Improving safety is a company-wide mission. When an employee experiences a work-related injury, the effects spread far beyond that one person. That injury affects your surrounding network – everyone from coworkers and businesses hiring the company for whom you work, to your own family members, and even your profit.
When it comes to safety, how do you change the ‘I have to’ attitude into an ‘I want to’ lifestyle?
24/7 Approach
For safety measures to work at their optimal potential, they must be practiced every second by every employee. Safety is not only one of our core values, but is also adopted as a lifestyle of its own, becoming a part of how every person at our company works daily. By implementing an around-the-clock emphasis on safety at every level of employment, we actively work together toward a zero-injury workplace.
Start Safe, Stay Safe
There is no better time than the first day to begin underscoring safety as a top priority. New employees are like sponges, absorbing their new surroundings, being trained in new tasks, and learning how to work with their new teammates.
Safety training programs are among the first steppingstones to ensuring safety procedures are explained and communicated to new employees properly. It’s just as important to ensure that the high standards of safety learned in the classroom are demonstrated by the more experienced workers in the field, to promote good habits and set a solid example for the new worker to do things safely.
Additionally, employees should be encouraged to address any unsafe working conditions they see from day one of their training. This shows all employees, whether brand-new or seasoned, that they are empowered to help support a culture of safety which every single person should actively strive to maintain for the good of the company, not to mention their own future.
A solid foundation for keeping all employees safe will begin with the initial training methods, but it will become less of a task and more of a way of life if everyone is always on the same safety-focused page.
Accountability
Keeping employees mindful of safety procedures from their first day on the job to the last days before retirement can be a difficult task. Safety procedures and standards change and evolve, just like any other component of doing business.
Holding individuals accountable for their own safety is essential to cultivating the high level of safety you envision for your team, and that must come from all levels of the company:
- Steadfast management commitment
- Mid-management follow-through
- Employee involvement
Every employee has an important role in making sure safe procedures are always followed. Even the most minor of mishaps cannot go ignored, because this fosters a culture of picking and choosing when to be safe as it suits the individual.
Positive reinforcement will play a hugely beneficial role, motivating employees to provide helpful feedback. Corrections to unsafe practices must be addressed and resolved, but they will be more advantageous to both the teacher and the student if used as an educational opportunity.
For example, if an employee is using a ladder unsafely, the one who notices – whether new to the job or with years of experience – should effectively stop the mishap and remind them of the correct method and how it makes a difference in ensuring a safe working environment and, ultimately, the success of the company and its workers. Workplace safety is already having a positive impact, as there was a 5.8% decline in ladder-related work fatalities nationwide between 2019 and 2020.
By turning an issue into a learning opportunity, workers will be much more likely to avoid making a mistake again, and to feel the weight of how choosing the safe option will affect them and their teammates in a positive way.
Own Your Safety
Teams are only as strong as their weakest link. Make that link the best it can be, achieve the highest safety standards, and you’ll have the strongest team possible. When every individual is properly trained, held accountable, and surrounded by an entire team that does the same, they will take responsibility for their own level of safety.
This means great things for the team – safer work environments, less downtime, and lower costs associated with workforce injuries. All of that equates to more productivity (and money) for the company and its employees. This is true for every business, but being part of an employee-owned company like Custom Aire helps all workers to fully appreciate the benefits of everyone’s thoughtful actions and decisions.
As employee-owners, our team members have a unique, transparent look at how every job, timeline, lost tool, or work-related injury directly affects the bottom line of the company and, ultimately, each individual owner. Taking ownership of your safety means owning everything, down to your own profit.
Interested in learning more about how our company can provide your jobsite with the highest level of safety? Or maybe you’re interested in working for an employee-owned company with a focus on safety and employee-ownership opportunities? We’d be happy to chat – contact us for more information today.Â
