When is the best time to set new goals for your workplace safety program and what are some great initiatives that will improve every company?
The new year is a great time to review your workplace safety and health program and then set goals based on your current and anticipated resources. But such an evaluation isn’t limited to the beginning of the year!
Great opportunities to review, assess and set new goals for your workplace safety and health program include anytime when:
- your safety budget changes
- a new line of business is added to your company
- new equipment is required
- there is an update to Federal OSHA, State or Local Requirements that pertain to your business
- a significant number of new employees are expected
- new resources and employees are added to the safety department
- safety improvements are needed or desired
The goals for any workplace safety and health program are going to vary greatly from business to business, but here are 20 awesome goals that you might consider to improve your safety program that are better than just saying “we really need to strengthen our safety culture this year.”
Use this list to inspire you!
1. Tackle the OSHA Top 10
OSHA publishes the most often cited violations every year and a great place to start improving your safety program is with this list. Take a simple approach when reviewing the list and ask yourself, “Are any of these hazards found in my workplace?”
2. Host a Safety Stand-Down
A safety stand-down is a voluntary event for employers to talk directly to employees about safety. You can schedule one just for your company or participate in a national event like the National Safety Stand-Down to Prevent Falls.
3. Recognize and Reward Safe Behavior
Positive motivation is one of the best ways to ensure workplace safety success. According to OSHA, employers must not use incentive programs in a way that penalizes workers for reporting work-related incidents. Rather, consider a program that rewards or recognizes employees for participation in safety program activities like hazard reporting.
4. Attend a Safety Conference
Safety professionals often feel like they are on their own, but having the opportunity to attend a conference focused on workplace safety can give any safety professional the boost they need to invigorate their personal commitment for safety. Set a goal to attend at least one safety conference this year.
5. Provide Engaging Training Opportunities
Maybe this is the year you revamp your training! If you are finding that your training is stagnant and employees just do what they can to get it over with, consider finding new ways to add interaction, humor and engagement to reinvigorate your training.
6. Get Feedback on the Safety Program
Set up a survey with well thought-out questions to allow employees to provide feedback on the current safety program. Employees are more likely to participate in a program they had the opportunity to improve.
7. Conduct a PPE Inspection
Complete a full PPE inspection for all employees, teams and vehicles and then repair or replace all equipment that does not meet your safety program standards.
8. Create a Safety Metrics Dashboard
Goals are great, but how do employees know if they are meeting or exceeding those goals? Create a safety dashboard that shows the top 1 – 5 safety metrics, display it in a prominent place and make sure it is continuously updated on a regular basis.
9. Start a Safety Meeting Program
Adding regular safety meetings to your company’s safety and health program is guaranteed to improve workplace safety, boost team morale, lower insurance premiums, strengthen safety compliance and lower the risk of safety violations. Holding safety meetings with your crews, teams and staff is also the best way to ensure that your company is off to a great start meeting and exceeding OSHA’s compliance standards.
10. Offer First Aid, CPR & AED Training
First Aid and CPR training is essential for field employees but is also beneficial for all employees in your company. Consider offering First Aid/CPR classes at regular intervals throughout the year and allow all employees to be certified.
11. Participate in a Safety Campaign
Safe + Sound Week, CPR & AED Awareness Week, Drive Safely Work Week and National Safety Month are only a few of the hundreds of safety awareness campaigns that occur every year. Pick at least one that is relevant to your company or industry and give it everything you’ve got! It’s fun, educational and provides a concentrated focus on safety.
12. Provide Flu Shots
Start a flu prevention campaign in the workplace and offer no- to low-cost flu shots for all employees. Prevention is better than cure when it comes to any illness, including the flu.
13. Implement a Hazard Reporting System
Design an effective way for employees to report safety hazards found in the workplace. Once identified, follow through with eliminating each hazard to create a safer workplace for everyone. This could be as simple as providing a dedicated safety hazard email address like “safety-hazard@abc-company-inc.com”.
14. Eliminate the Top Injury Hazard Category
Focus on eliminating all the hazards in the #1 injury category for your business or your industry. This is costing your company a lot of money, so prioritizing this issue for the coming year is a great idea.
15. Add AEDs to the Workplace
Have AEDs installed, provide training and ensure a maintenance system is in place. If your business shares space you can try reaching out to the property owner and encourage the placement of an AED in common areas too!
16. Implement a Safety Audit Program
A safety audit evaluates safety programs and practices within an organization and makes a determination on where improvements can be made. Reviewing the company’s safety goals during the audit can be beneficial.
17. Add First Aid Kits in Vehicles
Add first aid kits to all company vehicles. Implement a program to ensure these kits remain stocked throughout the year. Also consider adding cold weather kits and/or hot weather kits if it’s appropriate for seasonal weather in your area.
18. Conduct Incident Investigations
Start or improve your incident investigation procedure. Ensure you are correcting the issue that caused the incident and also adding in preventive measures in the workplace that will prevent the same incident from occurring in the future.
19. Design Checklist Inspections
Depending on what equipment is used and what process are in place, checklist or process inspections are a great way to engage workers in the safety program. Consider ladder inspections, forklift inspections, and LOTO inspections as a starting point.
20. Update the Emergency Action Plan
Workplace emergencies can happen at any company and may have the potential for severe injury to workers and even extreme property damages. Emergency Action Plans provide procedures in a workplace so workers know what is expected and what to do in the event of an emergency. Make sure yours is up-to-date and all employees are trained.
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