Health and Safety Training Manual: Section 1 – Administrative policies and procedures
Supervisors, both faculty and staff, are responsible for establishing, implementing, and maintaining a system for communicating with employees and students about health and safety matters. Information must be presented in a manner readily understood by the affected employees and students. Attention must be given to levels of literacy and language barriers. Verbal communications should be supplemented with written materials or postings. Whenever appropriate, statutes and policies affecting employees and students shall be available in the workplace.
Faculty, staff, and students who may come in contact with hazardous substances or practices in the workplace shall be provided information concerning the particular hazards which may be posed, and the methods by which they may deal with such hazards in a safe and healthful manner. In areas where hazardous chemicals are used, handled, or stored, communications about these hazards shall conform to the Chemical Hazard Communication policy set forth in the OSU Safety Handbook. (See OSU Administrative Policies and Procedures manual)
Record Keeping and Documentation
Records of inspections, including who conducted the inspections, dates, any unsafe conditions or practices found, and corrective actions taken, must be maintained for three years and be available to EH&S, OR-OSHA, Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA), or United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) on demand. Self-inspection and guidelines are available from EH&S. Supervisors must also document training and communications, whether conducted in classes, safety meetings, or one-on-one job safety training sessions.
Specifically, the supervisor must keep records of who was trained, who did the training, when the training occurred, and what was taught. Training records will be kept in a training file, and training records for individual employees should be kept in each employee’s file. The same holds true for students
Documentation should include safety meeting and/or training session agendas, signup sheets with signatures of attendees, and copies of any written communications.
Recognition of Hazards: In addition to regular inspection, employees need to be responsible for maintaining a safe, orderly workplace. Employees should be encouraged to let management know of unsafe or hazardous conditions. Employees are also encouraged to offer solutions for safety problems or concerns.
Safety Items Required by Law
Safety items should be posted as required by law. Posters are available on Worker Protection Standards and other laws that can be placed in a common area. Also, items such as MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheets) and records of pesticide application to fields need to be readily available to employees.