Course - WHC40003
Case 1 - ‘Investment in health is good business’: Introduction to occupational
health management (OHM) and its stakeholders.
Learning goals:
1. What is occupational health management?
a. What is the definition and aim?
2. What are the stakeholders involved in occupational health management?
a. What are their interests and responsibilities?
3. What are the factors to encourage action barriers and facilitators?
4. What policies are in place for occupational health management (different levels
micro, macro, meso)?
5. What is the role of OSHA?
a. How are policies made and implemented for OHM?
6. How did the environment change over the years?
a. Timeline
7. How does occupational health management differ between sectors?
1
, 1. What is occupational health management?
a. What is the definition and aim?
Occupational health management is a cross-disciplinary area concerned with
protecting and promoting the health, well-being and sustainable employment of people
engaged in work. The goals of occupational health programs include the fostering of
a safe and healthy work environment. Occupational health systems may also protect
co-workers, family members, employers, customers and many others who might be
affected by the workplace environment.
Occupational health management (OHM) is important due to changing nature of work
in a changing environment.
Changing nature of work:
- Increase demands.
- Time pressure and information overload.
- How to combine working and career.
- Emerging risks (workplace violence, harassment, psychosocial risk etc.)
In a changing environment:
- More diverse labour market
- Aging labour market
- Global competition
- More and more organizations develop initiatives in the field of occupational
health management.
According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), an occupational safety and
health management system (OSHMS) is ‘a set of interrelated or interacting elements
to establish OSH policy and objectives and to achieve those objectives.
- Voluntary OSHM systems
o Not state regulated. First promoted by commercial organisations, large
corporations, and associations (e.g., industry associations)
o More complex and more formalised in terms of specifications
o Are generally in the form of standards or guidelines.
- Mandatory OSHM strategies (systematic), such as the EU 1989 Framework
directive (e.g., obligatory risk assessment and to use preventive services)
o They arise from government legislation and dictate a limited set of core
principles for the management of OSH to be implemented by employers.
o Their use is then enforced through inspections, fines, and other
corrective measures.
o Relatively simple and applicable to all types of enterprises
➔ Yet, studies regarding the effectiveness of voluntary and mandatory OSHMSs both
show positive effects. The implementation of OSHMS can be beneficial under certain
circumstances. However, the implementation of OSHMSs is highly constrained and
determined by the enterprise’s context (e.g., structure, size, activity, technology) and
objectives.
2
,Based on these 2 dimensions, Gallagher identifies four types of OSHMSs (see figure
below)
- Sophisticated behavioural: such a system
adopts a dominant safe person perspective
focusing on high levels of worker
involvement and upstream prevention
activity to influence employee behaviour
and attitudes, together with a high level of
integration into broader management
systems.
- Adaptive hazard managers: this system
combines a safe place strategy with an
innovative approach to OSH management,
characterised by a high level of integration
and a strong focus on employee
involvement.
- Traditional engineering and design: this
system combines a safe place perspective
with a more traditional OSH management
focus and with health and safety
consultative arrangements less important
than in the former group.
- Unsafe act minimisers: this system is
characterised by a safe person strategy and
more reactive responses to unsafe acts by
workers but may be supported by an
emphasis on supervision of worker
behaviour and rules to limit worker risk
taking.
Traditional management =
top-down
Innovative management =
integrated with employers
3
, 4
Case 1 - ‘Investment in health is good business’: Introduction to occupational
health management (OHM) and its stakeholders.
Learning goals:
1. What is occupational health management?
a. What is the definition and aim?
2. What are the stakeholders involved in occupational health management?
a. What are their interests and responsibilities?
3. What are the factors to encourage action barriers and facilitators?
4. What policies are in place for occupational health management (different levels
micro, macro, meso)?
5. What is the role of OSHA?
a. How are policies made and implemented for OHM?
6. How did the environment change over the years?
a. Timeline
7. How does occupational health management differ between sectors?
1
, 1. What is occupational health management?
a. What is the definition and aim?
Occupational health management is a cross-disciplinary area concerned with
protecting and promoting the health, well-being and sustainable employment of people
engaged in work. The goals of occupational health programs include the fostering of
a safe and healthy work environment. Occupational health systems may also protect
co-workers, family members, employers, customers and many others who might be
affected by the workplace environment.
Occupational health management (OHM) is important due to changing nature of work
in a changing environment.
Changing nature of work:
- Increase demands.
- Time pressure and information overload.
- How to combine working and career.
- Emerging risks (workplace violence, harassment, psychosocial risk etc.)
In a changing environment:
- More diverse labour market
- Aging labour market
- Global competition
- More and more organizations develop initiatives in the field of occupational
health management.
According to the International Labour Organisation (ILO), an occupational safety and
health management system (OSHMS) is ‘a set of interrelated or interacting elements
to establish OSH policy and objectives and to achieve those objectives.
- Voluntary OSHM systems
o Not state regulated. First promoted by commercial organisations, large
corporations, and associations (e.g., industry associations)
o More complex and more formalised in terms of specifications
o Are generally in the form of standards or guidelines.
- Mandatory OSHM strategies (systematic), such as the EU 1989 Framework
directive (e.g., obligatory risk assessment and to use preventive services)
o They arise from government legislation and dictate a limited set of core
principles for the management of OSH to be implemented by employers.
o Their use is then enforced through inspections, fines, and other
corrective measures.
o Relatively simple and applicable to all types of enterprises
➔ Yet, studies regarding the effectiveness of voluntary and mandatory OSHMSs both
show positive effects. The implementation of OSHMS can be beneficial under certain
circumstances. However, the implementation of OSHMSs is highly constrained and
determined by the enterprise’s context (e.g., structure, size, activity, technology) and
objectives.
2
,Based on these 2 dimensions, Gallagher identifies four types of OSHMSs (see figure
below)
- Sophisticated behavioural: such a system
adopts a dominant safe person perspective
focusing on high levels of worker
involvement and upstream prevention
activity to influence employee behaviour
and attitudes, together with a high level of
integration into broader management
systems.
- Adaptive hazard managers: this system
combines a safe place strategy with an
innovative approach to OSH management,
characterised by a high level of integration
and a strong focus on employee
involvement.
- Traditional engineering and design: this
system combines a safe place perspective
with a more traditional OSH management
focus and with health and safety
consultative arrangements less important
than in the former group.
- Unsafe act minimisers: this system is
characterised by a safe person strategy and
more reactive responses to unsafe acts by
workers but may be supported by an
emphasis on supervision of worker
behaviour and rules to limit worker risk
taking.
Traditional management =
top-down
Innovative management =
integrated with employers
3
, 4
