No one ever wants to have to plan for the worst. But emergencies are a part of life, whether you are planning for natural disasters, like floods or earthquakes, to something like the modern-day COVID-19 pandemic impacting your business. Does your company has a plan in place to help protect your staff and your customers in the face of safety concerns? Here are the basics that you need to know to get started.
Fire and Water Safety
Knowing what to do in case of a fire or a flood in the office is a critical part of any workplace emergency plan. What are your evacuation routes? How will you know who is safe and who is missing once everyone is evacuated? Do your teams have the training they need to mitigate damage to people and property? When was the last time you checked your building’s fire alarms? These are the questions you need to think through to help you prepare for an incident, but then there are many steps after an incident that you will need to take to recover. Take those into account as well when developing a plan for fire or flood recovery.
Natural Disaster
In the case of a natural disaster, the number one thing to plan for is how to get your employees to safety. They will likely need to leave work in a hurry to be close to their family as well, so knowing what is needed to either close business or keep the lights on with a skeleton crew is also helpful. As with fire and water damage, it’s essential to make sure you have an appropriate escape plan in place and that you know how to get yourself and your team to safety if the office is not that place. Also, appointing people who will step up as the safety leads, and training those leads on first aid and safety protocol is critical.
Building a Strong Communication Plan
One of the most difficult things to handle during an emergency is communication. Getting ahold of the right people in a chaotic time is unreliable at best, but having a strong communication plan that everyone is aware of will help ensure that information is flowing as best as possible. A good communication plan is one that informs employees who to contact in different scenarios and what to do if they are unable to reach them. Keep in mind that in times of natural disaster, phone lines are often busy or down so it’s smart to provide a variety of communication methods (such as email, skype, word of mouth, meeting points, etc.) and options for situations where key people cannot be reached.
Prepare All Your Employees with Training
A well-prepared team is one who has been through the motions of an emergency situation before. That way, they are familiar with the actions required to respond appropriately. Training helps make sure your company is ready for when the worst should happen. Fire and hurricane drills, safety, and CPR training are all excellent lessons to weave into your employee’s internal education. But have you considered training on how to respond in case of cyber-attack? How about in the case of loss of critical leadership? These are all emergencies that will have a severe impact on your bottom line. Make sure your team has the resources and training they need to make it through the crisis.
Build a Safer Workforce
When you need extra staff for your busy warehouse, call All-Star Personnel. We have a list of qualified and pre-screened candidates that are ready to work, giving you more time to focus on other matters.
