Do your hospitality workplace supervisors understand their role? ‘Due Diligence’ explained

From Workplace Safety & Prevention Services

“Supervisors have some of the greatest responsibilities in the workplace. They take on the role of coach, referee, and player,” says Ayden Robertson, senior health and safety consultant with Workplace Safety & Prevention Services (WSPS). ​“It’s so important that supervisors receive training that clearly explains their role and legal responsibilities.”

When supervisors do not fully understand their responsibilities, it could result in an unsafe workplace and individual fines. For example, if a supervisor fails to ensure workers are provided with appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) for the chemicals they are handling, they could be fined. In fact, the supervisor could be criminally liable if a workplace fatality occurs, pending an investigation.

What is due diligence?

Ultimately, the employer is responsible for the safety of all employees; however, supervisors are often the ones working directly with workers, ensuring safe working procedures are being followed and PPE is being worn properly.

“It could be the general manager, assistant general manager, housekeeping lead, or kitchen supervisor. We’re talking about anyone who is organizing and assigning work, training workers on safe ways to work, or ensuring that things are being done a certain way,” says Robertson. ​“Often the people acting in a supervisory capacity are also doing the work themselves,” he says, highlighting that this can be viewed as an advantage because they usually know what’s happening on a day-to-day basis. They interact with both workers and leadership, keeping everyone in the loop.

Robertson explains that hotel staff are at higher risk for workplace violence and harassment because of their direct involvement with the public, late hours, and employees working alone. ​“Most hotels should have a robust violence and harassment policy and program in place. But it’s effective only if workers are properly trained and follow procedure, and that starts with the information and instruction they receive from their supervisor,” he explains

If an incident occurs, an investigation will likely follow. Inspectors will ask the supervisor questions to determine what led to the incident and to ensure that the supervisor and the employer exercised ​‘due diligence’. Due diligence essentially means that the employer and supervisor took reasonable precautions to prevent the incident. ​“If the supervisor isn’t able to adequately demonstrate that training was provided and efforts were made to ensure safe working procedures were followed, their competency may be called into question,” notes Robertson.

What is a competent supervisor?

“A competent supervisor is someone who is qualified because of knowledge, training, and experience to organize the work; is familiar with the applicable legislation; and has knowledge of any actual or potential danger to health and safety in the workplace,” explains Robertson. ​“In order to protect workers, supervisors must be able to recognize hazards and determine what is needed to allow the work to be performed safely.”

For example, if a cleaner has a tear in their glove that could lead to their skin being exposed to a harmful chemical, the housekeeping lead needs to be able to recognize the hazard and ensure the worker gets a new glove. Similarly, if the kitchen lead sees a worker operating a slicer without proper guards, they need to be able to recognize that and ensure the guards are put in place. ​“Supervisors need to understand the risks and the appropriate controls required to mitigate those risks,” says Robertson.

Prepare supervisors for success

Supervisors play a critical role in managing health and safety in any workplace. To do their job effectively, they need adequate time, proper resources, and the required tools. Here are some things employers can do to set up their supervisors for success and demonstrate due diligence.

Train and educate

Give your supervisors the knowledge they need to meet the legislative requirement of competency. In addition to having experience in how to assign the work, supervisors need training on health and safety legislation and how it applies to their workplace. Ensure supervisors know how to implement the RACE method of hazard recognition — Recognize, Assess, Control, and Evaluate — so that they can effectively manage the actual and potential hazards present in the workplace.

Get supervisors involved

When completing hazard assessments and developing safe work procedures, get the supervisor involved rather than handing it down to them afterwards. This involvement will ensure that the supervisor has a solid understanding of the hazards, controls, and processes. It will also help supervisors explain and enforce the process with workers.

Encourage positive relationships

When supervisors have good relationships with workers, it’s much easier for everyone to work together. Employers can support this by creating a positive and respectful working environment and working with supervisors to foster relationships. Supervisors should also have productive and open communication with the joint health and safety committee so they can work together to identify and control workplace hazards.

Understanding of documentation and due diligence

It’s important for supervisors to be comfortable with the organization’s health and safety management and incident reporting systems. They need to understand the requirement for proper documentation for things like training, hazard assessments, and procedures so that they have this information available if it is requested during an investigation.

Ask the experts. To find out more about supervisors’ responsibilities and other workplace health and safety resources, check out WSPS​.CA.