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Occupational Safety, Health & Environmental Management Fundamentals

Production Management Operations Grade 3 生産管理オペレーション (BC検定) · ビジネス・キャリア検定 生産管理オペレーション3級 · Written by Tokutei Pass based on the official study texts; not copied verbatim.

1. Purpose of the Industrial Safety and Health Act and Safety & Health Management Organization

The "Industrial Safety and Health Act," in conjunction with the Labor Standards Act, aims to secure the safety and health of workers in the workplace and promote the "formation of a comfortable working environment" by establishing hazard-prevention standards, clarifying responsibility structures, and encouraging voluntary activities to prevent industrial accidents.

Manufacturing workplaces are legally required to establish a safety and health management organization scaled to their workforce size. A manufacturing workplace regularly employing "50 or more workers" must appoint a "Safety Officer," a "Health Officer," and an "Industrial Physician," and must establish a "Safety and Health Committee" that meets at least once a month.

Workplaces regularly employing "10 to 49 workers" must appoint a "Safety and Health Promoter," while large manufacturing workplaces regularly employing "300 or more workers" must appoint the top site manager (such as the Plant Manager) as the "General Safety and Health Manager."

Workplace patrol frequency is a top exam favorite: the "Safety Officer" patrols as needed; the "Health Officer" must inspect the workplace "at least once every week"; and the "Industrial Physician" must inspect the workplace "at least once every month (or once every two months if specified conditions are met and the employer consents)."

Key points


  • Manufacturing workplaces with 50 or more regular workers = mandatory appointment of "Safety Officer, Health Officer, and Industrial Physician" and establishment of a "Safety and Health Committee (meets ≥ once/month)" (10–49 workers require a Safety and Health Promoter).

  • Mandatory workplace patrol frequency: Health Officer = "at least once a week" / Industrial Physician = "at least once a month."

  • Half of the members of the Safety and Health Committee must be nominated based on the recommendation of the majority labor union (or majority worker representative).
WordMeaning
Industrial Safety and Health Act
General Safety and Health Manager, Safety Officer, and Health Officer
Industrial Physician and Safety and Health Committee (50 or more workers)
workplace patrol (Health Officer = weekly; Industrial Physician = monthly)

2. Calculating Occupational Accident Statistics (Frequency Rate, Severity Rate, Annual Rate per 1,000 Workers)

Three statistical indicators are used to objectively evaluate occupational accident occurrence. First, the "Frequency Rate (Dosuuritsu)" represents the number of casualties (deaths and injuries) from industrial accidents per 1,000,000 total actual working hours, expressing accident "frequency."

The formula for Frequency Rate is "Frequency Rate = (Number of Casualties from Industrial Accidents ÷ Total Actual Working Hours) × 1,000,000" (counted for casualties requiring 1 or more days of absence, excluding no-lost-time injuries).

Second, the "Severity Rate (Kyoudoritsu)" represents the number of lost workdays per 1,000 total actual working hours, expressing accident "severity (seriousness)." Its formula is "Severity Rate = (Total Lost Workdays ÷ Total Actual Working Hours) × 1,000" (a fatality or permanent total disability is counted as "7,500 lost days," while temporary disability days are converted by "Days of Absence × (300 ÷ 365)").

Third, the "Annual Incidence Rate per 1,000 Workers (Nen-sennin-ritsu)" indicates the number of casualties occurring in 1 year per 1,000 workers, calculated as "Annual Rate per 1,000 = (Annual Casualties ÷ Average Number of Workers during the Year) × 1,000."

Key points


  • Frequency Rate (accident frequency) = (Number of Casualties ÷ Total Actual Working Hours) × 1,000,000 (per 1 million hours).

  • Severity Rate (accident seriousness) = (Total Lost Workdays ÷ Total Actual Working Hours) × 1,000 (per 1,000 hours; death = 7,500 days).

  • Annual Rate per 1,000 Workers = (Annual Casualties ÷ Average Annual Workers) × 1,000 (per 1,000 workers).

