AWO Safety. Statistics Instruction Manual. AWO Safety

Transcription

1 AWO Safety Statistics AWO Safety Committees

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3 Index I. Introduction. page 4 II. Determination of Recordability. page 7 III. Counting Manhours. page 27 IV. Calculating Incident Rates. page 31 V. Reporting. page 35 VI. Appendices. page 39 A. Registration Form. page 40 B. Frequently Asked Questions. page 41 C. Data. page 42 Job Tool D. Operating Sectors. page 43 E. Useful Links. page 44 3

4 I. Introduction This Injury/Illness Recordkeeping was developed by the Statistics Subcommittee of the Interregion Safety Committee as a resource for member companies of the American Waterways Operators. The Safety Committee believes that development of this is an essential part of its mission to promote the continuous improvement of safety in the towing industry by providing guidance in tracking and reporting of work-related injuries and illnesses. Collecting of injury and illness statistics is a requirement of the American Waterways Operators (AWO) Responsible Carrier Program (RCP), and the Safety Committee believes that gathering and tracking of safety statistics is an essential part of any effective safety management program. Data collected can be used to develop focused safety programs targeting specific areas that may be revealed as a particular problem area(s) for any given company. Data can also be used by a company to benchmark its safety performance against other companies operating in its sector and the towing industry as a whole. In addition to this, additional help and mentoring is available to AWO member companies needing extra assistance in collecting and reporting safety statistics by contacting the AWO Safety Department. This seeks to respond to the need for a standardized procedure for collecting and reporting Injury/Illness data for the tugboat, towboat, and barge industry that, up to this time, has been missing due to insufficient guidance or direction in maritime regulations. Some limited direction regarding injury reporting and recordkeeping is located in 46 CFR and 46 CFR These provisions instruct the maritime industry to notify the nearest Marine Safety Unit (MSU) if any injuries beyond first aid occur and to complete a 2692 report within five days. Since federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations provide guidance on injury recordkeeping in the workplace, most maritime companies have elected to use these regulations as guidance for the collecting and reporting of injury statistics. To establish a standard reporting criterion for members of AWO, this provides a general overview of topics related to collecting and reporting injury and illness statistics, including sections on Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs). This handbook is intended to be a resource for tugboat, towboat, and barge companies of all sizes. This will provide answers to recordkeeping questions raised by employers, and employees of AWO member companies who wish to obtain information on specific recordkeeping criteria. The reader will find this information useful in understanding the recordkeeping criteria of the RCP and the Voluntary Safety Statistics Program and will be able to easily locate a variety of specific and necessary information pertaining to each data set. Readers will also find this useful as a research and training tool for their management personnel and vessel crews. 4

5 This is divided into five sections: The first section is an introduction that describes the use and intent of the manual; the second outlines how to determine if an injury is a recordable injury; the third contains instructions on how to count manhours, calculate an incident and/or severity rate, and compare their company s numbers to the rest of the industry in the SIC; the fourth section provides detailed instructions on how to sign up and submit data to the AWO Voluntary Safety Statistics Program; and the fifth and final section is an appendix that provides useful sources to gain more information. This is in the public domain and may be reproduced, fully or partially, without permission. 5

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7 II. Determination of Recordability 7

8 II. Determination of Recordability Recording Criteria Each company participating in the Responsible Carrier Program (RCP) is required to keep records of manhours, fatalities, injuries, illnesses, and falls overboard and should record each fatality, injury, and illness that: is work-related; is a new case; and meets one or more of the general recording criteria. Implementation To meet the recording requirements of the RCP, the following information can be used as a resource to assist companies in determining recording criteria for recording workrelated injuries and illnesses. How to decide whether a particular injury or illness is recordable The decision tree for recording work-related injuries and illnesses below shows the steps involved in making this determination: NO NO NO Did the employee experience an injury or illness? YES Is the injury or illness workrelated? Yes Is the injury or illness a new case? NO YES Does the injury or illness meet the general recorded criteria or the application to specific cases? YES Update the previously recorded injury or illness entry if necessary Do not record the injury or illness Record the injury or illness 8

9 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS: Recording criteria Question: Does an employee report of an injury or illness establish the existence of the injury or illness for recordkeeping purposes? Answer: No. In determining whether a case is recordable, the employer must first decide whether an injury or illness has occurred. If the employer is uncertain about whether an injury or illness has occurred, the employer may refer the employee to a physician or other health care professional for evaluation and may consider the health care professional's opinion in determining whether an injury or illness exists. Basic requirement You must consider an injury or illness to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a preexisting injury or illness. Work-relatedness is presumed for injuries and illnesses resulting from events or exposures occurring in the work environment. Question: What is the "work environment"? Answer: The work environment is "the vessel and other locations where employees are working or are present as a condition of their employment. The work environment includes not only physical locations, but also the equipment used by the employee during the course of his or her work." Question: Are there situations where an injury or illness occurs in the work environment and is not considered work-related? Answer: Yes, an injury or illness occurring in the work environment that falls under one of the following exceptions is not work-related and, therefore, is not recordable You are not required to record injuries and illnesses if : At the time of the injury or illness, the employee was present in the work environment as a member of the general public rather than as an employee. The injury or illness involves signs or symptoms that surface at work but result solely from a non-work-related event or exposure that occurs outside the work environment. The injury or illness results solely from voluntary participation in a wellness or flu shot program or in exercise class, racquetball, or baseball. The injury or illness is solely the result of an employee eating, drinking, or preparing food or drink for their own personal consumption. Note: If the employee is made ill by ingesting food contaminated by workplace contaminants (such as lead) or gets food poisoning from food supplied by the employer, the case would be considered work-related. 9

