Citation

Barbeau E, Roelofs C, Youngstrom R, Sorensen GR, Stoddard A, Lamontagne AD. Am. J. Ind. Med. 2004; 45(4): 371-379.

Affiliation

Center for Community-Based Research, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, 44 Binney Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA. elizabeth.barbeau@@dfci.harvard.edu

Copyright

(Copyright © 2004, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1002/ajim.10336

PMID

15029570

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Occupational safety and health (OSH) programs are a strategy for protecting workers' health, yet there are few peer-reviewed reports on methods for assessing them, or on the prevalent characteristics of OSH programs, especially in small businesses. METHODS: We adapted an occupational safety and health administration (OSHA) survey instrument to assess: management commitment and employee participation, workplace analysis, hazard prevention and control, and education and training. This was supplemented by a series of open-ended questions. We administered the survey in 25 small worksites. RESULTS: Scores for each element ranged widely, with distribution of most scores being positively skewed. Barriers to addressing OSH included lack of time and in-house expertise, and production pressures. External agents, including corporate parents, liability insurers, and OSHA, played an important role in motivating OSH programs. CONCLUSIONS: Small businesses were able to mount comprehensive programs, however, they may rely on outside resources for this task. Being small may not be a barrier to meeting the requirements of an OSHA program management rule.

Language: en