TAKE APPROPRIATE ACTION

Once the risk associated with hazards has been determined, the next step is to determine what actions should be taken to eliminate, or if not possible reduce or mitigate the risk.

5.3.1 HIERARCHY OF CONTROLS

If a hazard cannot be eliminated, the hierarchy of controls (listed in the preferred order to mitigate hazards and control risk levels) is:

1. Elimination

 Complete removal of a hazard.

 Change where the work is to be performed – i.e. working at height, in a trench, or in confined space generates significant risk. Evaluate whether there is a way to do some or all of the work in a less dangerous environment

2. Substitution

 Replacing the material or process with a less hazardous one.

 Use less harmful products – i.e. instead of sandblasting with sand, use aluminum oxide, black magic or products which don’t contain silica or use water based paints when possible instead of oil based paint

 Substitute the type of equipment used – i.e. use electric equipment when possible instead of internal combustion equipment, or use a man-lift instead of a ladder

3. Separation

 Isolating the hazard by guarding or enclosing it 4. Engineering

StepBack Risk Evaluation Standard

 Designs or modifications to reduce the exposure to the hazard.

 Is the most effective during the planning stages of work when the project planners can make changes to remove the hazard

 Designs that ensure harmful contact or exposure is eliminated or reduced. Engineering controls are used on construction sites when higher controls are not possible. These controls are based on the physical installation of something to protect workers from the hazard with the intent of allowing work to occur safely without the use of personal protective equipment

 Guardrails and handrails – Guardrails and handrails are the best form of protection when working at heights. This allows for the worker to work without the use of fall protection equipment.

 Shoring cages and temporary barriers – Install the protection before you enter the trench or put up a barrier to protect others

 Mechanical ventilation – To ensure that the air quality in confined spaces is maintained. 5. Administrative

 Limiting exposure to hazardous conditions or energies by procedural means. Should not be the primary control measures unless the other methods aren’t effective or can’t be implemented.  Refer to the Job Safety Analysis for the job if applicable.

 StepBack Card (team and personal) – The StepBack Program / Card itself is an administrative control used to formally evaluate risk in the working environment by ensuring that a risk calculation is done for every task. Before beginning a task the StepBack card is used to determine the risk level, and whether or not the hazard(s) has been adequately controlled (see above). This encourages workers to think about their tasks from a new perspective and in turn will reduce complacency. Workers are then better able to identify potential risk and adjust their behaviors accordingly.

 Safe Work Standards (SWS) – Safe Work Standards are specific or systematic descriptions of how to complete a job or task safely and efficiently from start to finish. To reduce risks, SNC-Lavalin has developed a written set of safe work procedures outlining what is to be done in specific terms for each job or task an employee is expected to perform. Safe work procedures are a vital component of due diligence

 Orientation, Training and Instruction – Is required before anyone begins work. Additional training is also often required on how to perform job specific tasks safely. Orientation, training and instruction are all designed to ensure workers know the right steps involved in the job

 Information Boards and Bulletins – Safety information boards and bulletins are intended to provide workers with information about the hazards, risks and safeguards for the work area. 6. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

 Is the last line of defence meaning that the hazards and risk are still present and that personal protection is required to reduce the potential for harm from the hazard. PPE falls into two categories:

 General PPE (to be worn by everyone on site) includes a hard hat, steel toed boots, a high visibility vest, eye protection, hearing protection, and long pants and shirt with sleeves.

 Specialized PPE (to be worn when required to protect against specific hazards) may include fall protection, respiratory protection, a face shield, fire retardant clothing, protective coveralls.

5.3.2 REDUCING THE RISK

The objective of risk control is to reduce the level of risk presented by the hazards. There are a variety of means of reducing risk. Questions that should be asked when considering risk are:

 Am I using the right equipment and tools to reduce the risk level?

 The wrong equipment or tools may increase the risk rather than reduce it  Have the equipment and tools been inspected to confirm proper functioning?  Are the prescribed safeguards in place?

 Is there a better method to control the risk?

The best thing a worker can do if they are unsure of how to perform a task safely is to ask for advice or assistance from a(n):

 Foreman, Supervisors, Manager  Safety Advisor

 Engineer, Equipment Operator or Co-workers

5.3.3 MANAGING RESIDUAL RISK

Despite the best efforts to control the hazard, some residual risk may remain. Low risk hazard can generally be controlled through administrative means and personal protective equipment. If a medium hazard is still present after all risk controls have been applied the following actions must be taken:  Specific safe work plan must be developed by the work supervisor

 The workers must receive instructions and training on the safe work procedure  Worker monitoring for compliance

Extreme risk hazards pose a significant risk of serious injury or death and need to be effectively controlled. If an extreme risk hazard remains after all the controls are used the following actions must be taken:

 A specific safe work plan must be developed and approved by the Superintendent or Project Manager

 Workers must receive specific training on the risks and safeguards before commencing work  A safety monitor should be present to ensure compliance with the safe work plan

6.0 EXAMPLE

If painters were to StepBack before initiating a task, they would want to:

1. Look and see the HAZARDS

In the case of the Personal StepBack card, workers would go through the list of questions generating discussion on potential hazards while doing the task. In the case of the Team StepBack card, workers

StepBack Risk Evaluation Standard

will consider any applicable hazards from the list on the card. For the purpose of this example, the potential physical hazards that pose the highest risk include: moving objects (i.e. other people), tripping hazard (i.e. paint tray, extra brushes, drop cloth), falling from heights (i.e. from a scaffold deck or ladder) and chemical hazards (i.e. paint, paint thinners or cleaners that may be required).

2. Assess the RISK

To determine the risk level, workers first predict the probability of the incident occurring based on the workers past experience and knowledge of the task and then consider the likely consequences.

In the case of this example based on experience, the probability is predicted to be ‘Possible’.

In the case of this example, due to the associated hazards, it has been predicted that the outcome could be a disability or fatality, and therefore an extreme risk level.