Positive workplace culture is enhanced when mandatory policies for safe business places are a priority. A safe working environment can tremendously reduce work-related injuries by half or more. In the last two years alone, the US has had to deal with 5,333 fatal workplace incidents. These could have been avoided if the organizations in question had gone the extra mile to institute measures to safeguard their respective environments. How do you create a safe environment for your establishment? Here are some practical ways to do so.
Review obstacles regularly
Regular safety assessment of the workplace environment indicates a company’s commitment to protecting employees as well as the business. A quick search on the internet would reveal that many workplaces ensure that they have such measures in place. Unfortunately, there seems to be a general failure to update, upgrade and review the presence of obstacles in the immediate environment.
In reviewing workplace obstacles, you should assess the current positioning of signs and labels at the workplace. Although these are visually indicative of obstacles, some are left to fade off or left unchanged even after obstacles have been removed. In other situations, the type of labels and signage used are not complementary or commensurate with the number of physical impediments. What is worrying is that business owners are unbothered by them. As a business owner, you must avoid falling into this category because it could become a reputational issue in the long run.
Hire a safety consultant
You’ll find experts trained to offer workplace health and safety measures in private establishments and the local office departments. Safety consultants give counsel on eliminating potential harm while offering services for process safety. The three main areas they dwell on are:
- Evaluating risks
- Identifying hazards
- Proposing and implementing long-term solutions
Moreover, because companies vary, a safety consultant will offer tailor-made practical solutions to serve the specific purpose. For additional services, safety consultants would usually train, mentor, and coach individual companies that request more help. You may also find other services this group of professionals offers instrumental. These include:
- Organizational process safety competency tests
- Incident investigation
- Static electricity control
Review OSHA recommendations
This step is a personal obligation you must fulfill as a business owner or employer. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is a US regulatory agency under the Department of Labor. The federal government empowers them to pay unannounced visits to organizations and companies to conduct inspections. As a result, any business found to have flouted the health and safety recommendations may be slapped with legal suits or large fines for non-compliance. It’s, therefore, a must to visit their websites regularly to be abreast with changes and reviews.
In conclusion, it’s a requirement to take a proactive approach in workplace safety than a reactive one. The former allows you to implement timely measures and strategies, while the latter only comes along when the harm has already been caused, sometimes irreversible. Most importantly, ensure your organization has a safety induction process for all new staff and constant reminders of safety protocols.
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