  • Example: Average 400 workers, 800,000 total actual working hours/year, 2 casualties → Frequency rate = 2 ÷ 800,000 × 1,000,000 = 2.5; Annual rate per 1,000 workers = 2 ÷ 400 × 1,000 = 5.0

  • Example: 800,000 total actual working hours and 400 total lost workdays (including 365 absence days converted as 365 × 300 ÷ 365 = 300 lost days) → Severity rate = 400 ÷ 800,000 × 1,000 = 0.5
WordMeaning
Frequency Rate (casualties per 1,000,000 working hours: frequency)
Severity Rate (lost workdays per 1,000 working hours: severity)
Annual Rate per 1,000 Workers (annual casualties per 1,000 workers)

3. Inherent Machine Safety (Fail-Safe / Fool-Proof), Specified Machinery, and Specified Autonomous Inspection

The two major principles of "Inherent Machine Safety (safety design)" preventing equipment accidents are "Fail-Safe" and "Fool-Proof." "Fail-Safe" is a design principle ensuring that even if a machine or component fails or loses power, it always defaults to the safe side (such as stopping the machine or lowering a crossing gate).

In contrast, "Fool-Proof" is a mechanism ensuring that even if a human makes a careless mistake or misoperates a control, no hazard arises; classic examples include an "Interlock" that prevents a machine from starting unless the safety guard is closed, and a "Two-Hand Control Safety Device" on a press that operates only when both hands press buttons simultaneously.

Under the Industrial Safety and Health Act, particularly hazardous equipment—"Boilers, Class-1 Pressure Vessels, Cranes and Mobile Cranes with a lifting capacity of 3 tons or more, Derricks, Elevators, and Gondolas"—are designated as "Specified Machinery, etc.," requiring a "Manufacturing Permit" from the Prefectural Labor Bureau Director and issuance of an "Inspection Certificate."

Furthermore, for designated machines such as power presses and forklifts, among periodic self-inspections, employers must conduct a "Specified Autonomous Inspection" "at least once every year" performed by a qualified inspector (or registered inspection agency) and affix an "Inspection Sticker (decal)" to the machine (retaining inspection records for 3 years).

Key points


  • Fail-Safe = design that shifts to the safe side (stops) when equipment fails / Fool-Proof = design that prevents danger even when humans misoperate (interlocks, two-hand press switches, etc.).

  • Specified Machinery (requires manufacturing permit) = Boilers, Class-1 Pressure Vessels, Cranes (≥ 3t), Mobile Cranes, Derricks, Elevators, Gondolas.

  • Specified Autonomous Inspection = mandatory annual inspection by a qualified inspector with an inspection sticker affixed for forklifts, power presses, etc.
WordMeaning
Fail-Safe and Fool-Proof (Interlock)
Specified Machinery (manufacturing permit for boilers, cranes, etc.)
Periodic Autonomous Inspection and Specified Autonomous Inspection (inspection sticker)

4. Risk Assessment Priority Hierarchy, Safety Education, and Restricted Work

"Risk Assessment" is the systematic process of identifying potential workplace hazards or harmful factors, estimating their risk (Severity of Harm × Probability of Occurrence), and implementing risk-reduction measures in order of priority.

With legal compliance as an absolute prerequisite, the priority order for risk reduction is: ① "Inherent Safety Design (eliminating or substituting hazardous work/substances)," ② "Engineering Controls (safety guards, interlocks, local exhaust ventilation)," ③ "Administrative Controls (manuals, warning signs, restricted entry)," and finally, as a last-resort supplement, ④ "Using Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)."

Employers must provide "Safety and Health Education" upon hiring workers or changing their job duties, and must conduct "Special Education" before assigning workers to designated hazardous tasks such as arc welding, low-voltage electrical work, or industrial robot teaching.

For even higher-hazard "Restricted Work," only qualified personnel who hold a "License" from the Prefectural Labor Bureau Director or have completed a "Skill Training Course" at a registered training institution may be assigned to the job.

