Methods to the Madness: 5 Ways to Stay Safe at Work

Whether on a construction site or in an office, any workplace can be dangerous, and accidents occur daily. Luckily, most of the time, it’s not something a Bandaid can’t fix – but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t be taken seriously.

Not only can serious accidents drastically change people's lives, but they can also cost your business a lot of time and money. So, how do we stop accidents from happening? 

Well, the unfortunate reality is that accidents are never going to be 100% preventable, but with proper safety procedures, we can mitigate risk and severely decrease the chances of serious incidents happening.

Let’s take a look at some of the methods you can implement in your workplace to keep accidents at a minimum:  

Method 1: Keeping a Tidy Workplace

Cleaner = safer! Whether it’s tools left out, spills not cleaned up, or piles of paperwork building up, curbing clutter reduces the number of ways things can go wrong.

Good practices start from the top down, so managers need to set an example for the rest of the team to not get complacent. Assessing problem areas and working on dedicated solutions to remove hazards can significantly reduce the risk of accidents.  This sounds dramatic, but a solution as simple as better storage facilities at work could save a life. 

Method 2: Equipment Inspection, Maintenance & Selection

Routine maintenance and inspection of industrial machinery may seem like an obvious step in preventing dangerous accidents, but it’s also important to do the same with lesser risk equipment. Checking storage areas for safe stacking can save lives as easily as maintaining high-powered drilling equipment. 

It’s also important to regularly review the tools and equipment your business uses to make sure they are still the safest choice for the job.

Method 3: Create a Safety Plan

All workplaces should have a comprehensive safety plan that every teammate, contractor, and visitor has ready access to (with time allocated to review it!). There are some clear risk factors that should be outlined (e.g. PPE), but a good safety plan needs to go further than that because workplaces have unique risk factors and challenges in maintaining safety.

Make sure to routinely assess your working environment for new and evolving hazards and update your plan, including the procedures in place in the event of an incident. Safety first, always! 

Method 4: Training & Qualifications

Proper training and access to formal safety qualifications are essential steps in preventing accidents. Training should be provided at regular intervals with systems put in place to help employees self-evaluate when they may need a refresher. 

When dealing with contractors and other professionals outside your direct team, you can utilise contractor safety management systems – such as Conserve – to help keep track of documentation. Never get complacent with compliance! 

Method 5: Record Keeping

Regardless of how many precautions you take, accidents can still happen. Maintaining detailed records of the incidents and their causes can help you assess the risk factors and work towards mitigating them in the future. 

A dedicated safety officer should be appointed to maintain a log of every incident, no matter the severity, and work with employees and management to remove or reduce the factors leading up to them.

Protecting your business from the risk of accidents can feel like an endless task, but if you streamline your processes, it doesn’t have to be tricky. By following the above methods and introducing contractor safety management systems—like Conserve—into your business, you help ensure everybody in your workplace is as safe as possible.

Want to learn more about safety in the workplace? Get in touch with Conserve today, and subscribe to our newsletter for regular updates and insights!