PURPOSE

 Each State agency is to have a written health and safety program for State employees, based on clearly stated goals or objectives, that promotes safe and healthful working conditions. The program is intended to provide managers, supervisors, and employees with a clear and firm understanding of the State's and the University's concern for protecting employees from job-related injuries and illnesses; preventing accidents and fires; planning for emergencies and emergency medical procedures; identifying and controlling physical, chemical, and biological hazards in the workplace; communicating potential hazards to employees; and maintaining a sanitary environment.

 The University of North Carolina at Asheville is committed to providing a safe and healthful environment for all persons associated with the University, including faculty, staff, students, visitors, and members of the community.

The University emphasizes safety education and training as the primary means of achieving this goal. While the Health and Safety Office, the department primarily responsible for health and safety functions at the University, performs various periodic inspections, department heads, faculty members, and supervisors are considered directly responsible for maintaining full compliance with State and federal regulations and University safety policies and procedures.

The University has established a written State Employee Workplace Requirements Program for Safety and Health which contains the following information:

The Health and Safety Office is responsible for implementation of the UNCA Health and Safety Program and the development of additional health and/or safety procedures necessary to meet the special situations that are unique to UNCA.

Specific responsibilities include:

Each supervisor is responsible for providing safe working conditions for those being supervised and for following up on reports of violations of safe working conditions. Each supervisor is also responsible for knowing the health and safety guidelines, investigating accidents, reporting accidents, and properly advising higher management of appropriate situations.

The health and safety program is the responsibility of each employee, supervisor, and manager and should be an important factor in evaluating the work performance of each.

Each employee is to place health and safety requirements as first in importance in the performance of his or her work duties for UNCA. The protection of fellow employees and the public on University property is a shared responsibility of every employee.

An employee is responsible for notifying his/her immediate supervisor of a violation or deficiency in safe and healthful working conditions and for recommending corrective measures, if possible. Additionally, the employee's immediate supervisor is to be notified of every injury or accident regardless of how trivial such accident may appear at that time.

Specific responsibilities stated in the University's Health and Safety Program which are included in the UNCA Employee Health and Safety Handbook are:

The mission of the Health and Safety Program is to provide a safe and healthful environment for all persons associated with the University, including faculty, staff, students, visitors, and members of the UNCA community. Introduction of new workplace safety program requirements by the North Carolina General Assembly provides an opportunity to renew that commitment.

The following goals and objectives are intended to provide full compliance with the State rules and regulations.

The University Health and Safety Office is responsible for developing a comprehensive program to comply with the provisions of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of North Carolina (OSHANC). A part of the University Business and Finance Division, the Health and Safety Office reports to the Director of Facilities Management.

The goal of the University is to provide a safe and healthful environment for all persons associated with the institution, including staff, students, visitors, and the community.

The University endorses the concept of "voluntary compliance" which emphasizes safety education and training rather than enforcement as the means of achieving this goal. Nevertheless, department heads and faculty members are considered to be directly responsible for maintaining full compliance with University safety policies and procedures. Each department is responsible for the training of its employees and students in safe practices and for compliance with State and Federal regulations for maintaining a safe and healthful work environment.

The Health and Safety Office performs periodic inspections of University facilities to identify problem areas and to assist departments in identifying needs. The Health and Safety Office staff is available for consultation on recognized or suspected hazardous conditions and for assistance in developing safety training programs.

The Health and Safety Office is located in the Facilities Management building. Any questions which are not answered within this document may be referred to the University Health and Safety Office (251-6564).

Manager - Thomas G. Goddard

Radiation Safety Officer - Dr. John Stevens

State regulations require each State agency to create health and safety committees to perform workplace inspections, review injury and illness records, make advisory recommendations to the administration, and perform other functions determined by the State Personnel Commission to be necessary for the effective implementation of the State Workplace Requirement Program. This section provides an overview of how UNCA has implemented this requirement.

The University Administrative Safety Committee is composed of seven members of the University's faculty and staff as appointed by the Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs. One of these members acts as the committee chair. The Health and Safety Manager serves on the committee as an ex-officio member.

Basic committee operations are as follows:

UNCA has a variety of occupations and workplaces which support the University's mission of education, research and public service. To ensure that appropriate attention is given to the unique

nature of the University workforce, the health and safety committees are organized around "work environments". It is recognized that many employees work in more than one environment and that some work units have tasks that fall into two or more work environments.

Essentially every department has an office environment. Administrative and clerical workers in Facilities Management and Student Health Service, for example, work in the office environment. Employees in these departments may also work in other environments, such as Maintenance and Construction, Clinic, Industrial, or Support Services.

