Safety organization

This person is the holder of the employment relationship or, in any case, the individual who—according to the type and structure of the organisation within which the employee carries out their work—has responsibility for the organisation itself or for the production unit, as they exercise decision-making and spending powers.

At PoliTo, the Employer (Datore di Lavoro) is the Rector.

This is the person who, based on their professional expertise and on the hierarchical and functional powers appropriate to the nature of the assigned role, implements the directives of the Employer by organising work activities and supervising their execution.

At PoliTo, the Managers (Dirigenti) are:

• the Director-General, for the offfices/deaprtments under his/her responsibility and for the staff units supporting the governing bodies of the University;
• the Heads of Department;
• the Managers of the Central Administration (Level 1);
• any other individuals who have been formally appointed as Safety Managers.

Main duties:

• Implement the necessary measures to ensure the safety and health of workers, except for those that fall under the responsibility of the Research Activity Supervisor in the Laboratory;
• Ensure that the Risk Assessment Document is updated whenever new activities start or changes occur, and provide the Prevention and Protection Service with all relevant information;
• Work to keep prevention and protection measures up to date, in cooperation with the Prevention and Protection Service;
• Supervise the implementation of all provisions regarding machinery, equipment and work tools (including those designed for research purposes), installations or other technical means, and the storage and use of new chemical, physical or biological agents;
• Require compliance with the prevention and protection regulations and provisions established by the Employer;
• Appoint emergency, evacuation, fire-fighting and first-aid staff;
• Coordinate with the RADRLs (Research Activity Supervisors in the Laboratories) and ensure that they provide the necessary instructions to guarantee proper information and training for students in laboratories;
• Take appropriate measures to ensure that only workers who have received adequate instructions and specific training have access to hazardous areas;
• Carry out all actions necessary for cooperation and coordination in implementing preventive and protective measures against interference risks;
• Verify, in coordination with the Prevention and Protection Service, that agreements with external bodies include clauses defining duties and responsibilities concerning safety;
• Promptly report accidents to the office responsible for forwarding notifications.

It is the individual who, either alone or as a group coordinator, conducts teaching or research activities in a laboratory.  

This figure is identified as:

• the teacher formally designated as the Laboratory Supervisor  
• the personnel who formally oversee research activities carried out within one or more laboratories  
• the person responsbile for teaching or research activity within a laboratory
• the teacher in charge of a course that includes laboratory hours as part of the curriculum  
• the teacher in charge of teaching or research activities conducted outside the University  
• the thesis supervisor or co-supervisor, including for doctoral theses, or responsible co-researcher, for research activities carried out by students in the laboratories of Polito or at external organizations, except in cases where the student formally dependas on the the same external organization where he/she is conducting his/her thesis.

Main duties: 

• Collaborate with the Manager, with the teachers proposing research topics, with the Supervisor, with the Prevention and Protection Service, and with the Competent Doctor for Safety and Health management. 
• Identify hazards, in the case of new experimental activities involving the implementation and/or use of new equipment/process/substance, and communicate this to the Prevention and Protection Service. 
• Implement prevention and protection measures before risky activities are carried out. 
• Develop any operational procedures, best work practices, protocols, and access rules related to safety aspects associated with risky activities. 
• Monitor the proper application of prevention and protection measures. 
• Identify all individuals exposed to risk before starting new activities and in the event of significant changes in teaching or research.
• Work to update the Risk Assessment Document in case of significant changes in activities.  
• Eliminate or minimize risks related to technical progress knowledge.  
• Provide, directly or with the help of qualified collaborators, information, training, and instruction to all people exposed to specific risks; provide prevention and protection measures that must be adopted to eliminate or minimize them.  
• Attend training and courses on Occupational Safety and Health.
• Implement all arrangements of Article 9, D.M. No. 363/98, for cases involving the design and use of machine prototypes, equipment and work tools, plants, or other technical means developed in research, teaching, and service activities for which he/she is responsible, as well as in cases of production, possession, and use of new physical or biological chemical agents developed in the aforementioned activities.

It is the teacher who teaches in a classroom on behalf of the University:

• Faculty members responsible for their courses
• External lecturers on contract
• Assistants
• Support staff for teaching and all appointed personnel

 The Classroom Teaching Supervisors are assigned the role of Supervisors (Preposto), and their duties are as follows:

• Supervise students’ compliance with the safety instructions provided to them, including those concerning the accessibility and use of emergency exits;
• Ensure that the classroom capacity is not exceeded and, if it is, take the measures provided for in the procedures defined by the Prevention and Protection Service;
• Promptly report to the Prevention and Protection Service any hazardous conditions that may occur during lessons or of which they become aware;
• Implement the emergency procedures, paying particular attention to individuals with reduced or impaired mobility;
• Ensure that, in the event of an evacuation, the classroom is vacated in an orderly manner and accompany students to the designated safe area indicated in the evacuation plan.

This is the person who, based on their professional expertise and on the hierarchical and functional powers appropriate to the nature of the assigned role, oversees work activities and ensures the implementation of the directives received, monitoring their correct execution by workers and exercising an appropriate degree of initiative.

