Health & Safety

WORKPLACE INSPECTIONS

There are many things an employer or manager does to ensure the safety of their workers. Remember that workers include contractors, subcontractors and other people.

Some of these things are: • Induction – making sure workers understand how health and safety are managed in the organisation. • Training – ensuring workers know the best and safest way to do their tasks. • Supervision – providing an experienced worker to watch over a worker who may be new or new to the task. • Toolbox meetings – discussing what we are about to do and how, including hazards and risks and how to manage them. • SOPs – standard instructions for tasks. • PPE – providing workers with the most appropriate personal protection. • Checklists – machinery, plant and site.

Despite all this, workers still get hurt or do the task without regard to safety or quality.

One of the best tools in our safety toolbox is our eyes. Site reviews and talking to the workers on the job allow us to identify work done well, work done not so well, and any problems on-site. It doesn’t matter if the site is involved with construction or transport, etc. There will always be a place or task we can look at. Workplace inspections can also include checking your compliance – services, certifications, calibrations, etc.

Recently, I was on a construction site. I had visited this site weekly for a few weeks before. The organisation is very reputable and takes working safely seriously. On none of my previous visits had I identified any major problems.

This visit, we observed a worker using a concrete saw without water, mask or hearing protection. We contacted the site manager immediately, who addressed the situation instantly. The worker only had a small job and decided to do it without following proper procedure; he believed it would take longer to do safely. Clearly, people will take shortcuts if they think they will get away with it.

The key is to act. If you identify anything wrong, you must address it at once. If it is left, you send a message that it’s okay to take shortcuts, that you will only address concerns once the job is done. If you identify problems, you should follow up to ensure the correct actions have been taken and that they don’t recur.

23031 DANI1 TRUCKING AD.pdf 27/5/10 3:12:58 PM Tracey Murphy is the owner and director of Safewise Ltd, a health and safety consultancy. She has more than 12 years’ experience working with organisations from many different industries. Tracey holds a diploma in health and safety management and a graduate diploma in occupational safety and health. She is a professional member of the New Zealand Institute of Safety Management and is on the HASANZ register.

How can Safewise help?

We work with organisations that need more health and safety knowledge or more time to address these issues than they have in-house. We also have free Covid19 resources available.

For more information, check the website safewise.co.nz

Danielle L. Beston

Barrister At Law

Transport Specialist Work Licences Nationwide Road User Charges

Log Book & Driving Hours

Contributor to New Zealand Trucking ‘LegalLines’ Column

Telephone: 64 9 379 7658 mobile: 021 326 642 danielle.beston@hobsonchambers.co.nz