Representative examples of Restricted Work include "operating a forklift with a maximum load of 1 ton or more," "operating a crane with a lifting capacity of 5 tons or more (License)," "slinging work (Tamagake) for cranes with a lifting capacity of 1 ton or more," and "gas welding"; hazardous workplaces must also appoint an "Operations Chief (Sagyou Shuninsha)."

Key points


  • Risk Assessment reduction priority: ① Inherent safety (elimination/substitution) → ② Engineering controls (guards, safety devices) → ③ Administrative controls (procedures, training) → ④ Personal Protective Equipment (last resort).

  • Safety & Health Education = education upon hiring or job change, plus "Special Education" when assigning specific hazardous tasks.

  • Restricted Work (requires License or Skill Training Course) = Forklifts ≥ 1 ton, Slinging (Tamagake) ≥ 1 ton, Crane operation ≥ 5 tons, Gas welding, etc.
WordMeaning
Risk Assessment and priority hierarchy of risk-reduction measures
education upon hiring and Special Education
Restricted Work (License and Skill Training Course)
appointment of an Operations Chief (Sagyou Shuninsha)

5. The Three Managements of Occupational Health, Working Environment Measurement (Control Classes 1–3), and Health Exams

The "Three Managements of Occupational Health" to prevent occupational diseases and protect worker health are: ① "Working Environment Management (improving the environment itself—enclosing hazard sources, installing local exhaust ventilation, optimizing lighting, temperature, and humidity)," ② "Work Management (managing work methods—shortening hazardous exposure time, ergonomic posture, proper PPE use)," and ③ "Health Management (medical examinations and follow-up care)."

In hazardous workplaces handling dust, organic solvents, specified chemical substances, or noise, employers must periodically (typically at least once every 6 months) conduct "Working Environment Measurement" and evaluate the results into three "Control Classes."

"Control Class 1" means the working environment is well-controlled and appropriate (maintain status); "Control Class 2" is an intermediate state with room for improvement (strive to improve); and "Control Class 3" is an inappropriate state exceeding administrative concentration levels—requiring immediate equipment inspection/improvement and mandatory use of effective respiratory protective equipment.

Regarding "Medical Examinations," employers must conduct "General Health Examinations" upon hiring and periodically once a year (or "once every 6 months" for night-shift and designated hazardous work), as well as "Special Health Examinations" tailored to specific hazards like organic solvents, lead, or pneumoconiosis (generally "once every 6 months").

5. The Three Managements of Occupational Health, Working Environment Measurement (Control Classes 1–3), and Health Exams

Key points


  • Three Managements of Occupational Health: ① Working Environment Management (local exhaust ventilation, enclosing sources) + ② Work Management (exposure time, posture, PPE) + ③ Health Management (health exams).

  • Working Environment Measurement evaluation: Control Class 1 (good, maintain), Control Class 2 (strive to improve), Control Class 3 (inappropriate → immediate equipment improvement and PPE mandatory).

  • Periodic general health exams are "once a year"; exams for night-shift/specified workers and Special Health Examinations (organic solvents, etc.) are "once every 6 months."
WordMeaning
Three Managements of Occupational Health (Working Environment, Work, Health)
Local Exhaust Ventilation system
Working Environment Measurement (Control Classes 1, 2, and 3)
General Health Examination and Special Health Examination

6. The Four Big Pollution Diseases and the "Typical 7 Pollutions" of the Basic Environment Act

During Japan's rapid economic growth era (1950s–1960s), factory effluent and smoke caused severe industrial pollution, resulting in the "Four Big Pollution Diseases." Reflection on these tragedies formed the starting point of Japan's strict modern environmental laws.

Memorize the "region and causative substance" of each of the Four Big Pollution Diseases: ① "Minamata Disease (Minamata Bay, Kumamoto Prefecture)" and ② "Niigata Minamata Disease (Agano River basin, Niigata Prefecture)" were both caused by "Methylmercury (organic mercury) compounds" in factory wastewater.

③ "Itai-itai Disease (Jinzu River basin, Toyama Prefecture)" was chronic poisoning (osteomalacia) caused by "Cadmium" in mine effluent, and ④ "Yokkaichi Asthma (Yokkaichi City, Mie Prefecture)" was caused by air pollution from "Sulfur Oxides (SOx, such as sulfur dioxide)" emitted by petrochemical complexes.

