Slips And Falls, Underestimated Workplace Hazards

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(Maxpixel.net)

15 Feb. 2019. Workplace safety is a priority for all businesses because if you aren’t creating a safe work environment for your employees, you’ll have to deal with injuries and possibly fines for breaking health and safety codes. In dangerous industries like construction or manufacturing, there are all sorts of hazards and dangerous equipment that you need to deal with, but people often overlook the simpler issues.

Trips and falls are still one of the biggest workplace dangers in any industry and the majority of the time, they’re easily avoidable. In 2016, 697 people died in falls and almost 50,000 were seriously injured and had to take time off work. A significant amount of those deaths were caused by same level falls, rather than people falling from a height. Usually, trips and falls are caused by sloppy health and safety practices and they could have been avoided if everybody was following procedure properly. If you haven’t really considered it before, here are some of the best ways to avoid slips and falls in your workplace.

Regular cleaning

If the workplace is messy and there are things lying around on the floor or spills that haven’t been wiped up properly, there is an increased risk of falls. That’s why it’s so important that you have a regular cleaner to keep the place tidy. As well as hiring cleaners, you should also stress the importance of keeping the workplace clean to your employees. It’s not a big job if everybody is responsible for their own work area and they make sure that they leave it clean and tidy at the end of the day.

Good flooring

Getting the right flooring is another simple way that you can stop people from slipping over. Some materials are a lot better than others. Concrete, for example, is ideal for any workplace because if it’s maintained properly, it has great non-slip properties. You can use stained concrete so it still looks good and you’re keeping your employees safe at the same time. If you’re going to go for carpets, it’s best to use industrial carpets that are designed to give good grip so people are less likely to slip. You need to make sure that you’re maintaining the carpets properly as well because if they come up at the edges, that’s a big trip hazard.

Proper lighting

People always focus on removing obstacles which is very important, but visibility is equally as important. If people can’t see what they’re doing properly, they’re far more likely to miss any potential trip hazards. Always make sure that you’ve got good lighting around the office, especially along any walkways where people are most likely to have a fall. In areas where people are often carrying things, you should install automatic lighting so they don’t have to worry about switching the lights on while they’re trying to carry a heavy load.

Trips and falls don’t seem that serious but they’re one of the leading causes of workplace injury so it’s essential that you take steps to combat them.

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