Maintaining Store Safety

Introduction
Haymespaint depot is a retail store that deals in paint and other paint products in Australia. The store has 25 workers who work in shifts, 15 in the morning hour and 10 in the evening. Additionally, there is supervisory and management team that is comprised of 6 individuals (The Sidney Morning Herald). The store is ever busy and processes deliveries as well as serves customers. Being that the store handles paint that is a hazardous material on its own calibre, the store has invested in health and safety program to assist in mitigating any incidents or
accidents that might occur in the store (The Sidney Morning Herald). The store has an incident-accident entry book and also has policies and procedures that form the standards of operation for the store workers. The store has a reception area, storage area and a loading bay for incoming products. The furniture of the office are well placed and there is enough space for operations. Generally, all the basic safety and health requirements are adhered to by Haymespaint Depot.
Management of Store Safety
The team that is working in the store has the right of being informed of the stores policies and procedures that are in tandem with the Work Health and Safety as well as emergency procedures (The Sidney Morning Herald). There are very many ways of doing this. First off, a comprehensive training should be undertaken where the employees are introduced to the workplace procedures and policies. Secondly, the policies and procedures should be pinned in accessible places so that the employees can read and integrate them often (The Sidney Morning Herald). Additionally, each and every employee should have access to the policies and procedures in print form. To reinforce the policies and procedures, the employees should be involved in the process of drafting them as well. To ensure further access to the policies and procedures, the employees should each be handed a copy as well as the same information made available in the stores intranet system and the notice boards. For the new workers supervision is essential to make sure that they are doing work according to the policies and procedures (The Sidney Morning Herald). The team should also be informed through manuals and safety data sheets.
There is also need to make lucid the provisions of the WHS or OHS legislation to the team members who are employees in this case. This can be achieved through internal and external trainings. Internally the team should be taken through the process of understanding the legislations and what accrues on event that they are breached (The Sidney Morning Herald). External trainings involve things such as seminars and webinars so that the employees are updated on the necessary legislations including the code of conduct and their obligations. Within the store as an ideal work place, it is essential that information concerning the identified risks and hazards control procedures is given (The Sidney Morning Herald). The first process is to ensure that the incidents and accidents are logged in the register together with the injuries (Product Safety Australia). The next step is to provide specific training that is meant to mitigate such occurrences in future (Product Safety Australia). The training information should be kept for some time with the team members and in an accessible location within the store.
To allow the team members to make contribution to the OHS/WHS issues, there should be some frequent meetings where the team deliberate on the issues that arise. Additionally, it is order for the management to arrange for such things as forums where the team members participate. To fully reinforce the issues that are discussed the management should deliberate over the issues in unison with the team members so that possible solutions suggested by the team members are also implemented (Product Safety Australia). To promptly resolve the issues, a discussion that engages the other team members and the management as well as external sources should take place (Product Safety Australia). The suggestions should be evaluated and those that are in tandem with the store policies and OHS legislations should be adopted and recorded (NSW Work Cover). To convey the outcomes from the arising issues, the meeting process can be recorded or videotaped for future reference. Additionally, the meeting should be documented in agenda and made available to the team members.
The employee should be made aware of the hazard substances and potential risks in the workplace (Safeworkaustralia.gov). The team should also be trained on how to mitigate the identified risks and hazards through such things as personal protective equipment, engineering and administrative controls. The last step then involves entry of the potential hazards in the log that is accessible to each member of the team (NSW Work Cover). On occasion of an incident or accident all the injuries and accidents must be reported and documented (Australianbusiness.com). The hazards responsible should be evaluated and also documented so as to identify the possible drawbacks of the risk control measures and address them effectively (Australianbusiness.com). To prevent recurrence of the incidents and accidents there should be proper training and education on the policies that are meant to mitigate the risks and induce the hierarchy of control of the hazards and risks to the team (NSW Work Cover). The team should also receive training on how to handle the hazardous materials while in the process referring them to the OHS/WHS legislations and policies of the stores (NSW Work Cover).
The equipment in the store should also be checked and the maintenance dates recorded in the register. Proper training is also in order to help the team identify when an equipment needs maintenance (Australianbusiness.com). An emergency plan for the store is also a prerequisite for the safety of the workplace. The team must be well groomed with emergency procedures such as evacuation, notifying the relevant response team (Safeworkaustralia.gov). The management should conduct emergency drills to assess the preparedness of the team. This should be followed by training and information to each member so as to implement the emergency plan (Australianbusiness.com). To address the training needs of the team there is need to conduct a training needs analysis to identify the skills that should be included Vis a Vis the current skill level of the team members (Australianbusiness.com). This can be done through direct observation, formal interviews, examination of assessment reports and employment records and supervisors’ feedback assessment (Safeworkaustralia.gov).
