School of Environmental and Life Sciences Occupational Health and Safety Induction For all Staff, Students and Visitors.

School of Environmental and Life Sciences

Occupational Health and

Safety InductionFor all Staff, Students and Visitors

The University has an obligation to its employees under the Northern Territory Workplace Health and Safety Act. To meet its obligations the University has this induction program to provide you with knowledge of occupational health and safety factors in the workplace.

As an employee of the University you have an obligation to follow safe working procedures at all times, and to take all reasonable precautions to prevent personal injury or injury to others and damage to plant and equipment.

This session will enable you to complete the University New employee health and safety checklist and it requires you to tick off each action as it is completed. Check with your supervisor on any actions which are not completed by the end of the first week.

Welcome to the School of Environmental and Life Sciences

New employee health and safety checklist

Contents:

Legislation – Including the Workplace Health and Safety Act, Workplace Health and Safety Regulations

The Charles Darwin University Occupational Health Safety policy and related processes

Employee and Employer responsibilities under the Work Health Act

Faculty and School safety procedures and practices Safe Work Procedures (SWP’s) and Risk Assessments Hazards - Identification, Assessment, Reporting and

Control Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS’s) Workplace Advisory Group – University and Faculty Reporting and Resolution of Occupational Health and

Safety issues

Workers Compensation Rehabilitation Manual Handling Ergonomic Assessment First Aid Emergencies University Emergency Management Plan

The content of this presentation here is on the CDU website in Health, Safety and Environment or in the Faculty Safety Manual and/or Field Manual

Contents (cont’d)

Legislation

The Workplace Health and Safety Act.

“An Act to promote occupational health and safety in the Territory to prevent workplace injuries and diseases, to protect the health and safety of the public in relation to work activities, to promote the rehabilitation and maximum recovery from incapacity of injured workers, to provide financial compensation to workers incapacitated from workplace injuries or diseases and to the dependants of workers who die as the results of such injuries or diseases, to establish certain bodies and a fund for the proper administration of the Act, and for related purposes.”

Legislation cont’d

The aim of the Act is to protect workers at work by promoting a culture of safety awareness. Both the Act and the Regulations have mandatory requirements and fines for breaches of the Act and regulations are outlined within the documents.

Codes of Practice under the Act provide practical guidance on how a health and safety standard can be achieved. These are mandatory requirements and should be followed. Minimum standards are stated and if there is another solution which achieves the same or better standard of health and safety it may be used

Australian Standards provide guidance on how a standard can be achieved. These standards are developed by Standards Australia and contain requirements that should be followed. Minimum standards are stated and if there is another solution which achieves the same or better standard of health and safety it may be used.

IF IN DOUBT, ASK!!!

The University recognises its corporate responsibility under the Northern Territory Workplace Health and Safety Act and Regulations and associated legislation. This policy provides the framework to enable the University to fulfill its commitment to providing a healthy and safe workplace and to eliminating conditions and incidents that could result in personal injury or ill health.

University has guidelines and processes based on the Workplace Health and Safety Act and Regulations, Codes of Practice and Australian Standards.

University Policy

University Health and Safety Policy

University OHS Policy

Must read

Employer and Employee Responsibilities

Responsibilities of employers and employees are outlined in the Workplace Health and Safety Act and the University Health and Safety Policy.

Inspections of the Workplace

Regular inspections of the workplace are designed to identify hazards for assessment and control to maintain a safe environment

Inspections must be carried out on a regular basis and form part of the overall OH&S management system of the University

Inspections are carried out on a scheduled basis by a team who complete the checklist and identify hazards for correction

Where there is a significant change in activities and/or area use an inspection must be performed

High risk areas should be inspected more frequently

It is the responsibility of staff in the area inspected to take remedial action within timeframes set.

Managers and Supervisors

Staff in a supervisory capacity are required to ensure that regular inspections are carried out and that appropriate remedial action is undertaken

Health and Safety Inspection Check List

Download the

Health and Safety Inspection Checklist

Regular Inspections provide a means for you to measure your OHS performance.

Keep records Complete the checklist and don’t forget to identify who will be

responsible for correcting identified hazards

Safe Work Procedures (SWP’s)

Where a specific hazard exists it may be appropriate to have safe work procedures clearly described and posted close by so as they can be easily read and understood

International signage is useful where there may be difficulty in communication

DO NOT rely on verbal information for it may not be received by all who need it.

