OHS Insider » Test Your OHS IQ

OHS Insider » Test Your OHS IQ http://www.ohsinsider.com News, Tools & Special Reports - your “on-stop-shop” for everything Safety Compliance related Thu, 29 Jul 2010 23:30:47 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 en hourly 1 Quiz – Can You Permanently Demote a Worker for Her Poor Safety Record? http://www.ohsinsider.com/search-by-index/discipline/can-you-permanently-demote-a-worker-for-her-poor-safety-record-quiz http://www.ohsinsider.com/search-by-index/discipline/can-you-permanently-demote-a-worker-for-her-poor-safety-record-quiz#comments Wed, 12 May 2010 18:27:29 +0000 admin http://www.ohsinsider.com/?p=8543

]]> http://www.ohsinsider.com/search-by-index/discipline/can-you-permanently-demote-a-worker-for-her-poor-safety-record-quiz/feed 0 Quiz – Is Company Liable for Injury to Non-Employee Caused by Employee’s Safety Infraction? http://www.ohsinsider.com/search-by-index/hazards/is-company-liable-for-injury-to-non-employee-caused-by-employee%e2%80%99s-safety-infraction-quiz http://www.ohsinsider.com/search-by-index/hazards/is-company-liable-for-injury-to-non-employee-caused-by-employee%e2%80%99s-safety-infraction-quiz#comments Wed, 12 May 2010 18:25:25 +0000 admin http://www.ohsinsider.com/?p=8541

Is Company Liable for Injury to Non-Employee Caused by Employee’s Safety Infraction?

Can a Company Be Prosecuted under both OHS and Environmental Laws for the Same Incident? – Quiz

Quiz – Can You Permanently Demote a Worker for Her Poor Safety Record?

]]> http://www.ohsinsider.com/search-by-index/hazards/is-company-liable-for-injury-to-non-employee-caused-by-employee%e2%80%99s-safety-infraction-quiz/feed 0 Can a Company Be Prosecuted under both OHS and Environmental Laws for the Same Incident? – Quiz http://www.ohsinsider.com/search-by-index/safety-programs/can-a-company-be-prosecuted-under-both-ohs-and-environmental-laws-for-the-same-incident-quiz http://www.ohsinsider.com/search-by-index/safety-programs/can-a-company-be-prosecuted-under-both-ohs-and-environmental-laws-for-the-same-incident-quiz#comments Wed, 12 May 2010 18:23:10 +0000 admin http://www.ohsinsider.com/?p=8539

Quiz – Is Company Liable for Injury to Non-Employee Caused by Employee’s Safety Infraction?

Quiz – Can You Permanently Demote a Worker for Her Poor Safety Record?

Tolerating Bullying in the Workplace Puts the Company at Risk of Liability

]]> http://www.ohsinsider.com/search-by-index/safety-programs/can-a-company-be-prosecuted-under-both-ohs-and-environmental-laws-for-the-same-incident-quiz/feed 0 Is Company Liable for Injury to Non-Employee Caused by Employee’s Safety Infraction? http://www.ohsinsider.com/test-your-ohs-iq/is-company-liable-for-injury-to-non-employee-caused-by-employee%e2%80%99s-safety-infraction http://www.ohsinsider.com/test-your-ohs-iq/is-company-liable-for-injury-to-non-employee-caused-by-employee%e2%80%99s-safety-infraction#comments Wed, 10 Mar 2010 17:26:42 +0000 admin http://www.safetycomplianceinsider.com/?p=5299 SITUATION
A hospital janitor mops a corridor between operating rooms but doesn’t put out any wet floor signs as required by hospital policy. A surgeon has privileges at the hospital but isn’t a hospital employee. She gets behind in her surgical schedule. So she hurries down the hall to the operating room and falls on the wet floor, breaking her wrist. The surgeon can’t operate or perform other procedures for four months. She sues the hospital for her injuries, arguing that it violated its duty under the province’s Occupiers’ Liability Act to keep her reasonably safe while on the property. The hospital claims that the surgeon herself was negligent because she was rushing down the hall.

QUESTION
Is the hospital liable for the surgeon’s injuries? A. Yes, under the province’s Occupiers’ Liability Act. B. Yes, under the province’s OHS Act. C. No, because the surgeon’s injury was partly the result of her own negligence. D. No, because the janitor disobeyed the hospital’s safety rules so he—not the hospital—is liable for the surgeon’s injuries. Related posts:

]]> http://www.ohsinsider.com/test-your-ohs-iq/is-company-liable-for-injury-to-non-employee-caused-by-employee%e2%80%99s-safety-infraction/feed 0 Is Banning Cell Phone Use in the Workplace ‘Family Status’ Discrimination? http://www.ohsinsider.com/test-your-ohs-iq/is-banning-cell-phone-use-in-the-workplace-%e2%80%98family-status%e2%80%99-discrimination http://www.ohsinsider.com/test-your-ohs-iq/is-banning-cell-phone-use-in-the-workplace-%e2%80%98family-status%e2%80%99-discrimination#comments Tue, 09 Feb 2010 18:59:39 +0000 admin http://www.safetycomplianceinsider.com/?p=5031 SITUATION
A company has a large warehouse in which workers use forklifts and other motorized equipment to access and move materials. After several near misses in which workers distracted by cell phones almost ran over co-workers, the company decides it’s time to bar workers from carrying and using cell phones in the warehouse while they’re on duty. Under the new policy, workers must leave their phones in their lockers and may use the phones only on their own time (such as breaks and lunch) and outside of the warehouse. A warehouse worker claims that the cell phone policy discriminates based on family status because it prevents his elderly mother, who doesn’t speak English and can’t communicate with the company phone operators, from contacting him in emergencies.

