Safety Committee
Tips and Considerations

Safety committees are advisory. A Safety Committee is an organizational structure where members represent a group. This gives everyone a voice but keeps the meeting size to an effective number of participants. Safety committees should not have any regulatory enforcement powers and therefore should never be assigned such responsibilities; they are advisory only. All enforcement of safety and health rules and policies within the company is the responsibility of designated employer representatives, such as supervisors.

Safety committees at multiple work sites. Companies with multiple work sites may have more than one safety committee. Each committee can operate at a single geographic location comprised of a building, group of buildings, and all surrounding facilities. The location would have both management and workers present, and one or more employees at the location would have control over a portion of a budget and would have the ability to take action on the majority of the recommendations made by a safety committee. An employer’s auxiliary, mobile, or satellite locations may be combined into a single, centralized committee. This centralized committee must represent the safety and health concerns of all the locations.

Review and incorporate state regulatory requirements. This plan is based on federal requirements and/or best practices. Some states have laws and regulations that are stricter than federal requirements and may impact how you customize this plan. Click on the link below to view state requirements on this topic. After reviewing the specific information for your state(s), you can edit the plan accordingly.

[Company name]
Safety Committee Plan

Program last updated: [date]

Authority and Scope
Regulation: [citation, where state rules require a safety committee; otherwise, delete this item.]

Scope: This Plan describes the mandate of the safety committee and details  how its role will be fulfilled.

Policy Statement
[Company name] is dedicated to protecting the safety and health of its employees. [Company name] has established a safety and health program to prevent injuries and illnesses due to hazards. Employee involvement at all levels of the company is critical for us to be successful in this effort. To accomplish this task, a joint worker/management safety committee has been established to bring workers and management together in a nonadversarial, cooperative effort to promote safety and health in the workplace. This safety committee will provide information and recommendations to management about occupational safety and health conditions and practices at [company name], and will provide a forum for information exchange.

Program Administration
Table [number] provides contact information for the safety committee.
[Duplicate the table if there are additional safety committees at multiple work sites, and list the name/location of each work site with the table; or, create a separate Safety Committee Plan for each work site.]
Table [number]
Safety Committee Contact Information
[Modify the list as applicable to your organization.]
Task	Name, job title, and/or department	Phone	
Committee Administrator	[name]	Work phone:
Cell phone:	
Committee Chairperson(s)		Work phone:
Cell phone:	
Committee Members		Work phone:
Cell phone:	
		Work phone:
Cell phone:	
		Work phone:
Cell phone:	
		Work phone:
Cell phone:	
[Other]		Work phone:
Cell phone:	

Committee Administrator. The Committee Administrator will support the activities of the Safety Committee and provide training for new members and refresher training as necessary to ensure that members are qualified and informed to carry out their responsibilities.

Committee Chairperson(s). The Committee Chairperson(s) will 
•	Prepare the agenda for each meeting.
•	Arrange for the meeting place.
•	Notify members of the meeting.
•	Set time schedule for the meeting.
•	Arrange all seating for members.
•	Review previous minutes and material for meeting.
•	Conduct the meeting.

Committee members. Committee members will carry out the committee responsibilities and functions as directed by the Committee Chairperson(s).

Safety Committee Organization
A safety committee is established as a management tool to recommend improvements to the [company name] workplace safety program and to identify corrective measures needed to eliminate or control recognized safety and health hazards. The number of safety committee management representatives will not exceed the number of employee representatives. 

Committee Responsibilities and Functions
The safety committee will:
•	Help management evaluate the effectiveness of control measures used to protect employees from safety and health hazards in the workplace.
•	Help management review and update the workplace safety and health program by evaluating employee injury and accident records, identifying trends and patterns, accident investigation findings, inspection findings, and employee reports of unsafe conditions or work practices.
•	Accept and address anonymous complaints and suggestions from employees.
•	Help management formulate corrective measures to prevent recurrence of injuries, near-misses, accidents, and property damage.
•	Promote safety and health awareness and co-worker participation through continuous improvements to the workplace safety program.
•	Assist management in monitoring workplace safety education and training to ensure that it is in place, that it is effective, and that it is documented.
•	Identify unsafe work practices and conditions and provide safety recommendations to [name(s), job title(s), or department(s)] regarding health and safety issues. 

[Choose additional committee responsibilities from the following list, or create your own; delete items not chosen.]
•	Review the safety and health program established by [company name].
•	Review incidents involving work-related fatalities, injuries and illnesses, and complaints by employees regarding safety or health hazards.
•	Review the employer’s work injury and illness records, other than personally identifiable medical information, and other reports or documents related to occupational safety and health.
•	Conduct inspections of the worksite at least [time interval] and in response to complaints by employees or committee members regarding safety or health hazards.
•	Conduct interviews with employees in conjunction with inspections of the worksite.
•	Observe the measurement of employee exposure to toxic materials and harmful physical agents.
•	Establish procedures for exercising the rights and responsibilities of the committee.
•	Make recommendations on behalf of the committee, and in making recommendations, permit any members of the committee to submit separate views to the employer for improvements in the employer’s safety and health program and for the correction of hazards to employee safety or health. The recommendations are advisory only and the employer will retain full authority to manage the worksite.
•	Accompany, upon request, the regulatory agency representative during any physical inspection of the worksite.

