Keeping staff safe within the workplace is very important. As an employer, you have a duty of care and responsibility for them when they’re working within the workplace, so it’s good to have everything set up properly and all procedures in place to keep those individuals safe. Whether you’re running a big corporation or a small business, there can be changes and introductions that can be made in order to keep your staff safe. So here are seven tips to keep your staff safe in the workplace.
Find The Hazards In Your Working Area
Firstly, it’s a good thing to get your operations team active in assessing the building and workspace for any hazards. This can be something that’s done in the form of a quick check every day or at the start of every week or month. Depending on how big the building is and how frequently problems and hazards tend to occur. By reducing the number of hazards and finding ways to minimize the dangers of said hazards, you’re going to disrupt the workplace less with fewer accidents and injuries to staff and guests. Not only is it important to do this, but in order to protect the company’s best interests from a legal standpoint, it’s worth doing.
Have a to-do list for your operations team to check off so that you’re seen to be making an active effort in making the office a safer space. You could also introduce a help desk to your staff members so that they themselves can flag up any issues that they spot within the workplace while on their travels. We can’t have eyes everywhere constantly, and so it’s good to have the staff to help you out too.
Conduct Random Drug Tests
Random drug tests aren’t always needed within the workplace, but they can be a good way of sifting out any bad apples within your workforce. This can be an important thing to do when you’re in a work environment that requires you to be attentive and clean of drugs. Perhaps it’s because you’re working in a hospital or medical environment for dealing with customers directly. Regardless of the environment, your staff shouldn’t be on drugs when they’re in the workplace and not to the extent that it’s going to affect their work or the reputation of the company. Conducting random drug tests is a good thing to do, and you can use blue dye for specimen collectors when it comes to ruling out any foul play with the samples.
If it helps, you could also outline this no-drugs policy in your employee’s contracts so that if needed, their contract can be terminated if it’s breached in any way.
Educate Your Staff On Building Security
Staff and guests can often come and go when it comes to the workplace. And with that being said, it’s important to educate your staff on how to practice workplace safety when it comes to accessing the building. If you simply have a keyfob system on the entrance and your reception isn’t directly available when you walk in, then that could lead to unwanted guests wandering in straight after employees have walked in. A good way to practice safety in building security is to make staff aware of closing the door behind them as they enter and leave. By doing this, you’re going to keep these unwanted guests from entering.
You could also introduce more secure ways of entering the building, including keycard barriers and security staff in the entry and exit areas of the building.
Have The Right Equipment For Assistance
Having the right equipment for your staff’s needs when lifting anything heavy or doing tasks around the workplace is important. The safe lifting stance is something all of your staff should be made aware of so that they’re not causing themselves any unwanted injuries because of it. With that being said, make sure you’ve got all the necessary equipment needed, and if there’s anything missing, now is the time to go out and get it. It’s not worth ignoring or dismissing the need for it just because perhaps it’s not something that’s used as much. It’s always good to have everything in place in order to protect your staff’s health and to protect your company’s back when providing that duty of care to your workforce. You don’t want to have to deal with any legal action from previous employees that have received injuries due to the work they did within the workplace. It can be difficult when they have evidence to prove that no proper care and equipment was in place to protect them properly.
Keep Employees Knowledgeable About Online Dangers
The online world has some pretty dangerous areas that should be avoided where possible. If you’re falling victim to these scams or cyberattacks, then it could seriously affect the health of your business. This can be particularly so when you’re holding onto confidential data of your business but also any customers or client’s data that you have also.
It’s worth giving them the training needed to ensure that your staff is remaining as safe as can be when it comes to navigating the internet on behalf of the company. These can be in the form of training courses or workshops that every staff member should be given the opportunity to go on. You can’t just expect them to know how everything works, and with cybersecurity changing frequently, it’s good to keep regularly informed of any updated practices where necessary.
Reduce Workplace Stress
Workplace stress can be a problem for many staff members as sometimes, work can be demanding and a little overwhelming at times. However, there are plenty of things you can put in place as an employer to ensure everyone is being looked after properly and that it’s not affecting their productivity levels or mental wellbeing. You want to provide a safe and healthy environment for the workplace and the work itself. If a staff member approaches their manager with concerns, then these concerns should be taken seriously. Do what you can to help reduce workplace stress because this can directly benefit the productivity of their work going forward. Ignore it, and they may choose to do less of the work, and that can put your company at a disadvantage, especially if that’s happening with multiple staff members.
A few examples of reducing workplace stress would be to encourage regular break times and to also introduce flexible working where appropriate. It might not be necessary for all staff, but it could be something that’s helpful to do.
Ensure All Personal Protective Gear Is In Place
Personal protective gear is something that all staff should have access to as and when they need it. When it comes to looking after your staff, you want to have everything possible in place to protect yourself as a company. Yes, accidents can happen, but if it’s something you could have avoided, then it’s worth putting those protocols in place to ensure the risk is reduced where possible. If there’s anything missing for the employee’s safety, then it’s worth sorting this out. Your HR department should be taking care of your staff’s safety and checking that they have everything they need to work comfortably.
Keeping your staff safe in the workplace is essential, so use these tips to make sure that is the case at all times. Follow these tips and implement them within your own work to help your staff stay safe.
