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A lack of business safety can be costly in dollars and in morale. At the same time, it can be difficult to determine how much in resources you should put toward these programs, not because they aren’t important, but because it isn’t possible to prepare for every possibility. Assessing the likelihood of various potential hazards and finding cost-effective solutions is an important step toward finding this balance.
Creating a workplace culture of safety is one of the best ways to improve work conditions overall. Prioritizing it means that even though it is impossible to prepare for every eventuality, you have employees who are ready to deal with situations as they arise. This also empowers them to explore self-improvement challenges and take action in response to unsafe conditions because they know that their supervisor and company will support them.
Employees should feel free to report violations or even stop work, if necessary, without worrying that it might affect their job. When workers feel that their safety is important, they are more likely to stick around. Lower turnover means more experienced employees which is yet another factor that helps reduce the likelihood of accidents.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has several different standards depending on the industry that you are in. While you should observe all these standards, and may face fines or other penalties if you do not, in most cases, you need to think beyond them as well. This includes the workplace culture issue, but should also include such things as regular training and education for your staff. You should also make sure that you give your employees the resources they need to observe those standards.
The fleet is one of the places where balancing safety and efficiency can be most challenging. Too often, drivers can feel pressed to take shortcuts to meet obligations, but ultimately, safer practices usually mean saving money as well. Understanding the most common hazards is the first step. These hazards might include distracted driving or speeding.
The main case of rear-end collisions throughout the country is tailgating, which leads to more than 1,700 deaths and 500,000 injuries annually. To reduce this within your fleet, you may be able to use AI dash cams to alert drivers in real time to the fact that they are following too closely. Fleet managers can also review a guide that explains how drivers can be coached to maintain a safer distance from other vehicles. Similar types of technology can reduce other types of transportation accidents.
Many often think of construction sites, fleets, factories, and similar workplaces where injuries are more common as places where safety must be taken into account, but it is important for office workers as well. Potential hazards include repetitive stress injuries, slip, and fall accidents and even dangers from other coworkers or the public. Office workers can also injure themselves by improperly lifting boxes and other items. It is important to ensure that employees in white-collar positions do not make the mistake of assuming that they do not need to be concerned about the potential for workplace injuries or that they do not need safety and health training.