10 The injury or illness is solely the result of an employee doing personal tasks (unrelated to their employment) at the establishment outside of the employee's assigned working hours. The injury or illness is solely the result of personal grooming or self medication for a nonwork-related condition, or is intentionally self-inflicted. The injury or illness is caused by a motor vehicle accident and occurs on a company parking lot or company access road while the employee is commuting to or from work. The illness is the common cold or flu. (Note: contagious diseases such as tuberculosis, brucellosis, hepatitis A, or plague are considered work-related if the employee is infected at work.) The illness is a mental illness. Mental illness will not be considered work-related unless the employee voluntarily provides the employer with an opinion from a physician or other licensed health care professional with appropriate training and experience (psychiatrist, psychologist, psychiatric nurse practitioner, etc.) stating that the employee has a mental illness that is workrelated. Question: How do I handle a case if it is not obvious whether the precipitating event or exposure occurred in the work environment or occurred away from work? Answer: In these situations, you must evaluate the employee's work duties and environment to decide whether or not one or more events or exposures in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a preexisting condition. Question: How do I know if an event or exposure in the work environment "significantly aggravated" a preexisting injury or illness? Answer: A preexisting injury or illness has been significantly aggravated when an event or exposure in the work environment results in any of the following: Death provided that the preexisting injury or illness would likely not have resulted in death but for the occupational event or exposure. Loss of consciousness provided that the preexisting injury or illness would likely not have resulted in loss of consciousness but for the occupational event or exposure. One or more days away from work, days of restricted work, or days of job transfer that otherwise would not have occurred but for the occupational event or exposure. Medical treatment in a case where no medical treatment was needed for the injury or illness before the workplace event or exposure, or a change in medical treatment was necessitated by the workplace event or exposure. Question: Which injuries and illnesses are considered preexisting conditions? Answer: An injury or illness is a preexisting condition if it resulted solely from a nonwork-related event or exposure that occurred outside the work environment. 10

11 Question: How do I decide whether an injury or illness is work-related if the employee is on travel status at the time the injury or illness occurs? Answer: Injuries and illnesses that occur while an employee is on travel status are workrelated if, at the time of the injury or illness, the employee was engaged in work activities "in the interest of the employer." Examples of such activities include travel to and from vessels, conducting job tasks, and entertaining or being entertained to transact, discuss, or promote business (work-related entertainment includes only entertainment activities being engaged in at the direction of the employer). However, injuries or illnesses that occur when the employee is on travel status do not have to be recorded if they meet one of the exceptions listed below. If the employee has: 1. Checked into a hotel or motel for one or more days. 2. Taken a detour for personal reasons. You may use the following to determine if an injury or illness is work-related: When a traveling employee checks into a hotel, motel, or another temporary residence, he or she establishes a home away from home. You must evaluate the employee's activities after he or she checks into the hotel, motel, or other temporary residence for their work-relatedness in the same manner as you evaluate the activities of a non-traveling employee. When the employee checks into the temporary residence, he or she is considered to have left the work environment. When the employee begins work each day, he or she reenters the work environment. If the employee has established a home away from home and is reporting to a fixed worksite each day, you also do not consider injuries or illnesses work-related if they occur while the employee is commuting between the temporary residence and the job location. Injuries or illnesses are not considered work-related if they occur while the employee is on a personal detour from a reasonably direct route of travel (e.g., has taken a side trip for personal reasons). Determination of work-relatedness This section sets out criteria for determining whether a given injury or illness is workrelated. An injury or illness must be considered work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment caused or contributed to the injury or illness or significantly aggravated a preexisting injury or illness. For recordkeeping purposes, work relationship is presumed for such injuries and illnesses unless an exception listed specifically applies. A number of injuries and illnesses that occur, or manifest themselves, at work are caused by a combination of occupational factors, such as performing job-related bending and lifting motions, and factors personal to the employee, such as the effects of a preexisting medical condition. In many such cases, it is likely that occupational factors have played 11

12 a tangible role in causing the injury or illness, but one that cannot be readily quantified as "significant" or "predominant" in comparison with the personal factors involved. Injuries and illnesses also occur at work that do not have a clear connection to a specific work activity, condition, or substance that is peculiar to the employment environment. For example, an employee may trip for no apparent reason while walking from one vessel to another, be sexually assaulted by a coworker, or be injured accidentally as a result of an act of violence perpetrated by one coworker against a third party. In these and similar cases, the employee's job-related tasks or exposures did not create or contribute to the risk that such an injury would occur. Instead, a causal connection is established by the fact that the injury would not have occurred but for the conditions and obligations of employment that placed the employee in the position in which he or she was injured or made ill. Employers should consider an injury or illness to be "work-related" if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a preexisting injury or illness. Work relatedness is presumed for injuries and illnesses resulting from events or exposures occurring in the work environment. The determination of work-relatedness is made by the employer. Employers are in the best position to obtain the information, both from the employee and the workplace, that is necessary to make this determination. Although expert advice may occasionally be sought by employers in particularly complex cases, the final rule provides that the determination of work-relatedness ultimately rests with the employer. Preexisting conditions, for recordkeeping purposes, are conditions that resulted solely from a non-work-related event or exposure that occured outside the employer's work environment. Preexisting conditions also include any injury or illness that the employee experienced while working for another employer. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS: Determination of work-relatedness Question: A deckhand wakes from his off-watch time complaining of back pain; would this be considered a work injury? Answer: Not necessarily. It would not be a work injury unless upon investigation it was found that a preceding work-related event or exposure contributed to the back injury. Question: A deckhand has a car wreck while driving a rental car from the vessel; is this considered work-related even though he wasn t on the vessel? Answer: Yes, he was still on-duty in regard to working. Question: A deckhand has a car wreck coming to work; is this work related? 12

