Occupational Safety and Health
In addition to access control in the plant, the Company provides employees a work environment that complies with laws and regulations on the passage, floor, ventilation, lighting, work area, machinery and equipment, and fire prevention and disaster prevention. Incident notifications, investigations and records are specified in the Company’s “Occupational Safety and Health Code of Practice.” The protective measures for the safety of the work environment and employees are summarized as follows:
I. Access Control
1. The Company entrusts a security company to provide access control for people, vehicles and articles entering and leaving the Company. Registration and ID cards are required all visitors and incoming and outgoing goods. Employees are required to swipe their ID cards to enter the plant, so as to ensure the safety and management of the plant.
2. Separate access control is provided for production sites, laboratories, and material storage sites in accordance with the regulations governing the access to production areas.
II. Equipment Maintenance
1. The Company’s equipment and systems, including air conditioning, high/low-voltage electrical equipment, transportation, machinery, fire appliances, and water and gas supply systems, are jointly planned and operated by responsible units. The users (or responsible units) of equipment are required to carry out regular inspection and maintenance in accordance with laws and regulations.
2. The dangerous machinery and equipment such as fixed cranes, stackers and boilers, are regularly inspected every year in accordance with relevant occupational safety and health laws and regulations. Before use permits expire, the responsible units are responsible for applying to the qualified inspection agencies entrusted by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Ministry of Labor for regular inspections of machinery and equipment in order to renew the use permits.
III. Disaster Prevention
1. The Company has formulated procedures for disaster prevention, rescue, and occupational disaster notification, including the “Disaster Contingency Plans,” “Occupational Safety and Health Code of Practice,” “Regulations Governing Operational Safety and Environmental Safety Management,” and “5S Rules for Work Areas,” which clearly define the responsibilities and tasks of employees at all levels before and after emergencies.
2. To maintain employees’ safety and health, the Company has appointed one occupational safety and health officer and one occupational safety and health administrator to be in charge of occupational safety and health, and has reported to the authority in charge for recordation.
3. For operators involved in hazardous chemicals in the plant, the Company organizes training on the general knowledge of hazardous chemicals to increase the operators’ awareness of safety and health, allowing them to take appropriate measures in accordance with the regulations when using and storing hazardous chemicals.
4. During the operation of process equipment and the use of chemicals, the Company provides personal protective equipment such as goggles, acid and alkali resistant gloves, safety helmets, and safety shoes to avoid hazards; on-site emergency response equipment is also in place to deal with abnormalities in a timely manner to reduce the severity and scope of disasters; in addition, operation inspections are conducted on a regular basis.
5. For work in an environment with significant noise, the Company first evaluates the feasibility of noise reduction. If it is not feasible or requires much time and work, employees in such a work area will be provided with hearing protection such as earplugs and earmuffs.
6. Employees operating dangerous machinery and equipment are required to hold certificates, conduct monthly inspections and maintenance, and cooperate with an agency commissioned by the government to conduct regular inspections in the plant every year.
7. Before contractors enter the plant for construction, the Company is responsible for providing safety and health training and hazard notifications for contractors (contractors are responsible for providing safety and health training for sub-contractors, if any) to ensure that they are aware of the environmental hazards and precautions at the construction site. The contractors are required to assign employees to supervise the safety management on-site, and the Company's industrial safety unit is responsible for auditing safety management on-site from time to time.
IV. Fire Safety Management
1. The fire administrator is responsible for making an overall plan for fire protection systems set up according to law, including alarm system, hydrant system, escape system and fire administrators.
2. To implement the maintenance and management of fire protection equipment in accordance with the Fire Services Act, a fire protection equipment engineer/technician or a professional fire safety equipment inspection and maintenance institute is entrusted to service fire protection equipment in the plant from November to December every year; within 15 days after the completion of service, the service results are reported to the local fire department for recordation.
3. The Company conducts fire drills and safety and health training and disaster prevention training required for work on a regular basis, and has set up emergency escape routes and exits in the office and the plant. The Company takes fire prevention measures according to the characteristics of places and the settings of fire refuge facilities, gas equipment and fire protection equipment. The fire management organization consists of the fire-fighting team, safety protection team, notification team, evacuation guidance team, and emergency rescue team. All personnel in the plant is responsible for fire prevention.
V. Safety and Health
1. Health examination: New recruits are required to undergo a physical checkup before taking up their jobs. For incumbent employees, the Company organizes regular health examinations and health examinations for special operations in accordance with Occupational Safety and Health Act.
2. Workplace health: Except for the planned smoking area, smoking and chewing betel nut are prohibited plant-wide. The plant is cleaned and disinfected on a regular basis.
3. To take care of the psychological well-being of employees, the Company has formulated relevant plans and regulations, including prevention of human-factors injuries, maternal health protection, prevention of abnormal workload-induced diseases, and prevention of illegal infringement on duties.
4. Employee feedback: Managed by the Administration Department, a feedback mailbox is in place for employees to express their opinions and grievances, further strengthening the interaction between labor and management.
5. Sexual harassment prevention: To create a safe work environment that has zero tolerance of sexual harassment, the Company has formulated the “Regulations Governing Complaints and Disciplinary Actions against Sexual Harassment in the Workplace.”
VI. Automatic Inspection
1. Each unit conducts the automatic inspection of machinery and equipment based on the operations. The automatic inspection items and forms are compiled as appropriate, but the mandatory inspection items should be included.
2. Inspection points before, during and after the operation: Inspection points before the operation are set to control environmental factors and characteristics of equipment operations; inspection points during the operation check whether the existing safety issues are caused by unpredictable or human factors; inspection points after the operation are set to facilitate work handover and communicate the current situation of the workplace.
3. Periodic (daily, monthly, and yearly inspection) inspections and maintenance of dangerous machinery and equipment: The institutions commissioned by the government are responsible for conducting the inspection of equipment in the plant. The Company cooperates with the inspectors to replace or improve equipment in a timely manner. Operators are allowed to use equipment only after user permits are granted.
VII. Operating Environment Monitoring
The purpose is to understand the hazardous factors existing in the workplace and their possible impact on the health of the workers.
The Company takes the following steps before implementing operating environment monitoring:
1. Draw up a work environment monitoring plan for sampling, and start by collecting basic data and inspecting raw materials, processes, and hazardous substances, planning similar exposure groups through observation, interviews, and investigations, and then sampling the most likely exposure groups.
2. Confirm monitoring items and locations, including carbon dioxide (CO2), noise, organic solvents, etc.
VIII. Chemicals Management
The Company conducts the following chemicals management in accordance with the Regulations for the Labeling and Hazard Communication of Hazardous Chemicals:
1. Place the safety data sheets (SDS) of hazardous chemicals at an easily accessible location at the workplace.
2. Update the SDSs at least every three years and keep records of update.
3. Affix clearly visible signs to containers, barrels or storage places.
4. Prepare a list of hazardous chemicals.
5. Organize training on the general knowledge of hazardous chemicals for relevant operators.
6. Declare chemicals subject to priority management on a regular basis.
IX. Training
1. Employees should attend safety and health training for hours prescribed in the relevant laws and regulations.
2. Employees engaged in occupational safety and health should hold relevant certificates and receive regular retraining in accordance with the Occupational Safety and Health Education and Training Rules.
3. Employees engaged in dangerous machinery and equipment and special operations should receive training from external qualified training institutions to obtain training hours or certificates depending on the operating conditions.