Assignment #2: Report to a JHSC
This assignment is a report and a presentation to a company’s Joint Health & Safety Committee (JHSC) on a topic identified by the JHSC.
This assignment is worth 30% of your grade. You will have to utilize a diverse range of library and Internet sources while preparing an in-depth analysis of an OHS topic that has been identified as problematic or interesting for a report to a JHSC. The topic must be different from assignment #1. You will submit the report and a presentation on the topic for grading. It should be about 8-10 pages long (excluding title page, table of contents, references, and appendices), double spaced, using Times New Roman, 12 pt. font, 1 inch margins. Please do not exceed 10 pages.
The labour movement in Canada has developed a significant network of organizations, worker clinics, and educational facilities. It is important that you become familiar with these. JHSCs are legally-designated entities for all companies with more than 20 employees, and it is important that you become familiar with the workings of and the issues that face JHSCs.
Tasks:
• Contact at least one of the representatives on a Joint Health & Safety Committee (if contacting more than one – at least one of these must be a worker representative). If you do not have a JHSC at your workplace, or you are a full- time student, contact the worker representative on the university JHSC, or a worker representative at a local worksite, or ask your classmates if you can use their JHSC.
• Identify three major issues that the JHSC has been grappling with (an issue that has not been resolved). The topic can involve both physical as well as workplace organizational factors (e.g. communication issues, workload, psychosocial issues, stress, deadlines, breaks, scheduling issues, job rotation, ergonomic hazards, administrative issues, etc.)
• Choose one issue that you find most interesting, or that is most pressing, and investigate the issue through a number of library and Internet sources of information, including a literature database search
• Interview an expert in the field
• Search for two peer-review journal scientific articles that are pertinent to your topic
• Write a report with recommendations to the JHSC on the identified issue
• Prepare presentation slides to the JHSC (presenting this to the JHSC is optional)
The sources of information that you need to investigate to complete this assignment are
the following:
• At least one interview with a member of the JHSC
• At least one expert interview (preferably done by telephone, and not by email only)
• Research done on the Internet
• An inquiry made to a safety organization (for example via email) such as the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety, the Occupational Health Clinics for Ontario Workers, the Workers Health and Safety Centre or any of the sector-specific health and safety associations (e.g. Industrial Accident Prevention Association, Ontario Service Safety Alliance, etc.)
• Results from a library or online Database search and grey literature search
• At least two articles found within scientific peer-reviewed journals
• Assignment will include a summary of your research in a Report for the JHSC on your findings and recommendations
• Copy of the presentation you would potentially give to the JHSC
Consult the “General Assignment Expectations” document for the general outline and format of the paper. This assignment will include the following elements:
• Title page
• Table of contents
• The Research Process
• Sources of Information
• Interviews – both JHSC rep and expert
• Report of Findings – This is the report section that you would give to the JHSC (this part should be about 6-8 pgs). It will introduce the issue, describe why its problematic, summarize your findings, and offer recommendations on how to address the issue. You will write the report in a formal tone, and will cite references and different sources as you go along (including your interviews). The recommendations in particular, should be a synthesis of what you have found, and not based solely on your opinions, however, it should be as specific to your workplace as possible.
• Presentation Slides – Include your PowerPoint (or similar software) slides, either as a separate attachment or within the assignment word document (no more than 10 slides including the first title slide).
• References.
• Appendices (optional)
Guidelines for Presentations:
*Note – delivering the presentation to the JHSC is optional. As part of the assignment you will submit the slides that you would potentially present to the JHSC.
The presentation is a showcase of your research results and your ability to synthesize, analyze, and summarize. A 10-minute presentation should not have more than 10 slides summarizing your research and findings.
OHS professionals are routinely called upon to give presentations in their workplaces. The style, tone, techniques and content will obviously vary. An intense 15-minute presentation to the Board of Directors will be quite different from a safety talk to a small group of new employees, or a 10-minute presentation to the JHSC.
Nevertheless, there are some good practices and bad practices when it comes to giving presentations. Many of us “wing it” without any serious concern about what is effective and what isn’t. If we are dedicated as professionals to the notion of “continuous improvement”, then it will help to maintain an ever-evolving list of “pointers”, or “do’s and don’ts.”, about presentations.
While there is considerable overlap between any two persons’ lists, there will always be differences, as an effective presentation style depends in part on the intrinsic characteristics of the presenter.
Notes on PowerPoint Slides
Slides should NOT be a word for word summary of your talk; they should just include the key words and key ideas. For a 10-minute talk, no more than 10 overheads should be used. Your slides should appear clear and easy to read. Make sure they are not cluttered, don’t put everything your want to say on any one slide. You can put the main points on the slides, and just explain the rest in your own words. However, the slides should have enough detail to convey your general ideas.
If you decide to actually present your report to your JHSC, you can use slides as a way to remind yourself of what you want to say, and as a visual aid to the audience. An overhead should have no more than six-eight words per line, and be no longer than six-eight lines/bullet-points long. Print BIG! The letters on the paper copy that you give to your listeners MUST be large enough to read.
If you are using a computer with a data projector to deliver a PowerPoint presentation, ensure that your equipment is compatible with whatever presentation equipment is available. If possible, try it out a few days before your presentation. If it does not work consider using printed handouts instead of the data projector. Some presenters find cue cards helpful. If you think you will need notes, you may want to write a brief outline of your talk on 3 x 5 cards that you can put in front of you.
Notes on Unpublished “Grey” Literature:
There are many reports which are prepared and distributed, but which are never officially published by a commercial or academic publisher. Many of these reports contain important information or insights. Some become quite influential. A lot of the material that we read is “unpublished”. This material is also called “grey literature”. This is material that is in the public domain, but does not have a copyright on it (like magazines and books), and also does not have an ISBN number (like books). Many are background government or company reports. Some are position papers or recommendations by groups interested in OHS issues (trade associations, professional groups, unions, etc.). Others are draft documents that are very significant, but which never evolved into a final, official version.
The advantage of grey literature is that it often provides useful, practical, up-to-date information. This is NOT information that was originally designed for the company’s web site, although it often is duplicated on web sites. The grey literature that is important for this assignment includes the company’s newsletters, annual reports, brochures and pamphlets that the company may have produced, and policies, procedures, and programs on health and safety.