13 Answer: No, he is on his own time until he reports to the office and signs in. Question: A deckhand is injured while tripping or riding over on another vessel, not his assigned one; is this treated the same as if he was on his own vessel? Answer: Yes. Question: A deckhand is injured while riding/tripping over with another company, does that count against us? Answer: No, it would go with the company he was working for at the time of injury. Question: Are cases of workplace violence considered work-related under the new Recordkeeping rule? Answer: The Recordkeeping rule contains no general exception, for purposes of determining work relationship, for cases involving acts of violence in the work environment. If two crewmembers get in an altercation and one or both are injured, this is considered a work-related incident. Question: What activities are considered "personal grooming" for purposes of the exception to the geographic presumption of work-relatedness? Answer: Personal grooming activities are activities directly related to personal hygiene such as combing and drying hair, brushing teeth, clipping fingernails, and the like. Question: What are "personal tasks" for purposes of the exception? Answer: Personal tasks are tasks that are unrelated to the employee's job. For example, if an employee uses tools from the engine room to build a bird house during his off-watch time to take home, he is engaged in a personal task. Determination of new cases Employers may occasionally have difficulty in determining whether new signs or symptoms are due to a new event or exposure in the workplace or whether they are the continuation of an existing work-related injury or illness. Most occupational injury and illness cases are fairly discrete events, i.e., events in which an injury or acute illness occurs, is treated, and then resolves completely. For example, a worker may suffer a cut, bruise, or rash from a clearly recognized event in the workplace, receive treatment, and recover fully within a few weeks. At some future time, the worker may suffer another cut, bruise, or rash from another workplace event. In such cases, it is clear that the two injuries or illnesses are unrelated events and that each represents an injury or illness that must be separately evaluated for its recordability. 13

14 Basic requirement You must consider an injury or illness to be a "new case" if: The employee has not previously experienced a recorded injury or illness of the same type that affects the same part of the body, or The employee previously experienced a recorded injury or illness of the same type that affected the same part of the body but had recovered completely (all signs and symptoms had disappeared) from the previous injury or illness, and an event or exposure in the work environment caused the signs or symptoms to reappear. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS: Determination of new cases Question: When an employee experiences the signs or symptoms of a chronic workrelated illness, do I need to consider each recurrence of signs or symptoms to be a new case? Answer: No, for occupational illnesses where the signs or symptoms may recur or continue in the absence of an exposure in the workplace, the case should only be recorded once. Examples may include occupational cancer, asbestosis, and silicosis. Question: When an employee experiences the signs or symptoms of an injury or illness, such as an episode of occupational asthma, as a result of an event or exposure in the workplace must I treat the episode as a new case? Answer: Yes, because the episode or recurrence was caused by an event or exposure in the workplace, the incident must be treated as a new case. Question: May I rely on a physician or other licensed health care professional to determine whether a case is a new case or a recurrence of an old case? Answer: You are not required to seek the advice of a physician or other licensed health care professional. However, if you do seek such advice, you must follow the physician s or other licensed health care professional's recommendation about whether the case is a new case or a recurrence. If you receive recommendations from two or more physicians or other licensed health care professionals, you must make a decision as to which recommendation is the most authoritative (best documented, best reasoned, or most authoritative) and record the case based upon that recommendation. The criteria for determining whether any injury or illness, including a musculoskeletal disorder, is to be treated as a new case or as the continuation of an old injury or illness are as follows: First, if the employee has never had a recorded injury or illness of the same type and affecting the same part of the body, the case is automatically considered a new case and must be evaluated for recordability. This provision will handle the vast 14

15 majority of injury and illness cases, which are new cases rather than recurrences or case continuations. Second, if the employee has previously had a recorded injury or illness of the same type and affecting the same body part, but the employee has completely recovered from the previous injury or illness, and a new workplace event or exposure causes the injury or illness (or its signs or symptoms) to reappear, the case is a recurrence that the employer must evaluate for recordability. Question: How is an employer to determine whether an employee has "recovered completely" from a previous injury or illness such that a later injury or illness of the same type affecting the same part of the body resulting from an event or exposure at work is a "new case"? If an employee's signs and symptoms disappear for a day and then resurface the next day, should the employer conclude that the later signs and symptoms represent a new case? Answer: An employee has "recovered completely" from a previous injury or illness when he or she is fully healed or cured. The employer must use their best judgment based on factors such as the passage of time since the symptoms last occurred and the physical appearance of the affected part of the body. If the signs and symptoms of a previous injury disappear for a day only to reappear the following day, that is strong evidence the injury has not properly healed. The employer may, but is not required to, consult a physician or other licensed health care provider (PLHCP). Where the employer does consult a PLHCP to determine whether an employee has recovered completely from a prior injury or illness, it must follow the PLHCP's recommendation. In the event the employer receives recommendations from two or more PLHCPs, the employer may decide which recommendation is the most authoritative and record the case based on that recommendation. General recording criteria Basic requirement You must consider an injury or illness to meet the general recording criteria, and therefore to be recordable, if it results in any of the following: death, days away from work, restricted work or transfer to another job, medical treatment beyond first aid, or loss of consciousness. You must also consider a case to meet the general recording criteria if it involves a significant injury or illness diagnosed by a physician or other licensed health care professional, even if it does not result in death, days away from work, restricted work or job transfer, medical treatment beyond first aid, or loss of consciousness. 15

16 Implementation A work-related injury or illness must be recorded in the manner established in company policy if it results in one or more of the following: - Death - Days away from work - Restricted work or transfer to another job - Medical treatment beyond first aid - Loss of consciousness - A significant injury or illness diagnosed by a physician or other licensed health care professional FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS: General recording criteria Question: How do I record a work-related injury or illness that results in the employee's death? Answer: A work related injury or illness that results in a death will be classified as a lost time injury or illness and is recordable. However, the number of lost work days will not be counted. Question: How do I record a work-related injury or illness that results in days away from work? Answer: When an injury or illness involves one or more days away from work, you should record the injury or illness according to company policy. If the employee is out for an extended period of time, you should estimate the number of days that the employee will be away and update the day count when the actual number of days is known. Question: Do I count the day on which the injury occurred or the illness began? Answer: No, you begin counting days away on the day after the injury occurred or the illness began. Question: How do I record an injury or illness when a physician or other licensed health care professional recommends that the worker stay at home, but the employee comes to work anyway? Answer: You should record these injuries and illnesses using the number of days away recommended by the physician or other licensed health care professional. If a physician or other licensed health care professional recommends days away, you should encourage your employee to follow that recommendation. However, the days away must be recorded whether the injured or ill employee follows the physician or licensed health care professional's recommendation or not. If you receive recommendations from two or more physicians or other licensed health care professionals, you may make a decision as to which recommendation is the most authoritative, based upon that recommendation. 16

