Types of Potential Hazards in the Work Environment

Types of Potential Hazards in the Work Environment - Hazards or hazards in the world of work are divided into 3 types, namely safety, health hazards and environmental hazards. Each has characteristics and uniqueness. The following are about the dangers that every worker must know, regardless of the type of work, to minimize the potential that may occur.

Definition of Hazard

According to ISO 45001

Hazards are sources that can cause work-related injuries and illnesses (sources that have the potential to cause injury and health problems).

According to OHSAS 18001

A hazard is a source, condition or action that is likely to result in accident or injury to people, damage, or other nuisance

So basically hazards are elements of the physical environment that pose a potential hazard to humans. In this case, a hazard is an object where there is energy, substance, or working conditions that have the potential to threaten health and safety.

So actually we encounter many sources, such as chemicals, machine parts, forms of energy, work methods, work situations, etc. The form of damage or loss that can occur as a result of this can be in the form of physical disability, injury, property damage, production loss, environmental damage, or a combination of these losses.

There are at least 5 main types of potential hazards:

1. Physical Hazard
2. Chemical Hazard
3. Biological Hazard
4. Ergonomic Hazard
5. Psychological Hazards

Types of Potential Hazards in the Work Environment

1. Physical Hazards

Physical hazards are the most common and common in the workplace. This includes unsafe conditions that can cause injury, illness, physical disability, or death.

This type of hazard is one of the easiest places for us to identify, but we often ignore it because we are used to seeing it like this on a daily basis, for example, unmaintained cables, chipped connections, leaks (water entering the workplace). Usually for trivial things like that sometimes we don't care at all and always postpone repairs because they feel they are still functioning, but one day it can become a potential danger that can result in losses.

The following are examples of physical hazards:

• Working with high voltage equipment
• Wrong cable connection
• Wet floor
• Improper work area layout
• Lighting conditions
• Temperature
• Humidity
• Exposure to solar radiation
• Narrow space
• Working with powered equipment (power tools)
• Uneven floor
• Load received in static body condition
• Electromagnetic field exposure
• Overhead hazard
• Sharp objects
• Fast moving equipment

2. Chemical Hazards

Chemical hazards are substances that have characteristics and effects that can harm human health and safety.

The following are examples of chemical hazards:

• Chemical reaction
• Chemical production process
• Chemical storage
• Flammable substance
• Combustible material
• Carcinogenic substances
• Mutagenic substances
• Oxidizing agent
• Corrosive Substance

3. Biological Hazard

Biological hazards are organisms or substances produced by organisms that may pose a threat to human health and safety.

The following are examples of biological hazards:

• Blood or other body fluids
• Human waste
• Anthrax
• Mold
• Viruses and bacteria
• Poisonous plant
• Animal droppings
• Animal bites

4. Ergonomic Hazards

Ergonomics hazard is a type of hazard that occurs when the type of work, body position, and working conditions do not match. Ergonomics hazards are strongly influenced by body position such as how we are when lifting heavy objects. For this ergonomic danger, the most obvious impact is muscle pain in the short term, but doing work that is not in accordance with work rules can lead to more serious problems in the long term.

Examples of sources of ergonomic hazards include:

• Dim
• The workplace is not adapted to the worker's body
• Often lifts heavy objects
• Inadequate posture
• Awkward movementRepeating the same movement over and over

5. Psychological Danger

Psychological hazards cause a person to experience mental stress, or mental disorders.

Examples of potential psychological harm include:

• Violence at work
• Bullying
• Fatigue
• Work alone
• Phobia
• Lack of motivation
• Poor leadership
• Working speed
• Lack of motivation
• Workload excess/disadvantage

Types of Potential Hazards According to International Organizations

Types of OHS hazards can also be based on references determined by various international OHS organizations such as

1. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

2. International Labor Organization (ILO)

3. Canadian Center for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS)

OHS Hazards According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

Some types of OHS hazards mentioned by OSHA in a publication entitled Job Hazard Analysis are as follows:

• Toxic chemical hazard.
• Flammable hazard.
• Corrosive hazard.
• Static electricity hazard.
• Explosive hazard due to chemical reaction and overpressure.
• Electric shock hazard.
• Danger of burning due to electricity.
• Ergonomics hazards in the form of injury and human error.
• Noise hazard.
• Excavated debris hazard.
• Danger of falling (including slipping and tripping).
• Hazards of ionizing and non-ionizing radiation.
• Danger of hitting objects.
• Danger of being hit by objects.
• Weather hazards (snow, rain, wind, ice).
• The dangers of violence in the workplace.

OSH Hazards According to the International Labor Organization (ILO)

Several types of OSH hazards mentioned by the ILO in the Encyclopedia of Occupational Safety and Health are as follows:

• Biological hazard.
• Danger of violence and visual appearance of electronic devices.
• Pressure hazards (rise and fall).
• Electrical hazard.
• Fire hazard.
• Noise hazard.
• Indoor air quality hazards.
• Indoor environmental control hazards.
• Vibration hazard.

OSH Hazards According to the Canadian Center for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS)

Several types of OHS hazards according to CCOHS include the following:

• Chemical hazards.
• Ergonomics hazards (manual handling, lighting, sitting-standing position, slips, falls, office settings, work shifts, etc.).
• Health hazards (biological, disease, plague).
• Physical hazards (room air quality, mold, noise, radiation, temperature).
• Psychosocial hazards (stress, bullying, violence).
• Safety hazards (electricity, ladders, machinery, work tools, etc.).
• Workplace hazards (working alone, confined spaces, ventilation and weather).

Tips to Avoid Potential Hazards at Work

The most basic thing you can do is to recognize the environment around you, know the type of work you are doing and know the logical consequences when you work but you don't have to, such as not following SOPs, not focusing, being slow, etc. Knowing these things is the first step to protect yourself in anticipating work accidents / potential hazards that may occur in the workplace.

Due to the many types of hazards in the work environment, the company is obliged to protect each of its employees by controlling K3 in the work environment to minimize the occurrence of hazards that may or may not occur.