Search Results (72)

The European Union Council’s zero vision aims to eliminate workplace fatalities, while Industry 4.0 presents new challenges for occupational safety. Despite HR professionals assessing managers’ and employees’ competencies, no system currently exists to evaluate the competencies of workers’ representatives in occupational safety and health (OSH). It is crucial to establish the necessary competencies for these representatives to avoid their selection based on personal bias, ambition, or coercion. The main objective of the study is to identify the competencies and their components required for workers’ representatives in the field of occupational safety and health by following the steps of the DACUM method with the assistance of OSH professionals. First, tasks were identified through semi-structured interviews conducted with eight occupational safety experts. In the second step, a focus group consisting of 34 OSH professionals (2 invited guests and 32 volunteers) determined the competencies and their components necessary to perform those tasks. Finally, the results were validated through an online questionnaire sent to the 32 volunteer participants of the focus group, from which 11 responses (34%) were received. The research categorized the competencies into the following three groups: core competencies (occupational safety and professional knowledge) and distinguishing competencies (personal attributes). Within occupational safety knowledge, 10 components were defined; for professional expertise, 7 components; and for personal attributes, 16 components. Based on the results, it was confirmed that all participants of the tripartite system have an important role in the training and development of workers’ representatives in the field of occupational safety and health. The results indicate that although OSH representation is not yet a priority in Hungary, there is a willingness to collaborate with competent, well-prepared representatives. The study emphasizes the importance of clearly defining and assessing the required competencies. Full article

Introduction: Poorly designed safety job descriptions may have a negative impact on occupational safety and health (OSH) performance. Firstly, they limit the chances of hiring highly qualified safety professionals who are vital to the success of OSH management systems in organizations. Secondly, the relationship between the presence of qualified safety professionals and the safety culture (and performance) in an organization is reciprocal. Thirdly, the low quality of job descriptions limits exploring the proper competencies needed by safety professionals before they are hired. The safety professional is thus uncertain of what level of education or training and which skills they should attain. Objectives: The main goal of the study is to integrate the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and the Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution (TOPSIS) with importance–performance analysis (IPA) to evaluate job descriptions in multiple sectors. Results: The results of the study indicate that it is vital to clearly define job levels, the overall mission, key responsibilities, time-consuming tasks, required education/certifications, and necessary personal abilities in safety job descriptions. This clarity enhances recruitment, fairness, performance management, and succession planning. The organization can then attract and retain top talent, improve performance, foster a strong safety culture, create realistic job expectations, increase employee satisfaction and productivity, and ensure that competent individuals are hired, ultimately leading to a safer and more productive workplace. Conclusion: The outcomes of this study provide a robust framework that can and should be used as a guideline to professionalize job description development and enhance talent acquisition strategies. Full article

Occupational safety and health (OSH) training plays a crucial role in preventing workplace accidents, ensuring compliance with legislation, and fostering a safety-oriented culture across all sectors. This article compares traditional OSH training methods with innovative approaches that incorporate interactive elements and virtual reality (VR) technologies, with a particular emphasis on their contributions to sustainability. The study analyzes feedback from training participants across various occupational roles and age groups, focusing on the effectiveness, engagement, and perception of each method. The results demonstrate that interactive training and VR-based training not only enhance participant engagement and improve comprehension of safety procedures but also promote sustainable training practices by reducing the need for physical materials, minimizing travel, and decreasing reliance on extensive on-site infrastructure. These advancements contribute to environmental sustainability within safety training programs. The paper further explores the benefits, challenges, and economic considerations associated with implementing sustainable, technologically enhanced training approaches. The findings suggest that integrating modern, sustainable educational technologies into OSH training leads to more effective knowledge transfer, better preparedness of employees for emergency situations, and a reduction in environmental impact, aligning safety training practices with broader sustainability goals. Full article

