Occupational Safety and Health

The State Safety Office is responsible for the development of safety and health procedures and safe work practices designed to enhance the working environment of all Department employees; control unsafe acts, unsafe conditions, and the occurrence of work-related accidents; and minimize employee injuries and other property losses. The office works closely with District management and safety personnel in the implementation of these procedures and programs and through quality assurance reviews, outstanding performance in program implementation is noted and recognized. Areas that need improvement are also identified and recommendations for improvement are made.

Employee health and safety issues should be brought to the immediate attention of the district representatives identified in this website. Central Office employees should contact the State Safety Office. In addition, the office maintains technical reference and audio visual libraries with materials on safety and health subject matters. Materials from these libraries are available for use by all Department personnel.

Safety Advisor

The Safety Office publishes a monthly Occupational Safety and Health Awareness Reporter, the Safety Advisor, on safe work practices and procedures both on and off the job. As part of the Department's safety awareness program, a monthly newsletter, The Safety Advisor is distributed to FDOT employees and is available to other state agencies and interested parties.

Safety and Loss Prevention Program

Accidents in the workplace and their costs, in terms of injuries to employees and other losses, are a serious concern and have always been the focus of the Department's Safety and Loss Prevention Program. Data from the Division of Risk Management, Florida Department of Financial Services, indicate that more than 50% of the total incurred costs of all claims in FDOT represents workers' compensation, the rest of the costs distributed among general liability, auto liability, property loss and others. Implementation of the Loss Prevention Manual and observance of safe work practices would help reduce the incidents resulting in these losses.

Concerning loss prevention within the Florida Department of Transportation, the following industrial safety policy shall apply at all times.

The Department's Loss Prevention Program will be implemented through safety procedures and guidelines promulgated by the State Safety Office based upon the requirements set forth by other state and federal agencies having such authority and jurisdiction, and outlined in the Safety and Loss Prevention Manual.

The Department facilities will be planned with the intent of providing each employee a place of employment free from recognized hazards. This commitment requires that safety be considered in all phases of operations, including but not limited to, any plans involving the development or installation of new equipment or facilities or any changes in the location and use of present equipment and facilities.

The State Safety Office shall provide the leadership to develop implementation strategies and policies to promote safety awareness, hazard recognition and correction, and reporting within the Department.

Supervisors shall be held accountable for maintaining a safe work environment and for ensuring that employees perform their work in a safe manner.

Employees are responsible for performing their work in a safe manner, and for following established procedures and safe work practices.

Each employee shall be provided initial indoctrination and the necessary training to enable them to perform their assigned tasks in a safe manner.

No employee will be harassed or otherwise discriminated against for exercising their responsibility for reporting hazardous conditions.

Safety and Loss Prevention Manual

The purpose of the Loss Prevention Manual is to establish a department-wide, uniform loss prevention program designed to reduce the number of work-related injuries and other losses to employees and damage to materials or property due to accidents and vehicle crashes/incidents; establish uniform operational plans; and delineate responsibilities for maintaining safe working environments for all employees of the department.

Access the Safety and Loss Prevention Manual, Topic No. 500-000-015 in PDF format.

Industrial Safety Information Management Systems (ISIMS)

The Loss Prevention Program and Manual requires all work related employee injuries/illnesses and vehicle crashes and incidents to be recorded and reported. An Industrial Safety Information Management System (ISIMS), is maintained by the State Safety Office. ISIMS is a system where data on all FDOT injuries/illnesses and vehicle crashes/incidents involving FDOT employees are recorded. The system allows electronic data input and retrieval by Districts. It provides data that is utilized for program planning and monitoring program implementation.

Occupational Safety and Health Contacts