Document all information Procedures should be reviewed at inspection time

Safe Work Procedure Template

Hazardous Substance Risk Assessments

Hazardous Substance Risk Assessments must be completed when dealing with Hazardous Substances

They are designed to address the key points associated with the substance such as Usage, Health Effects, Hazard Identification, Control Measures and Disposal Processes

All this information can be obtained from the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for the substance.

Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS’s)

MSDS’s can be obtained from manufacturer/supplier or through a chemical database such as ChemWatch

Electronic information may not be available when needed so hard copies of the information must be kept where they are easily accessed

Every chemical substance in the workplace should have a printed MSDS to inform the user of the nature of the product in use.

The MSDS provides valuable information on: what the formula is, it’s appearance, odor and use permissible exposure limits (PEL), exposure effects monitoring and measurement procedures health hazard information emergency first aid personal protection leak/spill procedures, waste disposal and storage

Labelling of chemicals

Labelling of substances is governed by the National Code of Practice for the Labelling of Workplace Substances [NOHSC:2012 (1994)]

LABELS FOR HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCES The label on a hazardous substance should draw the attention of a user who is handling or using the substance to the significant hazards involved. It should take into account all the hazards which are likely to occur during the use of the substance.

INFORMATION NEEDED ON LABELS FOR CONTAINERS WITH A CAPACITY OF MORE THAN 500 mL(g)

1. Product Name

2. Chemical Name

3. Concentration or formulation details

4. Signal words, Dangerous Goods class and subsidiary risk labels

5. UN number

6. Risk Phrase(s)

7. Safety Phrase(s)

8. Directions for use (as appropriate)

9. First Aid procedures

10. Emergency Procedures

11. Expiry date

12. Manufacturer details

13. Reference to MSDS

Labelling of chemicals Small containers may have insufficient space to include all the information needed on the label

in a style and size that is legible and clearly distinguishable from other markings on the container. The information needed on labels for small containers is therefore a subset of that for containers of more than 500 mL(g).

INFORMATION NEEDED ON LABELS FOR CONTAINERS WITH A CAPACITY OF LESS THAN 500 mL(g) 1. Product Name2. Chemical Name3. Concentration or formulation details4. Signal words, Dangerous Goods class and subsidiary risk labels5. UN number6. Risk Phrase(s) – at least the most significant7. Safety Phrase(s) – at least the most significant8. First Aid procedures9. Manufacturer details10. Reference to MSDS

Where a container of a hazardous substance is so small that this information cannot be provided on the actual container, the container should be labelled with at least:

1. Product Name/Chemical Name2. Signal words, Dangerous Goods class and subsidiary risk labels3. Manufacturer details

Consideration should be given to other methods of providing additional information, such as on outer packaging. Alternative packaging can be used to provide enough room to allow the full set of information to be supplied.

Label Example

Product name Signal word Dangerous Goods

Concentration

Risk phrase(s)Safety Phrase(s)

Manufacturer

First Aid

Directions for use

Emergency procedures

Resolution of OHS issues

Initially the OHS issue should be discussed with your supervisor

Should the supervisor not be able to assist, the matter should be referred to your Health and Safety Representative on the Faculty Workplace Advisory Group (WAG) and seek advice from Health, Safety and Environment (HSE).

Refer paperwork to WAG or HSE for action

If the matter remains unresolved it can then be referred to the University Health and Safety Group (UHSG)

Hazards

A hazard is any source of potential damage, harm or adverse health effects on something or someone under certain conditions at work.

Sometimes a hazard is referred to as being the actual harm or the health effect it caused rather than the hazard. For example, the disease tuberculosis (TB) might be called a hazard by some but in general the TB-causing bacteria would be considered the "hazard" or "hazardous biological agent".

What are examples of a hazard? Workplace hazards can come from a wide range of sources.

General examples include any substance, material, process, practice, etc that has the ability to cause harm or adverse health effect to a person under certain conditions. See Table 1 (next slide).

