Unit A questions Ollie Flashcards
July 13
(a) Give the meaning of the term ‘ethics’. (1)
(b) Identify THREE ethical principles that underpin a health and safety practitioner’s professional conduct. (3)
(c) Outline what is meant by a conflict of interest. (2)
(d) A health and safety manager for a large organisation has been asked to recommend suitable auditing software. A close friend who owns a small software development business has approached the health and safety manager and asked him to “put in a good word”.
Outline the steps that the health and safety manager should take to avoid allegations of professional misconduct. (4)
(a) IOSH’s Code of Conduct…provides a strong ethical foundation for all members. Ethics are concerned with standards of (professional) conduct. This involves:
(b) Integrity (honest, law-abiding, avoid conflicts of
interest)
Competence - (undertake appropriate CPD)
Respect (for rights and privacy)
Service (provide accurate, proportionate, timely advice)
(c) A conflict of interest occurs where a person’s professional judgement is influenced by other considerations, such as the possibility of personal gain / benefit. For example, one result of effective H&S advice may be a reduced need for your professional services – whereas allowing a dangerous procedure to continue may result in more work. This presents a clear conflict of interest but to adopt the latter course would involve a lack of integrity and would breach professional ethical standards / codes. Conflicts of interest may also arise in relation to the offer / acceptance of inducements such as gifts or hospitality, when acting as an expert witness in a trial or when tendering for training services.
(d) In these circumstances there is clearly a potential conflict of interest. To avoid allegations of misconduct the H&S manager could:
Politely refuse to put in a good word, explaining to the friend that it would not be appropriate for them (the H&S manager) to make any representations on the friend’s behalf - but that the friend could approach the organisation independently if they so wished
Inform the organisation of the situation and explain the potential conflict so that all parties are aware of the conflict seek written confirmation from each affected party that the potential conflict has been disclosed and considered
subsequently exclude themselves from the tendering / selection process
seek advice from their professional body (IOSH)
Jan17/July 14/Jan/11. Due to pop up ************
A large public limited company has recently experienced a fire and explosion resulting in multiple fatalities and extensive environmental damage.
(a) Outline a range of consequences that may affect the company as a result of the incident. (5)
(b) As a result of the incident shareholders have raised concerns about the risk management arrangements that are in place and have called into question the Board’s annual statement that was provided as part of compliance with the Turnbull / Financial Reporting Council guidelines on “internal control”.
Explain the purpose of these guidelines and why they are relevant to this type of incident. (5)
(a) Consequences of incident include: criminal prosecution and penalties (EA / HSE); civil actions - damages / claims; remediation / clean up cost; lost production / orders; expenditure on investigation, business continuity, remedial action, PR etc resulting in reduced profitability; reputational damage - both customers / clients and local community / general public; higher insurance / difficulty in insuring; damage to staff morale / confidence; difficulty in retaining / recruiting staff; restrictions imposed by regulators (licences / permissioning regimes); damage to shareholder confidence /trust.
(b) Purpose of Turnbull guidelines: designed to ensure effective risk management processes are in place.
Guidelines advocate clear policy and commitment;
Risk evaluation through a process of risk assessment;
Management processes that control risk to an acceptable level;
Monitoring arrangements;
Clear communication and reporting arrangements;
A process of internal audit;
An annual Board level review of risk controls and a statement to shareholders on outcomes.
As such Turnbull aims to:
- safeguard shareholder investment
- minimise losses and increase profitability
- assist in compliance with legal obligations
Relevance of Turnbull guidelines:
The incident presents risks to financial wellbeing, organisational effectiveness, health & safety, the environment, customer / client relations / reputational risks that are all covered within the Turnbull guidelines. Compliance with Turnbull Report supports good H&S management and reduces risk.
