Preventing Trips, Slips, & Falls This National Safety Month
Safety in the workplace is important all year, but with June being National Safety Month, we want to highlight some of the most essential aspects of safety—including fall prevention. Falling, slipping, or tripping in the workplace is consistently towards the top of the OSHA list each year for citations and violations against rules and regulations. While getting a citation or fine might sound bad, risking your employees’ safety is even worse.
According to the National Safety Council, 660 workers died in falls from a higher level in 2014—and 49,210 were injured badly enough to require days off of work. On top of that, half of all fatal falls were from 20 feet or lower and 12% were from less than six feet—meaning that you should always be concerned about fall safety, no matter how close you are to the ground. There are many ways to prevent falls from happening, and by implementing a few simple solutions, you can largely minimize the risk posed to employees.
Safety Equipment
In order to have a workplace devoted to fall protection, you need to be using the right safety equipment. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requires that fall protection be employed whenever workers are elevated five feet or more—or over water. This includes equipment such as guardrails or personal fall arrest systems (PFAS) such as a safety harness, lifeline, or lanyard. For the equipment to meet OSHA standards, it must have at least one of the following attributes: prevent a worker from falling, arrest the fall of workers without causing injuries, or prevent workers from striking or falling to a lower level.
Proper Training
Creating a workplace protected from falls doesn’t just stop with safety equipment. Training is critical for any and all areas of an industrial company—and this is largely true for that of fall protection. Your organization should have training plans and procedures in place that bring awareness to the issue, as well as improve workers’ ability to prevent them. Having proper training for your employees can be the difference between life or death. This especially rings true for the construction industry, as they are the most at risk for death or injury.
When it comes to training, you should always be conscious of OSHA guidelines. Topics of interest might include identifying hazards, how to properly inspect ladders or scaffolding, knowing how to use the right safety equipment, and much more. Training should also be conducted regularly for each employee. Having consistent training sessions will ensure that each employee engages with and retains the information.
Keep Your Workplace Clean
Preventing slips, trips, and falls in your workplace doesn’t have to be difficult. It can be as simple as taking care of messes and knowing when and how to identify hazards. Slips and trips happen when there is a loss of traction between the shoe and the walking surface—or accidental contact with a fixed or movable object. Various situations such as wet or greasy floors, dust accumulation, or even clutter can contribute to a slip, trip, or fall.
Hazard identification is one of the best ways to prevent falls from occurring in the first place, and this includes making sure your workplace is clean and tidy. If your employees don’t have good housekeeping habits, it can contribute to a messy work environment—posing risk to everyone in the facility. Come up with a plan that will keep your workplace clean and properly identify hazards (such as spills or slippery floors) when necessary. You should also maintain good lighting throughout your facilities to ensure that each worker can see properly.
Protect Your Employees with Help from Stronghold Safety
Falls continue to be a top risk for workers in industrial, manufacturing, and construction industries. At Stronghold Safety Engineering, we’re passionate about helping you create a secure and productive work environment for your employees. This includes implementing a thorough fall protection plan—and as your machine operations safety partner, Stronghold Safety is here to make workplace falls one less thing for you to worry about. Starting with a hazard assessment, we can identify areas of risk and customize a fall protection plan based on your needs, budget, and time constraints. If you’re ready to kick your safety plan into gear, contact us today!