 The Safety Officers of PoliTo include:

• Departamental District Managers (RGA)
• Laboratory Teaching or Research Supervisors (RADRL)  
• Classroom Teaching Supervisors (RAD)  
• Other staff members specifically identified and appointed

Main duties:

• Oversee workers’ compliance with institutional obligations and procedures, as well as with the use of collective protective equipment and personal protective equipment (PPE);
• Report any non-compliance to their superiors;
• Ensure that only workers who have received adequate instructions have access to high-risk areas;
• Promptly report any shortcomings in work equipment, tools or PPE;
• Report any hazardous conditions that occur during work or other activities, or of which they become aware;
• In case of emergency, give instructions to ensure that workers and other individuals leave their workplace or the dangerous area;
• In case of emergency, promptly inform the exposed persons about the risk involved and about the measures taken or to be taken for protection.

It is the person, elected or appointed to represent workers regarding health and safety issues at work.

Duties of the Workers’ Safety Representatives (RLS):

• Access the workplace;
• Be consulted on risk assessment;
• Be consulted on the appointment of the Head and Officers of the Prevention and Protection Service, the Occupational Physician, and the Members of the Emergency Teams;
• Be consulted on information, training and instruction activities regarding health and safety at work;
• Receive information concerning risk assessment, preventive measures, accidents and occupational diseases;
• Take part in the Periodic Meeting;
• Make proposals concerning prevention activities;
• Appeal to the competent authorities, where appropriate.

The Worker is the person who, regardless of the type of emplyment contract, works for a public or private employer, with or without pay, even solely for the purpose of learning a trade, craft, or profession, excluding domestic or family service workers.

Workers at PoliTo:

• Teaching staff, researchers, technicians, and administrative staff
• Research fellows (assegnisti di ricerca)
• Students working at their thesis projects, doctoral students, specialization students, research grants receipients, when working in research laboratories, and, due to the specific activity carried out, are exposed to risk
• Workers not formally on the sfatt of the University but employed by PoliTo under specific and regular contracts
• Personnel belonging to organizations  who work in university premises, within the scope of specific agreements and conventions

Worker's duties

Workers are required to:

• take care of their own health and safety and that of other people present in the workplace;
• comply with the provisions and instructions given by the employer, managers and supervisors;
• use machinery, safety devices and work equipment correctly;
• report any defects in equipment or devices and any hazardous conditions;
• refrain from carrying out operations or manoeuvres that are not within their remit, and from removing or modifying safety, warning or control devices without authorisation;
• undergo the required health checks.

Students who attend the premises of PoliTo must comply with the safety and health regulations and indications provided to them.  

Students' duties:  

• comply with the provisions and instructions given by teaching staff in the classroom;
• follow the instructions provided by fire safety officers and first-aid personnel in case of emergency;
• not remove or modify safety, warning or control devices without authorisation;
• not carry out operations or manoeuvres on their own initiative that are not within their remit or that may compromise their own safety or that of others.

When students carry out activities in laboratories, they are temporarily regarded as workers and, as such, are entitled to the same rights and obligations.

Organisations hosted at PoliTo shall ensure that their personnel comply with the applicable legislation on health and safety in the workplace, the provisions of the University’s Health and Safety Regulations, and the University’s safety procedures, unless otherwise specified in the agreements governing the use of spaces, drawn up by the Administration in consultation with the Prevention and Protection Service.

The Prevention and Protection Service must be promptly informed of the signing of such agreements for the use of spaces, in order to ensure the necessary coordination.

he Prevention and Protection Service consists of the people, systems and resources—whether internal or external to the organisation—responsible for prevention and protection activities against occupational risks for all staff members.

Main duties:

• Identify risk factors, assess risks, and define appropriate safety measures
• Develop preventive and protective measures
• Draft safety procedures
• Propose training and information programmes for staff
• Take part in the annual consultations on health and safety protection
• Provide workers with the information required under Article 36 of Legislative Decree 81/2008

The Manager of the Prevention and Protection Service is also refrerred to as RSPP (Responsabile del Servizio Prevenzione e protezione).

The Occupational Physician collaborates with the Employer in risk assessment and is appointed by the Employer to carry out health surveillance and to perform the following duties:

• collaborate in the development and implementation of measures for the protection of workers’ health and physical and psychological well-being;
• conduct pre-employment and periodic medical examinations;
• express medical fitness judgments regarding workers’ suitability for specific tasks;
• establish and update a health and risk record for each worker subject to health surveillance;
• inspect workplaces;
• contribute to training and information activities on health and safety.

Infirmary Services

The services provided by the Infirmary include:

• first aid assistance;
• collaboration with the Occupational Physician in conducting pre-employment and periodic health assessments of workers.
  Medical examinations and assessments are carried out by appointment or upon official request.

Workers responsible for implementing fire prevention measures and firefighting, evacuating workplaces in case of serious and immediate danger, rescue, first aid, and emergency management:

• They are designated by the Managers among the staff members of each department/office.
• Their number must be proportionate to the level of risk associated with the activities carried out, to the number of users, and to the characteristics and location of the buildings.
• They must receive adequate and specific training, as well as periodic refresher courses.
• They must be provided with appropriate equipment in accordance with the identified risk levels.
• They may be subject to a health surveillance protocol established by the Occupational Physician to ensure fitness for their specific tasks.
• In the event of activation of the Emergency Plan, they are required to intervene in all University facilities, in particular in classrooms and common areas.
• Workers may not refuse their appointment without a justified reason.