By Bob Wachter

reduce employee risk of injury and illness.

Because of their leadership roles within campus departments, UC Davis supervisors are ideally positioned to promote employee health and safety, help reduce our significant ($4-5 Million per year!) cost for workers compensation, and enable compliance with official regulations and policies. 

During the second week of January 2009, OAA initiated the first Supervisor Safety and Injury Prevention Leadership class. The focus was to help supervisors put all the pieces together – understanding the reasons behind employee injuries, establishing effective Injury and Illness Prevention Programs (IIPPs), and protecting employees by modeling proper safety behaviors. 

The primary goal of this training initiative is to reduce employees’ risk of injury or illness, but leadership also involves ensuring that the University complies with Cal OSHA regulations and University EH&S policies and procedures for a safe work environment. Employee safety requires a ‘team’ approach, working with Departmental

Safety Coordinators and Advisors (DSCs and DSAs respectively).

Each department has a designated safety coordinator (DSC) who works within the department to inform and educate their co-workers on safety issues. They are teamed with a safety professional from EH&S (DSA) who provides help and support. The new training sessions will coach supervisors on how to motivate and empower employees in establishing safe behaviors, promoting wellness and fitness, and especially to assist those employees who put themselves at risk. The leadership training also provides a basic toolkit for establishing departmental Injury and Illness Programs (IIPPs). Tool kit resources help departments set up sustainable systems for:

• Establishing and clearly communicating safety rules so everyone is 'on the same song sheet' and understands the basic safety procedures for injury and illness prevention
• Using effective investigative techniques for highlighting the root causes, contributory factors and preventative actions for past injuries and illness
• Identifying, understanding and addressing leading indicators -- the specific actions that are necessary for reducing injury and illness risk
• Developing an annual departmental Injury and Illness Reduction Plan with defined actions, responsibilities and timetables for implementing key leading indicators (action measures) which have the greatest impact in reducing injury and illness risk
• Establishing effective safety committees, meeting regularly with defined authority and agendas, and conducting periodic safety inspections with preventative action follow-up
• Identifying and communicating the matrix of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) requirements for routine jobs

Using leadership tools to help reduce injuries and illnesses will also reduce the high cost to UC Davis which comes out of every department's budget for workers compensation to cover the costs of injuries and illnesses.

Reducing these injuries and illnesses also has the ancillary benefit of increasing productivity, reducing absenteeism and improving employee morale.  These are just some of the key features of the Supervisory Safety and Leadership training class.

Classes are being rolled out first to OOA supervisors and then offered campus wide throughout 2009.  For more information, contact Bob Wachter at 530-297-4605.