As a business owner or manager, you face a long list of responsibilities. However, keeping employees (and visitors) safe should always be at the top of your agenda.
Safe working environments will deliver a host of benefits. The list includes increased productivity, low staff turnover rates, and financial savings. Not least due to a lack of downtime. When added to the human responsibilities, it’s clear that you need to get this right. Here’s how to get it right in five easy steps.
Safety Tip 1: Make The Workplace Accessible
The layout of your workplace is an immensely important issue. To achieve the best results, you must ensure that the setting is safe for everyone. From railing companies to lift companies and car park designers, help is available in many situations. Meanwhile, adding visual or audio alarms to support workers with impaired sight or hearing will be crucial. Maintaining wide walkways can be useful too.
Ultimately, the goal is to make the workplace accommodating by putting provisions in place to support people who need them. Do this without restricting others and you’ll be fine.
Safety Tip 2: Prevent Unauthorised Access
When thinking about safety, you cannot ignore the need for good security too. Unauthorised access can put your employees at risk while it also opens the door to theft. Putting access entry points in which keycards or other tools are needed is a great start. Meanwhile, hiring a dedicated security team is also shown to have a very positive influence. Security cameras should also help deter potential intruders.
If nothing else, the knowledge that the workplace is protected will remove the weight of fear and stress from their shoulders. This should allow them to work better.
Safety Tip 3: Protect Employees Online
Keeping employees safe in the physical world is one thing, but you should also respect the fact that digital threats are a huge problem. A quick look at cybersecurity stats highlights that they happen daily while SMEs are often the target. Whether it’s through managed IT services or the use of firewalls and other tools is up to you. Either way, keeping sensitive employee data safe from breaches is vital.
It is shown, however, that over 90% of breaches are attributed to human error. So, an active investment in staff training and teaching them about the dangers is essential.
Safety Tip 4: Acknowledge Human Health
If you want employees to remain safe, you should also take their health into account. Hydration and regular exercise are vital for their physical wellness. In turn, this will allow them to remain alert and productive. Crucially, it can reduce illness days. It should also be noted that promoting improved mental health will deliver a plethora of rewards. It is the least that your team deserves.
Healthy employees are happier, which can only translate to better client experiences too. For this reason, stamping out all forms of workplace priority also deserves your attention.
Safety Tip 5: Be Prepared
Prevention is always the best solution for both safety and security. However, even the most proactive businesses cannot stop all potential problems. With this in mind, it is necessary to put the right contingencies in place. Backup power generators are a great investment. Aside from preventing downtime, it means that workers stay protected by safety equipment at all times. Frankly, it is an essential addition in today’s world.
Having electrical fire safety hooks, fire extinguishers, and other items in place will create a truly safe setting.
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