Occupational Health and Safety
Theory
Occupational Health and Safety is defined as the “Promotion and the maintenance of the highest degree of physical, mental and social well-being of workers in all occupations” .
Occupational Health and Safety also refers to a collection of medical, technical, psychological and other activities which help to discover and remove the risks which are jeopardizing lives and health of a person at work and which determine measures, procedures and rules to reduce or remove those risks. ( From both the physical and psychological, or mental, environment at work has derived the workplace hazards and to create the safe workplace these hazards need to identified and eliminated or controlled and this process is known as the risk assessment. There are different types of the nature of workplace hazards such as physical hazards, ergonomic hazards etc.
Physical Hazards
Physical hazards play a role in many occupational injuries which exist in the workplace. With the potential to harm employees’ categories of hazards have been identified and each of the following is noise, heat, use of powered machinery and also use of non powered machinery such as knives, heavy metals, certain liquid chemicals etc (Smith et al., 2003, p.49). Excessive noise can make a employee temporary or permanent hearing loss, which is discomfort for the employee and can create a risk because it results in failure to hear if there are an emergency warnings at a workplace.
Ergonomic hazards
Ergonomic hazards refers to a continuous or the repetitive nature of task, where employees are told to do works for a very long hours and also physical labor like carrying heavy metals can pose risk to health and safety. Within the workplace a number of situations like stress from prolonged sitting, standing, repetitive task leading to chronic injury, peak overload injury, job dissatisfaction and complex social issues are suffered by the workers (Frymoyer and Mooney, 1986). In an organization working time arrangement, different working schedules, working hours and overtime can also produce negative impact on the health of workers. Transitions in work time arrangements are related to changes in health (De Raeve et al., 2007).
Obligations
Now from the year 2012 all the organizations will have to ensure that the workplace should be safe for the workers without any risk on carrying out the activities on behalf of the organization. Providing adequate training, information, welfare facilities, instruction and supervision for all the workers can ensure that the system of work does not impose risks on the health and safety on any person. So broadening of obligations penetrates all obligations of employers under the ACT, and most importantly seen with respect to the need of consult of occupational health and safety. By sharing information’s by the organization and giving workers an opportunity to raise occupational health and safety work issues will contribute to decision making process and also by taking workers views into account and advise them of the outcomes. If an organization fails to consult can result in a fine of up to $ 100,000 for a corporations and $20,000 for an individual .
Analysis
Wal-Mart’s Hazardous workplace conditions can be analyzed by using the occupational health and safety theories which is mentioned above. In major logistic hubs around the U.S, which is from southern California to Chicago to New Jersey workers who were employed by the outsourced Wal-Mart logistics operations have raised allegations of health and safety of workers , unpaid wages and other serous labor violations. Walmart has also faced charges against the workers safety hazards related to its construction contractors. Recently a lawsuit filed against walmart in Massachusetts on behalf of a worker who was electrocuted to death while performing demolition work at walmart store clearly indicates that to cut down the cost the walmart contractors hired the