Workplace safety should be a key consideration for any manager or business owner. Your staff should feel safe, comfortable, and as though they can do their jobs without anxiety. Your products should be protected from the risk of damage or theft, and your premises themselves should operate effective risk management techniques to avoid accidents, injuries, and loss of income or earnings.
It would be easy if we faced one risk. If the only thing that you ever had to worry about were shoplifting, then you’d be able to install appropriate security to prevent it or to minimize financial loss. Unfortunately, there’s never just one risk. Some other examples include fires, floods and other damage to property, violence, and accidents, online crimes and theft of property and data, as well as stock.
With so much to worry about, it’s only right that you commit time and money to keep your workplace as safe as possible, and it’s not surprising that some of these measures can be quite complicated. But, not all. Some of the most effective ways to make your workplace safer are very easy.
Find Easy Ways to Identify Your Staff
If you have a very small team, you might know all of your staff very well. They may know each other, just as well. If your workplace is small, or only has private, or customer-facing areas, then it’s always easy to know who is where.
But, if you have a large team, or many separate areas and employee-only rooms, it can be hard to identify staff, and so hard to keep other people out of unsafe, or secured areas. Identify staff easily with lanyards and ID products online, or full uniforms.
Lock Internal Doors
It sounds so basic, but you’d be amazed at how many businesses put an “employees only” sign on a door, but not a lock. Or, how many don’t bother to lock doors when they are busy. The simple act of adding locks, whether they use keys, cards, or codes, can be a significant safety boost.
Utilize Helpful Signage
That said, signage is helpful. It keeps people from getting lost, or accidentally entering unsafe areas. Signs can also give staff and customers helpful safety advice or directions.
Implement Effective Staff Training
Perhaps the very best thing that you can do to boost workplace safety is implementing effective safety training. Teach employees how to keep themselves safe, how to use machinery and equipment, and what to do if they need help or advice. Then, provide any tools and equipment that they need to do their jobs safely.
Try Flexible Working
Statistically, people have more accidents or make more mistakes when they are tired. They are more likely to get hurt or to make a mistake which puts someone or something in danger at the end of a long shift than they are at the start of it.
So, it makes sense that flexible working, regular breaks, and shorter shifts will reduce the risks to your crew and your business.