17 Question: How do I handle a case when a physician or other licensed health care professional recommends that the worker return to work, but the employee stays at home anyway? Answer: In this situation, you must end the count of days away from work on the date the physician or other licensed health care professional recommends that the employee return to work. Question: How do I count the days the employee would not have worked anyway? Answer: You must count the number of calendar days the employee was unable to work as a result of the injury or illness, regardless of whether or not the employee was scheduled to work on those day(s). It does not matter if the employee would have been on his normal time off or not. Question: How do I count the lost work days if the physician says the employee needs to be off work and they return to the vessel until the Company can safely get the employee off the vessel? Answer: You begin the day count the day following the appointment with the physician. Question: How do I record a case in which a worker is injured or becomes ill on the day before their regular scheduled time off? Answer: You need to record a case of this type only if you receive information from a physician or other licensed health care professional indicating that the employee should not have worked, or should have performed only restricted work, during the scheduled time off. If so, you should record the injury or illness as a case with days away from work or restricted work, and enter the day counts, as appropriate. Question: Is there a limit to the number of days away from work I must count? Answer: Yes, you may "cap" the total days away at 180 calendar days. You are not required to keep track of the number of calendar days away from work if the injury or illness resulted in more than 180 calendar days away from work and/or days of job transfer or restriction. In such a case, entering 180 in the total days away column will be considered adequate. Question: May I stop counting days if an employee who is away from work because of an injury or illness retires or leaves my company? Answer: Yes, if the employee leaves your company for some reason unrelated to the injury or illness such as retirement, vessel lay-up, or to take another job, you may stop counting days away from work or days of restriction/job transfer. If the employee leaves 17

18 your company because of the injury or illness, you must estimate the total number of days away or days of restriction/job transfer and enter the day count. Question: If a case occurs in one year but results in days away during the next calendar year, do I record the case in both years? Answer: No, you only record the injury or illness once. You should enter the number of calendar days away for the injury or illness on the log for the year in which the injury or illness occurred. Question: How do I record a work-related injury or illness that results in restricted work or job transfer? Answer: When an injury or illness involves restricted work or job transfer but does not involve death or days away from work, you should record the injury or illness as part of your RCP recordkeeping as required by company policy. Question: How do I decide if the injury or illness resulted in restricted work? Answer: Restricted work occurs when, as the result of a work-related injury or illness: You keep the employee from performing one or more of the routine functions of his or her job, or from working the full workday that he or she would otherwise have been scheduled to work; or A physician or other licensed health care professional recommends that the employee not perform one or more of the routine functions of his or her job, or not work the full workday that he or she would otherwise have been scheduled to work. Question: What is meant by "routine functions"? Answer: For recordkeeping purposes, an employee's routine functions are those work activities the employee regularly performs at least once per week. Question: Do I have to record restricted work or job transfer if it applies only to the day on which the injury occurred or the illness began? Answer: No, you do not have to record restricted work or job transfers if you, or the physician or other licensed health care professional, impose the restriction or transfer only for the day on which the injury occurred or the illness began. Question: If you or a physician or other licensed health care professional recommends a work restriction, is the injury or illness automatically recordable as a "restricted work" case? Answer: No, a recommended work restriction is recordable only if it affects one or more of the employee's routine job functions. To determine whether this is the case, you must evaluate the restriction in light of the routine functions of the injured or ill employee's 18

19 job. If the restriction from you or the physician or other licensed health care professional keeps the employee from performing one or more of his or her routine job functions or from working the full workday the injured or ill employee would otherwise have worked, the employee's work has been restricted and you should record the case. Question: How do I record a case where the crewmember works only a partial work shift because of a work-related injury or illness? Answer: A partial day of work is recorded as a day of job transfer or restriction for recordkeeping purposes, except for the day on which the injury occurred or the illness began. Question: If the injured or ill crewmember takes longer to do a task than he or she would have produced prior to the injury or illness but otherwise performs all of the routine functions of his or her work, is the case considered a restricted work case? Answer: No, the case is considered restricted work only if the crewmember does not perform all of the routine functions of his or her job or does not work the full watch that he or she would otherwise have worked. Question: How do I handle vague restrictions from a physician or other licensed health care professional, such as that the employee engages only in "light duty" or "take it easy for a week"? Answer: If you are not clear about the physician or other licensed health care professional's recommendation, you may ask that person whether the employee can do all of his or her routine job functions and work all of his or her normally assigned work shift. If the answer to both of these questions is "Yes," then the case does not involve a work restriction and does not have to be recorded as such. If the answer to one or both of these questions is "No," the case involves restricted work and should be recorded as a restricted work case. If you are unable to obtain this additional information from the physician or other licensed health care professional who recommended the restriction, record the injury or illness as a case involving restricted work. Question: What do I do if a physician or other licensed health care professional recommends a job restriction, but the employee does all of his or her routine job functions anyway? Answer: You must record the injury or illness as a restricted work case. If a physician or other licensed health care professional recommends a job restriction, you should ensure that the employee complies with that restriction. If you receive recommendations from two or more physicians or other licensed health care professionals, you may make a decision as to which recommendation is the most authoritative and record the case based upon that recommendation. 19

