Safety at workplace is the right of every employee and the foremost responsibility of an employer. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is one such governing organization who sets and enforces standards to assure a safe and healthy environment for injury free workplaces in the United States. The Ohio oil refinery had a perfect safety record of being an injury free workplace, in spite of having major fire havoc. This was mainly due to absence of casualties in the accident. A similar entry of the Texas plant into the safety record was noticed, although the release fire and chemical from the plant caused hundreds of the surrounding inhabitants to seek medical cure for a potential exposure to hazardous elements. The reason for a clear record was no casualties inside the workplace.
The Ohio oil refinery and the Texas plant had measurable damages, and there were no workplace casualties. Yet, the case of the Texas plant could not be given an exemption as there was a possibility of fatalities to the innocent civilians. A workplace can be deemed to be safe if it has survived the major accidents with a minimum material damage and zero casualties within and outside the workplace. A process safety management program has to be formulated to achieve this. An effective process safety management program requires the leadership, support and involvement of the top management, supervisors, employees, contractors and contractor employees (Stellman 1998).
The safety management program like any other must have a policy, process, job instruction and documentation to ensure effective implementation. It should be in conformance with the workshop safety, health requirements and compliant with the federal laws and regulations. Conducting safety drill for all the employees, maintaining safety monitoring data systems and frequent audits for safety management provides the desired result.
References
Stellman, Jeanne Mager., (1998). Encyclopaedia of Occupational Health and Safety,Volume 3,
International Labour Organization.
