Is your company safety program up to speed or do you need help to develop yours? The UCAW Safety Committee has developed a comprehensive checklist of what goes into a safety program.
The following pages cover items that may be required to be included in your company safety program – if you do that type of work or your employees are exposed to that hazard. Example: if your employees are exposed to confined spaced, you must identify your safe work procedures in your program and train your employees to the rule and procedures regarding confined spaces. If you do not do this type of work, it need not be included in your written safety program. When writing your program, remember the KISS objective. Keep It Short & Simple.
Where the following type statement exists in the checklist, “Exposure Control Plan regulations are found in WAC 296-62-080 Part J”, you can go to this chapter in the WAC code and write your program.
Many types of training are required by the code and yet the code doesn’t always require documentation. Documentation of ALL training, safety meetings or inspections is highly recommended, whether or not required by code – it’s the only way you can prove when and where training has been done. Example: Safety meetings or weekly walk-around safety inspections are not required by code to be documented, but in order to verify the meeting took place or the inspection occurred, a record of these type activities should be kept. And if ever given a citation for an employee not following a safety rule and you can show that that individual has been trained for that procedure, the fine could be less severe.
WISHA v OSHA is often confused by many. In Washington State, the program is referred to as WISHA (Washington State Industrial Safety & Health Act). In order to maintain its own program, Washington (WISHA) must be equal to or more stringent than the federally regulated program, OSHA (Occupational Safety & Health Act). All states who run their own program must comply with this, in Oregon, it’s called OROSHA.
On the last page, we have also enclosed a list of names, phone numbers and websites where you can go for more information. Happy Hunting!
2005-2006 UCAW Safety Committee Kory Reidhead, Tri-State Construction Bob Checca, Allwest Underground; Don Robertson, Gary Merlino Construction Randy Leon, Mountain Pacific Pipeline Jeff Wharton, Gary Merlino Construction Mike Draper, Tri-State Construction Don Evans, UULC Darlene McHenry UCAW Elaine Hall, UCAW
Please feel free to share this with other contractors or your customers – if we can help a contractor have a better safety program or help save a life we have accomplish or objective!