20 Question: How do I decide if an injury or illness involved a transfer to another job? Answer: If you assign an injured or ill employee to a job other than his or her regular job for part of the day due to the injury or illness, the case involves transfer to another job. Note: This does not include the day on which the injury or illness occurred. Question: Are transfers to another job recorded in the same way as restricted work cases? Answer: Yes, both job transfer and restricted work cases are recorded the same. For example, if you assign, or a physician or other licensed health care professional recommends that you assign, an injured or ill worker to his or her routine job duties for part of the day and to another job for the rest of the day, the injury or illness involves a job transfer. You must record the injury or illness. Question: How do I count days of job transfer or restriction? Answer: You count days of job transfer or restriction in the same way you count days away from work. The only difference is that, if you permanently assign the injured or ill employee to a job that has been modified or permanently changed in a manner that eliminates the routine functions the employee was restricted from performing, you may stop the day count when the modification or change is made permanent. You must count at least one day of restricted work or job transfer for such cases. Question: How do I record an injury or illness that involves medical treatment beyond first aid? Answer: If a work-related injury or illness results in medical treatment beyond first aid, you must record it. If the injury or illness did not involve death, one or more days away from work, one or more days of restricted work, or one or more days of job transfer, you enter where the employee received medical treatment but remained at work and was not transferred or restricted. This is considered a Medical case only. Question: What is the definition of medical treatment? Answer: Medical treatment means the management and care of a patient to combat disease or disorder. Medical treatment does not include: Visits to a physician or other licensed health care professional solely for observation or counseling. The conduct of diagnostic procedures, such as x-rays and blood tests, including the administration of prescription medications used solely for diagnostic purposes (e.g., eye drops to dilate pupils). For the purposes of recordkeeping, "first aid" means the following: Using a nonprescription medication at nonprescription strength (for medications available in both prescription and nonprescription form, a recommendation by a 20

21 physician or other licensed health care professional to use a non-prescription medication at prescription strength is considered medical treatment for recordkeeping purposes) Administering tetanus immunizations (other immunizations, such as Hepatitis B vaccine or rabies vaccine, are considered medical treatment) Cleaning, flushing, or soaking wounds on the surface of the skin Using wound coverings such as bandages, Band-Aids TM, gauze pads, etc.; or using butterfly bandages or Steri-Strips TM (other wound-closing devices such as sutures, staples, etc., are considered medical treatment) Using hot or cold therapy Using any non-rigid means of support such as elastic bandages, wraps, nonrigid back belts, etc. (devices with rigid stays or other systems designed to immobilize parts of the body are considered medical treatment for recordkeeping purposes) Using temporary immobilization devices while transporting an accident victim (e.g., splints, slings, neck collars, back boards) Drilling of a fingernail or toenail to relieve pressure, or draining fluid from a blister; Using eye patches Removing foreign bodies from the eye using only irrigation or a cotton swab Removing splinters or foreign material from areas other than the eye by irrigation, tweezers, cotton swabs or other simple means; Using finger guards Using massages (physical therapy or chiropractic treatment are considered medical treatment for recordkeeping purposes) Drinking fluids for relief of heat stress Question: Are any other procedures included in first aid? Answer: No, this is a complete list of all treatments considered first aid. Question: Does the professional status of the person providing the treatment have any effect on what is considered first aid or medical treatment? Answer: No, the treatments listed above are considered to be first aid regardless of the professional status of the person providing the treatment. Even when these treatments are provided by a physician or other licensed health care professional, they are considered first. Similarly, the treatment beyond first aid is considered to be medical treatment even when it is provided by someone other than a physician or other licensed health care professional. The USCG is vague on the definition of beyond first aid, and the interpretation varies from one MSU to another. Question: What if a physician or other licensed health care professional recommends medical treatment, but the employee does not follow the recommendation? Answer: If a physician or other licensed health care professional recommends medical treatment, you should encourage the injured or ill employee to follow that 21

22 recommendation. However, you must record the case even if the injured or ill employee does not follow the physician s or other licensed health care professional's recommendation. Question: Is every work-related injury or illness case involving a loss of consciousness recordable? Answer: Yes, you must record a work-related injury or illness if the crewmember becomes unconscious, regardless of the length of time the employee remains unconscious. Employers will thus be clear that any condition that is treated, or that should have been treated, with a treatment not on the first aid list is a recordable injury or illness for recordkeeping purposes. In general, first aid treatment can be distinguished from medical treatment as follows: First aid is usually administered after the injury or illness occurs and at the location (e.g., workplace) where the injury or illness occurred. First aid generally consists of one-time or short-term treatment. First aid treatments are usually simple and require little or no technology. First aid can be administered by people with little training (beyond first aid training) and even by the injured or ill person. First aid is usually administered to keep the condition from worsening, while the injured or ill person is awaiting medical treatment. Question: Is a work-related skin rash recorded even if it didn't result in medical treatment? Answer: No, a case of work-related skin rash is recorded only if it results in days away from work, restricted work, or transfer to another job, or medical treatment beyond first aid. Question: Does the size or degree of a burn determine recordability? Answer: No, the size or degree of a work-related burn does not determine recordability. If a work-related first-, second-, or third-degree burn results in one or more days away, work restrictions, medical treatment, etc., the case must be recorded. Question: If an employee dies during surgery made necessary by a work-related injury or illness, is the case recordable? Answer: If an employee dies as a result of surgery or other complications following a work-related injury or illness, the case is recordable. Question: An employee hurts his or her left arm and is told by the doctor not to use the left arm for one week. The employee is able to perform all of his or her routine job functions using only the right arm (though at a slower pace and the employee is never 22

