be true. Most federal and state safety and health legislative bodies emphasize safety training . The Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act mandates employers provide safety and health training to employees. Many of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OS HA) standards require general training in the safety and health aspects of the job tasks, while other OSHA standards limit job assignments to employees who have some form of specialized training (typically outside of the workplace) and are considered certi fied, competent, or qualified (i.e., crane standard and electrical work standard). These requirements demonstrate OSHA’s belief that training is essential for protecting employees from work -related injuries and illnesses (OSHA , 2015 ). Management training and development is equally important to the success of the overall safety management system. McKinnon (2017) suggests basic safety management training should be provided for all supervisory staff and management. Training supervisors and managers ensures th ey understand their responsibilities within the safety management system and provides them with the knowledge necessary to carry out their responsibilities effectively. Training is also beneficial in cultivating skills such as effective communication, empl oyee motivation , and employee recognition, which are fundamental aspects of the management function within the safety management system. MOS 5525, Integrated Safety Management Systems 4 UNIT x STUDY GUIDE Title Although employee training is essential for the success of an organization’s safety management system, training often encounters resistance from both employees and managers. Employees often complain that they find safety training boring and repetitive while management often views training as a waste of time that could be spent maintaining the production schedule. Even tho ugh training has an impact on any organization’s bottom line, it is often not given the attention warranted. No one would dare question the value of training to a professional athlete who trains all week and only plays one game. Likewise, the value of trai ning is evident when one thinks of military personnel who train constantly for a potential deployment. Yet , in many organizations, training is either overlooked or not provided adequate time, resources , or attention. Just as training is essential to most p rofessions, training is also a fundamental aspect of the safety management system and should never be taken for granted! Summary Employee involvement is essential in defining and implementing a safety management system. When employees are encouraged to actively participate in the organization’s safety efforts, they begin to feel empowered and take ownership of their role in achieving the organization’s safety objectives. Employers must offer the necessary level of education, training and resources , and a uthority so employees can take ownership of the safety process. It is a mistake to expect employees to perform tasks for which they are not qualified or for which they have not been adequately trained. Training serves dual purposes within the safety manage ment system. Not only does it ensure employees are knowledgeable of how to work safe, but it also demonstrates management’s commitment to the safety of their employees. Increasing employee perceptions of management’s concern for employee personal well -bein g through a dedication to safety will result in not only a more positive safety culture but also positive outcomes beyond safety performance. Without the active participation of all employees, an organization will not experience the full potential of the s afety management system. In your Unit III Assignment, you began Phase 1 of your course project , which involves the development of a safety management system implementation plan. In this assignment , you will us e the concepts discussed in this unit lesson t o continue with the planning phase of system implementation. The focus of this two -part assignment will be 1) the development of a safety training plan and 2) the development of a safety suggestion reporting system plan. References McKinnon, R. C. (2017 ). Risk -based, management -led, audit -driven, safety management systems . Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press. Occupational Safety and Health Administration. (2015). OSHA safety and health program management guidelines. Retrieved from https://www.osha.gov/shpmguideli nes/SHPM_guidelines.pdf Pardy, W., & Andrews, T. (2010). Integrated management systems: Leading strategies and solutions . Plymouth, United Kingdom: Government Institutes. Topf, M. D. (2000). W hy employee involvement may not be enough. Occupational Hazar ds , 62 (5), 41 -42 . Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com.libraryresources.columbiasouthern.edu/ps/i.do?p=ITOF&sw=w&u=oran95108 &v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE%7CA62534370&asid=576b7e4cda0852f5e0bfa69531674c7b Suggested Reading In order to access the following resource, click the link below. This article on employee engagement is provided to supplement the information presented in the unit lesson on the importance of engaging employees in the safety management system. MOS 5525, Integrated Safety Management Systems 5 UNIT x STUDY GUIDE Title Hoover, T . (n.d. ). Employee engagement an d organizational safety performance. Safety and Security . Retrieved from http://www.apta.com/mc/rail/previous/2010/Papers/Employee -En gagement - Organizational -Safety -Performance.pdf Learning Activities (Nong raded) Nong raded learning activities are provided to aid students in their course of study. You do not have to submit them. If you have questions, contact your instructor for furthe r guidance and information. Employees are often hesitant to express safety and health concerns because of fear of retaliation from employers. As a safety professional, how would you encourage employee participation in your company’s safety management syst em? Also, please address whether you feel safety should be management -driven or employee -driven , and why .