ExecutiveChronicles | A Quick Guide on How to Ensure Workplace Safety | In 2019 alone, workplace incidents cost the economy $171.0 billion. If a worker is injured on the job, not only will it cost you a lot of money, it also damages your reputation and lowers morale.
So what can you do to make sure the workplace is safe for everyone? This article lists some steps you can take to ensure workplace safety.
Identify Safety Problems
The first step in making your workplace safe is to properly identify the potential threats. If you haven’t successfully identified all of the threats, you won’t be able to make your workplace safe.
Once you’ve identified potential health and safety problems, you can then come up with solutions and procedures to handle them. For example, you might realize you don’t have enough first aid locations. A mounted first aid kit could solve that problem.
Come Up With Safety Policies
Once you’ve identified all the potential safety issues, you need to come up with policies to keep people safe. You shouldn’t discount the importance of this part. The way the policy is worded or enforced could actually have a large impact on whether the rules are followed.
You should take care not to have policies that are too restrictive. If people think the safety protocols are in conflict with their ability to be productive, they may ignore safety rules altogether.
You should consider putting together a safety manual that contains all of the rules and regulations. Of course, simply giving out a rulebook isn’t enough to keep people safe. You need to make sure that everyone is aware of the rules through meetings and seminars.
Create a Safety Culture
Organizations are able to keep their workers safe have a strong security culture. In a true security culture, every member of the organization is on the same page regarding safety rules and procedures.
Every worker takes responsibility for knowing and following the health and safety rules of your organization. To create a security culture, having meetings about safety hazards is essential.
Provide Easy Access to Documentation
Your workers can’t follow the rules if they don’t know what those rules are. You should have detailed yet concise safety manuals that your employees can refer to about matters of safety.
It makes sense to have this manual available online so that employees can refer to it at their convenience. Take the time to make sure your manual is clearly written with simple, easy-to-understand language.
Ensure Workers and Management Work Together
One of the biggest risks to your organization is when your workers and management are not on the same page with safety issues. If management doesn’t have a good relationship with your workers, there might be safety oversights.
Workplace Safety is a Vital Part of Doing Business
As an employer, workplace safety should be one of your top priorities. Workplace accidents can have a huge impact on your company. Not only will you suffer financial damage, but you’ll also face damage to your image as well.
If you want to learn more about other workplace-related topics, take a look at the rest of our blog posts.