The Clinic Environment is primarily characterized by activities involving patient contact and exposure to blood or other potentially infectious materials. The Clinic Environment frequently has additional health and safety requirements imposed by accreditation organizations, e.g., Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO).

The Laboratory Environment consists of those work units that are subject to the OSHA Laboratory Standard. The University's Chemical Hygiene Plan is described in the UNCA Laboratory Safety Manual which is available from the Health and Safety Office.

The Industrial Environment consists of those work units that are characterized by a fixed location and use of industrial-type machines and equipment. These units are generally subject to specific provisions of the OSHA General Industry Standards involving hand and portable powered tools, welding, electrical lockout and tagout procedures, confined space entry procedures, and machinery and machine guarding requirements.

The Maintenance and Construction Environment consists of those work units whose primary activities are performed at various locations around campus. These units are generally subject to the OSHA General Industry Standards involving hand and portable powered tools, welding, and electrical lockout and tagout procedures. Examples include: Facilities Management Electrical, Plumbing, and HVAC Shops, as well as Grounds and Housekeeping.

The Support Services Environment consists of activities that are conducted outside of the office environment, usually involve public contact, may involve hazardous materials, and are not included in one of the other environments.

The Work Environments - Work Place Safety Committee is composed of seven employees, who are non-supervisory employees. The non-supervisory employee representatives are referred to as "Employee Health and Safety Representatives" (EHSR). The Health and Safety Manager, or designee, serves as an ex-officio member with voting rights on the committee.

Members of the work environment committees are appointed by the Administrative Safety Committee. Terms of the initial appointees are staggered to provide for two of the committee members being replaced each year. Terms are for three years and EHSR members will normally not serve consecutive terms although members initially appointed to less than a three-year term may be reappointed to a full term.

Time spent at committee meetings and committee activities is considered to be normal work time and will not result in any loss of pay or benefits. It is anticipated that work schedules can be adjusted to avoid committee service resulting in over-time pay. Committee membership will be limited to full-time, permanent UNCA employees.

The Radiation Safety Committee is responsible for establishing policies governing the procurement, use, storage, and disposal of radioactive materials and radiation-producing devices. The Committee includes individuals experienced in the use or application of radioactive materials and radiation devices and provides a peer review of these uses among researchers at the University. The Committee meets at least quarterly to review reports on the receipt and disposal of radioactive materials/radiation-producing devices, and to act on applications for authorization to use these sources. The Committee, along with its chairman, is appointed by the Radiation Safety Officer. It makes an annual report of activities to the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs.

A work unit is a subdivision of a department in which the employees are involved in a common function(s). The work unit has a supervisor or manager that is responsible for the operations, including safety, of the unit. Although a work unit may be involved in more than one work environment, the safety issues and training requirements will be considered for the entire unit, i.e., the work unit will not be further subdivided into the work environment categories into which departments are subdivided.

Each work unit is to have a work unit health and safety liaison (WUHSL) to serve as the contact for health and safety matters within the work unit. The chair or director of each department will be designated as the WUHSL for the Office Environment Work Unit for the department unless the department head assigns this responsibility to another staff person. For large departments, or departments with office work units in satellite locations, a WUHSL may be appointed for each location.

In the Laboratory Environment, each faculty member (Principal Investigator) responsible for laboratory activity is designated as the work unit and the WUHSL.

Unless otherwise specified, the clinic manager will be the WUHSL for work units in the Clinic Environment.

Unless otherwise specified, the shop supervisor will be the WUHSL for work units in the Maintenance and Construction and Industrial Environments.

Unless otherwise specified, the manager or shift supervisor will be the WUHSL for work units in the Support Services Environment.

A notebook containing the University's Health and Safety Plan (HSP) will be issued to each WUHSL. These liaisons will be the contact within departments for questions regarding health and safety policies. Additions and periodic updates to the HSP will be mailed to the liaisons for maintenance of the notebooks.

Safety and health policies and procedures are established and enforced to protect employees from injury and illness as well as to provide for a safe and healthful place of employment.

Violations of health and safety policies and procedures are considered to be among the most serious violations of University policy. All University employees, SPA, EPA Faculty, and EPA Non-Faculty, are required, as a condition of their employment, to abide by all University health and safety policies and to follow all required health and safety procedures.

Adherence to health and safety policies and procedures is enforced in a consistent manner according to the personnel policies in effect for the particular employee. Disciplinary policies for SPA employees are found in the Human Resources Manual for SPA Employees. Disciplinary policies for EPA Non-Faculty employees are found in the Employment Policies for EPA Non-Faculty Employees of UNCA. Disciplinary policies for EPA Faculty employees are found in the Trustee Policies and Regulations Governing Academic Tenure.