People in laboratories often use paper or digital formats for incident reporting. These methods make it difficult to group events, check follow-up actions, or use the data to improve safety. This article presents a conceptual model for digital incident reporting in laboratories, designed to improve occupational safety and health (OSH) by addressing the lack of standardized reporting structures. The model was developed based on a review of safety standards, laboratory procedures, and relevant studies published between 2010 and 2024. The review identified five basic functions required for an effective digital incident reporting system: structured data input, event classification, alerting, access to reports, and follow-up tracking. These five functions were used to create a modular structure that shows how incident reporting works in laboratories. The model can be used with simple tools, and it does not require specialist software. It can be adjusted to local workflows and settings. While ISO 45001:2018 describes the goals of incident management, it does not offer a structure for reporting. This model responds to that gap. It supports consistent documentation and can help laboratories review incidents. This makes it easier to track responses, especially when no formal system exists. Full article

This study applies Safety II principles within a storytelling- and RAG-based questionnaire to explore how resilience engineering (RE) principles and practices are perceived and implemented in Italy’s manufacturing sector. Before completing the questionnaire, accident and near-miss scenarios were presented through narrative stories. The cross-sectional study on 334 companies reveals that Monitor and Respond are prioritized over Anticipate and Learn, with medium-large companies and those adopting technological innovations showing more advanced resilience-oriented OSH management practices. The study emphasizes the importance of company size and technological adoption in shaping safety practices, recommending investment in innovative solutions and fostering a culture that addresses near misses to prevent severe accidents and support continuous improvement. Full article

Categorization of enterprises by size provides a fundamental understanding of the composition of the business environment. Small, medium-sized, and large enterprises play a significant role in the national economy through the execution of specific business activities. In their pursuit of enhancing the efficiency of individual business processes and mitigating the risks associated with these activities, enterprises may implement various ISO standards, including quality management, environmental management, occupational health and safety (OSH), or corporate social responsibility (CSR) systems. The sources published to date do not clearly explain the mutual relationship that arises when implementing multiple ISO standards that prioritize different activities within a single enterprise. This gap is particularly evident in the context of small enterprises, which often do not have the obligation or capacity to implement ISO standards. This study addresses this research gap by identifying the relationship between implemented ISO standards, priority activities in the risk management process, and the person responsible for these activities. The objective of this article is to examine the relationship of dependency between specific ISO standards and the priority activity in risk management. Furthermore, the study seeks to determine whether the degree of implementation of ISO standards influences the selection of the person responsible for risk management. Additionally, it examines whether dependence exists between the priority activity in risk management and the specific person responsible for risk management. The authors provide statistical hypothesis testing based on data from a nationwide survey conducted across all enterprise size categories. The results obtained from this study confirm the presence of a dependency between the degree of ISO standards implementation and the priority activity in risk management across all enterprise size categories. However, a statistically significant dependency between the degree of implementation of ISO standards and the person responsible for risk management was not confirmed in large companies. The dependency between the selection of the person responsible for risk management and the priority activity in risk management was confirmed only in small enterprises. Full article

Accidents and injuries at work are unavoidable. Promoting corporate sustainability requires strategies concerning employees’ health and a safe work environment in light of social, environmental, and economic development. The purpose of this paper is to examine the significant association between Occupational Safety and Health Management (OSHM) and Corporate Sustainability (CS) in the context of West Bank industries in Palestine, bolstering the mediating role of Affective Commitment (AC) and Emotional Intelligence (EI). We sampled 126 executive and knowledgeable Palestinian employees in the region using a questionnaire for data collection. We used Smart PLS 4 to evaluate the study model and hypotheses. This study bridges the gap by investigating the relationship of the study constructs in Palestinian industries in the West Bank. This study contributes to the literature by demonstrating how OSH practices can improve CS by encouraging social engagement, economic performance, and environmental conservation. The study’s findings are consistent with the Sustainable Development Goals, especially SDG 3, which establishes policies to enhance public health and improve well-being for people at any age, and SDG 8, which advocates for sustainable progress in the economy, prolific employment, and decent job for everyone. The findings highlight how important it is for West Bank businesses to implement training in emotional intelligence and encourage affective commitment to improving safety and health strategies, ultimately resulting in increased corporate sustainability by considering social and environmental policies. Full article

