The National Advisory Committee on Occupational Safety and Health held an open meeting at the Department of Labor on December 12th to discuss updates in the safety and health area. The committee’s purpose is to advise the secretaries of labor and health and human services on occupational safety and health programs and policies. Updates were given by OSHA concerning rule changes that are still in progress, namely the Beryllium Standard, as well as the recent finalization of the Respirator FIT Testing Rule. Encouragement was given by OSHA representatives for all businesses to subscribe to the Quick Takes mailing list to receive biweekly regulatory updates from OSHA.
The afternoon discussion centered around OSHA’s effort to integrate leading indicators into safety programs to foster a proactive safety culture. Currently, lagging indicators—such as recording injury and illness incidents and rates, workman’s compensation claims, etc.—are the more commonly used tactics of monitoring the success of a Safety and Health Program. However, these are reactive tactics and are used as a retrospective analysis.
Leading indicators, on the other hand, are positive ways to improve safety programs by seeking out and minimizing hazards and prevent incidents from occurring. OSHA is currently requesting information from all industries about how many businesses are using leading indicators such as safety trainings, preventative maintenance, safety audits, etc. SGIA is going to respond to OSHA’s request and we encourage you provide us with feedback on your program by filling out this survey.
OSHA wants to incentivize businesses to use leading indicators and to view safety as an investment in your workforce rather than a pesky box to check to avoid a violation fine. Another way OSHA is encouraging the use of leading indicators is through their annual Safe and Sound Week. SGIA was a part of the 3rd annual program in 2019 and looks forward to participating again in 2020!
OSHA also promoted their SHARP (Safety & Health Achievement Recognition Program), a new 1 day course on safety compliance that will be launching in 2020 called OSHA 7500, and new tools in their $afety Pays resource that is able to calculate direct and indirect costs to your business from injuries and illnesses in your workplace. It will also show you how you rank amongst your peers.
For more information on OSHA’s updates or programs, please contact SGIA’s Government Affairs Department at govtaffairs@sgia.org.
The afternoon discussion centered around OSHA’s effort to integrate leading indicators into safety programs to foster a proactive safety culture. Currently, lagging indicators—such as recording injury and illness incidents and rates, workman’s compensation claims, etc.—are the more commonly used tactics of monitoring the success of a Safety and Health Program. However, these are reactive tactics and are used as a retrospective analysis.
Leading indicators, on the other hand, are positive ways to improve safety programs by seeking out and minimizing hazards and prevent incidents from occurring. OSHA is currently requesting information from all industries about how many businesses are using leading indicators such as safety trainings, preventative maintenance, safety audits, etc. SGIA is going to respond to OSHA’s request and we encourage you provide us with feedback on your program by filling out this survey.
OSHA wants to incentivize businesses to use leading indicators and to view safety as an investment in your workforce rather than a pesky box to check to avoid a violation fine. Another way OSHA is encouraging the use of leading indicators is through their annual Safe and Sound Week. SGIA was a part of the 3rd annual program in 2019 and looks forward to participating again in 2020!
OSHA also promoted their SHARP (Safety & Health Achievement Recognition Program), a new 1 day course on safety compliance that will be launching in 2020 called OSHA 7500, and new tools in their $afety Pays resource that is able to calculate direct and indirect costs to your business from injuries and illnesses in your workplace. It will also show you how you rank amongst your peers.
For more information on OSHA’s updates or programs, please contact SGIA’s Government Affairs Department at govtaffairs@sgia.org.