Being at work has considerable benefits, not just for the workers but for their families and overall well-being as well.
While talking about being employed in a workplace, managing health and safety practices and implementing a coordinated approach to minimize safety risks at work is the ideal approach business owners and employers can implement in their workplaces.
And so, this blog post will walk readers through health and safety hazards present in almost every type and size of work environment and the best safety practices they can execute in their work procedures to control the risks.
General Statistics
According to an estimation, nearly 2.78 million workers die due to occupational accidents, injuries, or ill health. Along with this, an additional 374 million non-fatal injuries among workers are seen in the previous years. This includes unsafe and unhealthy work conditions conducted every day at work which may cause potential consequences to employers and their workforce.
This raises a serious matter of concern for employers to ensure their safety at any cost as the impact of these accidents is far beyond employees visiting hospitals or taking several days off work.
Consequences of Poor Health & Safety at Work
A poor health and safety culture can be disastrous for the business, its clients, employees, and everyone as a whole. But the major consequences of not ensuring proper safety are:
1. Legal Ramifications
Companies and workplaces that fail to comply with legal obligations and standards as set by Health and Safety Executives (HSE) or Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) are held liable for legal and financial claims which can cause big troubles for them in terms of heavy fines or paying for their staff members.
2. Increased Chances of Workplace Accidents
Not paying enough attention to workplace safety procedures and practices means there is a high risk of accidents and injuries occurring at work. This leads to minor or severe health hazards. Alongside putting an employee out of work, these injuries or accidents can affect a worker’s overall quality of life as well.
3. Lower Productivity
A higher rate of workplace accidents or injuries can lead to decrease employee productivity and increases the chances of sickness absence among them. Inefficient personnel may also lead to unsafe working conditions followed by an unhealthy work environment.
4. Risk to Business Reputation
Loss of business reputation is one of the major concerns of employers and business owners. A good business reputation within the sector is eventually ideal for its success. Poor health and safety can lead to a bad reputation which ceases its growth.
5. Increased Staff Turnover
If employers fail to identify the importance of workplace health and safety, there is a high risk of unwanted and unpleasant accidents and incidents. A place with a high risk of workplace injuries means a high chance of staff turnover rate. Because no one wants to gamble with their health and safety while at work.
How to Implement Safety Practices to Manage Health & Safety at Work?
To manage health and safety and to ensure a secure workplace, employers need to implement these practices within their work environment.
1. Occupational Health & Safety Policies
The first and foremost step of safety management practices is that employers consult with their employees and set clear requirements and occupational safety and health policies within their work environment. Everyone should be committed to these policies to ensure everyone is on the same page when it comes to ensuring workplace safety.
2. Worker Participation & Involvement
Worker participation is a vital component of safety management practices. Employers need to ensure that their workforce is well informed of their health and safety roles and responsibilities and is actively involved to create a safe and secure workplace for themselves and everyone in their vicinity.
3. Worker Competence & Training
Adequate staff training is also essential alongside to ensure their competence and efficiency in case of emergency or disastrous situations. There are many courses that employers can offer their staff members to give them vital safety training.
The major ones include slips, trips, and falls training, manual handling training, working at height training, hot works training, hazardous dust training, workplace stress training, display screen work training, other includes safety in construction and warehouses as well.
Bottom Line
Health and safety are integral components to guarantee a safe and secure working environment for everyone. There are numerous hazards and risks present in almost all types of work ranging from minor to major. The best way to eradicate them is to analyze the workplace for these hazards and implement vital controls to make sure they and reduced to the minimum, if not eliminated.
Along with this, it is not just one person’s job to create a safe area of work, but the duty falls on everyone to reap positive workplace benefits.