Management will provide written responses to written recommendations submitted by the safety committee.

Committee Meetings
Safety committee meetings are held [time interval] and more often as determined by management and the safety committee. Each committee member who is not a salaried employee will be compensated at his or her hourly wage when engaged in safety committee activities. Management will post the minutes of each meeting in a conspicuous place and the minutes will be available to all employees. All safety committee records will be maintained [location] for not less than [duration].
See Attachment [attachment number for committee minutes form] for a copy of the safety committee meeting minutes form.

Committee Membership
The Safety Committee consists of:
[Create or choose from the following list of membership options as applicable to your workplace; delete the options not chosen.]
•	Committee Chairman or designee [Modify if applicable for two co-chairs, one an employee representative, and one a management representative.]
•	Employee-elected and employer-selected members
•	Employee volunteers
•	Representation of persons with disabilities 
•	Union representation, where applicable and in accordance with union general agreements. Employees selected by the employees’ bargaining representative or union qualify as employee-elected
•	One employee safety and health representative where the average number of nonmanagerial employees of the employer at the worksite during the preceding year was more than 10, but less than 50
•	Two (2) employee safety and health representatives where the average number of nonmanagerial employees of the employer at the worksite during the preceding year was 50 or more, but less than 100
•	An additional employee safety and health representative for each additional 100 such employees at the worksite, up to a maximum of six (6) employee safety and health representatives
•	At least two members at [company name] work sites with 20 employees or less
•	The number of employee-elected members will equal or exceed the number of management-selected members.

Membership term. The Chairperson [Co-Chairpersons if applicable] will be elected from the membership for one-year terms. The term of employee-elected members is [time interval]; there is no limit to the number of terms a representative can serve.

Vacancies. If there is an employee-elected member vacancy, a new member will be elected before the next scheduled meeting.

Committee Procedures
Agenda items may be submitted to the chairperson by any member and will be distributed to members at least one (1) week before the next scheduled meeting.

Issues to be brought before the committee for discussion will be broad in scope or be those referred by employees or departments that have not been or cannot be resolved at the supervisor or management level. Committee recommendations will be forwarded to [name, job title, or department].
[Choose either or all of the following options for committee procedures as applicable to your work site(s); delete the option(s) not chosen.]
Option 1—Hazard Assessments
Option 2—Inspections
Option 3—Accident Investigations
[Option 1]
Hazard assessments. The committee will assist [company name] to conduct evaluations of existing or potential occupational hazards, and make written recommendations to minimize or eliminate the hazards where feasible. The committee will:
•	Establish procedures for workplace evaluations and inspections by the safety committee inspection team to locate and identify safety and health hazards.
•	Conduct workplace inspections at least [time interval].
•	Recommend to the employer how to eliminate hazards and unsafe work practices in the workplace.
[Option 2]
Inspections. The committee inspection team or designees will conduct safety inspections as directed by management. The person or persons designated to carry out inspection activities will be selected by [company name] management and will receive training in hazard identification in the workplace.

The inspection team will include management and employee representatives and will document in writing the location and identity of the hazards and make recommendations to management regarding correction of the hazards. The committee team or a designated person will conduct inspections of satellite locations [time interval].

The designated inspection person(s) will inspect mobile worksites or locations and activities that do not lend themselves to the inspection schedule as often as safety and health rules require and/or the committee determines is necessary.
[Option 3]
Accident investigations. Safety committee members who have been trained in accident investigation procedures will participate in accident investigations upon the request of management.

Recordkeeping
Minutes that include a record of attendance will be made of each meeting, which the employer will review and maintain for [duration]. Copies of minutes will be posted or made available for all employees and will be sent to each committee member. All reports, evaluations, and recommendations of the safety committee will be made a part of the minutes of the safety committee meeting.

Committee Member Training
[Name] will ensure that safety committee members receive appropriate training to carry out their committee responsibilities.

Committee members will have access to copies of safety and health laws, regulations, and any company policies that apply to the particular work site and be given verbal instructions regarding their use.

All safety committee members will receive training and information regarding:
[Modify the following list as applicable to your work site.]
•	Safety committee purpose and operation
•	Basic requirements of workplace safety rules and their application
•	Methods of conducting safety committee meetings
•	Hazard identification in the workplace
•	Principles regarding effective accident and incident investigations
•	Employee and employer rights and responsibilities under applicable state and federal employment and labor laws or rules
•	Injury and illness recordkeeping requirements
•	Most common causes of on-the-job accidents at the work site
•	Committee procedures

Supporting Materials
[This product includes supporting materials, such as forms or attachments, which you may need to supplement your EHS plan. Samples of the attachments are available at safety.blr.com]

Attachment [number]—Safety Committee Meeting Minutes form