TITLE:	ES&H Manual
DOCUMENT ID:	3220 Communication of Hazards to Employees and Users

Introduction

Everyone has the right to be informed of potential hazards to the environment and his or her health or safety. In fact, this is a legal entitlement for people who may be exposed to workplace hazards. This “right to know” has become a cornerstone of occupational and environmental health and safety standards.

Jefferson Lab is committed to the letter and spirit of these requirements. We have a large and diverse workforce, and we have many long-term visitors to our site, including subcontractors and physics-community users of our facility. Jefferson Lab uses technologies, equipment, and materials that have the potential to be harmful.

Taken together, this calls for an open and effective process to inform all parties of the exact nature of on-site hazards, how to recognize hazard-warning devices, what to do to prevent mishaps, and how to respond if a mishap does occur. Well informed people will be more likely to ensure the early identification of, and appropriate response to, adverse environmental occurrences. Through their reports, concerns and recommendations, improved characterizations, assessment, monitoring and surveillance programs can be developed.

The Jefferson Lab supervisor, sponsor, or subcontracting officer’s technical representative (SOTR) is the person likely to be most familiar with hazards a newcomer may encounter. It is essential for this Jefferson Lab representative to make certain that people are not exposed to hazards without adequate training. This chapter describes how to communicate awareness of Jefferson Lab's potential hazards. It defines responsibilities and describes methods for getting this essential information to the people who need it.

Key Terms

sponsor A Jefferson Lab staff member who is the contact person and liaison for a facility user.

subcontracting officer’s technical representative (SOTR) A Jefferson Lab employee knowledgeable about a project’s technical aspects and ESH&Q requirements, and who is assigned by the managing division to the project. The SOTR ensures conformance to technical specifications and serves as the primary liaison between the subcontractor and Jefferson Lab.

Major Potential Hazards at Jefferson Lab

Listed below are some of the important potential hazards found at Jefferson Lab and the chapters of the ESH&Q Manual which discuss them and describe training requirements.

· Machine tools 6121

· Fire 6122, 6900

· Cranes and hoists 6140

· Material handling equipment 6145, 6147

· Confined spaces 6160

· Motor vehicles 6170

· Electricity 6210

· Ionizing radiation 6310

· Lasers 6410

· Radio-frequency (RF) radiation 6420

· Oxygen deficiency and cryogens 6500

· Chemicals 6610, 6750

These are not listed in any order of significance, nor are these necessarily all of the hazards a newcomer may confront at Jefferson Lab. However, all of them can cause severe injury or death.

Hazards are best understood in the context of risk. Risk is a product of a potential mishap’s severity and the likelihood of its occurrence. Communicating the exact nature of a hazard to a potentially exposed person, and explaining how to avoid danger, greatly reduce the risk of the hazard.

Responsibilities

Everyone at Jefferson Lab

· Attend hazard-awareness and Environmental Management System (EMS) Awareness training when you are scheduled, and use other, prescribed means to become familiar with Jefferson Lab hazards.

· Follow the protective and hazard-avoidance procedures that are presented in training.

Supervisor/Sponsor/SOTR

· Anticipate the hazards that an employee, user, or subcontractor may encounter during her time at Jefferson Lab as predicted by the person’s work locations and activities. Use the resources of your division ESH&Q professional staff to help identify these hazards.

· Inform new employees, research users, and subcontractors of Jefferson Lab's training requirements as a formal part of the initial orientation process. Give new personnel interim awareness information they need to be protected from potential Jefferson Lab hazards until they can attend the appropriate formal training.

· Design and conduct any task-specific training that may be required to inform a person of potential hazards and how to avoid injury. Make training aids available in the workplace.

· Use the CIS training database to monitor completion of required training and the due date for refresher training. Be alert for training follow-up requirements.

· Ensure specifications for procured services include appropriate and specific references to Jefferson Lab's training requirements for the subcontracted operation.

· Notify research users well in advance of their visit of their need to receive Jefferson Lab training for designated hazards, and of options for web-based training. Also, inform them about the ESH&Q Manual’s online availability.

