WHS - Hazard Identifiaction - WHS Policies - Assessment Answer

WHS Assignment

Assignment Task

Introduction

Hazards are defined as any given situation that in one way or the other poses levels of threat to human life, property, health, or even the environment within which humans live. Generally, hazards are always dangerous to the lives of both humans and animals (Middleton, 2015). Most of the hazards that exist in different places are usually dormant with only a theoretical risk of harm until it gets active thus posing a real harm to the involved people. Any situation that is termed as being hazardous is always termed as an accident and tends to affect negatively the lives of the involved populations (Gosens, et al., 2014).

As such, this paper will be divided into two parts. Part A will assess a situation presented in a convenient store that will entail the whole process of identifying different risks in the identified scenario. Part A will also look at that particular hazard that can be completely done away with in the convenient store, look at the inadequacies in identifying the hazards and the process of consulting with the risk assessment process. This section will conclude by giving different ways of selecting and implementing risk control. The second section will look at the application of WHS policies and how they are applied.

Hazard to be eliminated completely

Of the identified hazards, it will be easy to deal with electric shocks completely. Dealing with the problem of electric shocks is easy in the premises as it only calls for proper handling of all electrical appliances and making sure that all the machines used in the convenience store are well serviced to avoid issues of exposed wires within the premises (Middleton, 2015). Again, those who handle the machines need to be sober and should not in anyway be drug or under any influence while on the organization's premises. All electrical terminals need to be well serviced and neatly done to avoid any direct contacts with those who work in the store (Gosens, et al., 2014).

Inadequacies of the hazard identification process

Hazard identification is faced by a number of inadequacies that tend to make the whole process slow and ineffective thus failing to notice some of the hazards faced in the organization. Some of the inadequacies in the whole process include having limited time to observe and get record all the hazards and that of getting the appropriate support from the management of the store. These inadequacies made it very inconvenient to identify the hazards experienced in the store. Lack of support from the work staff in the store was another inadequacy that was experienced during the hazard identification process thus making the whole process inadequate and inefficient.

Who to consult with about the risk assessment process

The process of carrying out the risk assessment practice calls for consultation from different groups of people. As such, it is important to make the correct engagements by consulting with employees working in the organization (Li, et al., 2014). Consulting with them will help to get the best information that is needed to make the assessment process effective and efficient. The other party to consult from being the health and safety representatives in the region where the store is operating (Middleton, 2015). Consulting from these individuals is important, as they know the risks that are involved as well as the scope of the potentially harmful events in the organization. Workers who engage in different activities in the convenience store are in a better position to understand why the procedures developed in the store are not well followed (Annan, Addai, & Tulashie, 2015).

These parties are in a better place to understand the effectiveness as well as the loopholes that exist in their places of work. The health care professional will be important in giving tips on the policies and regulations that have not been followed thus exposing the employees to different hazards (Li, et al., 2014). Additionally, consulting with the health and safety representatives will offer the right information needed to understand the control measures that have been applied in different points to correct the hazards. It will offer the right data and record on both the policies and the measures that have been applied in the store to help in solving the problems that might be brought about by the hazards (Annan, Addai, & Tulashie, 2015).

Ways of selecting and implementing risk controls

There are a number of procedures and methods that can be applied in the process of selecting as well as implementing the risk controls in an organization. As such, selecting the control method may include doing an evaluation and selecting temporary as well as permanent controls (Middleton, 2015). This will be followed by an implementation of the temporary measures up to that particular time when a long lasting control will be developed. Additionally, implementing controls that are permanent will be applied when deemed possible and practicable (Reese, 2015).

Risk control implementation

Some of the approved ways of implementing risk control measures are practically stated in the legislations that exist in a given industry. In most cases, it is the responsibility of the employers in the organization in question to offer the correct precautions under different circumstances to make sure that no accidents are recorded in their workplaces (Gosens, et al., 2014). In those incidents when the risk at hand has no clearly defined way of controlling it, then those involved are supposed to seek for guidance from the available health professions (Li, et al., 2014). The health professionals who are most likely to give the best ways of implementing the controls are the occupational hygienists or the available safety professionals.

