Kimberly-Clark believes that occupational injuries and illnesses
are preventable and can be eliminated. We manage occupational
safety and hygiene globally for the protection of our employees,
contractors and visitors.
Our "Who's counting on you" safety brand is driving the culture
change needed to assure that every Kimberly-Clark colleague,
contractor and visitor goes home safe at the end of each
day.
Safety management systems
We have a combined environment, health and safety (EHS)
management system. We summarize the EHS management system's common
elements in managing sustainability.
The EHS management system includes Occupational Safety and
Hygiene (OS&H) Performance Standards relating to:
- Management of Change
- Contractor Management
- Fire and Explosion Safety
- Machine Safeguarding
- Hazardous Energy Control
- Electrical Safety-Related Work Practices
- Confined Spaces
- Lifting Operations and Suspended Loads
- Workplace Transport Safety
- Fall Protection
- Ergonomics
- Occupational Hygiene Control
- Personal Protective Equipment
- Respiratory Protection
- Hearing Loss Prevention
- Storage and Movement of Materials
- Chemical Management
These standards set the minimum requirements for a business
unit. We assess facilities against these standards during EHS
management system assessments. Any shortfall identified is used to
develop facility-specific EHS improvement plans.
We have systems in place for assessing and improving performance
in the areas most likely to affect workplace safety. These are:
- Change management, to ensure compliance that all EHS rules and
regulations are maintained during periods of change as well as
conformance to Kimberly-Clark EHS standards.
- Machine safeguarding to minimize risks from moving or rotating
parts and equipment.
- Hazardous energy.
- Confined space entry operations, to ensure employee safety and
health during work that requires entry into a confined space.
Our Sustainability 2015 goal is zero workplace fatalities. Our
vision is to be recognized by stakeholders as a global
sustainability leader in OS&H. To accomplish this we
must:
- Learn from failures in our safety systems and
processes
- Prevent fatalities, injuries and illnesses
through a strong safety culture
- Build capability in all of our team members
through education and practical training
For more information and data points, see our 2011 Sustainability Report.