Table 1 Hazards

Workplace Hazard Example of Hazard Harm Caused

Object Knife Cut

Substance Benzene Leukaemia

Material Asbestos Mesothelioma

Energy Source Electricity Shock, electrocution

Conditions Wet floor Slip, fall

Process Welding Metal fume fever

Practice Quad bike riding Crash

As shown in the table, workplace hazards also include practices or As shown in the table, workplace hazards also include practices or conditions that release uncontrolled energy like: an object that conditions that release uncontrolled energy like: an object that could fall from a height (potential or gravitational energy), a run-could fall from a height (potential or gravitational energy), a run-away chemical reaction (chemical energy) or the release of away chemical reaction (chemical energy) or the release of compressed gas or steam (pressure; high temperature).compressed gas or steam (pressure; high temperature).

Dealing with Hazards

There are 3 basic steps to follow when dealing with hazards

1. Identify 2. Assess 3.Control

IDENTIFY The inspection checklist should have identified any hazards in your work

area. If you notice a hazard, report it !

ASSESS Complete a Hazard Report

1. Rank the risk by probability - the likelihood of the hazard resulting in injury, illness, damage or loss

2. Rank the risk by consequence - the potential for injury, illness, damage or loss

3. Prioritise the risk for control - indicate the ranking of importance when control measures are to be implemented

Dealing with Hazards cont’d

CONTROL Now that the risk has been identified and assessed decisions

need to be made about how best to eliminate or reduce the risk as much as possible.

The following hierarchy of controls provides the steps to making the right decisions in this process. It is important to start at #1 and work though to #6 (ie. PPE is not the first control to put in place)

1. Elimination (remove the hazard)2. Substitution (use an alternative)3. Isolate (separation from hazard)4. Redesign (change equipment or process)5. Administration (change work practices)6. Personal Protective Equipment (ie gloves, glasses, hearing

protection)

Field Work The Field Work Manual covers aspects of safety involved in terrestrial,

freshwater and inshore marine field work in the Northern Territory.

All information and links to forms are included in the content of the manual.

It is imperative that all field work is assessed fully as the Top End of the Northern Territory experiences a wide range of conditions of which potential researchers should be aware. Great stretches of the country and coastline are relatively remote, but much of it is accessible with vehicles and small craft at favourable times of the year.

Safety aspects of vehicular and small boat field work and foot traverse work are considered. Somewhat greater emphasis is placed on vehicular and boat work, because despite popular opinion on some perils of field work in remote localities, the greatest risks to the field researcher involve the vehicle or boat after it has broken down.

Health and Safety Committees

Charles Darwin University has a University Health and Safety Group and Workplace Advisory Groups

The groups meet on a regular basis to resolve and communicate OHS issues to the university

University Health and Safety Group (UHSG)

The University Health and Safety Group (UHSG) comprises Representatives from each of the WAG of the university. The group is chaired by the Executive Director of Corporate Services and has the Manager of Health Safety and Environment (or proxy) in attendance.

The group meets on a regular basis to resolve OHS issues raised by WAG and to discuss policy and procedure and legislative requirements.

Workplace Advisory Group (WAG)

The Workplace Advisory Group (WAG) comprises Health and Safety (H&S) Representatives from work groups or areas in each faculty or department for OHS matters.

The group meets on a regular basis to resolve OHS issues

Faculty of Education Health and Sciences WAG - Casuarina CampusChair: Executive OfficerRep SELS: Laboratory ManagerRep Health: Building Warden Blue 5Rep Engineering/IT: Engineering TechnicianRep Education: Building Warden Blue 5

Accident, Injury and Incident Reporting

Accidents, Injuries and Incidents should be reported within 24hours to Health, Safety and Environment on Accident, Injury and Incident report

If a matter is considered to be serious, involves serious injury or involves a death, IMMEDIATE notification to HSE is required.

Supervisors are responsible for the follow up and investigation of all incidents and accidents and are required to forward the accident, incident and incident form to the Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) unit.

Supervisor is to keep a copy of the Accident, Injury and Incident report form and forward a copy to the Chair of the WAG

Workers Compensation, Rehabilitationand Return to Work

The university has in place workers compensation for employees as required under the NT Workers Rehabilitation and Compensation Act.

