January 27, 2010

Supervisors have many responsibilities in many areas — production, quality assurance, and management, to name a few. Because supervisors are so busy, employers can be tempted to delegate some of their safety responsibilities to others, such as the safety manager.

But removing supervisors from the safety equation is usually a bad idea. It can weaken your safety program and increase liability risks for your organization.

Your supervisors are your primary line of defense when it comes to keeping your employees safe. Give them the tools they need to do their job with the Cal/OSHA Compliance for Supervisors monthly newsletter.

Areas where supervisors should always be looped in include:

• Training: While actual delivery of the training, and related recordkeeping, can be delegated, supervisors must know what knowledge and skills are required in order for an employee to perform a job safely. This includes knowing the requirements for personal protective equipment (PPE), as well as the requirements for special or infrequent jobs (such as cleaning tanks) where the supervisor will be directing the work.
• Job hazard identification: Periodic inspections are something you may want to delegate, but your supervisors should be cognizant of the primary job hazards in the areas they supervise so that they can recognize and correct them in a timely fashion, including such areas as possible chemical exposure hazards, machine guarding, slip-and-fall hazards, heat-related hazards, and ergonomic hazards.
• Incident reporting: Incident investigation and related paperwork may be something you feel can be handled by someone else. However, supervisors should know what the reporting requirements are, complete the initial report, and know what to do with reports if the issues raised are things they cannot address themselves.
• Corrective action: One of the most important roles a supervisor plays when it comes to safety in the workplace is addressing unsafe behaviors that he or she sees in the course of employees performing their work. While it's a good idea to have HR work in concert with supervisors on corrective action that falls under the employer's disciplinary action system, supervisors should address those behaviors that deviate from the safest way to do something as they witness it, even if the behavior doesn't necessarily warrant formal disciplinary action.
• Following safety rules: When a situation arises where doing something the "safe way" will take more time, supervisors can sometimes be tempted to do it themselves without following proper safety protocol in order to get the job done. Supervisors should not be allowed to take a pass on following the safety rules that apply to their workers. In fact, your supervisors should be held to your highest standards when it comes to safety, since they are the ones setting an example.

Cal/OSHA Compliance for Supervisors Monthly Newsletter

These days, no California business — large or small — can afford to be complacent about employee safety. Fortunately, Cal/OSHA Compliance for Supervisors will show you and your team the most effective ways to prevent safety related lawsuits and fines and to avoid workplace injuries and workers' comp claims every month.

Your front-line management team will receive timely, concise, and authoritative safety information with each issue. Each month they will...

• Stay on top of requirements and major decisions from OSHA, Cal/OSHA, the Workers' Compensation Appeals Board, California courts, and state agencies.
• Get expert, step-by-step, California-specific guidance to keep their workers safe and injury-free — and help protect your business from costly claims and penalties.
• Learn the latest in compliance and safety tips and get practical step-by-step checklists and other training tools to help them avoid injuries and costly compliance mistakes.
• And much more!

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