This study of risk assessment of gasoline station workers was performed by using the following three models: the occupational safety and health (OSH) risk assessment aligned with ISO 45001, the biomatrix of health risk, and the benzene risk matrix assessment for gasoline station workers. Levels of inhaled air benzene and urine tt-muconic acid (tt-MA) were measured using samples collected from 151 gasoline station workers. Opportunity levels of benzene exposure were obtained by multiplying the frequency of benzene exposure by the levels of tt-MA, the inhaled benzene concentration levels, or the likelihood levels from contributing risk factors at gasoline stations. The final risk scores were calculated by multiplying the opportunity levels by the severity based on the adverse symptoms of benzene toxicity experienced by workers. A checklist regarding risk factors contributing to benzene exposure was used to collect data on occupational safety performance. The potential health risk was at an unacceptable level for 66.23%, 75.50%, and 60.26% of workers according to the OSH risk, the biomatrix of health risk, and the benzene risk matrix model, respectively. There was a significant linear relationship between the risk levels indicated by the three matrix models (r > 0.6, p < 0.001). These findings demonstrate that alternative risk assessments can be provided and simply used for preventive action against health hazards from benzene exposure in risk management programs. Full article

The study examines the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on occupational safety and health (OSH) experts in Latvia, focusing on their work demands, evolving responsibilities, and the broader implications for sustainable workforce management. Through focus group discussions with 17 OSH experts in 2022, findings reveal that pandemic-induced responsibilities, such as implementing new health protocols and adapting to remote work, increased OSH experts’ workloads and the complexity of their roles. This shift raised concerns over potential burnout and reduced capacity to address traditional workplace hazards, which are essential for a safe and resilient work environment. The study underscores the critical role of OSH in promoting sustainable workplaces by safeguarding worker health and supporting adaptable, equitable labor practices that align with socio-economic sustainability goals. Recommendations include strengthening team-based approaches and enhancing mental health resources within OSH systems to foster sustainable development in occupational health. These insights are vital for developing policies and practices that not only respond to current OSH challenges but also contribute to the long-term sustainability of workforce health and safety systems and prepare these systems for possible future critical conditions. Full article

Technological innovation and Industry 5.0 are gaining increasing attention among researchers as they offer companies a significant competitive advantage. On the other hand, introducing these technologies also brings new risks for workers. The current literature reveals a lack of studies that effectively integrate occupational safety and health (OSH) within this emerging technological context and analyse the impacts of their use. This study aims to explore how companies interact with macro-level interventions that promote technological innovation and to understand their impact on different dimensions of company performance, including aspects related to OSH. Based on the existing literature, a research framework is presented that identifies the stakeholders involved, the inputs facilitating their interaction, and the cascading effects and changes. A mixed-methods approach was adopted by employing an in-depth survey with 89 companies responding and composed of both open-ended questions, to capture rich, qualitative insights, and multiple-choice questions, to gather quantifiable data. Two change levels have been identified: general changes and specific changes related to OSH. The analysis also delved into the main drivers and barriers that lead companies to engage with technological improvements and the multiple changes these interventions generate across company dimensions. Full article

This study analyses the opinion of 200 employees who participated in the first online training in the field of occupational health and safety systems (OSHs) from Romania, for which an online platform was used, with the records on electronic files with a qualified electronic signature. The usefulness of this online training was analyzed based on the voluntary answers of the participants to a questionnaire related to 14 questionnaire items (QIs). In order to correctly interpret the results of the applied test, a statistical processing of the answers was carried out, and the following were calculated (using SPSS 23.0 software): the factor analysis, the Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin (KMO) test, the Bartlett’s test, the extraction method, the Principal Component Analysis (PCA), the Cronbach alpha test and the Kruskal–Wallis H-test. The calculations highlighted two essential strategies: “Availability for online training” (S1) and “Challenges of online training” (S2). The conclusion of this study provides an overview of the importance of online training strategies in OSH activity and can help researchers and practitioners to improve this activity, reducing the rejection of its use among managers and authorities, thus providing a new reference for future research. Full article