All new employees are required to attend a Health and Safety Orientation program appropriate to their work environment. Orientation programs are offered in the following areas:

Safety in the Office Environment

Safety in the Laboratory Environment

Safety in the Clinic Environment and the Bloodborne Pathogens Standard

Safety in the Industrial and the Maintenance and Construction Environments

Safety in the Support Services Environment

Hazard Communication Standard

Bloodborne Pathogen Standard

Radiation Safety

Hazard Recognition for Housekeepers

Some employees will need to attend more than one program. For example, laboratory workers involved in handling blood or other potentially infectious materials will need to attend the programs on Laboratory Safety and the Bloodborne Pathogen Standard.

The purpose of the orientation programs is to identify hazards inherent to the job, explain hazard assessment procedures, inspection requirements, reporting procedures, availability of personal protective equipment, and availability of medical treatment in the event of an on-the-job injury or illness.

Special workplace safety training for supervisors in the Industrial, Maintenance and Construction and Support Services environments is provided by the Health and Safety Office.

The Health and Safety Office will assist supervisors in identifying specialized training required by State and University policies and regulations. Employees are not to be permitted to perform duties unsupervised until appropriate training has been provided and documented. In some instances only "competent persons" or those "certified" or "qualified" can legally perform certain key tasks. If in doubt about specific job training requirements, supervisors are encourage to consult with the Health and Safety Office.

When contracting for or purchasing specialized equipment or systems that require special training to ensure safe operation, provisions for the training should be included in the purchase agreement. When provided, such training is to be documented and provided to the Health and Safety Office.

Required safety training must be documented. As a minimum, training records must consist of:

Required safety training documents are to be sent to the Health and Safety Office.

An "exam" will be given to program participants to reinforce course content and demonstrate knowledge of key principles.

A "course evaluation" form will be filled out by course participants to provide feedback to improve course content and instructional skills. An evaluation form is included as Appendix B.

Titles of training programs available through the Health and Safety Office can be requested by contacting the Health and Safety Office.

1. Were the major objective(s) (purpose) Yes ____

of the course made clear at the Somewhat ____

beginning? No ____

2. Is the information that was Yes ____

presented useful to you in your job? Somewhat ____

No ____

3. Were you already familiar with the Yes ____

information covered by this speaker? Somewhat ____

No ____

clear and well-organized manner? Somewhat ____

No ____

5. If provided, were the handouts/supple- Yes ____

mentary materials used in class helpful? Somewhat ____

No ____

6. If used, were the audiovisuals used Yes ____

helpful in reinforcing the content of Somewhat ____

the class? No ____

7. Was the overall level of content? Too basic ____

Appropriate ____

Too advanced ____

8. Should any part of the program have been covered in more detail?

9. Are there other topics that should have been included in the program?

10. Please feel free to make any comments about the class on the back of this sheet.

Safety hazards are defined as conditions which could result in accidental injury to personnel or passersby. Hazards also include lack of safety-related equipment such as machine guards, protective clothing, fire fighting equipment and warning signs.

1. Safety hazards shall be assessed and defined for each work area and operation.

4. All audit reports shall be maintained on file for periodic historical review.

Safety deficiencies may be identified by employees, department administrators, safety committees, Facilities Management employees, Health and Safety employees, state and/or federal inspectors, insurance underwriters, or anonymous reporters.

Safety deficiencies will be investigated and evaluated by Health and Safety Office personnel. If a deficiency is confirmed by inspection, it will be categorized according to severity and responsibility for correction.

The investigating personnel who determines that a safety deficiency poses imminent danger or is a serious violation shall have the power to stop work, order evacuations, or take other such emergency measures as he/she deems appropriate under the circumstances. An emergency work order will be placed with Facilities Management to begin corrective action.

The investigating personnel who determines that a safety deficiency is a non-serious violation, a de minimus violation, or a non-conforming use/condition shall issue an order for correction to the party responsible for correction. Such orders shall contain deadlines for correction of the violation. The investigating personnel who initiated the correction will follow-up to insure that the correction has been made.

The Director of Facilities Management and the Health and Safety Manager will annually meet to prioritize safety deficiencies in the facility deficiency category. Noted deficiencies will be reported to the Vice Chancellor for Financial Affairs and the Facilities Planner.

Each employee is to be issued an Employee Health and Safety Handbook which includes State and University safety policies and rules. The employee must sign a document acknowledging that he/she received the handbook and understands the University's safety rules. The document is to be placed in the employee's departmental personnel file.

This manual describes University policies and procedures for the use of radioactive materials and radiation-producing devices. It is available on request from the Radiation Safety Officer and is required to be present and available to employees who work with radioactive materials or radiation-producing devices.