Jan17/July14/Jan11
A large public limited company (PLC) providing transport services has recently suffered an incident in which several passengers died.(10)
How might the consequences of this incident may affect the
PLC
Consequences of incident include:
• Criminal prosecution and penalties (HSE / CPS)
• Civil actions - damages / claims
• Remediation / clean-up cost
• Lost productivity / services / passengers
• Expenditure on investigation, business continuity, remedial action, PR etc resulting in reduced profitability
• Reputational damage - both customers / clients and local community / general public
• Higher insurance / difficulty in insuring
• Damage to staff morale / confidence
• Difficulty in retaining / recruiting staff
• Restrictions imposed by regulators (licences / permissioning regimes)
• Damage to shareholder confidence / trust
Jan 20/Jan 18
Outline Uses & Reasons for introducing health and safety management systems. (10)
H&S Management systems offer a framework for management to focus on in order to manage health and safety and improve the business through:
Better health and safety performance,which will reduce the costs from accidents and incidents
Greater awareness of legal requirements, which will reduce the chances of committing an offence.
Improved relations and morale as employees see that their health and safety is being looked after.
Improved image and positive public relations from a publicly responsible attitude towards
employees.
Greater business efficiency which will reduce costs.
Reduced insurance premiums, by demonstrating more effective risk control.
Greater confidence from banks and investors by showing more effective risk management systems.
July 19 Jan 17 Jul 15 Jul 13 Unit A 1.2*******
Societal factors may be said to include economic climate, government policy and initiatives, industry / business risk profile, globalisation of business, migrant workers and national levels of sickness absence and incapacity. Using separate headings for each of these societal factors outline how they might influence health and safety standards and priorities. (10)
Can be also put like this
Societal factors that influence health and safety standards
Societal factors that influence H&S standards / priorities include:
- Economic climate - austerity, cuts in funding, competition, labour shortages, H&S given lower priority ,Wealthier countries have better infrastructure to invest in H &S
- Government policy / priorities / initiatives / campaigns, new legislation introduced – is likely to direct companies’ focus on those areas and distract from others, Good H & S op a population is good for economic growth
- Industry / business risk profile – higher risks equate to more control and vice versa ie Oil & Gas and Nuclear
- Globalisation of business - dealing with different cultures and legislative requirements / standards - difficulty in establishing a consistent “corporate” system / approach
- Migrant workers - language difficulties, different cultures / attitudes
- National levels of sickness absence and incapacity - government initiatives / legislation - Equality
Act eg “fit note”, requirements to make reasonable adjustments
Jan15/jan12/July09/July06******
An organisation is proposing to move from a health and safety management system based on the Health and Safety Executive’s HSG65 model to one that aligns itself with ISO 450001
Outline the possible advantages AND disadvantages of such a change. (10)
Benefits: move to ISO 450001 allows easier integration with ISO 14001 and ISO 9001:2000; the move may generate publicity and client interest; customer / client perception of the organisation may be improved - better image; 450001 is an internationally recognised standard; 450001 is easier to benchmark and audit; allows for independent external registration and verification.
Disadvantages: change is time-consuming and expensive; may require additional paperwork / bureaucracy/ skills; 450001 may not be appropriate for SMEs (“over the top”); HSG65 is the “official” standard used by enforcing authorities and in H&S guidance so despite the change HSG65 will still be the “reference point” for their inspection / audit / investigation; if integrated with 14001 & 9001 H&S can lose its identity and be audited by non-specialists
July 15 **
According to the HSE publication Managing for health and safety (HSG 65), performance measurement is an integral part of a H&S management system.
(a) Explain the purpose of performance measurement (6)
(b) Outline factors that should be considered in order to help ensure the successful implementation 4Cs of
a H&S management system. (4)
a) Performance measurement provides information on progress and status of risk controls and strategies and allows you to see:
Position relative to H&S aims and objectives
How well hazards and risks are being controlled
How organisation compares to others -benchmarkingIt also
Enables learning from failures –corrective action
Helps with decision making regarding resources etc
Maintains and improves the safety management system
(b) Factors to consider include: (4C’s)
• Competence/training of yourself and staff so that everyone has the knowledge, skills and
experience to work in a safe and healthy manner and whether external expertise is required
• Control – Are people appointed in suitable roles with clear responsibilities
• Co-operation – consider regular meetings with employees at all levels to discuss safety
issues. Appointment of Safety Representative and Safety Committee to provide a recognised link between employees and management and provision of systems for staff to feedback?