23 required to use both arms to perform his or her job functions). Would this be considered restricted work? Answer: No, if the employee is able to perform all of his or her routine job functions, the case does not involve restricted work. Loss of productivity is not considered restricted work. Question: Are surgical glues used to treat lacerations considered "first aid?" Answer: No, surgical glue is a wound-closing device. All wound closing devices except for butterfly and steri strips are by definition "medical treatment," because they are not included on the first aid list. Question: Does "drinking fluids for relief of heat stress" on the first aid list include administering intravenous (IV) fluids? Answer: No, intravenous administration of fluids to treat work-related heat stress is medical treatment. Question: Is the use of a rigid finger guard considered first aid? Answer: Yes, the use of finger guards is always first aid. Question: If a physician or other licensed health care professional recommends medical treatment, days away from work, or restricted work activity as a result of a work-related injury or illness, can the employer decline to record the case based on a contemporaneous second provider's opinion that the recommended medical treatment days away from work, or work restriction are unnecessary, if the employer believes the second opinion is more authoritative? Answer: Yes. However, once medical treatment is provided for a work-related injury or illness, or days away from work or work restriction have occurred, the case is recordable. If there are conflicting contemporaneous recommendations regarding medical treatment or the need for days away from work or restricted work activity, but the medical treatment is not actually provided and no days away from work or days of work restriction have occurred, the employer may determine which recommendation is the most authoritative and record on that basis. Question: The guide defines first aid, in part, as "removing splinters or foreign material from areas other than the eye by irrigation, tweezers, cotton swabs, or other simple means." What are "other simple means" of removing splinters that are considered first aid? Answer: Other simple means of removing splinters, for purposes of the first-aid definition, means methods that are reasonably comparable to the listed methods. Using needles, pins, or small tools to extract splinters would generally be included. 23

24 Question: How long must modification to a job last before it can be considered a permanent modification? Answer: Employers stop counting days of restricted work or transfer to another job if the restriction or transfer is made permanent. A permanent restriction or transfer is one that is expected to last for the remainder of the employee's career. Where the restriction or transfer is determined to be permanent at the time it is ordered, the employer must count at least one day of the restriction or transfer. If the employee whose work is restricted or who is transferred to another job is expected to return to his or her former job duties at a later date, the restriction or transfer is considered temporary rather than permanent. Question: If an employee loses his arm in a work-related accident and can never return to his job, how is the case recorded? Is the day count capped at 180 days? Answer: If an employee never returns to work following a work-related injury, the employer should enter an estimate of the number of days the employee would have required to recuperate from the injury, up to 180 days. Question: If an employee who routinely works 12 hours a day is restricted from working more than 8 hours following a work-related injury, is the case recordable? Answer: Generally, the employer records any case in which an employee's work is restricted because of a work-related injury. A work restriction occurs when the employer keeps the employee from performing one or more routine functions of the job, or from working the full workday the employee would otherwise have been scheduled to work. The case in question is recordable if the employee would have worked 12 hours had he or she not been injured. Question: If an employee is exposed to chlorine or some other substance at work and oxygen is administered as a precautionary measure, is the case recordable? Answer: If oxygen is administered as a purely precautionary measure to an employee who does not exhibit any symptoms of an injury or illness, the case is not recordable. If the employee exposed to a substance exhibits symptoms of an injury or illness, the administration of oxygen makes the case recordable. Question: Are work-related cases involving chipped or broken teeth recordable? Answer: Yes, these cases are considered a significant injury or illness when diagnosed by a physician or other health care professional. Work-related fractures of bones or teeth are recognized as constituting significant diagnoses and, if the condition is work-related, are appropriately recorded at the time of initial diagnosis even if the case does not involve any of the other general recording criteria. 24

25 Question: Does the employer have to record a work-related injury or illness if an employee experiences minor musculoskeletal discomfort and the health care professional determines that the employee is fully able to perform all of his or her routine job functions, but the employer assigns a work restriction to the injured employee? Answer: A case would not be recorded if (1) the employee experiences minor musculoskeletal discomfort, and (2) a health care professional determines that the employee is fully able to perform all of his or her routine job functions, and (3) the employer assigns a work restriction to that employee for the purpose of preventing a more serious condition from developing. Question: An employee has a work-related shoulder injury resulting in days of restricted work activity. While working on restricted duty, the employee sustains a foot injury which results in a different work restriction. How would the employer record these cases? Answer: For purposes of recordkeeping the employer would stop the count of the days of restricted work activity due to the first case, the shoulder injury, and enter the foot injury as a new case and record the number of restricted work days. If the restriction related to the second case, the foot injury, is lifted and the employee is still subject to the restriction related to their shoulder injury, the employer should resume the count of days of restricted work activity for that case. Covered employees Basic requirements You should record the recordable injuries and illnesses of all employees on your payroll, whether they are labor, executive, hourly, salary, part-time, seasonal, or migrant workers. You also should record the recordable injuries and illnesses that occur to employees who are not on your payroll if you supervise these employees on a day-to-day basis. If your business is organized as a sole proprietorship or partnership, the owner or partners are not considered employees for recordkeeping purposes. Implementation If a self-employed person is injured or becomes ill while doing work at your business, (e.g. if an electrician or maintenance person boards the vessel to work on a piece of equipment and is injured), you do not need to record this injury because he is not under your direct supervision. 25

26 26

27 III. Counting Manhours 27

28 III. Counting Manhours The calculation of manhours in the maritime industry differs from general industry. The Merchant Marine Act of 1020 (Jones Act) states that employers are responsible for all crewmembers injuries, not only those that are work-related, but also those that occur during crewmembers time living aboard the vessel or during their travel to or from the vessel. Therefore, AWO has adopted the use of a 24-hour work day for employees living onboard the vessel. Reporting Criteria Crewmembers of live-aboard vessels are exposed to possible injury 24-hours per day, therefore injuries occurring during their off-watch time are considered work-related. For example if a crewmember is coming down the stairs to the galley during his off-watch time and falls, this injury would be considered work-related. Crewmember working an 8 or 12-hour day and going home during the off-duty hours, manhours should not be counted on a 24-hour basis, but only for actual time worked. As examples, a company operates 10 live-aboard vessels working year-round with 10 crewmembers aboard; 5 tugs working around the clock with 3 crewmembers on watch on each tug and going home off-watch; and, 5 other tugs working 12 hours per day with 3 crewmembers each. Manhour calculations should look something like this for a 30-day month: 10 vessels X 10 crewmembers X 24 hours X 30 days = 72,000 5 tugs X 3 crewmembers X 24 hours X 30 days = 10,800 5 tugs X 3 crewmembers X 12 hours X 30 days = 5,400 Total company manhours for the month 88,200 FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS: Counting manhours Question: How can I find out how many vessels were running through the month and how many crewmembers were onboard throughout the month? Answer: Normally your Payroll Department or your Vessel Dispatch can provide you with that information. Question: Can I just guess at how many crewmembers were on the vessel during the month without having to check to see if someone got sick and the boat ran short-handed for a few days? Answer: Yes, you can. Those few manhours would normally not make any change to your incident rate. Conversely, your numbers would be more accurate if you received that information from your payroll department. 28

