The safety issues facing on-campus administrative staff are very different from those facing research staff working in a chemistry lab, at remote research site in the Sierra Nevada mountains, at an African lake, or diving under Antarctic sea ice. Nevertheless, as an organization we can do much to help assure the physical safety of our employees.

Though there are specific legal obligations for supervisorial employees, we all share a responsibility to be aware of and to reduce potential work-place hazards for both ourselves and for others around us. Fulfilling this responsibility may involve personally taking action to resolve a problem, to report a hazardous situation to an appropriate authority, to take classes to learn some safety skill, or to pursue some other solution.

Environmental Health and Safety (EH&S) is the primary campus resource for information regarding safe work practices and safety training. Answers to many safety and training questions can be found on their web site (www.ehs.ucsb.edu) or by telephoning appropriate EH&S staff.

Safety Training Requirements:

California State Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Cal-OSHA) regulations require that all employees be given training in safe work procedures. All supervisors are legally required to both provide and document appropriate training for:

1. All new employees.
2. Employees given new job assignments for which training has not been previously received.
3. Whenever new substances, process, procedures or equipment are introduced that represent a new hazard.
4. Wherever the employer is made aware of a new or previously unrecognized hazard.

"Appropriate" training will vary with each workplace situation and should cover all potential hazards associated with the job, including ergonomics and computer use.

Failure to provide and document appropriate training carries potentially significant legal liability for both the University and the individual supervisors.

More information regarding these requirements is available from EH&S (www.ehs.ucsb.edu).

For Safety Training purposes, Who is a "Supervisor"?

Anyone who directly supervises a paid employee or a volunteer would be considered a supervisor, even if supervision is not explicitly in their job description or job title.

For example, a faculty member hires a research technician and a work-study student. The work-study student functions under the direction of the technician. In this case, both the faculty member and the technician would be considered supervisors even though the technician’s job title was not a supervisory title and supervision was not explicitly listed as part of his or her job duties.

PDF –UCSB Safety Training Documentation Form

The original of this form should be maintained in the department until the employee leaves. Please forward a copy of the complete form to Environmental Health and Safety (Attn Larry Parsons).