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2.13 Safety and Health Committee

2.13 Safety and Health Committee

Managers and supervisors should establish a safety and health committee in which three or more employees who work at a particular site participate. A Church operation at a single location with multiple departments or groups may have one committee with a representative from each department or group.

The purpose of the safety and health committee is to (1) help prevent accidents; (2) evaluate safety, health, and environmental conditions in the workplace; (3) recommend and implement changes to improve safety, health, and environmental conditions, and teach and train employees about these conditions and changes; (4) identify and track the performance indicators that will be used to improve the safety, health, and environmental program (see section 2.10, “Measuring Safety Performance”); and (5) determine what regulations apply.

2.13.1 Setting Up a Safety and Health Committee

Managers and supervisors should use the following guidelines to set up a safety and health committee:

  • The committee can be any size that best serves the needs of the operation.

  • At least one representative from management must serve on the committee.

  • Employees appoint peers to represent them on the committee. These representatives serve for at least one year. If a vacancy occurs, a new representative should be appointed.

  • The committee elects a chairperson, and the chairperson conducts meetings.

  • The committee determines the length and frequency of meetings; however, it is recommended they meet regularly, such as monthly or quarterly, based on the type of operation or business.

  • The committee should appoint a secretary to keep records.

2.13.2 Committee Responsibilities

The following are the general responsibilities of the safety and health committee:

  • Help supervisors conduct safety inspections of work areas, and report potentially dangerous situations.

  • Review incident reports to discover trends, and determine how to prevent incidents.

  • Receive, evaluate, and review the results of safety performance indicators such as safety training, job safety observations, safety inspections, Hazard Reports, and incident investigations. Establish follow-up actions when necessary.

  • Develop future safety goals using performance indicators and other criteria.

  • Review job procedures, and recommend ways to improve safety.

  • Promote and publicize safety.

  • Maintain the Safety and Health Committee Meeting Record (see chapter 7) to document attendance and discussion topics. This form will help organize and report on safety and health committee meetings.

  • Keep copies of the Safety and Health Committee Meeting Record on file for one year after the current year ends, and give copies of each meeting record to management for review.

  • Post the most current copy of the Safety and Health Committee Meeting Record on the designated safety bulletin board.