29 Question: Do I have to separate our office hours or our land-based operations hours from our vessel hours for reporting purposes? Answer: You should. Most companies report only their vessel manhours that fall under the Jones Act. However, there is no rule that says you can t add in your manhours for your office support group if you report their injuries as well. Question: Should I count the manhours of contract crews or trip employees? Answer: If those employees are under your company s direct supervision, then yes, count their manhours and likewise count any of their injuries that might occur. Question: Does a vessel need to be in operation to count the manhours? Answer: No, if you have crewmembers onboard a vessel that is not running and they are under your company s direct supervision, their hours are to be counted as if it were running. Question: Do I need to track the times of Port Captains and Port Engineers who frequently ride the vessels? Answer: Normally, they are considered office personnel and usually aren t counted. However, if you can get an accurate count of the time they spend onboard the vessels, you could certainly add that to your manhour count. Question: Can I group my vessels separately for reporting purposes, such as inland dry, canal, and fleets? Answer: Actually, if you have vessels operating in those three areas, that is exactly what you should be doing. This would help our industry arrive at more accurate numbers. Question: Would I use three different forms to report those three different operations? Answer: Yes, but you would show your company s name and ID number on all three forms. You should show the correct number of manhours for each operation and the number of injuries and overboard incidents for each as well. Question: Should I count overtime employees work onboard the vessel? Answer: No, if the overtime occurs while onboard the live-aboard vessel, you are already counting a 24-hour day. A crewmember cannot work any more than 24 hours per day. For vessels where the crewmember goes home each day, you would count all hours worked, including those hours of overtime work. 29

30 Question: If a worker spends part of their time onboard a vessel and part of their time on the dock, how would you count their hours? Answer: This is entirely up to the employer. You could count just the time he or she is onboard the vessel or you could count only the time where he or she spent the greatest amount of time working. Summary There is very limited specific guidance for the maritime industry regarding the counting of manhours for mariners. However, due to the requirements of the Jones Act and the employers responsibilities within the act, AWO has adopted this way of counting manhours. 30

31 IV. Calculating Incident Rates 31

32 IV. Calculating Incidence Rates An incident rate is the number of recordable injuries or work-related illnesses occurring among a given number of full-time workers over a period of time. To evaluate your operation s injury experience over a period of time or to compare your operation s experience with that of the rest of the maritime industry, you need to compute your incident rate. (When submitting to AWO s independent collector, those incidence rates are calculated for you.) Because a specific number of workers and a specific period of time are involved, these rates can help you identify problems in your operations and/or progress you may have made in preventing work-related injuries. These rates also help identify trends and target safety activities. Incident rates can be calculated for different things using a standard universal formula. This formula allows for an apples-to-apples comparison because it takes into account employee variations such as a different number of crewmembers onboard the vessel. The most common incident rate is the recordable incident rate, but companies can also compute lost-time incident rates (LTA), severity rates, recordable incident rates, or even specific rates such as overboard incidents or slip-and-fall incidents. For example, if a company has been experiencing numerous slip/fall injuries at its five locations, all of different sizes, count the number of slip/fall incidents and use the manhours for each to determine where to concentrate slip/fall prevention measures. The standard formula, developed by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, for computing the recordable incident rate is as follows: The number of recordable injuries X 200,000 divided by number of manhours worked = recordable case rate. (The 200,000 figure in the formula represents the number of hours 100 employees working 40 hours per week, 50 weeks per year would work and provides the standard base for calculating incident rates.) For example, a small company working only one vessel with nine crewmembers with one recordable injury during the year would be exactly equal to a 65-vessel company with the same crew compliment having 65 injuries during the year. Lost Work Time Rate = (number of LTAs X 200,000 / total number of manhours) Lost Work Day Rate = (number of days away from work X 200,000 / manhours) Recordable Severity Rate = (number of days off work or restricted duty X 200,000 / manhours As you can see above, plug whatever category you want to measure into the first part of the equation and determine the experience rate. The recordable severity rate is an indicator of safety performance as it measures the more serious injuries involving lost work days and the days of restricted duty activity. The regular recordable injury rate is 32

33 also a good general indicator, but is limited because it gives equal weighing to both minor and major injuries. Maintaining incident rates allows a company to benchmark their safety program with like operations within the maritime industry. The incident rates can also help companies know where they should concentrate their time and efforts to reduce injuries. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS: Calculating Incident Rates Question: How can I use my numbers to compare our operation with other similar operations? Answer: On the AWO statistics report, your numbers would be the first at the top. If you reported your company as an Inland Dry company for example, you would go down the list until you find the inland dry numbers and go across to determine the average recordable, lost-time, and overboard rates for that group, which would enable you to benchmark with other companies. Question: How can I compare my company s incident rates with other companies of like size and trades? Answer: Actually you can t compare your numbers with other companies the size of your operation using the AWO report due to privacy issues. Although you could contact companies of similar size and trade and see if they would be interested in a friendly statistics exchange with you. Question: Are there other ways to compare our numbers to those of others in our industry? Answer: Yes, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) collects data from a statistical sample of employers in all industries and across all size classes, using the data to compile the occupational injury and illnesses statistics for the nation. The problem with these numbers is that they are only from a sample of operations. Question: How can I find the Bureau of Labor Statistics numbers for my operation? Answer: If you are looking for your BLS numbers, you will find these numbers in the Major Group for Water Transportation in the North America Industry Classification System (NAICS) at The old Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) was Major Group 44. Once you find your Major Group, go down the page until you find the one that best describes your operation. Question: If I submit my numbers to the AWO third-party agent, is there any way another company could figure out my incident rates? 33

