Having a reliable provider of high-quality fire safety signs in the UK on speed dial is a great way to keep your workers safe. Fire is a significant threat in the country with the Fire and Rescue Services responding to 159,685 fires in 2018.
More than 200 hundred people lost their lives with a score of other sustaining burns. Unless you’re keen to add to these statistics, you should be proactive in creating a safe workplace.
1. Double down on safety training.
It’s easy to create a long list detailing the necessary safety measures and having your employees memorize them. Unfortunately, that is a half-baked approach to workplace safety. Given the high stakes involved, you’re better off not going down that road.
Instead, you should put all your employees through comprehensive workplace safety training. Such an exercise is necessary to ingrain the safety drills and measures in the workers such that it elicits the required behavioral changes.
Regular safety drills lower the risks and exposure in the unfortunate event that a fire incident occurs in the facility. Proper training establishes a safety culture that is upheld by each employee in the facility.
It also helps to reduce hysteria and confusion as everyone knows and will readily follow the safety drills. Proper instructions eliminate safety risks to keep your workers and equipment safe.
2. Set realistic targets.
It might seem unrelated, but the promises you make to your clients and customers have a considerable impact on workplace safety. In a bid to grow the bottom line, some firms often take more orders than they can fill. That leads them to push their workers beyond their limits.
Overworking your machinery will cause them to fail, sometimes catastrophically. Some parts can overheat and start a fire, or some worn parts may fall off and injure workers.
The chances are that you’ll postpone routine maintenance of your equipment if you’re running behind schedule. Setting unrealistic targets will also lead you to drive your workers hard and have them put them work long hours.
Overcome by tiredness, a worker might overlook a critical safety measure, leading to a catastrophic incident. Such incidents can lead you to incur massive losses and produce substandard products.
3. Lead by example.
As an employer, you need to be on the frontline urging your workers to keep safe. In addition to taking them through proper training, you should take actionable steps as well. That includes supplying them with the necessary safety gear and equipment.
You should also shun some work practices that lead workers to disregard safety as they race to meet the set targets. High production targets often drive workers to dismiss safety measures to be in your good books.
Instead of rewarding high target production, you can opt to reward workers who follow the safety rules while working efficiently and consistently. You need to demonstrate that the end doesn’t justify the means as far as safety goes.
Companies all across the UK lose millions of pounds each year in fire incidents and other workplace accidents. That is in addition to the other hefty sums of money they pay out in medical bills and injury settlements. Taking proactive measures to enhance workplace safety can spare you from such headaches and save you a fortune in the process.