QUESTION
Does the company’s cell phone ban discriminate based on family status? A. Yes, because it prevents workers from communicating with their family members. B. Yes, because it doesn’t promote workplace safety. C. No, because it’s a safety policy and any safety policy is legitimate. D. No, because although the policy does inconvenience workers with families, it isn’t a form of adverse treatment that constitutes discrimination. Related posts:

]]> http://www.ohsinsider.com/test-your-ohs-iq/is-banning-cell-phone-use-in-the-workplace-%e2%80%98family-status%e2%80%99-discrimination/feed 0 Can You Ask a Sick Worker if He Has Swine Flu? http://www.ohsinsider.com/search-by-index/illnesses-diseases/can-you-ask-a-sick-worker-if-he-has-swine-flu http://www.ohsinsider.com/search-by-index/illnesses-diseases/can-you-ask-a-sick-worker-if-he-has-swine-flu#comments Mon, 11 Jan 2010 16:28:09 +0000 admin http://www.safetycomplianceinsider.com/?p=4724 SITUATION
A small manufacturer has been hit hard by the recession and laid off numerous workers. As it now approaches its busy season, the last thing it can afford is for a bout of swine flu to disrupt its operations. Unfortunately, over the course of a few days, one, two, then three workers call in sick, complaining of flu-like symptoms. When the fourth worker calls in sick, his supervisor, fearing that the manufacturer may have a swine flu outbreak on its hands, asks the worker if he has swine flu. The worker refuses to answer, claiming that the question violates his privacy rights.

QUESTION
Was the supervisor’s question a violation of privacy laws? A. Yes, because it was an unauthorized attempt to collect the worker’s personal information. B. Yes, unless the government had declared swine flu to be a public health emergency. C. No, because the manufacturer’s interest in protecting its business from a flu outbreak outweighs the worker’s privacy rights. D. No, because the manufacturer has a duty under the OHS law to protect workers from illnesses, such as swine flu. Related posts:

]]> http://www.ohsinsider.com/search-by-index/illnesses-diseases/can-you-ask-a-sick-worker-if-he-has-swine-flu/feed 0 Does Need for Infection Control Trump a Worker’s Right to Self-Expression? http://www.ohsinsider.com/test-your-ohs-iq/does-need-for-infection-control-trump-a-worker%e2%80%99s-right-to-self-expression http://www.ohsinsider.com/test-your-ohs-iq/does-need-for-infection-control-trump-a-worker%e2%80%99s-right-to-self-expression#comments Wed, 02 Dec 2009 21:39:11 +0000 admin http://www.safetycomplianceinsider.com/?p=4304 SITUATION A female worker at a nursing home is self-conscious about her chipped nails. So she treats herself to a set of fake nails. Her fellow housekeepers love her new look. But wearing fake nails violates the nursing home’s dress code. Even though the worker doesn’t directly treat residents, the code applies to both direct and indirect caregivers, including housekeepers. The worker claims that the dress code violates her right to selfexpression. The nursing home argues that the dress code is an important infection control policy that’s based on accepted scientifi c evidence that fake nails accumulate bacteria at an abnormally high rate. This bacteria can be transmitted to nursing home residents both directly by caregivers and indirectly by housekeeping staff. QUESTION Does the worker have a valid grievance?

No, because wearing fake nails isn’t a form of self expression.
No, because there’s suffi cient evidence that the policy is necessary to prevent infection.
Yes, because infection control doesn’t justify taking away workers’ freedom of self-expression.
Yes, because the ban on fake nails is discriminatory as it essentially applies only to women.

]]> http://www.ohsinsider.com/test-your-ohs-iq/does-need-for-infection-control-trump-a-worker%e2%80%99s-right-to-self-expression/feed 0 Can a Company’s Apology for a Safety Incident Be Used Against It? http://www.ohsinsider.com/test-your-ohs-iq/can-a-company%e2%80%99s-apology-for-a-safety-incident-be-used-against-it http://www.ohsinsider.com/test-your-ohs-iq/can-a-company%e2%80%99s-apology-for-a-safety-incident-be-used-against-it#comments Mon, 23 Nov 2009 18:26:30 +0000 master http://www.safetycomplianceinsider.com/?p=4226 SITUATION Workers in a warehouse use a crane to move steel beams. They don’t properly secure the beams, which collectively weigh over a tonne. As the crane starts to move, the beams shift and half of them fall. Three workers are struck by the falling beams; two are killed and one is paralyzed from the waist down. In the wake of the tragedy, the company issues a press release stating, “ABC Company apologizes to the injured worker and the families of the deceased workers and is sorry for their suffering and losses.” The prosecution charges the company with numerous safety violations and, during the trial, wants to introduce into evidence the company’s press release as an admission of its guilt. QUESTION Should the court let the prosecution introduce the company’s press release?

Yes, because the apology is an admission of guilt.
Yes, unless the jurisdiction has a law that bars the use of apologies as evidence of guilt against the companies that make them.
No, because apologies are never admissible as evidence of guilt.
No, because the apology is just an expression of sympathy.

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