Every business owner will want to take action to prevent employees from injuring themselves at work. Not only is it your legal obligation to create a safe work environment, but you will also want staff to feel safe and happy when they come to work each day. So, what steps can you take to prevent injuries from happening at work?
Risk Assessment
The first step is to have a risk assessment carried out by a specialist. They will be able to identify what the hazards and risks are in your workplace and what steps you can take to either mitigate or remove these hazards. Some hazards are not obvious, so it is important to use an experienced professional for this.
Incorporate A Safety & Wellness Program
A safety and wellness program should be developed that will cover all levels of health and safety, which should include how employees can stay safe and healthy at work as well as the importance of reporting any accidents or near misses.
Educate & Train Employees
Accidents and injuries often occur due to a lack of staff training. This is why every staff member needs to be trained on how they can carry out their role safely and to resist this safety training periodically to keep it fresh in people’s minds.
Mitigate Hazards
Once you know what the hazards are in your particular place of work, you should spend time on each one and find ways to mitigate or remove them. One of the most common hazards that is in many industries is slips, trips and falls. An example of how this risk could be mitigated is using super grip floor paint that will prevent the floor from becoming slippery to increase safety.
Check & Maintain Equipment
Sometimes, accidents and injuries occur due to faulty equipment. This is why it is so important that all equipment is checked on a regular basis and that preventative maintenance is carried out. You should also get staff to report any faults or problems with equipment so that repairs can be carried out immediately.
Provide PPE
You also need to provide high-quality PPE to staff that will allow them to protect themselves while working. The type of PPE will depend on the work, but could include face masks, goggles, hard hats and gloves just as a few examples.
Health and safety needs to be a priority for every business owner. The above are a few of the best ways that you can improve health and safety and reduce the chance of an employee suffering an injury at your place of work. It is your legal obligation to provide a safe work environment and you will want to make sure that your team feel safe when they are carrying out their work each day.