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SAFETY TEAM, REPRESENTATIVES AND EMPLOYEE INVOLVEMENT
1.0PURPOSE
1.1Safety teams are a platform for employees and management to work together to prevent accidents by addressing employees’ concerns about health and safety, carrying out inspections and solving safety and health problems which occur in the field. Effective communications to and from employees are essential to a successful Health, Safety, and Loss Prevention Program and this procedure defines different optional systemsavailable to allow these communications to take place.
2.0SCOPE
2.1This procedure applies to all operating areas, projects, geology sites and offices, employees and contractors.
3.0DEFINITIONS
3.1Safety Team
3.1.1A group of management and employee personnel who meet regularly to address safety and health concerns.
3.2Functional Safety Teams (Committees)
3.2.1Safety team at a mine site that is functionally alignedand is comprised of department and HSLP personnel.
3.2.2These teams deal with departmental/functional safety and health issues at a specific site.
3.3Site Safety Teams (Committees)
3.3.1Safety team at a specific mine site thatis comprised of representatives of all functional groups and HSLP personnel from that site.
3.3.2These teams deal with site safety and health issues or concerns brought to them by the functional department safety teams.
3.4Scribe
3.4.1Person responsible for taking notes/minutes, documenting 3Ws, tracking the corrective actions, scheduling meetings, distributing information to all team members, recording all other information/activities of the team, filing of documentation and retention requirements of all collected information. Scribe may change to different members as team designates.
3.5Special or Tiger Team
3.5.1A short term safety team which meets for specific and identified concerns and issues.
3.5.2May be functional, site, or regional based.
4.0RESPONSIBILITIES
4.1All Team Members/Representatives
4.1.1Attend the safety team meetingsfor which they are members, and as shift rotation and schedule allows.
4.1.2Be responsive to employee’s safety concerns and provide team decision feedback as soon as possible.
4.1.3Collect concerns from employees in their work area prior to the meeting and present those concerns at the meeting on an on-going basis.
4.1.4Non-management employees attend the site safety team meeting on a rotating basis with the other non-management team members.
4.1.5Receive proper Training
4.1.6Communicate relevant information from the safety team to workers in their respective areas.
4.1.7Be a leader to create and maintain apositive safety culture within their areas of work.
4.1.8Identify unsafe work conditions and practices,and thenhelp initiate corrective actions on an on-going basis.
4.2Functional Area General Foreman
4.2.1The team leader/chair person for the functional/departmental safety team.
4.2.2Ensure that safety team meetings take place on a regular schedule not to exceed a five week rotation and scheduled so as to include a different team member on a regular rotating basis.
4.2.3Ensures there is an hourly safety team member from each crew for your functional area of responsibility.
4.2.4The functional team member reporting to the site team if a site team is in place. If no site team is in place, then report team activities to the functional site manager.
4.2.5Ensures an agenda is used and distributed.
4.3Superintendents
4.3.1Assume the role of the General foreman on the functional team in his/her absence.
4.3.2Are members of the Site safety team.
4.3.3Assume the role of the Functional Manager in his/her absence.
4.4Functional/Site Managers
4.4.1Ensure that this policy is adhered to for any safety team in area of responsibility.
4.4.2Functional manager oversees and advises the functional safety team if a site safety team is not used.
4.4.3Ensure at least one type of safety team is used as/when needed for area of responsibility.
4.4.4The Site manager is the team leader/chair person for the Site safety team.
4.4.5Site Manager ensures that if a Sitesafety team is in place, the site safety team meetings take place on a quarterly basis at a minimum.
4.4.6Site manager ensures there is a non-management safety team member from each functional area of responsibility.
4.4.7Ensures an agenda is used and distributed.
4.5HSLP
4.5.1Shall be the scribe of the meetings unless the meeting is for a special/tiger team and a facilitator is used or other team members have been designated with jobs and roles of the scribe.
4.5.1.1All scribe responsibilities become the facilitator responsibilities if someone other than HSLP.
4.5.2Coordinate the selection of employee representatives to be members of the Functional/departmental Safety Teams.
4.5.3Provide Team members with accident statistics for their work areas
4.5.4Ensure all corrective actions and risks are entered into the Corrective Action and/or risk Register for tracking.
4.6Scribe
4.6.1Scribe may change from HSLP or facilitators as team determines roles and responsibilities for members.
4.6.2Ensure that team members are notified of upcoming meetings in a timely manner.
4.6.3Ensure that team recommendations are recorded and monitored.
4.6.4Promptly distributed meeting information and agendas to all team members following the meeting.
4.6.5Documentation will include:
4.6.5.1Sign-in sheet
4.6.5.23Ws
4.6.5.3Agenda
4.6.5.4Date.
4.6.5.5Time.
4.6.5.6Members Present.
4.6.5.7Issues Discussed.
4.6.5.8Corrective Actions needed using a “3W” format.
5.0PROCEDURE/GUIDELINE
5.1Functional Safety Team (Committee)
5.1.1Meets on a regular schedule not to exceed a five week rotation and scheduled so as to include a different team member on a regular rotating basis.
5.1.2Shall consist of at a minimum an hourly safety team member from each crew of the functional area, HSLP, General Forman of area, and contractor rep from the area for each contractor regularly on site or as required by the General Foreman or Management.
5.1.3Shall review accident and safety program statistics from the functional department area.
5.1.4Conduct area inspections separate and different from the regular planned general inspections for the area.
5.1.5Conduct Planned Task Observations as a group or with area supervisor.
5.1.6Conduct Task Analysis with area supervisor and employees.
5.1.7Conduct other safety related activities as the team deems necessary or beneficial.
5.1.8Assign members on a rotating basis to complete the paperwork requirements for each task completed and submit to the appropriate persons.
5.1.9Functional/Department Safety Team shall provide their representative for the Site Team with safety and health issues they feel are not being properly addressed or unresolved for at least three months. These issues shall then be presented at the Site Safety Team level for corrective action in the next scheduled meeting or presented to the Functional Manager for resolution.
5.1.10Submit quarterly reports to the Site Safety Team or Functional Manager.
5.2The Site Safety Teams(Committees)
5.2.1Safety team at a mine site that is comprised of the Site Manager, Functional Manager, Functional Superintendents, Functional Site Team hourly members from each area and, HSLP personnel.
5.2.2Assist Functional Safety Teams to make decisions and complete corrective actions that the functional team is unable to rectify or accomplish on its own.
5.2.3Oversee and give advice or direction to the functional safety team.
5.2.4If a Site safety team is used, then the meetings well take place on a quarterly basis at a minimum.
5.2.5Uses an agenda for all meetings
5.3Special or Tiger Teams
5.3.1Has a team leader who is a General Foreman at minimum.
5.3.2HSLP is part of the team.
5.3.3Leader ensures experts of the concern or issue are part of the team and includes hourly as well as salaried employees.
5.4Additional Employee Involvement Activities
5.4.1Direct involvement in the reporting and investigation of accidents.
5.4.2Team based Risk Assessments.
5.4.3Safewatch and Safecheck programs.
5.4.4Standard task procedure and task analysis development and reviews.
5.4.5Attendance in at least 45 minutes of Monthly Safety Meetings, involving employees, as well as managers and where safety topics are presented and discussed. Site and department goals, health and safety programs, employee concerns, accident statistics are all discussed in these Monthly Safety Meetings. Employees are asked for any concerns, comments, or suggestions during these safety meetings and issues are documented on the safety meeting form.
5.4.6Involvement in Change Management reviews and receiving information regarding the impact of the changes as it relates to employees. The information shared with employees as a result of change management reviews include SOP’s, revised Rules, training, signs and etc.
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