History of Safety and Health

Work… why work? Noun – exertion directed to produce something Verb – the act of doing or exerting oneself

What is safety… related to work? Identifying, assessing, and eliminating or controlling workplace hazards …free from danger…

Safety and Health History Safety and health has a long history. hunting… shaping of spears made of quarts (lead to silicosis), early mining… As time wore on began to recognize the hazards of working with lead, silver, mercury…

Safety and Health History Industrial Revolution  Substituting inanimate for animal sources of power  Substituting machines for human skills and strength  Inventing new methods for transforming raw materials  Organizing work in large units  Appearance of mass manufacturing

Safety and Health History What are the safety impacts as a result of the IR?  Created hazards never before created – such as…  As a result, there was a greater need for hazard control

Children in the Workplace 1900 consensus showed: 1,750,178 working children between 10 and 15 years 25,000 in mines and quarries 12,000 in making chewing tobacco and cigars 5,000 in sawmills, 5,000 at or near steam driven planers and lathes 7,000 in laundries 2,000 in bakeries 138,000 as servants and waiters in hotels and restaurants

Safety and Health History Tracking injuries and illnesses  Occupational disease cases  Pittsburgh Survey (20 th century)

Safety and Health History Major events  Triangle Shirtwaist Fire  Gauley Bridge, WV  Love canal

Safety and Health History Enactment of Major Legislation  Workers’ Compensation – 1911 Wisconsin  OSHAct 1970

Safety and Health History More on the OSHAct  Why implement the OSHAct?  Goal?  Who is responsible for instituting OSHA?  Major components… later…

How Big is the Problem? 2002: Fatalities: 4,900 in 2002 (injuries) 3.7 million suffered disabling injuries Average cost for worker death was $1.1 million Cost per disabling injury was $33,000 *source: 2002 NSC statistics Workers Compensation paid out 49.4 billion in 2001 Other Information: Injury pattern  <10% women  <10% older workers are injured

Accidents Accidents are the fourth leading cause of death in this country after heart disease, cancer, and strokes: *This list includes work-related and non-work-related incidents.

Accident Costs ~150 Billion in the U.S. or $420 per worker Costs associated with accidents  Lost work hours  Medical costs  Insurance premiums and administration  Property damage  Fire losses  Indirect costs

Changing Workplace Workforce – 56% of employers have less than 100 employees Age – by 2010 the majority of workers will be >54 years Gender – Females increasing to estimated 46% in 2010 (with 35% as mothers)

Workplace Current Trends Current trend is that only construction and service industries adding new jobs Manufacturing and mining jobs decreasing Substantial number of workers now holding multiple jobs

Trends Continued Union representation decreasing Working at home increasing Alternate employment Help agencies Contingent workers Independent contractors On-call workers

Trends Continued Multiple and part-time jobs Technology used more Hours and pace of working Work arrangements (e.g., team work)

Violence in the Workplace

Drugs in the Workplace

Safety and Health Terms What is risk?  The possibility of loss or injury to people and property  Contributing factors for risk: Frequency Severity Unit of exposure

Risk Types of Risk?  Societal and individual risk  Residual risk The risk remaining after the risk management strategies have been implemented.  Perceived risk The level of risk that each individual acknowledges in a particular risk assessment.

Safety vs. Risk Acceptable Risk?  The risk associated with the best of the available alternatives Laws of Acceptable Risk  Acceptable risk is proportional to the amount of benefit  The public will accept a higher level of voluntary risk than involuntary risk  People take more risk when it is controllable than when it is not controllable

So… why is safety and health important? Legal obligation… from whom/what?? Potential for criminal charges

Responsibility for Job Safety The Charlie Morecraft Story