Lock Out

[Billy_Bob]

...Just get a couple of his cards so that you can hand them to people who complain, and tell them you are just following the rules...

I like that!

"Don't yell at me! Here is the card of the person who told me to do this. Yell at him!"

 

[marissa2]

What I keep saying is that there is nothing in writing, we follow OSHA requirementa as writen, so every time he comes around he wants something new but will not put on paper. We thing this is so if something goes wrong he can "say thats not what I said". We will follow anything they want but just put down so we know what they want.
Lou

 

[topgone]

What I keep saying is that there is nothing in writing, we follow OSHA requirements as writen, so every time he comes around he wants something new but will not put on paper. We thing this is so if something goes wrong he can "say thats not what I said". We will follow anything they want but just put down so we know what they want.
Lou

"My drill sergeant said: " FORWARD MARCH", we did!" - unknown soldier.
Nothing is written but the order was executed immediately.
I understand how bad it feels when things go wrong and the supervisor just won't own errors. A common way to solve these kinds of problems is to hold pep talks. Pep talks before the start of any job can resolve a lot of misunderstandings. You can ask all the questions you have in mind, the supervisor explains, and you go to your job with clear understanding of what this job demands to be done.
If nothing else improves, find another supervisor whom you like, in another section, or maybe in another company.

 

[eric9822]

What I keep saying is that there is nothing in writing, we follow OSHA requirementa as writen, so every time he comes around he wants something new but will not put on paper. We thing this is so if something goes wrong he can "say thats not what I said". We will follow anything they want but just put down so we know what they want.
Lou

First of all your company should have documented safety procedures and requirements, if they don't exist and the problem person won't write them then I suggest you do. Another thing I have done when dealing with people that will not document what they say and then change their stories after the fact is document it for them. Summarize the discussion in an email and send it to him asking if it matches what he intended to say, make sure you get a return receipt so you can prove it was sent and he got it. Depending on the work environment you could also cc: others affected by his direction.

 

[weressl]

I am just waiting for the first time I have to shut off power to his part of the building, maybe I will forget to tell him.
Lou

E-mail makes these things simple. If somebody 'tells' me to do something and refuses to give it in writing, I document our conversation in an e-mail and send it to him and both of our bosses. At the end I request that he verify my summary and if there is any comments to get back to me by such-and-such date, otherwise I will proceed as per the summary.

LOTO should be in a written form, employees trained and the periodic training documented.

 

[Billy_Bob]

What I keep saying is that there is nothing in writing, we follow OSHA requirementa as writen, so every time he comes around he wants something new but will not put on paper. We thing this is so if something goes wrong he can "say thats not what I said". We will follow anything they want but just put down so we know what they want.
Lou

Another thing you can do...

Say you will have to shut down a manufacturing area or whatever due to these rules and 50 employees will be sitting around idle while you do your work... And of course the supervisor of that area is going to have a fit about this.

So *before* you shut down the power, discuss this with the supervisor for the manufacturing area, then you both call "the rule maker" on the phone (conference call) and verify that the area will need to be shut down. Then it is not on your back.

 

[zog]

What I keep saying is that there is nothing in writing, we follow OSHA requirementa as writen

I fthere is nothing in writing then you are not following OSHA. There must be a written LOTO policy as posted earlier.

 

[marissa2]

Thanks for the sdvice, E-mail might be the best way.
Lou