Accidents can happen at work all the time, and they’re never a good thing. You could look at an accident and think, oh well, that was a freak incident. Or, you could look at it and wonder how it can be prevented in the future. Taking care of health & safety is crucial in a business environment. If accidents keep happening, they cease being accidents – they clearly show problems in your business somewhere.
Taking this into account, how can you reduce accidents at work? Are there ways you can make it less likely for someone to get hurt? Absolutely, and they’re very easy to implement!
Non-slip flooring
A large percentage of accidents stem from people slipping and falling. Usually, this is down to slippery surfaces that cause people to fall over. An easy way to prevent this is by laying down some non-slip flooring. Carpet is a lot harder to slip on than laminate flooring in an office. Plenty of industrial flooring companies will make floors with coating on the top that prevents people from slipping. You’ve also got tape you can place in certain areas that create a non-slip effect. If your flooring is harder to slip on, accidents will be reduced.
Regular cleaning
Cleaning your premises is essential if you want to cut down on accidents at work. Cleaning will do a couple of things – firstly, it helps you move things out of the way. If your workplace isn’t cleaned every day, objects can clutter up working spaces, creating trip hazards. Also, cleaning helps you mop up spills or anything that could cause accidents. For instance, you can clean up a banana skin from the floor that might make people trip over.
Cable management
Believe it or not, but good cable management can lower the chances of accidents happening. Modern workplaces – particularly offices – have so much equipment all of which is connected by a cable or two. Therefore, it’s easy to have cables sticking out of desks that could trip someone up. Good cable management keeps everything neat and can stop this from happening.
Health & safety training
Finally, the best way to stop people from getting hurt at work is by training them. Train your employees in the basics of health & safety – such as manual handling, how to handle certain materials, how to operate any machinery, and so on. Depending on your line of work, you will have different training to undergo. Still, the outcome is the same; you have employees that know how to be safe and are less likely to do anything that might cause them harm by accident.
Accidents do happen, but that doesn’t mean you should let them. If you take steps, as a business owner, to reduce the chances of accidents happening, your business will benefit. Accidents at work can set you back lots of money in lawsuits and compensation claims. Not to mention the damage it can do to your reputation via any press stories that leak out. Prevent this from happening by preventing accidents.
