It only takes for a company to deal with a single slip and fall accident, to later be faced with various unpleasant repercussions.
When one of your employees has injured themselves on company grounds, the accident being triggered by something out of their control, some of the responsibility will fall on your shoulders.
Considering the complexity of these cases and how they can negatively impact your business in general, thinking about taking a few measures of precaution is recommended here. But what can you do exactly to reduce the likelihood of one of your employees being involved in a slip and fall accident in the workplace? There are a few recommended approaches companies are advised to look into, which might make the work environment a safer one, and lower personal injury events. If you are interested to know what actions you can take on the matter, keep reading:
Uncover the actual causes – getting to the root of the problem
When slip and fall cases keep happening, it’s your responsibility to investigate further and get to the root of the problem. Only by uncovering the real causes, you can actually find an effective solution and provide tour staff with a safe and risk-free work environment.
Upon a bit of research from your part, you will discover that a vast part of slips, falls and trips – same-level ones – are usually triggered by unsafe floors. From wet walkways and damaged floor surfaces to spills and sleepy mats and rugs, there are various floor-related issues that stand as the main cause of this sort of unpleasant situation. While the problem mentioned here is quite obvious, you would be surprised to discover just how many companies fail to seek a solution.
When a reduction in the number of slip and fall claims is sought after, businesses often focus on requesting staff to wear appropriate footwear and put together a safety training program instead of actually upgrading floor surface quality. So, as an initial effort from your part, you should look into updating walking surfaces, and ensuring their level of safety.
The way you can do that is by getting more involved, and no longer relying on your vendors or contractors to completely cover the floor safety characteristics of your company building. Same level falls will be prevented, or at least reduced, once you start paying more attention to this particular aspect. It’s time you fully understand how your involvement here matters, and to start targeting the areas where accidents are more keen to happen.
For example, you could think about placing mats in transition areas, where same level slips are also widely prone to occur, and not only at the entrance, as the majority of company buildings have.
Consider conducting a slip and fall audit
Taking one step further and putting more of your effort and attention into the subject means considering pursuing an actual audit on this issue.
For a lowering of slip and fall incidents in industrial workplace environments, an audit that targets entrance and transition areas, as well as high traffic spaces, together with maintenance and cleaning procedures is recommended. What an audit will do for you is actually show you where the major risks are. Identifying the most common trouble areas will give you the opportunity to take prevention to optimal levels.
It’s preferable if you partner up with a team of professionals who are able to easily spot any issues here and direct you towards proper solutions, instead of carrying out the audit on your own. It’s easy to overlook a hazardous floor spot, if you don’t have much experience in this department. High-traffic, transition and entrance areas need to all be assessed by the book. Permanent and temporary stairways should also be inspected for potential issues.
A comprehensive audit should contain a wide range of actions, including the placement of materials and tools, cleaning timing, and in-house maintenance procedures. A floor safety audit that is done perfectly can clarify many aspects and allow you to strengthen prevention.
Signage and a written plan for floor safety
You will need to put together an extensive and accurate floor safety plan, and you will need it to have it in writing, in order to keep things organised and effective. Identify all potential hazards and have written guidelines on how you will be planning to keep your employees safe from incidents of this sort. You should make sure your employees are on-board with the entire system, are aware of maintenance and cleaning hours.Discuss with your collaborators in the housekeeping and maintenance departments, and let them know about your floor safety requirements.
Order custom-sized mats for the areas in which the audit has shown hazards are present. Seek carpets that are designed out of proper quality materials, suitable for this purpose. Get your housekeeping schedule in-check and have it post it somewhere for everyone to see. Get all of these steps on paper, and follow them accordingly.
To maximize your efforts, you should also use proper signage to let your staff know when they should be extra careful when walking around company premises. A sign that indicates uneven ground, a gap, or slippery surfaces can actually prevent the occurrence of a trip or slip.
Use signs and reflective tape to highlight any hazardous areas. Protecting your business from personal injury claims can sometimes be easier than you have thought, you just need to be a bit more attentive of a few important aspects.
A slip and fall claim made by one of your employees can truly cause you distress and numerous inconveniences. It’s certainly far more advantageous to seek prevention and make sure you have taken all the measures necessary to at least reduce accidents of this sort. With just a few necessary adjustments, you can obtain an actual improvement, and prevent yourself from dealing with cases that might trigger a wide range of concerns.
Look over these methods carefully, and use each one to your advantage. You will be keeping your employees safe and unharmed, and your company protected against liability issues.
