Case Study 2: Occupational Safety

Part A

Henric is a 11 years old student in a school Brisbane. Henric works in a drug store owned by one of the major distributors in Australia. Since they are only a few staff in the store, they work from six to eight in the evening. Henric complains of fatigue, poorly ventilated store, and that sometimes the employer only promises to pay on a later date. Henric is contemplating quitting the job but is worried on where he will earn his pocket money. At one point, Henric was diagnosed with a back problems working in the ward as a result of working over the ladders for hours. The doctor cited poor ergonomics in the store that negatively impact the patient. She was advised to talk to her boss over the matter.

Part B

Data from the Key Work Health and Safety Statistics, Australia, (2013), shows that most countries in Australia still suffers work safety challenges Australian Government, 2018). Henric adds to the 200 million labour children worldwide and his case is not exceptional in Australia. In general, Australia lags behind in work safety, with nursing community among the most affected. While statistics for children who have faced workplace challenges in stores lacks, cases such as those of Faith are not unique.

Work place physical environment directly impacts on organization productivity.   According to OSHA, employees place of work should be should be safe, less concentrated, well ventilated, comfortable, clean, and ensure job satisfaction to the workers. OSHA demand all employers to ensure their work place is risk free and motivate their workers Australian (Government, 2018). According to Safe Work Australia, managers should ensure that the building designs promote workers’ safety. Some of the major considerations in workplace safety include: the set- up of work station, design and quality of furniture, working space, ventilation system, working environment temperature, lighting, air quality, radiation, noise and, vibration (Safe Work Australia, 2015). Ergonometric factors should be given utmost consideration in a working environment.

According to OHSA, workplace environment need to be evaluated for optimum organization production through consideration of demographic factors and experience.  Through the evaluation, employees get placed where they best suit. Improper work environment ensures loss of workforce productivity through injuries, job stresses, deaths and low morale are reduced (Safe Work Australia, 2015). Ergonometric factors need to be assessed and adjusted appropriately to maximize workforce productivity.

Work environment safety research should involve workplace clearance, posture, arm reach and strength. These elements determine the comfort that workers undergo and their health.  While carrying out a research over workplace safety, the research should identify hazards in the organization and their possible impacts (Safe Work Australia, 2015). Most organizations are affected by noise, poor lighting, slippery floors, poor waste management, radiations and vibrations.   Most data in workplace environment can be collected by developing questionnaires or interviews with workers.  

Staff shortage and poor work environments significantly affect unemployees’ physical health, increase job stressors, and reduce job morale. In managing Henric’s case, the organization should strictly observe staff ratio, depending the store’s unit. The organizations should observe the recommended 8 hours shift with breaks across the week. Finally, the organization should undertake audit to determine the facility’s physical environment safety (Government, 2018). OHSA personnel should conduct work safety audit of the facility to determine key hazards and draw hazard recommendation. As part of managing work place environment both the organization management, the employees, and other policy makers should be involved (Chief Health Officer, 2016). The problems call for a holistic and national intervention considering its spread across the nation.