Part B

What to include in a WHS induction and training programs

Different components need to be included in the WHS induction and training programs. The implementation, as well as the delivery of a WHS induction program, is always paramount in developing a positive workplace health, safety culture of the organization (Gosens, et al., 2014). To be effective, the WHS induction and training program should have the following components. The induction and training programs are supposed to have a system in place that will make the process of identifying and providing the required WHS information, training, and instruction packages. The selected staffs who will participate in the training are supposed to be highly competent for purposes of delivering the training packages effectively and efficiently (Reese, 2015).

It is also very important for the training programs to offer the right information, instructions, and training that are easily understandable to all the people taking part in the training. Additionally, the programs are supposed to offer a kind of evaluation directed to the inductees as a way of checking their level of understanding concerning the WHS requirements (Gosens, et al., 2014). The programs are also supposed to come up with the best way of keeping the records obtained during the induction process, the modules to be used in training and the competencies that will be achieved in the training. Again, the key competencies for the job roles also need to be clearly stated as a way of getting the training needs correctly before carrying out the whole training process (Rooney, et al., 2014).

The other requirement in WHS induction and training programs is that of developing a process of training that connects to the training needs analysis. The programs should have trainers who are highly competent to deliver the best quality for the trainees (Friend, & Kohn, 2014). The suitability and the adequacy of the training to be offered should be assessed regularly for purposes of making the required improvements. Finally, employees are required to receive the required information, training, and instruction that is needed to protect them from any risk posed regarding their roles (Friend, & Kohn, 2014).

A system for WHS recordkeeping

The record keeping system is supposed to keep a record of all the written health as well as safety records organized in a given order. The system needs to be in a position to identify all the trends for unsafe working conditions as well as providing all the needed materials for any training to be carried out (Rooney, et al., 2014). The right records that need to be kept should be that of the consultation done on safety issues with the employees in the organization as well as the health and safety program reviews. Monthly meeting records also need to be kept in the records as well as all the reports of incident investigations (Friend, & Kohn, 2014).

Ways of measuring and evaluating the WHS management system

There are a number of methods that can be used to measure as well as do an evaluation of the WHS management system in an organization. Some of the ways that the WHS management systems can be measured includes looking at the organizational trends of the reported injuries, hazards, and near misses, including the injury frequency rates in the organization (Gosens, et al., 2014). Reviewing the accident investigation outcomes is also another way of measuring the effectiveness of the WHS management system. The outcomes of the consultations made can also be used as a way of measuring the effectiveness of the WHS management system (Rooney, et al., 2014).

WHS evaluation methods

The process of evaluating the performance of the WHS management system is always based on the methods that were applied in implementing the whole system and not just by looking at the availed data. All the evaluations carried are made for purposes of identifying the key areas that need to be improved while at the same time noticing the achievements made in the organization (Friend, & Kohn, 2014). As such, the best way to carry out an evaluation is by looking at the loopholes that present themselves as well as looking milestones that have been made by the involved parties.

Methods to avoid leaving boxes of stock in the aisles

There are a number of methods that can be used to solve the problem of leaving stock boxes in the aisles. One of the best methods is that of getting an employee whose main job will be to make sure that these boxes are in their right place. Bringing about effective policies that will control the way that employees handle the boxes will also be a good way to solve the problem (Rooney, et al., 2014). Introducing fines or some forms of penalties for those employees who leave the boxes in the aisle will significantly deal with the issue of leaving the stock boxes in the aisles. Applying these strategies will make sure that no more boxes are found in the aisle, and it will be easy to carry out different operations in the store.

Conclusion

To conclude, this paper has addressed some of the issues that are faced in the convenience store that is related to the security and the health of those who work in the convenience store. The paper has conveniently done this by answering different questions that were raised concerning the situation at the convenient store. By answering these questions, important insights have been given concerning the security issues raised about the convenience store. The correct people to consult during the hazard assessment process have also been highlighted in the first section of the paper. The first section of the paper convincingly addresses the hazards that can be identified from the convenience store while the second section of the paper named section B has addressed a lot of the WHS induction and training program requirements. The paper has used these two sections to fulfill its objectives by answering all the questions posed regarding the health and safety issues experienced in the convenient store.