Occupational safety and health (OSH), also commonly referred to as health and safety, occupational health and safety (OHS), occupational health,[1] or occupational safety, is a multidisciplinary field concerned with the safety, health, and welfare of people at work. These terms also refer to the goals of this field,[2] so their use in the sense of this article was originally an abbreviation of occupational safety and health program/department etc.
The goal of an occupational safety and health program is to foster a safe and healthy work environment.[3] OSH may also protect co-workers, family members, employers, customers, and many others who might be affected by the workplace environment.[4]
In common-law jurisdictions, employers have a common law duty to take reasonable care of the safety of their employees.[5] Statute law may, in addition, impose other general duties, introduce specific duties, and create government bodies with powers to regulate workplace safety issues: details of this vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.
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