· Ensure that personnel attend the earliest available Jefferson Lab training for the anticipated hazards.

· Design and conduct and Environmental Management System (EMS) specific training or communications needed to inform your staff of work area EMS topics and appropriate environmental procedures for their work area(s). Ensure that employees/users/subcontractors are aware of the EMS Standard Operating Procedures that apply to their work area.

Division Safety Officer

· Identify new hazard-awareness training needs for employees, subcontractors, and users. Convey these needs to the ESH&Q Training Committee, and request support in development of suitable training.

· Evaluate effectiveness of hazard-awareness training. Recommend improvements through the ESH&Q Training Committee.

Line Managers

· Ensure scheduling allows adequate time for new employees, subcontractors, and users to receive essential hazard-awareness training before they are exposed to the hazard. If training cannot be provided upon arrival at Jefferson Lab (or before), require the use of escorts or modified work routines in the interim.

· Staff Development and Training Manager

· Maintain attendance records of all formal hazard-awareness training provided by Jefferson Lab.

· ESH&Q Training Committee Chair

• Ensure that Jefferson Lab training programs include relevant and effective hazard-awareness training appropriate for the target audience(s).

Procedures for Communicating Hazards

New employees

· The supervisor ensures the new employee has viewed the Jefferson Lab general hazard-awareness course (SAF100) and EMS Awareness (SAF 127) -- usually part of the orientation process conducted by Jefferson Lab Human Resources. On a new employee’s first day on the job, the supervisor shall stress the importance of Jefferson Lab’s commitment to hazard awareness.

· Employees who cannot attend the first available hazard-awareness course must be scheduled for the next session available. In the interim, the supervisor must provide the employee with adequate hazard-avoidance information and extra supervision or both.

· After completion of general hazard-awareness training, the supervisor conducts and documents job-specific training that informs the employee of potential job dangers.

Facility Users

· The sponsor informs a user of Jefferson Lab’s expectations for hazard-awareness training as far in advance as possible, and offers all available options for receiving this training or demonstrating proficiency -- including web-based versions.

· The sponsor must schedule the hazard-awareness training such that the user has received the required information before being exposed to potential hazards at Jefferson Lab.

· The sponsor also arranges for any appropriate supplemental orientations or training that may be necessary given the user’s intended activities on site.

Subcontractors

· The SOTR (subcontracting officer’s technical representative) coordinates the scheduling of the subcontractor's employees for the next available Jefferson Lab hazard-awareness training. The subcontractor shall be informed that employees may not work on site in areas with known potential hazards until the training is complete.

· The SOTR and the subcontractor project manager devise a method to schedule training for newly hired subcontract employees and those who are added later to the Jefferson Lab project workforce.

Scope and Content of Training

Key components of general hazard-awareness training:

· Hazard-awareness training, regardless of the form in which it is presented, shall have the following elements:

o What is the hazard?

o How is it potentially harmful?

o How is it identified at Jefferson Lab?

o How can it be avoided?

o How can someone learn more about it?

o What should someone do in an emergency?

It is important to use site-specific illustrations and provide opportunities for questions.

· Operation-specific hazard-awareness training - Supervisor/sponsor/SOTR-conducted training for specific operations must include detailed explanations of the particular hazards and control measures. These include:

o Accepted work practices

o Pertinent work-control documents (Operational Safety Procedures, Standard Operating Procedures, etc.)

o Manufacturer's operating instructions (unless otherwise covered)

o Environmental Management System requirements

o Personal protective equipment

o Engineered controls

o Technical assistance resources (people and references)

o Emergency mitigation and response actions

Participation in Jefferson Lab-provided ESH&Q training must be documented using the Lab’s training database system.

ISSUING AUTHORITY	CHAPTER AUTHOR	APPROVAL DATE	EFFECTIVE DATE	EXPIRATION DATE	REV.
ESH&Q Division	Dennis Skopik	03/01/06	03/01/06	03/01/09	0

This document is controlled as an on line file. It may be printed but the print copy is not a controlled document. It is the user’s responsibility to ensure that the document is the same revision as the current on line file. This copy was printed on 8/27/2008.