Safety - Physical Space and Environment

Policy Number:
IV.05.01
Reason for Policy:

To protect human health and the environment, ensure regulatory compliance, and preserve university interests and assets.

Entities Affected by this Policy:

All members of the UO community and visitors.

Responsible Office:

Safety and Risk Services, (541) 346-3192, safety@uoregon.edu

Website Address for this Policy:

https://policies.uoregon.edu/vol-4-finance-administration-infrastructur…

Enactment & Revision History:

03 March 2017 - Revisions, merge and renumbering approved by the university president

05 October 2010 - Title change from University Safety to Safety

02 August 2010 - Policy number revised from 8.000 to 08.00.02

11 October 2000 - Approved by the president’s staff

Policy:

Safety - Physical Space and Environment Policy

I. Responsibilities

  1. Safety is the shared responsibility of everyone. The president expects all university personnel to support the university’s safety policy and associated procedures.
  1. The provost and vice presidents are responsible to ensure implementation and enforcement of this policy in all facilities and operations within their respective portfolios.
  1. All administrators, deans, department heads, directors, supervisors and/or principal investigators are directly accountable for the safety and health of the total environment(s) (work and/or living) for which they are responsible. This includes all students, visitors, staff, the environment and university property for which they have oversight. This also includes establishment and management of safety programs and ongoing support by each unit for safety, including the provision of appropriate training and personal protective equipment.
  1. Safety and Risk Services is responsible for providing training, technical expertise and assistance to campus partners regarding compliance with laws, regulations, and policies and the protection of human health and the environment. The University Safety Representative is an employee in Safety and Risk Services and is responsible for responding to employee inquiries about safety.
  1. All employees are responsible for reporting accidents, unsafe working conditions or hazards of any nature. Such a report shall be made to an immediate supervisor who shall report the situation to the appropriate person or office for action except in instances of immediate medical attention needs when 9-1-1 should be the first notification.
  1. The University will annually advise employees of the name and contact information of the University Safety Representative.

II. Imminent Danger

In case of imminent danger to life or health, Environmental Health and Safety (EHS), the University Fire Marshal, and/or a designee of either has authority to suspend an activity immediately until the hazardous condition is abated or adequate measures are taken to minimize exposure of students, faculty, staff, visitors and the environment to that danger.

III. Corrective Action and Reporting

  1. If after reporting to the supervisor that a specific task or assignment may jeopardize personal health or safety, and correction is not made, the employee may refuse to perform such activity without penalty until the appropriate health or safety representative has reviewed the situation and made a finding. Any employee has the right to report any unsafe or hazardous condition directly to a safety representative or to appropriate local, state, or federal authorities.
  1. Safety violations, injury reports, and corrections made will be reviewed and reported to the university’s Safety Advisory Committee at its regularly scheduled meeting.

IV. Committee

Safety and Risk Services unit may form such committees as the head of that unit deems necessary and appropriate to ensure and maintain regulatory compliance.

Chapter/Volume:
Chapter 5: Public Safety and Risk Services
Related Resources:

The UO has a number of standing committees and teams, such as: Safety Advisory Committee, Laboratory Safety Committee, Radiation Safety Committee, Environmental Issues Committee, Accident Review Board, Institutional Biosafety Committee, Incident Management team, and Strategic Enterprise Risk Management and Compliance Committee to uphold the expectations of this policy and to develop procedures for compliance. It also maintains plans required to maintain regulatory compliance.

The responsibilities of the committees include:

  • Promoting occupational and personal safety, wellness and environmental consideration.
  • Protecting life, property, the environmental, and mission critical essential services and facilities.
  • Identifying and correcting health and safety hazards and encouraging students, faculty and staff to report potential hazards.
  • Providing information and training related to potential safety hazards.
  • Adhering to compliance requirements by federal, state and local authorities.
  • Increasing the university’s resilience to health and safety conditions impacting its ability to achieve the core mission of teaching, discovery, and service.
Original Source:
UO Policy Statement