Sober and Focused
The fourth category, "People," refers to any employee (or others) at any level of the organization who may not be "sober and focused" on the work they're doing.
For example, an employee might be in a hazardous "state of being" if they are:
- in a hurry
- under the influence of drugs or alcohol;
- poorly trained or educated;
- worried about a family illness;
- too tired to do the job; or
- distracted for any reason.
Remember, an employee who is distracted in any way from the work they're doing should also be considered a "walking" hazardous condition that increases the likelihood of an unsafe behavior. Today, distraction is becoming a big problem with the use of cell phones, especially while people are walking or driving. Unfortunately, OSHA does not usually "catch" employees working in an unsafe manner, so you don't see unsafe behaviors described in OSHA citation reports too often.
The safety management system is composed of policies, programs, plans, processes, procedures and practices that may influence or contribute to distraction and other unsafe behaviors in the workplace. A flawed safety management system will contribute to workplace conditions and behaviors. Therefore we can argue that the failure of the safety management system is ultimately the root cause for the majority of the workplace accidents.
Knowledge Check Choose the best answer for the question.
2-3. What is ultimately the root cause for the majority of workplace accidents?
You forgot to answer the question!