ES411

Occupational Health and Safety I

Occupational Safety and Health I
Assist. Prof. Celal GÜNGÖR
Week 1 - 2019 Fall
Introduction to Occupational Safety and Health:
Basic definitions (Hazard, Risk, Accident, Incident),
Systems Concept, Federal Agencies, Laws, Regulations,
Standards, and Codes
 The Bystander Effect:
The Death of Kitty Genovese

Kitty Genovese was killed in New York City, 1964

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BdpdUbW8
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The Bystander Effect
 Systems Theory (Systems Safety):
• Purpose
• Sub Systems
– Interaction between systems
• System assets
(people – weakest chain, hardware, software, etc.)
• Environment (physical, legislation, political,
cultural, and economic factors)
• Feedback
• Entropy
 Basic Definitions
• Hazard: Any source of potential damage,
harm or adverse health effects on something
(etc., equipment, property, environment) or
someone (threat to life, health) under certain
conditions at work.
 Basic Definitions
• Based on Act/Law No.6331. Article 3 (Link)
(p) Hazard: potential which exists at the workplace or may arise from
outside the workplace to cause harm or damage which could affect the
worker or the workplace;
 Hazard
• A real or potential condition, situation, or
agent that could cause immediate or long-
term harm to people or an organization;
damage or loss of a system, equipment,
property, or the environment, or other things
of value.

James L. Vesper James L. Vesper Risk Assessment and Risk Management in Risk
Assessment and Risk Management in the Pharmaceutical Industry (2006) PDA/DHI the
Pharmaceutical Industry (2006) PDA/DHI
 Examples of Hazards and Their Effects

Workplace Hazard Example of Hazard Example of Harm Caused

Thing / Object Knife Cut
Substance Benzene Leukemia
Material Asbestos Mesothelioma
Source of Energy Electricity Shock, electrocution
Condition Wet floor Slips, falls
Process Welding Metal fume fever
Practice Hard rock mining Silicosis
Describing Hazards
 Describing Hazards
Hazard Column: Hazardous element (source)
SOURCE MECHANISM OUTCOME Causes Column: Initiating mechanism (mechanism)
Effects Column: Target/threat (outcome)

SOURCE – unguarded, energized equipment

MECHANISM – pinching, crushing, electrocution
OUTCOME – death, equipment loss
 Describing Hazards
SOURCE MECHANISM OUTCOME

SOURCE – gasoline vapors near ignition sources

MECHANISM – explosion
OUTCOME – hearing loss, burns, death, equipment loss
 Describing Hazards
SOURCE MECHANISM OUTCOME

SOURCE – steam boiler operating with no relief valve

MECHANISM – overpressure explosion
OUTCOME – loss of nearby equipment and personnel
 Describing Hazards
SOURCE MECHANISM OUTCOME

SOURCE – oxygen deficient atmosphere (Oxygen content below 19.5% by volume)

MECHANISM – asphyxia
OUTCOME – death
 Describing Hazards
SOURCE MECHANISM OUTCOME

SOURCE – unprotected excavation

MECHANISM – wall collapse and/or falling into
OUTCOME – death, equipment loss, re-excavate
 Hazard Types/Categories
• Physical hazards: radiation, magnetic fields, high
pressure (and vacuum), noise
• Chemical hazards: physical, chemical and toxic
properties of the chemicals
• Biological hazards: biological agents (viruses, parasites,
bacteria, food, fungi, toxins, and insects, plants, birds,
animals, and humans)
• Psychological hazards: stress, violence, and being
under the influence of alcohol, illness and lack of
training
• Ergonomic hazards: repetitive movements, awkward
posture, prolonged duration
Can you see any hazard?
Can you see any hazard?
 Workplace Hazard Classes
Classification based on the nature of
the work performed, substances used
or produced at every stage of work,
work equipment, production
methods
• Less hazardous: Office
work
• Hazardous: Farming
• Very hazardous: Mining

Link for more examples

Link for more examples
 Basic Definitions
• Risk: the chance or probability that a person
will be harmed or experience an adverse
health effect if exposed to a hazard. It may
also apply to situations with property or
equipment loss.
 Basic Definitions
• Based on Act/Law No.6331. Article 3 (Link)
(o) Risk: probability of loss, injury or other harmful result arising from
hazard;
For example:
– The risk of developing
cancer from smoking
cigarettes could be
expressed as
• cigarette smokers are 12 times
(for example) more likely to
die of lung cancer than non-
smokers
• 55 (for example) smokers per
100,000 smokers will likely
develop lung cancer
Factors that influence the degree of risk
• Duration: how much a person is exposed to a
hazardous thing or condition
• Type of exposure: how the person is exposed
(e.g., breathing in a vapor, skin contact) to a
hazardous thing or condition
• Severity: how severe are the effects under the
conditions of exposure
 Basic Definitions
Risk assessment: the process where you:
– identify hazards,
– analyze or evaluate the risk associated with that
hazard, and
– determine appropriate ways to eliminate or
control the hazard.
• Based on Act/Law No.6331. Article 3 (Link)
(ö) Risk assessment: activities required for identifying hazards which
are existing in or may arise from outside the workplace, analyzing and
rating the factors causing these hazards to turn into risks and the risks
caused by hazards and determining control measures;
 Basic Definitions
Accident: an unintentional (unplanned) and undesired
(unwanted) event or sequence of events caused by error or by
chance and usually result in illness, injury, or death of
individuals or property damage to equipment and hardware.