• Communication – How is information provided e.g. posters, notices, training packages to employees and visitors. Ensure that feedback is given to employees to encourage maintenance of high Health and Safety standards.
Explain the moral reasons for the effective management of health and safety.
Moral reasons.
The duty of reasonable care.
The old expression “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you”
The unacceptability of putting the health and safety of people at risk.
Society’s attitude to moral obligations.
National accident, incident and ill-health statistics.
The effect of size of an organisation on accident and incident rates.
Explain the Legal reasons for the effective management of health and safety.
Legal reasons.
Preventative & Punitive Aspects of the Law.
Financial fines.
Imprisonment of individuals.
Forcing the organisation to advertise their wrongdoing in the media (such as newspapers or trade journals).
Disqualification of directors, preventing them from holding positions of responsibility. Injunctions, which are court orders to force a company to act. For example, forcing them to introduce safety measures.
The Compensatory Effects of the Law.
Earnings lost. Loss of future earnings. Cost of medical treatment. Loss of enjoyment of life and hobbies. Special compensation for severe injuries and intense physical pain.
The Principle of Self-Regulation.
Industry self-regulation is the process by which an organisation monitors its own adherence to legal, ethical, or safety standards, rather than have an outside, independent agency such as a third- party entity monitor and enforce those standards
Explain Economic reasons for the effective management of health and safety.
Economic
The Costs of Accidents, Incidents, and Ill-Health and their Impact on Society and on Organisations.
Insured and Uninsured Costs
The HSE estimates that the ratio between insured and uninsured costs lies in the range of £1 to £8 or even as high as £1 to £36.
Uninsured costs can include:
Lost time.
Sick pay.
Damage or loss of product and raw materials.
Repairs to plant and equipment.
Extra wages, overtime working and temporary labour. Production delays.
Investigation time.
Fines.
Loss of contracts and sales.
Loss of reputation amongst customers, suppliers and the public. Legal costs.
Increased difficulty in recruiting workers.
Increase in insurance premiums.
Payment of insurance excess.
Cleanup and recovery operations.
Withdrawal of credit from banks and suppliers.
What is a Management System ?
A management system is the framework of policies, processes and procedures used to make sure that an organisation can fulfil all tasks required to achieve its objectives. In other words, it is how a business manages one of its functions (such as health and safety, quality, environment, data security, etc.).
The Deming Cycle philosophy:
Plan: Plan what you’re going to do.
2. Do: Put your plan into practice, and do what you said you would do.
3. Check: Monitor whether what you’re doing is working or not.
4. Act: Take corrective action and improve wherever you can.
HSG65 which was written by the HSE in the UK.
ISO 45001:2018, which is currently the most internationally recognised management system
Principles and content of an effective Safety Policy
Legally required Section 2 (3) HSWA where there are 5 or more employees
•Consist of the statement of intent, organisation, and arrangements sections
•Tells people about a company‘s approach to managing health and safety
•Communicates the organisation’s commitment to health and safety to existing employees
•Describes key roles as regards H&S
•Gives an overview of H&S arrangements, procedures etc
It can be used:
•In the induction of new employees (to stress the importance of safety)
•To involve workforce representatives in writing and amending the policy when necessary.
•At regular briefing sessions to communicate information relating to different sections of the policy.
Key Elements of Iso 45001
• ISO45001 – CLPSOPI Context of the Organisation Leadership and co-worker participation • Planning, • Support and Operation, • Performance Evaluation, • Continual Improvement
What are the benefits of an integrated health and safety, environmental and quality management system
Benefits of an integrated management system can include:
• Consistency of format and a lower overall cost through the avoidance of duplication in procedural, record-keeping, compliance auditing and software areas
• Encouraging priorities and resource utilisation that reflect the overall needs of the organisation rather than a single discipline
• Broadening the benefits from good initiatives in one area
• Encouraging closer working and equal influence amongst specialists
• Encouraging the spread of a positive culture across all three disciplines
• Providing scope for the integration of other risk areas such as security or product safety.
