This Month's Safety Tip!

Improving work safety is a topic, and a goal, that should be on everyone’s mind. According to the US Department of Labor, every year almost 6000 people are fatally injured at work. More than four million more people suffer non-fatal injuries, including over a million which cause them to miss one or more days of work. What’s even worse than the bare statistics is that a great many of these deaths and injuries were due to carelessness and negligence, and could have easily been avoided by paying more attention to safety guidelines.

Employers are required to provide a safe workplace, but ultimately your safety at work is your own responsibility. If you feel like the environment is unsafe and your complaints fall on deaf ears, you should look for other employment and/or report the problem to the proper authorities so no one gets hurt. Of course, some jobs and industries are inherently more hazardous than others and if you have one of these jobs, you’ll need to be extra vigilant. Deaths and injuries occur in all kinds of employment sectors and job descriptions, however – factories, construction, office work, farming, information technology, etc. The lack of work safety is a big problem and we should do everything we can to reduce the number of deaths and injuries at work.

Thankfully, there are a great many things you can do to improve your own personal safety at work. You can also create an atmosphere of safety awareness among your coworkers and supervisors, as well as lobby your employer to improve safety policies, practices, and training. Be pro-active when it comes to workplace safety. Don’t wait for others to pick up the ball. While you’re waiting, you may wind up getting injured. So take it upon yourself to do what you can to improve your own workplace safety. We’ll look at some of the main work place safety hazards and risks, and discuss things you can do to reduce your chances of being injured at work.