Business Cost Savings Through Safety
Summary:
Benefits in an
implemented safety program will save any business money. Safety affects any
business and a safety program will make the workplace safer.
Keywords:
safety, health,
health safety, program, employees, –, health safety program, safety program,
place, business, accidents, effective, procedures, insurance
Article Body:
Business Cost
Savings Through Safety
Setting a health
and safety program in place will reduce costs. Having a program will reduce
accidents and will lead to lower company worker’s comp premiums; further
business insurance companies prefer their customers to have health and safety
programs. These insurance companies might even discount the premium if a
program can be proven to exist. The average cost of an accident is $68,000.
Direct costs in accidents such as worker’s comp and fines levied can close a
business. Indirect costs such as low morale of employees, legal fees, and
retraining can be as costly if not more.
A working program
will:
1) Improve employee morale – Shows care for
their well-being
2) Reduce revenue losses – Fewer accidents
keep all employees at work
3) Give a boost to the customer – Make
sure the business is operating optimally
Small businesses
that have a voluntary health and safety program in place have fifty percent
fewer accidents and reported insurance claims than that of their counterparts
according to OHSA stats. Most small businesses fall below the legal
requirements for having a formal health and safety program in place due to the number of employees on staff. Sixty-eight percent of reported accidents are in
the service industry which shows even businesses such as retail establishments
are not free of accidents.
A health and
safety program can be started by writing a health and safety policy; these are
simply values that a company wishes to convey in its work processes. Secondly,
is how communication between all employees and owners will function. And
lastly, put procedures in place to ensure safe practices.
To find unseen
hazards and unsafe practices, an audit needs to take place. Take a hard look at
the workplace and record all factors that may lead to injury. These hazards
might be dangerous chemicals or as simple as a letter opener. Identifying these
hazards will lead to procedures for controlling them. Controls such as “Don’t
run with scissors in your hands” are effective. Write all procedures in a
manual.
Implementing
these health and safety procedures will be done with behavioral change. Some
programs become weak and ineffective because of:
1) No definition of safety practices – No
written processes
2) No teamwork – Safety is a communication from
the top to bottom and vice versa. A well-written plan will describe what roles
everyone plays in safety policies.
3) No effective goals – The “accident-free
days” poster will come as a result of sound safety processes.
4) Wrong incentives – Money as a reward does
not work well. Health and safety should be fun and worth employees' effort. The
right incentive plan can be cost-effective and have obtainable goals. Incentive
plans can include movie passes or simply “free coffee on the boss.” The
insurance industry reports that a dollar spent on health and safety yields four
to six dollars in savings.
Once all of the
hard work of developing and implementing the health and safety program is done,
set aside some time each month to review the workplace. Record what is found;
this is a good practice to see dangerous trends that might occur such as a fire
exit constantly being blocked. On the quarters of the year post a meeting with
employees. These meetings are a great way to get vital feedback from employees
and keep them involved. At least once a year, do an audit to make sure your
health and safety program is current with present business operations.
Comments
Post a Comment