It is directly or indirectly a result of human activity rather than a natural event.

 Basic Definitions
• A car crash is one example of an accident. If some
equipment malfunctions in a factory and injures
the workers, that is also an accident. Examples of
very minor accidents are when you step on
someone’s foot or spill your coffee on someone
else. You didn’t want or plan to do it.
 Basic Definitions
Incident: an unplanned, undesired event that prevents you
to complete the task and may cause injury, illness, death, or
property damage or some combination of all these
outcomes in varying degrees from minor to catastrophic.
Unplanned and undesired do not mean unable to prevent.
 Basic Definitions
Incident can refer to any event – big or small, good
or bad, intentional or unintentional.
A bank robbery, a funny or controversial situation,
an argument between celebrities, etc. – all can be
described as incidents.
 Basic Definitions
• Near miss: A near miss is an unplanned event
that did not result in injury, illness, or damage
for this time – but had the potential to do so.

A subset of incidents that could

have resulted in injury, illness or
property damage, if given a
different set of circumstances,
but didn't. Treat near misses as
wake-up calls to prevent serious
accidents
 Accident vs. Incident
• An accident is regarded as a particular type of
incident in which an injury, illness, or death
actually occurs.
Accident = injuries + illnesses + death
• A near-miss is an incident where no injury or
illness occurs.
• Therefore, an incident can be either an
accident or a near-miss.
Incident = accident + near-miss
Let’s say you have an apartment on second floor
and you, unfortunately, drop some silicone sealant
when your are applying it to your window.

Is dropping a couple of drops to the floor

accident or near-miss?
Weekly News
 Safety Activities
• Reactive safety activities: After an accident
happened (Needs accident report, illness
report, near miss report, saying sorry, saying
goodbye to good friends, and being sad!)
• Proactive safety activities: Before an accident
happens (Needs training, control, performing
risk analyses, measurements, meetings,
record keeping, taking notes)
Reactive vs. Proactive
 Federal Agencies
• The Minister of Family, Labour and Social Services (ÇSGB)
– The General Directorate for Occupational Health and Safety
(İSGGM)
• The Head of Research and Development Institute for Occupational
Safety and Health (İSGÜM) (It was Occupational Health And Safety
Center before 2015): Research, measurement, analysis
– The Labour Inspection Board (İTK)
– Social Security Institution (SGK)

– Centre for Labour and Social Security Training and Research

(ÇASGEM):
• training, education, research, analysis, publication, documentation
and consultancy, certification programs
 OSH Departments in The Minister of
Family, Labour and Social Services (ÇSGB)
• Main Service Units
– Directorate General of Occupational Health and Safety
• Advisory and Supervisory Units
– Labour Inspection Board
• Affiliated Institutions
– Training and Research Center for Labour and Social
Security
• Related Institutions
– Social Security Institution

https://www.csgb.gov.tr/En/Contents/Bakanlik/BakanlikBirimleri
 International Agencies
• The International Labour Organization (ILO)
– ILO 155 (C155) - Occupational Safety and Health Convention
– ILO 161 (C161) - Occupational Health Services Convention

– Directive 89/391/EEC - OSH "Framework Directive”

• International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
– OHSAS 18001 (British Standard): Occupational Health and Safety
Management
– ISO 45001 Occupational Health and Safety Management System (in
2016) – focus on easy integration of small businesses

• The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

• The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• The European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA)
 Laws related to Occupational Safety
and Health in Turkey
• 4857 LABOR LAW
– to regulate the working conditions and work-related rights and
obligations of employers and employees
• 5510 SOCIAL INSURANCE AND UNIVERSAL HEALTH
INSURANCE LAW
– to insure the individuals in terms of social insurance and
universal health insurance
• 6331 OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH AND SAFETY LAW
– regulate duties, authority, responsibility, rights and obligations
of employers and workers in order to ensure occupational
health and safety at workplaces and to improve existing health
and safety conditions
-3146 THE LAW ON ORGANIZATION AND DUTIES OF MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND SOCIAL SECURITY
Regulations related to Occupational Safety
and Health in Turkey
Laws Regulations

Ex: Regulations about using personal protective

equipment at workplaces

Regulation on Occupational Safety Experts’ tasks,

authorities, responsibilities and training and
working procedures and principles
Some examples for Occupational
Safety and Health regulations
Thanks