The construction industry has been identified as a major contributor to occupational accidents that can lead to fatalities. As a result, this study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of new safety and health regulations and revised guidelines in improving safety and health disclosures and performance within the construction industry. We retrieved safety and health disclosure reports from 25 Taiwanese construction companies between 2013 and 2020 using the Market Observation Post System website. We analyzed the data using the Kaplan–Meier method to assess the timing of disclosures and differences between larger (≥300 employees) and smaller (<300 employees) companies. We found that construction companies reported safety indicators more promptly than health indicators and that larger companies disclosed earlier compared to smaller ones. Only 45% of companies provide detailed reviews and preventative measures in their sustainability reports despite 64% disclosing occupational accidents. We found that from 2013 to 2020, more companies improved their occupational safety and health (OSH) reporting. This improvement coincided significantly with the adoption of international standards and Taiwan’s government regulations. In summary, the study found that larger companies were more likely to disclose OSH data compared to smaller ones. This suggests that company size and available resources could have an impact on reporting practices. While some progress was made, companies still struggle to provide detailed reports on major accidents, balancing transparency with competitiveness. Full article

Occupational health and safety (OSH) is crucial for sustainable development, recognized by corporations, the European Union, and Sustainable Development Goals. This study introduces a characterization model for OSH in the social life cycle assessment (S-LCA) to support the quantification of OHS along product supply chains and sustainable decision making. The characterization model aims to provide a practical approach for assessing OHS at the product level with actual working hours or recommends a secondary approach with monetary data, when working hours are unavailable, to calculate the Occupational Health and Safety Potential (OHSP). The developed model was tested in a theoretical case study on shirt production in Europe and globally. The case study shows that the European shirt value chain resulted in higher OHSP values than the global shirt values chain. In addition, the model shows which life cycle stages and organizations highly contributed to the OHSP results. In both approaches, the shirt production stage contributed highly. Differences in results emerged based on the calculation approach, underscoring the model’s versatility, because increasing the complexity of calculating the CFs with monetary values will affect the results based on sectorial monetary output. Additionally, the study mentions benefits to the operationalization of social impact assessment and limitations when the developed characterized model is employed. Last, this study aids in offering a tool for organizations to meet the demands of the new Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive by quantifying and publicizing OHS data. Full article

Forestry has many dangers, and much effort has been put into supporting accident prevention by developing legislation and certification systems. In Sweden, forestry contractors have an important role in developing and maintaining a good working environment for the employed forestry workers. The objectives of this study were to describe forestry contractors’ current practices regarding occupational safety and health (OSH) management and identify variations in relation to the contractors’ characteristics and finances, as well as to highlight areas that need improvement. In 2023, data were collected through a survey distributed to 1200 limited liability companies registered to perform logging or silvicultural services, with a response rate of 22%. Multi- and univariate analyses were performed to compare contractor groups, and the results show that larger companies had more well-developed and formalized routines and guidelines for their operations. Geographical differences were also identified; for example, employees in the north were more likely to have access to staff facilities when working in the forest. However, no clear connection between OSH management practices and the contractors’ finances could be demonstrated. The study concludes that there is a need for improvements in OSH work within the industry because many companies do not meet all of the formal requirements that exist today. Full article

This paper presents a monitoring system to measure dust, noise, ultraviolet radiation, illuminance, temperature, and humidity and to check the presence of flammable gases—liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), propane, hydrogen, butane, methane, and carbon monoxide. The system is composed of monitoring devices, a server to process data received from the devices and that runs a web application for employers, and a mobile application for workers to check their exposure data. During employee registration, the health history of the worker concerning common diseases and symptoms related to the monitored agents must be informed. This information is analyzed through a set of predefined rules to generate alerts that the company can consider for planning professional activities to minimize exposure to risk agents. The tests presented in this work are focused on verifying the functionalities of the web interface for employee registration, especially regarding the provision of health information, the updating of this information, and the generation of corresponding alerts. At this stage, fictitious employee information was used. The results showed that the system adequately performs the proposed functionalities, and it was concluded that the solution is viable for testing in a work environment in the future stages of development. The innovative features of this study concern the correlation between workers’ health history and harmful agents to build suggestions and alerts to guide long-term OSH-related decisions. Full article