As an employer, you have probably heard many times a phrase “safety first”, or “everything starts with safety”. With all the lurking dangers everywhere, it is not an easy task to provide your employees with a healthful and safe environment. But on the other hand, you should also be well aware that their safety is not only your priority and responsibility, but it is theirs as well (maybe even more than you think).  

First, let us talk about what safety means, and why is it even important? Safety at a workplace at its core is a concept that by which employers must control hazards that have been recognized in the work environment. Of course, that does not mean that the environment is completely free of any dangers, which would be completely irrational. What it does mean, is that the dangers are put down on a minimum that can satisfy the acceptable level of risk for all staff. Workplace safety does not only refer to physical, but also on psychological safety (abuse is not only physical!), which is something employers often forget about, and employees are not conscious enough about their rights in the means of psychological abuse. Or they are simply scared of their job to step up.

Other than being your legal responsibility, providing safe working environment also has a lot of benefits.  

• A lot of effective safety training and practices will help you protect your employees, which means that you will more likely retain your talented and loyal employees. And with the market going crazy, as an employer, you probably know how hard it is to find loyal and hard-working employees who know how to do their job.
• Also, by retaining your staff, your company will save a lot of time and money that would otherwise spend on finding new employees and recruiting them.  
• Another good thing is that by keeping them safe, you will reduce sick leave and absence time, which again, saves your company a lot of costs.
• Think productivity. If your staff is healthy and stress-free, they are going to perform much better, thus it will boost their productivity levels and motivation. Which in the end, leaves you with high performing and satisfied staff, and reduced costs.  
• Good safety measures are one of the most important things when it comes to building a positive reputation among employees. If you happen to fail those measures, it is most certainly going to be a number one talk between employees, which eventually leads to very low levels of performance, loyalty, motivation, and retention.  

As already mentioned, securing your employees’ safety with safety measurements is not only something that you and your staff will benefit from but also something that is your legal duty. Whether the job they are performing is evidently at a higher risk of injuries like work at height, or it is sitting glued to the office chair in front of a computer for eight hours (which is also highly damaging human health), employees should never be in a position where their health and safety is in jeopardy. Government statutory body like Safe Work Australia, or The Occupational Safety and Health Administrations (for the USA), are the ones who are reinforcing laws and regulations regarding workplace safety. Legal penalties for violating those acts and regulations can be detrimentally huge (by every right), so it is of great importance to follow through all of your obligations as an employer. Some of the safety measurements are:

• You have to ensure that there are sustainable procedures in place in event of the emergency event

• Carry out a sufficient and sustainable risk assessment presented to the health, safety, and welfare of employees (and others) through operational activities

• If you have employees that are particularly vulnerable in some way, you must carry out a specific assessment of risk presented to the vulnerable person(s).

• Providing adequate and proportional health and safety training for employees. This one usually requires hiring professionals specialized in safety training. As the former employee of Sydney rescue courses says, there is plenty of hidden hazards that you would probably fail to observe and plenty of measurements that you wouldn’t be aware of without proper training.  

• Goes along with the previous one, and that is hiring to appoint a competent person to manage workplace safety and health.

• If employees are exposed to vibration, noise, substances hazardous to health, etc, there may be a requirement for the provision of relevant health surveillance too.  

For employees, it is easy to expect of employers to take all the responsibility for their own safety. The thing is, responsibility and duties go both ways. We are all sharing the responsibility for nurturing the safety culture and encouraging our coworkers and employees to value safe work practices and to be proactive about it. There are plenty of measurements that your staff can follow through in order to maintain their own welfare:

• Following health and safety policies and procedures.

• Keeping their personal work area neat and organized.

• Properly storing work equipment.

• Actively engaging in safety training that is provided by your company.

• Using safe work practices to eliminate slips, trips, and falls.

• Lifting safely and helping others to do the same.

• Becoming familiar with material safety data sheets and labelling all chemical containers correctly.

• Becoming familiar with evacuation and emergency procedures and the placement of emergency equipment.

Of course, it is easy to establish all the duties. Respecting and practising your responsibilities is much easier than encouraging others to do so. Which is why cultivating the culture of safety within your company is very important. It involves working with people, inspiring them and in the end making them reinforce proactive practices regarding their own (and other staff members’) safety at the workplace. It goes beyond regulations, policies, and duties. It is something that needs to be cultivated and nurtured, and it has a lot to do with personal core values. Engage with your staff in sharing these values, earn their trust. Organize monthly meetings dedicated to health and safety, or maybe even share some personal stories that will make you feel more connected to one another and therefore to build a strong bond of shared beliefs and values.

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