The "Basic Environment Act," the cornerstone of current environmental policy, defines the "Typical 7 Pollutions" that harm human health or the living environment through business activities: ① Air Pollution, ② Water Pollution, ③ Soil Contamination, ④ Noise, ⑤ Vibration, ⑥ Ground Subsidence (from excessive groundwater pumping, etc.), and ⑦ Offensive Odors.

Key points


  • Four Big Pollution Diseases: Minamata (Kumamoto) & Niigata Minamata (Agano River) = Methylmercury / Itai-itai Disease (Jinzu River, Toyama) = Cadmium / Yokkaichi Asthma (Mie) = Sulfur Oxides (SOx).

  • "Typical 7 Pollutions" of the Basic Environment Act = ① Air pollution, ② Water pollution, ③ Soil contamination, ④ Noise, ⑤ Vibration, ⑥ Ground subsidence, ⑦ Offensive odors.

  • Note: Illegal dumping of industrial waste, sunlight obstruction, and radio wave interference are environmental issues, but they are NOT included among the "Typical 7 Pollutions."
WordMeaning
Four Big Pollution Diseases (Minamata, Niigata Minamata, Itai-itai, Yokkaichi Asthma)
Methylmercury, Cadmium, and Sulfur Oxides (SOx)
Basic Environment Act and the Typical 7 Pollutions

7. Pollution Control Laws (Air, Water BOD/COD, Waste Manifest System) and Emergency Response

The "Air Pollution Control Act" regulates "Soot and Smoke (harmful substances such as sulfur oxides SOx, soot/dust, and nitrogen oxides NOx)" emitted from boilers and incinerators, "Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs)" from painting/cleaning processes that cause photochemical oxidants, and "Specified Particulates (Asbestos)" during building demolition.

The "Water Pollution Prevention Act" sets effluent standards for factory wastewater from specified facilities across two categories: "Harmful Substances (human health items)" such as cadmium, cyanide, mercury, and hexavalent chromium, and "Living Environment Items" such as pH, SS (suspended solids), and oil content.

Specifically, as indicators of organic water pollution: flowing "Rivers (Kasen)" use "BOD (Biochemical Oxygen Demand)," the amount of oxygen consumed by microorganisms decomposing organic matter; stagnant "Lakes/Marshes and Sea Areas (Koshou / Kaiiki)" use "COD (Chemical Oxygen Demand)," measured chemically with an oxidizing agent.

Under the "Waste Management and Public Cleansing Act," "Industrial Waste" from factories—such as sludge, waste oil, waste plastics, and metal scrap—is the "processing responsibility of the waste-generating business"; when outsourcing disposal, the generator must issue an "Industrial Waste Management Ticket (Manifest)," verify completion through final disposal, and retain copies for 5 years (while promoting the 3Rs).

If an accidental leak or spill of hazardous substances or oil occurs: ① Immediately shut down the source (close valves, etc.) and prevent off-site outflow using sandbags, oil fences, or neutralization, and ② Promptly report to internal managers and notify administrative authorities such as the prefectural governor, municipality, and fire department.

Key points


  • Air Pollution Control Act = regulates emissions of soot/smoke (SOx, NOx, dust), VOCs (volatile organic compounds), and specified particulates (Asbestos).

  • Water pollution indicators: Organic pollution indicator for "Rivers" is "BOD (Biochemical Oxygen Demand)" / Indicator for "Lakes and Sea Areas" is "COD (Chemical Oxygen Demand)."

  • Industrial waste is the responsibility of the "waste-generating business"; when outsourcing, the "Manifest (Industrial Waste Management Ticket)" tracks waste until final disposal.
WordMeaning
Air Pollution Control Act (soot/smoke, VOCs, specified particulates = Asbestos)
Water Pollution Prevention Act (Rivers = BOD; Lakes & Sea Areas = COD)
Industrial Waste and the Manifest System (Industrial Waste Management Ticket)
3Rs (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle)

8. ISO 14001 (Environmental Management System) and the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals)

The international standard (certification standard) for an "Environmental Management System (EMS)" enabling organizations to voluntarily and continually reduce environmental impact and prevent pollution is "ISO 14001."

