A comparison study of the Romanian occupational safety and health strategy with other European countries’ strategy

The European Union Strategic Framework on Occupational Health and Safety at Work 2014 – 2020 has pushed the Member States to review their national strategies. Thus, national strategies have customized, the European vision to the national culture and specifics, considering the European framework that acts as a common guide and reference. The 2018 Report on occupational safety and health strategies in Europe, do not include the Romanian strategy. Based on the national strategy last version (2018), the paper will present and debate a comparative analysis between the Romanian OHS strategy and the other Member State strategy. This research approach is meant to identify, and underline Romania’s efforts made in the field of OHS, but also the gaps and missing aspects of the related strategy in comparison with the other countries

Aspects about the implementation of the occupational safety and health strategy in Romania

European directives related the occupational health and safety set out minimum requirements and fundamental principles, for managing the specific problems related to occupational risks, principle of prevention and risk assessment, as well as the responsibilities of employers and employees. A series of European guidelines aims to facilitate the implementation of European directives, including standards of related fields. The European Union Strategic Framework on Health and Safety at Work 2014 – 2020 has pushed the Member States to review their national strategies in close consultation with relevant stakeholders including the social partners. Thus, national strategies must transfer and customize the European vision to the national culture and specifics, considering the European framework that acts as a common guide and reference. Romania has adopted several versions of the National Strategy for Health and Safety at Work and the last one is related to the 2018 - 2020 period. Based on this document and the implementation plan associated the article will present a quantitative approach of the SWOT analysis. This research approach is meant to identify and characterize the new strategic direction that should be followed, together with a set of important aspect for the implementation plan up-date. The conclusions of this study will provide a scientific base for policy makers in the field of occupational health and safety

Surveying workers perceptions in the automotive industry - a preventive tool for monitoring OSH measures

In an efficient OSH management system, it is necessary to approach continuous improvement, being recommended the PDCA system (Plan Do Check Act). In Romania, there is well-developed legislation, who establishes measures and actions in the field of OSH. The companies comply by creating an implementation plan, but most of them remain at this stage, without verifying the degree of implementation, with adaptation/updating of the measures. In this paper, we highlight some reference elements that can be periodically probed, so that the OSH management system can have a prompt and justified improvement reaction. The mode of obtaining this information regarding the implemented measures can be achieved through a periodic questionnaire that diagnoses two relevant aspects: 1. workers’ perceptions - which assess the implementation method; 2. the consequences/accidents - that assess the efficiency of the measures and their application/implementation. The two key elements (perception and consequences) will be used by the questionnaire responding workers after the implementation stage. The profile of these respondents is considered, and depending on their age, function, and level of education, the new applicable measures can be dimensioned. Only through continuous, monitored, and adapted improvement can the most effective measures be implemented, so that prevention fulfils its fundamental purpose, to contribute to the predictability and sustainability of an efficient automotive enterprise

A debate on issues regarding the new ISO 45001:2018 standard adoption

The paper presents a debate on the implications of the ISO 45001 framework for management systems addressing occupational health and safety. The aim is to provide a comprehensive approach based on the ISO 45001 on safety culture and much more, for the nurture and development of the preventive one. First, the paper establishes a theoretical foundation for this initiative together with some practical considerations for implementation. Second, there will be presented an early feedback collected through a survey developed with managers from different companies located in the West Region of Romania about ISO 45001 implementation. The research conclusions underline that there is a lot of wisdom tucked away in the standard and that have been not yet understood and valorised; the results identify a new approach of what should be considered for the quality safety program and culture (as training and consultancy activities)

Ergonomic intervention combined with an occupational and organizational psychology and sociology perspectives in production systems

The paper describes a propose interdisciplinary approach for improving working conditions in production systems. The proposed approach has been customized and apply in the case of a lean production system in order to demonstrate its efficiency and effectiveness. The research approach and its associated methodology consists of three stages: (1) a qualitative research using the Grounded Theory, which provide a theoretical model on the the employees behavior within the analyzed lean production system; (2) a quantitative research, survey based on a designed questionnaire, for the investigation of the motivation – satisfaction relation; (3) a quantitative research for the ergonomic risk assessment associated with repetitive upper limb movements (that are dominant in the case of the assembly line that has been studied) using the OCRA method for the improvement of the workers stress. The research results contribute to the knowledge development and to the the diminishing of the occupational hazards and generating workplace wellbeing

Ergonomic intervention combined with an occupational and organizational psychology and sociology perspectives in production systems

The paper describes a propose interdisciplinary approach for improving working conditions in production systems. The proposed approach has been customized and apply in the case of a lean production system in order to demonstrate its efficiency and effectiveness. The research approach and its associated methodology consists of three stages: (1) a qualitative research using the Grounded Theory, which provide a theoretical model on the the employees behavior within the analyzed lean production system; (2) a quantitative research, survey based on a designed questionnaire, for the investigation of the motivation – satisfaction relation; (3) a quantitative research for the ergonomic risk assessment associated with repetitive upper limb movements (that are dominant in the case of the assembly line that has been studied) using the OCRA method for the improvement of the workers stress. The research results contribute to the knowledge development and to the the diminishing of the occupational hazards and generating workplace wellbeing