Guidelines on Workers Compensation are available through Health, Safety and Environment unit or through NT Worksafe

Note: Students and volunteers are not covered by workers compensation through the university as they are not employees. Coverage is either through Medicare or CDU Public Liability insurance (dependant on situation).

Further information can be sought from CDU Health, Safety and Environment unit.

Manual Handling

Manual Handling presents a significant risk in most workplaces and there is a Manual Handling Risk Assessment Checklist to determine risks associated with activities.

Training is recommended for any person who is required to perform manual handling duties as part of their work and is available internally or externally to the University

Check Health, Safety and Environment training dates

Manual handling information is available as a Regulation and Code of Practice

Screen based equipment and Ergonomic Assessment

The procedure for users of keyboard and screen based equipment is available at: Screen based equipment - Selection and Use

Use the Workstation Checklist to make an assessment of your situation

First Aid and Medical Assistance

The University requires each work area to maintain trained First Aid personnel. Depending on the size of the area, one or more may be required to service the area

First aid personnel are responsible for maintaining the kits to comply with the current Code of Practice and keeping records of all illnesses, injuries and treatments given.

Security personnel are trained in first aid and can be called if you are unable to locate your first aid officer. If no first aid assistance can be provided call for Ambulance assistance.

Medical practitioners are not currently available on campus. As a general rule, cases requiring ambulance attendance and further treatment are sent to Royal Darwin Hospital Emergency Department.

Do not delay in seeking first aid and always remember to complete an Accident, Injury and Incident report

Emergencies

When the alarms sound:

1. Evacuate building immediately by nearest safe exit or as directed by your floor warden.

2. Proceed directly to the designated Assembly Area

3. Wait until the “all clear” given by Fire Brigade Officer or Building Warden or Security

DO NOT enter buildings if alarms are sounding DO NOT USE lifts/elevators during an evacuation.

Familiarise yourself with the floorplan of the building you are in and the designated assembly area

Fire and Fire Fighting Equipment

Only attempt to extinguish minor fires – do not take personal risks

Fire brigade: The fire brigade is alerted by the faculty's automatic alarm systems.

The Building Warden or the deputy Building Warden must meet the Emergency Services personnel when they arrive at the fire panel of the building. As soon as possible inform the University Security on extension 7777 or 8946 7777 or 8946 6500 (Casuarina Campus only).

Each laboratory usually has a Fire extinguisher of DRY CHEMICAL General-purpose type

Most laboratories also have a fire blanket. Fire blankets are the method of choice for small and contained fires.

Each building also has fire hoses in them. See floor plans for their positions in each building

After hours and Emergency response

Outside normal working hours (1621- 0800 weekdays, weekends, and public holidays) Building/ Floor Wardens more likely will not be available. If the alarm sound during these periods, Wardens in the building (if any) and the Security Officer will endeavour to ensure that all personnel leave the building.

It is essential that all occupants sign in and out of the buildings, with appropriate entries in the After Hours books.

After hours Books locations: Yellow 2: Foyer adjacent to automatic doorPink 4 and 5: Preparation areas of both Orange 4: Blue 5: Faculty front counter

Emergency Management Plan

Charles Darwin University’s Emergency Management plan can be found at: Emergency Management Plan

Summary

Everyone (including the University) has a responsibility to themselves and others to ensure a safe work environment

Accidents and incidents must be reported and investigated with corrective action taken to prevent a reoccurrence

Regular Inspections must be carried out to maintain a safe work environment

Forms and Useful Links

New employee health and safety checklist

Health and Safety Inspection Checklist

Safe Work Procedure Template

Hazardous Substance Risk Assessments

Hazard Report

Accident, Injury and Incident report

Manual Handling Risk Assessment Checklist

Forms Policy and Procedure University OHS Policy University Health and Safety Policy

Field Manual Safety Manual

Other Links

ChemWatch

Health, Safety and Environment

NT WorkSafe

Acknowledgements Mr. Neil Ludvigsen - for his initial contribution to the content.

Mr. Horst Walter, Acting Manager of CDU Health, Safety and Environment Unit - for his proof reading and suggestions

Ms. Kezia Lim, Technical Officer (Pharmacy) - for her keen eye and editing skills

Developed by:

Mr. Michael Howard

Laboratory Manager

School of Environmental and Life Sciences

Faculty of Education, Health and Science

2008