34 No. There is no way another company could figure out what anyone else submitted to the agent. The following is a copy of the report: Fatalities Recordable Injuries Lost Time Injuries Fa Manhours Number Rate Number Rate Number Rate Nu Coastal East Quarter 1,490, YTD 6,199, Coastal Harbors Quarter 1,913, YTD 7,094, Coastal West Quarter 949, YTD 4,365, Fleets Quarter 1,005, YTD 3,709, Inland Dry Quarter 7,320, YTD 27,461, Inland Liquid Quarter 5,483, YTD 21,111, All Participants Quarter 19,537, YTD 75,446, As you can see from this 2008 report, it is impossible to identify any company. 34

35 V. Reporting 35

36 V. Reporting Background On November 1, 2002, a Working Group of the Interregion Safety Committee contracted with the Hile Group, an independent contractor, to work with members of AWO to collect safety statistics in four areas: crew fatalities, recordable injuries, lost-time injuries, and man-overboard incidents. The Hile Group receives reports from participating companies and produces summary reports on a quarterly basis. These reports include quarterly and year-to-date totals in a format that can be used to compare a company s fatality, fall-overboard, and injury rates to companies of similar size engaged in like operations and against the universe of participants as a whole. Participating companies receive data from their own companies and aggregate totals based on information reported by other participants. The chief method to distribute the data and communicate with the participants is via . Reporting Process Registration for this valuable, industry-wide data-gathering project is simple and voluntary. To maintain confidentiality, AWO employs Hile Group as a trusted but neutral third-party clearinghouse for gathering and analysis of these safety statistics. Step One Request a registration form by sending an message to Hile Group (stats@hilegroup.com) or calling them at Hile Group will forward four documents to you including a registration form (Appendix A), Frequently Asked Questions (Appendix B), an explanatory Job Tool (Appendix C), and a description of the Operating Sectors (Appendix D). Step Two Fill out the registration form, which asks for the following information: your company name; the name of the person who will submit data and receive reports; complete contact information for that person, including address, phone number, fax, and ; and the sector for which data is submitted. (Appendix D) Step Three Return the registration form to Hile Group; they will confirm receipt via . Hile Group s message will include your randomly chosen confidential identification number, additional details about how to submit data each quarter, and a schedule of deadlines for the year. 36

37 Step Four Companies submit data each quarter by ing, faxing or mailing the completed Data Submission Form shown as Appendix C of this manual to Hile Group. Contact them via at stats@hilegroup.com or via fax at or via U.S. Postal Service to 1100 N. Beech St., Building 15, Normal, IL Hile Group is available by telephone at The Safety Statistics Submission Form requests the following five criteria be submitted, by Division, on a quarterly basis: Employee hours Total number of crew fatalities Total number of recordable injuries Total number of lost-time injuries Total number of falls overboard This information is then entered in an analysis system, stripped of identifying information, and compiled into timely, industry-wide reports offering a verifiable view of the health of our maritime safety. Corrections You may submit corrections to your company data by ing updated information to stats@hilegroup.com or calling the office at (309) Corrections will only be accepted during the same calendar year. A final annual report will be released in May of the following year, and no corrections will be accepted after that date. 37

38 38

39 V. Appendices 39

40 Appendix A. AWO SAFETY STATISTICS PROGRAM REGISTRATION FORM To register for the Program, follow these three easy steps: 1. Complete the following information: Company name: Name of person who will submit data/receive reports: Contact person s information: Address: Phone: Fax: Operating Sectors for which data is submitted (please choose one): Fleets, Inland Dry, Inland Liquid, Coastal East, Coastal West, Coastal Harbors 2. Submit information to Hile Group You can submit the above information to Hile Group: to Hile Group associate Lora Ferraro at (stats@hilegroup.com). Fax at (309) Mail to Hile Group, ATTN: Lora Ferraro, 1100 N Beech, Building 15 Normal IL Receive confirmation from Hile Group: After you register, Hile Group will send a reply confirming registration. We will do the following: Randomly assign each company a confidential identification number. Provide details on how to submit data each month. Supply a schedule with all deadlines for current year. Please see the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) sheet for more information on the program. For a copy, contact Lora Ferraro at Hile Group stats@hilegroup.com or phone: (309)

41 Appendix B. FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQ): AWO SAFETY STATISTICS PROGRAM How to Register to Participate and Submit Data Q: How do I register for the first time? Hile Group associate Lora Ferraro (stats@hilegroup.com) the following information: Company name. Name of person who will submit data/receive reports. Contact person s information: address, phone, fax, and . In return, Hile Group will send a reply confirming registration. We will: Randomly assign each company a confidential identification number. Provide details on how to submit data each month. Supply a schedule with all deadlines for current year. 007AQ: How do I submit my monthly data? You will submit data by ing, faxing, or mailing the completed form to Lora Ferraro at stats@hilegroup.com, fax number (309) , or 1100 N. Beech St., Building 15, Normal, IL Q: What are the Operating Sectors referred to in the introductory ? You can submit monthly data in one or more of the following Operating Sectors: Inland Dry, Inland Liquid, Fleets, Coastal East, Coastal West, Coastal Harbors. Q: What do I need to submit? There are five criteria that need to be submitted, by division, on a monthly basis: Employee hours Total number of crew fatalities Total number of recordable injuries Total number of lost-time injuries Total number of falls-overboards 41

42 Appendix C. 42