Every business owner is liable to provide a safe and hygienic work environment; while health & safety is a constant concern and non-compliance is something we all want to avoid. It should be the goal of every business to boast an accident-free history and with that in mind, here are a few ways that you can create a safer workplace.
- Injury prevention courses – Enrol your employees in an injury prevention program, which includes manual handling and safe lifting techniques. All you have to do is approach a workplace safety specialist and they would be happy to carry out a needs assessment to prepare a tailored course that is designed around your business practices. Staff training is an essential aspect of safety in the workplace and a team of outside health & safety experts can put together the right course for your staff.
- Essential safety signage – If you don’t have a staff member who can deal with safety issues, you can outsource all HR needs to a 3rd party provider and they can inspect your place of work, taking note of safety signage that needs replacing or relocating. The local authorities can carry our random inspections at any given time and should your workplace fail to meet the H&S standards, you could be fined. Click here for tips on making international wire transfers.
- Accident investigations – In the event there is a workplace incident, it should a) be recorded and b) be investigated. By finding out the primary causes of an accident, you can do something to reduce the risk of it ever happening again. It is wise to create an accident investigation group who can spring into action when an accident occurs and every team member automatically knows what they have to do. By doing this, your organisation can learn a lot about accidents and why they occur.
- Encourage free and open dialogue – By fostering an environment where employees feel they can speak freely, a lot of accurate feedback can be acquired. Have a short open discussion about safety in the workplace at the end of your regular monthly staff meeting and this will be a constant reminder of the risk of accidents in the workplace.
- Identify potential hazards – If you carry out a risk assessment, that will identify potential hazards that might result in an accident. There are specialist companies that can do this on your behalf, plus they can also put together an employee training program to make people more aware of the risks.
Every business sector has a unique set of risks as far as safety in the workplace is concerned and by following the above advice, you can reduce the risk of injury in the workplace and that has to be good for both you and your workers. The Australian government takes health & safety very seriously and in order to remain compliant with the many labour laws, you need to spend time and money on making sure that your place of work is a safe place for all.