A cost analysis of the whole training process should be assessed and re-evaluated where possible. Health records are essential in the OHS/WHS programs especially because they help institute change initiatives, come up with and implement new policies and standards and act as a proof of an organizations commitment to safety and health maintenance (Safeworkaustralia.gov). The organization (store in this case) should keep records such as the accidents or incident records, injuries register, and the registers of first aid.
Conclusion
There is necessity to implement and develop work health and safety in Haymespaint depot for a number of reasons. First off, the reputation of the store will increase and thus its financial outcome. Secondly, through the WHS implementation, the costs that are otherwise used in compensating claims of the workers is reduced. Thirdly, this will also boost the morale of the employees thus job satisfaction, commitment and ultimately productivity. Lastly, prevention in the final end will be beneficial in saving the costs that could otherwise be lost when accidents and incidents occur at the store being that the materials handled are costly and hazardous at the same time.
DIRECT Q & A
Question One
Haymespaint has adhered to all the possible controls to risks in the work place as per the regulations and legislations of WHS/OHS. The information systems in the office are strategically placed where the employees do not strain (Comcare). The computers have antiglare screens and have furniture that ensure the operators sit upright. There are manuals and signage in the office to caution against ill use of the computers (Comcare).
The furniture in the office are well selected to fit the purposes such as resting places for visitors (Comcare). There are standards of operation to be followed when handling equipment and paper work in the office. There are spacious doors to allow free passage of the equipment and machinery used in the offices (Comcare). The telephones are well places with some being provided with headsets so as to reduce the chances of exchanging positions (Australianbusiness.com). The office has proper lighting system with all areas well lit.
There is space in the office of the store as well as ventilation systems that are well working (Comcare). The air flow is ensured through proper arrangement of the office. Humidity levels in the office are well regulated. There is a power systems including all electrical appliances are well located (Comcare). The wires are insulated and kept off the paths where people pass often (Comcare). The emergency exit and fire fighting equipment are also well placed and assessed frequently (Comcare). Finally, the contacts to be used in case of emergencies are also accessible and well placed through signage in the work place (Comcare). Adherence to the standards has been and continues to be the key mandate of the store in order to promote the safety of all the stakeholders that are involved from the management, workers and the customers among others.
Question Two
Haymespaint complies with the codes of practice, standards and regulations as well as WHS Acts. First off, the store has a well-established first aid facilities to attend to the workers and customers who are injured in the office (NSW Work Cover). The store has also reduced the chances of any risks that occur in the workplace through taking precautionary measures in all its electrical systems. The electrical systems are tested and maintained frequently (NSW Work Cover). Being a fall prone areas the employees are provided with PPEs to prevent falls in the work place (NSW Work Cover).
The workers in the store are also trained on how to handle hazard materials in the store and the hierarchy of control of risks (NSW Work Cover). Ultimately, the store has an emergency plan that each employee must be oriented into when they are fresh to the store. All the workers in the store are also trained on the best way to identify the risks and hazards in the place (NSW Work Cover). The management of the store frequently monitors the health of the workers. The organization has ensured that all the employees have access to the regulations and legislations of WHS (NSW Work Cover). The employees are also coordinated, consulted and involved in activities meant to come up with solutions. The organization values each and every stakeholder and has therefore relentlessly worked with each of them in the process of ensuring their safety. This has created a ‘safety first’ environment, a reputation builder for the business.
Question Three
PCBU an acronym for person conducting a business or undertaking refers to a legal entity that has an undertaking or is involved in business activities and is not an individual officer or worker (AFEI). This concept of PCBU is applicable even in the cases where the legal entity is not making profit just as is when it is profit oriented (NT Work Safe). Organizations with complex operations and widespread activities where there are some people offering such organizations services also fit this title (AFEI; NT Work Safe).  Others considered as PCBU include corporations, association, sole trader or partnerships (AFEI). Voluntary organizations that   employ people are also PCBU (NT Work Safe).
Generally PCBU has the role of attending to duties, so far as is reasonably practicable (NT Work Safe). This includes providing information on risk free work environments, maintenance and provision of equipment and machinery as well as systems and ensuring that the workers are adequately trained, informed and supervised for their safety with no risks being posed to their health (AFEI; Safety in Australia). A PCBU monitors the health of workers and come up with the hierarchy of control of the risks identified. Lastly, the PCBU acts as a decision maker and consults with the worker where possible (NT Work Safe). Employers are not different from a PCBU because that is their new description under the WHS laws (AFEI).

Work Cited
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