This manual contains policies, procedures, and safety practices for laboratories. The manual constitutes the University's Chemical Hygiene Plan and is required to be present and available in laboratories using hazardous materials. It is available on request from the Laboratory Manager or the Health and Safety Office.

This manual contains procedures to follow in the event hazardous chemicals are released on University property, containment and control procedures, emergency response procedures, and required reports. All departments generating hazardous wastes are required to keep a copy of the plan present and available for emergency use. It is available on request from the Health and Safety Office.

Department chairs and directors are provided with a Health and Safety Manual describing health and safety policies and procedures in detail. Training sessions are provided to familiarize department chairs, directors, and supervisors with the University's Health and Safety Plan.

The Health and Safety Committees will hold quarterly meetings. All committee members are required to attend. Date, time and location of all meetings will be published in Monday Morning. Any interested person is invited to attend.

Department chairs, directors and supervisors will hold regular meetings, quarterly at a minimum. All personnel are required to attend.

Physical facilities are to be inspected at least annually to ensure that workplaces are free from recognized safety hazards.

To achieve full compliance with the requirement, inspections will be performed by one or more of the following: self-inspection, i.e., inspection by the employee(s) occupying the area; Health and Safety Committee members; Health and Safety Office personnel; State and federal agency personnel; insurance underwriter personnel; or a combination of these.

Each inspection report is to include observed health and safety violations, non-compliance items, and deficiencies. Inspection findings are to be forwarded to the Health and Safety Office for preparation of a written inspection report.

The Health and Safety Office will send the written report to the person in charge of the facility or function being inspected, the appropriate Health and Safety Work Environment Committee, and Facilities Management, if the corrective action involves maintenance or capital improvement items.

The person responsible for the area is to respond to the Health and Safety Office by the designated date, indicating the corrective action accomplished with regard to each reported violation or deficiency.

In the event that any manipulation, process, action or condition is discovered which in the opinion of the Health and Safety Manager or his/her designee constitutes an immediate threat to the life of an employee or the public, the manager or his/her designee may order the immediate cessation or modification of such manipulation, action or condition.

Any University employee who has a direct personal involvement in the facilities being inspected is to be permitted and encouraged to participate in such inspections, including calling possible violations to the attention of the inspector.

The Occupational Safety and Health Act of North Carolina provides that employees may request an inspection or evaluation of conditions which they believe may constitute a health or safety hazard. University employees are encouraged to request a "Special Investigation" into the need for corrective action.

The Health and Safety Office will respond to any request or complaint. University employees who are aware of a health hazard or unsafe condition should notify the Health and Safety Office.

Employees are encouraged to seek resolution of hazardous conditions through the University Health and Safety Office but, under Section II(d)(1) of the North Carolina Occupational Safety and Health Act, an employee is guaranteed the right to request an inspection from the State Department of Labor (919-733-3332, or 1-800- LABOR NC, Raleigh, N.C.) by giving notice to them of a violation of a safety or health standard that he/she believes threatens physical harm or constitutes immediate danger.

The rights of an employee in reporting complaints of matters affecting occupation health and safety shall be exercised without retaliation on the part of any other person.

 Persons requesting an inspection by the Health and Safety Office (or the Department of Labor) may request confidentiality and, by law, their name will not appear on any record published, released, or made available to the public or to the immediate supervisor or department head.

NOTIFICATION OF FINDINGS 

If the Health and Safety Office or the Department of Labor determines that there are reasonable grounds for believing that a violation or danger exists, it will notify the employees or representative of the employees in writing of such determination.

After the Health and Safety Office has concluded its investigation, the results will be communicated to the party requesting the investigation and to other appropriate University personnel with due consideration of requests for anonymity. If action is called for that does not constitute a capital improvement such as minor repairs, change of procedure, limitations of access, and so forth, recommendations will be made to the proper departments.

The types of hazardous conditions that should be reported include, but are not limited to, the following:

Maintaining a safe and healthful environment is the responsibility of all employees. To augment the inspection efforts of health and safety committees and the Health and Safety Office, each work unit is required to perform a self-inspection annually.

Checklists have been prepared to assist WUHSLs and other personnel in conducting inspections of their workplaces. Although many of the items on the checklists may seem trite, the fact remains that if these simple rules are observed by all UNCA employees, many accidents and worker's compensation claims can be prevented.

The checklists are not all-inclusive, but are intended to guide the inspector in assessing major safety areas. Be sure to list deficiencies that are found that are not included on the checklists.

Upon receipt of self-inspection reports, the Health and Safety Office will review them to determine if any follow up is needed. Any serious safety problems should be reported to the Health and Safety Office for immediate response and evaluation.

If you have any questions regarding the checklists or findings, call the Health and Safety Office for assistance.