S E C T I O N 9 0 0 : S A F E T Y & H E A L T H
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Subsection .000: Safety & Health
900.010 Safety & Health Policy
The Board of Trustees and the administration of Stevens County Rural Library District believe in the dignity and importance of the individual employee and his or her right to derive personal satisfaction from the job. The personal safety and health of each employee of the District is of primary importance. The prevention of occupationally-induced injuries and illnesses is of such consequence that it will be given precedence over operating productivity. To the greatest degree possible, the District will provide all mechanical and physical facilities required for personal safety and health in keeping with the highest standards and common good. This will be accomplished through the cooperative efforts of the Board, Director, Managers, and employees who will seek to obtain the lowest possible work-related accident rates.
Because it is recognized that there can be safety hazards and improper work procedures present in the work environment, the Library District has established and will maintain a safety program that emphasizes the integration of safety and health measures into each job task, so that safety/health and job performance become inseparable. The District’s objective is a safety and health program that will reduce the number of disabling injuries and illness to a minimum. The goal is zero accidents, injuries and health hazards. The responsibilities for safety and health are shared with employees. The District is responsible and accepts the responsibility for leadership of the safety and health program, for its effectiveness and improvement, and for providing the safeguards required to insure safety conditions.
The District safety program includes procedures related to safety and health, bloodborne pathogen exposure control and hazardous materials communication program. Safety orientation of new and transferred employees, timely and appropriate education and training, an employer/employee safety committee, an active self-inspection program, proper mechanical guards, and personal protective equipment are key components of the safety program.
900.020 Bloodborne Pathogen Exposure Policy
The employees of Stevens County Rural Library District provide library services and materials to District customers. Part of this obligation may require employees to come into contact with bodily fluids, such as blood or other potentially infectious materials (OPIM). This is most likely to occur as a result of performing first aid/CPR to another employee or customer. Since being exposed to a bloodborne pathogen may lead to sicknesses such as hepatitis, AIDS, or malaria, and since the District wants to assure our employees as safe and healthy a work environment as possible, it is the policy of the District to comply with all statutory obligations for the prevention of exposures to bloodborne pathogens. To this end, the District will comply with all sections of the Washington Administrative Code and all other statutory requirements regarding the prevention of occupational exposures to bloodborne pathogens. The Exposure Control Plan will be considered District policy. Failure to comply with the plan and procedures contained in the safety manual will result in discipline up to and including termination.
900.030 Hazardous Materials Communication Program Policy
To ensure that information about the dangers of all hazardous chemicals used by Stevens County Rural Library District are known by all affected employees, the hazardous information program has been established.
All work units of the District will participate in the hazard communication program. The written program is in the safety manual and is available within each library/department for employees to review and reference.
Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS) for products which employee use on a routine basis are available in each department/library for employees to review and reference.