Workplace Safety Starts at the Top

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At All-Star Personnel, we know it’s true that workplace safety needs to be a priority from the top all the way down to the bottom of an organization. It is a key responsibility of corporate leadership to emphasize the importance of safety to ensure that all levels of staff are aware of protocols and hazards in the workplace. If safety isn’t a clear priority for the administration, then it’s hard for that culture to be taken seriously on the front lines. Here are a few things you can do as a manager to foster a safety culture in your workplace.

Value Safety Over Productivity

While the fast-paced nature of today’s working environment demands effective and productive workers, it is crucial for managers to recognize that an unsafe work environment is an unproductive one. Mistakes and accidents have costly outcomes, both in terms of harm to workers and to the company’s bottom line. Workers’ comp and insurance claims are taken very seriously by clients and project managers alike. Having a clean track record that shows your company values the safety of your employees will earn you the respect and the business of the community.

Clarify and Enforce Safety Protocols

Set an example for your staff by making sure they understand the safety policies that are in place. Clarify any unclear wording. Make planning material and safety training widely available. Enforce the use of proper safety procedures, and solicit feedback from all levels of staff to ensure that your policies are up to date and relevant to the current work environment.

Build a Positive Safety Culture

As a manager, you are in the unique position to set the stage for the work environment. Investing in a work culture founded on the importance of safety is a sure way to create a stronger, more productive, and healthy work force. A positive safety culture not only reduces on-the-job accidents and near misses, it also engages workers to take responsibility for their own safety. By establishing a strong commitment to safety culture, you are showing the type of leadership and dedication to your workforce that recruits the high-quality talent and maintains the loyalty of your best workers.

Empower Your Workers

A positive safety culture is one that is the product of individual and group attitudes and competencies that provide the foundation on which your company’s reputation is built. Encourage staff to learn not only from the provided training material, but also from each other’s experiences and near misses. A review of an accident and detailed debrief are powerful learning tools to ensure such accidents are avoided in the future. Training should include common issues that may lead to safety concerns, trouble shooting, and problem solving to best avoid accidents, and emergency response tactics to give staff the best tools possible to handle any number of situations. Through empowerment you show trust and respect to your employees, solidifying their engagement in the work and the safety of their co-workers.

All-Star Personnel, featuring jobs in Lebanon TN, takes pride in working with clients who make safety a priority in their organization to provide our job candidates with a dependable working environment. Contact us today to get started!

 

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