Tips to Make Safety Culture Second Nature at the Workplace

“Safety” a word that is commonly heard almost in every workplace, yet it’s one of the most overlooked aspects of businesses. Safety of employees is a priority in almost every field. Safety doesn’t stop with handing out safety helmets or kits to the employee. You need to work on building a safety culture at work.

Inculcating a safety culture at work not only helps in eliminating accidents and injuries at the workplace, but also helps in boosting productivity and efficiency.

The key to making safety culture second nature at the workplace is to take appropriate and necessary precautions when performing jobs. Changing the mindset of people is a daunting challenge. There are numerous methods using which business owners and managers can build a robust safety culture at the workplace.

Here, in today’s post, we give you some actionable ideas and tips to build a strong safety culture at work.

• Build a Safety Team

Start by gathering a team of your colleagues in your company who are passionate about safety. Work with the team and identify pressing safety issues and other safety challenges at the workplace. Your team should include employees who are “early adopters”.

You can also reach out to Safix, one of the most trusted safety partners for businesses in India, for professional help. We assess and evaluate policies, procedures, and practices, emergency response, staff training, and preparedness, disaster and crisis management, safety measures, and violence prevention mechanisms.

Having your own safety team makes sure that safety in the workplace is maintained and new policies are adopted to make sure no harm is created.

• Talk about Safety and Keep the Conversation Going

Before implementing any new set of rules, discuss it with your employees. Talk to them about their work time and the method they adopt to complete a job. This will give you an idea about the safety problems existing and make the employee feel a part of the safety initiative at the workplace.

Having good communication with employees creates a friendly atmosphere and helps the employee approach you next time when accidents occur, or any improvements are needed.

• Conduct Safety Training Sessions

Displaying posters or sending weekly emails isn’t enough for making the employees understand the importance of safety procedures. Frequent training sessions is important to make sure that all employees are completely aware of the various safety procedures.

At Safix, we provide professional, tailored safety training programs to make sure employees are trained properly. We also offer 1-2 day capsule courses for supervisors, floor managers, safety officers, and the OHS committee.  The highlight of our training services is that we offer custom tailored OHS programs, based on the company’s needs. Once the training is completed, the company will be awarded a certificate.

• You cannot skip Safety

Expect the unexpected. You can never predict the future. You may think that you have been in business for a few decades, without any focus on safety. However, that’s a risky proposition.

Lack of safety procedures not only reduces workers compensation and unemployment costs but also reduces your firm’s experience modification rate (EMR).

EMR measures the performance of your company with other companies belonging to the same industry. It evaluates your history of insurance claims and safety records. When your EMR is low, you end up paying higher insurance premiums. Not only that, a low EMR gives the illusion that your firm uses unsafe methods, which in turn could lose business.

Here at Safix, we provide safety measures in the latest national and international guidelines concerning worker well-being and workplace. Safix will help you with all the processes right from audit planning, defining objectives, scope, criteria, and conducting on-site audit activities.

• Make your Employees Accountable

Remember that you cannot be everywhere, checking each work carried out in your firm. So, make sure that you appoint the right safety managers and delegate safety monitoring to them. These supervisors must monitor employees to ensure that they aren’t ignoring safety measures.

• Match Employees’ capabilities to the Required Task

It is important to assign works according to the age and performance levels of employees.  An older person who is assigned to heavy-duty work has a high risk of accidents. While if you are assigning a younger person on heavy-duty jobs like loading a truck, the work could be easily done.

• Work on Building a Safe Environment

Make sure that the protective equipment is not out-dated or broken.  As a part of safety measures, make sure that personal protective equipment (PPE) assessment is conducted regularly.

• Think Sustainable

Not only employees, but it is also important to safeguard our Mother Earth to make sure there is no harm to future generations. It is important to follow the mentioned guidelines when opting for raw materials or releasing water influents to water bodies. It is also important to follow ethical guidelines.

Safix’s well trained and experienced auditors will help you to take corrective plans and measures to follow ethical laws and environment management. We at Safix provide a comprehensive range of services to help business asses, quantify, and manage their relationship with the natural environment and to plan for a changing future.

• Be Ready for Resistance

As you implement each change, you might get some resistance from a few employees. They may find following some rules difficult, but as soon as they get adapted to it, they will find it easier. Don’t be disheartened by resistance, be patient, and the results can be astonishing. There would be a reduction in accidents, and you can see a more productive workforce.

For more information and best assistance, contact us.