Losing time and money to workplace injuries is frustrating not just for the spent resources, but for the knowledge that the losses are often preventable. Identifying common safety hazards in your light industrial workplace can not only help you avoid workers’ compensation claims, it can also help you maintain a safe, healthy workforce. Staffing Partners’ light industrial recruiting experts weigh in on four of the most common safety hazards that affect your workplace, and ways to prevent them.
Slip and Fall Hazards
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) identifies slips, trips and falls as among the most common — and avoidable — contributors to workplace injuries. Unfortunately, the circumstances that contribute to slip and fall accidents are often common in light industrial environments, including wet floors, blocked walkways or passages and obstructions left on the floor. It’s the old ounce of prevention = pound of cure situation; train your employees to address hazards promptly and prohibit avoidable obstructions, and you’ll go far toward preventing these injuries.
Repetitive Movement Injuries
The very nature of most light industrial work means that it’s ripe for injuries caused by repetitive motion. It’s impossible to change the work, so your best avenue of reducing the hazard is to provide employees with training that addresses ways to prevent repetitive motion injuries; then consider tools, workstations and other ergonomic assistance measures that are designed to minimize the harm caused by repetitive movement.
Unlabeled/Unsealed Chemical Hazards
If you’re not in the business of making or transporting known hazardous chemicals such as pesticides or acids, the dangers posed by unlabeled or unsealed chemicals may seem minimal in your light industrial workplace. But OSHA considers even common cleaning products such as bleach, ammonia and aerosol sprays potential hazards for employees, particularly when they are unlabeled, unsealed, or stored in such a way as to make accidental eye or skin contact or ingestion possible. Draft policies for the storage and labeling of all chemicals in your workplace, and train employees on this policy.
Employees
Don’t blink — you read that right. The most common safety hazard in the light industrial workplace is the employee who has not been trained in preventing and avoiding safety hazards. Training employees to recognize and mitigate safety hazards should be a priority, but if your HR team is already has too much on their plate, you can relieve some of their workload by outsourcing recruitment. The Beaverton staffing specialists at Staffing Partners find the best temporary and temp-to-hire employees for your light industrial workplace. Let us help your HR team have more time for training — call us today!
