If you were to ask a business if they had problems with their on-site safety, they would probably say no.
But they would only say that because they haven’t yet had a safety issue. It’s usually only after a problem that they realize that they had been inadvertently making safety mistakes.
You can see why this happens. Businesses have other priorities, and if they’ve taken care of the safety side of their operations in the past, then it’s understandable that it moves down the priorities list.
The good news is that these mistakes are avoidable by taking a few proactive steps that will help to significantly bolster your organization’s safety readiness. With that in mind, we’ve rounded up a few of the most common errors, as well as put together some tips on how to avoid them.
Undertained Staff
Most employees go through some sort of safety training during the onboarding process.
But there’s only so much that a single session — one fitted in around a wave of other information, too — can do, especially if it was years ago. Building annual refresher courses into the calendar will ensure that your team of employees is well-prepared in the case of an emergency.
Putting Things In Place, And Then Forgetting Them
Having safety equipment in place can go a long way towards keeping an organization safe. With that said, that’s only true if the equipment is actually working. All too often, businesses invest in critical safety equipment and then assume that they’re covered because they’re on-site.
But safety equipment doesn’t last forever. The pads and batteries of AED devices can expire, and fire extinguishers can lose their pressure. Even first aid kits can become ineffective if items aren’t replaced after they’ve been used.
It’s not realistic to think that a busy business will always make sure that its critical equipment is intact, but that doesn’t make it any less important than it is. A smart strategy is to use fire extinguisher servicing and AED replacement services, which will ensure that the equipment is always in full working condition, even if checking has slipped your mind. The best companies will automatically send replacement supplies before the current components have expired, ensuring full coverage.
Treating Near-Misses As Lucky Breaks
A near-miss is a lucky break, but often not for the reason the business assumes. When these near-miss events occur, many businesses think they’re lucky because they have avoided a more serious incident.
In actual fact, they’re lucky because they’ve been given an opportunity to make safety adjustments that reduce the likelihood of a repeat — and possibly more serious — incident from occurring. There’s always a relief component to a near-miss, but it should be taken seriously, since it will likely demonstrate that there’s a gap in your organization’s safety procedures.
It’s not about throwing out all the previous safety steps and starting again. It’s about identifying why this event happened, without attaching blame to any one person, and figuring out how it can be prevented in the future.