Under an "Environmental Policy" established by top management, ISO 14001 rotates the PDCA cycle: ① Plan (identifying environmental aspects, compliance obligations, and environmental objectives) → ② Do (operational control and emergency preparedness) → ③ Check (monitoring/measurement, internal audit, management review) → ④ Act (corrective action and continual improvement).

Adopted at the 2015 UN Summit, the universal global goals to be achieved by 2030 are the "SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals)." Guided by the pledge to "leave no one behind," the SDGs consist of "17 Goals" and "169 Targets."

The "5 Ps" emphasized by the SDGs are: ① People (ending poverty and hunger), ② Planet (climate action and environmental protection), ③ Prosperity (economic growth), ④ Peace, and ⑤ Partnership.

In the manufacturing sector, active contributions are especially expected toward Goal 12 "Responsible Consumption and Production" and "Carbon Neutrality (decarbonization)," aiming for net-zero greenhouse gas emissions.

8. ISO 14001 (Environmental Management System) and the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals)

Key points


  • ISO 14001 = international standard specifying requirements for an Environmental Management System (EMS), continually improving environmental performance via the PDCA cycle under an Environmental Policy.

  • SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) = "17 Goals and 169 Targets" with a target deadline of 2030.

  • The "5 Ps" of the SDGs = People, Planet, Prosperity, Peace, and Partnership.
WordMeaning
ISO 14001 (Environmental Management System: EMS)
Internal Audit and Management Review
SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals: 17 Goals)
5 Ps of the SDGs and Carbon Neutrality

High-Frequency Exam Points and Memory Aids

In safety statistics calculations, never mix up the multipliers (1,000,000 vs. 1,000) between "Frequency Rate = Casualties ÷ Total Working Hours × 1,000,000 (frequency)" and "Severity Rate = Lost Workdays ÷ Total Working Hours × 1,000 (seriousness)."

For statutory numbers, top exam questions test: "50 or more workers = Safety Officer, Health Officer, Industrial Physician, Safety & Health Committee," "Workplace patrol = Health Officer weekly, Industrial Physician monthly," and "Restricted Work for Forklifts & Slinging (Tamagake) = ≥ 1 ton; Crane license = ≥ 5 tons."

Also watch for "Fail-Safe (stopping on the safe side when a machine fails) vs. Fool-Proof (preventing human misoperation)" and "Control Class 3 in Working Environment Measurement (requires immediate improvement and respiratory PPE)."

In the environmental section, memorize: "Regions and causes of the Four Big Pollution Diseases (Minamata & Niigata = Methylmercury, Toyama Itai-itai = Cadmium, Yokkaichi = SOx)," "Typical 7 Pollutions," "Rivers = BOD vs. Lakes & Sea = COD," "Industrial Waste Manifest = issued by the waste-generating business," and "ISO 14001 & SDGs (17 Goals, 5 Ps)."

Key points


  • Frequency Rate = Casualties ÷ Working Hours × 1,000,000 / Severity Rate = Lost Days ÷ Working Hours × 1,000 / Patrols: Health Officer = weekly, Industrial Physician = monthly.

  • Four Big Pollution Diseases: Minamata & Niigata = Methylmercury, Itai-itai = Cadmium, Yokkaichi = SOx / Water indicators: Rivers = BOD, Lakes & Sea = COD.

  • ISO 9001 = Quality, ISO 14001 = Environmental Management / SDGs = 17 Goals, 169 Targets, 5 Ps (People, Planet, Prosperity, Peace, Partnership).
WordMeaning
Frequency Rate (× 1,000,000) and Severity Rate (× 1,000)
workplace patrols by Health Officer (weekly) and Industrial Physician (monthly)
Four Big Pollution Diseases and River BOD vs. Sea/Lake COD
ISO 14001 and SDGs (17 Goals and 5 Ps)

Safety, Health & Environment

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