Show arthur L murray writes on safety first slogan 0 the following lol lowing article written by arthur L murray surgeon of the U S bureau of 0 mines should be of interest to all both young and old and we gladly give space for the same saftey first in industry today has grown to be a much repeated slogan but how many who use this slogan pause long enough to give serious thought to why it was devised and what it really stands for fora the appalling number ot of accidents befalling industrial workers every year has lead to an awakening on the part of both the employers and em to the tact fact that a great eco waste was taking place thirty five thousand workmen are killed in industrial accidents each year or one every 16 15 minutes ot of every day in the year and 2 workmen injured or one for every 16 seconds charles C mcchord interstate commerce commission this waste Is manifest in ways de tri mental to the interests ot of both the workers and to industry cur bailment tail ment of output through time loss disrupting established and experienc exper lenc ed working crews and compensation expenses are a few ot of the burdens born to the employer while wage loss suffering permanent disability and even death are contributions the employee frequently makes and all this because of accidents what Is an accident webster de tines fines an accident as A happening an event that takes place without ones one s foresight or expectation an event which proceeds from an un known cause or Is an unusual effect of a known cause and therefore not expected that which takes place or begins to exist without an efficient intelligent cause or without design it these definitions are accepted and I 1 am aware of no better author ity than that given accidents in the true sense of the word are far less numerous than most people realize many of the so called accidents are events which take place with one ones s foresight and expectation but such foresight and expectation are not normally exercised they proceed from known causes it if we choose to recognize them and often are the usual effect of causes which past experience should have taught us to anticipate and therefore to guard against too frequently so called ac ae take place or begin to exist apparently without design because efficiency and intelligence are lack ing in their prevention in recognition of the tact fact that many of the so called accidents are not really accidents but needless dire events brought about by pre ven table causes the slogan safety first was coined and popularized these two words are short espres elve sive easy to remember and should when seen heard or or called to mind arousell arouse arous eln in every one a vision of ward ing oft off hazards enta entailing fling injury sut but fering and grief accidents may be subdivided into many classes but the so called ac ae which result in injuries to he the human body are the ones which are mos most t deplorable these accidents occur as a result of the combination of two distinct circumstances first here there must be external conditions which give rise to opportunity tor for physical force or forces to operate against the human body in a man ner to cause injury and second there must be inherent influences which cause the human body to be placed in a position where these physical forces can operate against it in a manner to cause injury the external conditions influent luene ed ad by environment are to be found everywhere some places in more 0 r e numerous and more hazardous than others the inherent influences are within the control of the individual and the exercise of his good judge ment determines to a considerable extent the bringing together of these two conditions to effect an injury mining has always been considered as a hazardous occupation the con dillons under which operations must be e carried on are such that many op are afforded tor for physical force orce to be exerted against the human body it is therefore feces sary that employers exercise the greatest foresight and expectation within their means to make working p places aces safe by proper inspection bat safety ety devices and material to be used to prevent falling rocks or caa ing ground employees have the right to demand and see that these provi to protect themselves when at work are at hand having the means of protecting themselves against physical forces by the proper use of materials furnish ed ad men at work have within their power ower means to ward oft off many of the he physical forces from acting against their bodies the safeness of a working place Is particularly the concern of those who work there and the responsibility for maintaining it whereby injuries are in n a condition safeguarded against is just as much an obligation of the employee as it is an obligation ot of the employer unfortunately it frequently occurs that employers as well wen as employees who are well versed with the slogan safety first do not comprehend that it has a personal application to their dally daily work and thus fall to re cognize the extent of their tion to protect their own lives and limbs and the lives and limbs of tel fel low workers with a view to determining causes which could be assumed as purely accidental and those which carried elements of contributory negligence a careful study was made ot of all fatal accidents occurring in connection with mining in utah during the past year this study made jointly by mr william E harrlson harrison metal meta I 1 mine in mr john crawford Craw tord coal mine inspector and mr C A alien allen chief of the mine inspection depart ment of the industrial commission of utah presents some striking find ings it is frequently difficult to place the responsibility tor for an accident and different persona persons would not always agree as to just where the blame should lie ile we can however place the blame tor for some of them and in the following table we have endeavored deavo red to show where in our judgement jud gement the responsibility should be placed tor for the fatalities fault of the man who was killed 39 per cent due to conditions which could have been avoided by the company 9 per cent fault of fellow em am 11 per cent purely acci dental 41 per cent although there has been a decided reduction in the fatal accidents per man in connection with mining in utah in recent years the above tabulation clearly indicates that there still exists a goodly field tor for missionary work in accident prevention regardless of 0 the almost universal usage ot of the slogan safety first there appears to be a certain number ot of employers and employees who fail to realize that it Is their solemn duty to act as well as utter safety first waste in industry fia Is ono one of the greatest economic crimes of the day and the waste of man power through needless accidents the least justifiable therefore it behooves everyone connected with industry to practice and precept to exert their utmost efforts to eliminate preventable accidents by so doing they become members of the universal saving society the costs are practically nil except their own conscientious endeavors and the dividends increased production caving saving of lost time wages the prevention of suffering buffering and the elimination of anguish on the part of loved ones are well worth the effort |