Employees are the backbone of your company, so ensuring their safety and well-being is important. Creating a safer work environment is the way to minimize workplace mishaps. However, are you wondering how to create a work environment that promotes safety? Read on to find out.
You can improve your employee’s health and safety by following these nine tips:
Assess the risks of your workplace that could result in injuries and accidents and take preventative measures accordingly. For example, if your workplace includes open-flame devices, ensure they will never be left unattended or used without precautions.
As slips and falls being the common workplace injuries, ensure to keep your workplace fall-proof. You can prevent falls by cleaning spills as soon as possible, keeping walkways clutter-free, installing anti-skid floors, coiling and securing wire against walls, and keeping signs to indicate if the area is wet or under repair.
You should conduct a workplace safety training program at regular intervals to keep your employees aware of what to do in the event of a fire, how to operate complex machinery, and what precautions to be followed while using dangerous tools. It is also good to emphasize that only trained employees must operate the high-risk equipment.
Personal protective equipment (PPE) has gained importance post-pandemic. So, ensure your employees have face masks, goggles, aprons, and other safety gear to prevent potential hazards at work. For example, if your team works with high-temperature materials, provide them with heat-proof gloves. If they are involved in heavy lifting, provide them with close-toed shoes.
If your work requires lifting heavy materials, consider investing in lifting and transportation machinery to ease your employees’ work while ensuring their safety. For example, if you are operating a warehouse, you can buy forklifts, overhead cranes, and transporting machines.
First-aid kits are crucial to deal with workplace emergencies, so ensure your workplace includes them in accessible places. It is also good to train your employees on using the first-aid kits properly.
Scheduling regular maintenance and service for your equipment is important to identify flaws before they result in expensive repairs and detect wear and tear damages. It also helps you to find outdated and poorly-performing machines, so you can replace them on time, avoiding potential hazards.
Like physical well-being, mental well-being is also important to remain engaged and productive at work. So, take steps to reduce your employee’s stress and anxiety by minimizing their workloads or providing them with flexible deadlines. You can also encourage them to take breaks at regular intervals and engage in relaxation activities to reduce stress.
Create an emergency plan with insights on responding to unfortunate events (natural disasters, fire, etc.) and evacuating quickly, keeping dangerous items safe, being aware of symptoms of heart attack and stroke, and seeking medical assistance for injuries. This will help your employees react quickly following an incident.
While implementing these tips, it is crucial to have workers’ compensation insurance to stay financially and legally protected against unprecedented workplace injuries/accidents.
At Spotlight Insurance Agency, we provide all-inclusive workers’ compensation insurance that compensates your employees after workplace accidents while protecting your business from legal litigation from such incidents. So you can work with peace of mind. Contact us today to get a quote.
