Employee Safety Responsibilities

Employees expect employers to provide a safe work environment and ensure protection from job hazards. But employers are not the only ones responsible for safety on the job--California workers have a role in maintaining a safe workplace as well. Here are some general responsibilities to help keep you and your coworkers safe:

Know and follow all of your employer’s health and safety rules, such as safe work practices and standard operating procedures. Be familiar with the Cal/OSHA safety requirements that regulate your industry. These regulations and guidelines (www.dir.ca.gov/samples/search/query.htm) are designed to educate and protect you from hazards and injuries on the job.

• Know the emergency and evacuation procedures, and the location of emergency equipment on your jobsite; clear thinking and immediate action in an emergency can save lives.
• Attend all of the safety training that your employer offers. Training helps you identify job hazards and take the appropriate precautions.
• Never operate equipment unless you have been properly trained.
• Read and understand the Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) and know the hazards and safe work practices for all of the chemicals that you work with. If you have a question about equipment, a chemical, or a process, ask your supervisor--taking a chance at work can mean taking a chance with your life.

You are responsible for the safety of your own actions while on the job.

• Conduct yourself professionally, keeping in mind your own safety and the safety of others at all times.
• Serve as a good role model to coworkers for safe work practices and behavior.
• Maintain your personal work area and common areas in a clean and orderly manner; good housekeeping means a safer workplace.
• Always wear the appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) required for your job tasks.
• Talk with your supervisor about safety. If you have a suggestion to make a process or equipment safer, speak up! No one knows your job and tools better than you.
• Immediately warn coworkers and notify your supervisor of any malfunctioning equipment, hazardous conditions, and unsafe behavior in the workplace--someone’s life may depend on it.
• Report all accidents and near misses to your supervisor because investigating these incidents can lead to a safer environment; promptly report to your employer if you have a job-related injury or illness and seek appropriate treatment.

When you share the responsibility for safety in the workplace, everyone wins.