Why There’s Still a Lot of Work Needed to Reduce Workplace Accidents
Picture this…you’re busy on the job and suddenly have a debilitating accident. In an instant, you’re in severe pain and may have a crippling injury that keeps you out of work for weeks, months, or longer. You not only suffer the physical and mental repercussions, but also the financial loss of the wages you need to live. And even worse, your accident could even be lethal. It’s bone-chilling to hear, but it can happen to you or a loved one in a moment and at any time while at work. It’s an outrage to realize that workplace injury has become increasingly rampant and that very little is being done to prevent this life-threatening problem. Sadly, despite the countless regulations, safety certifications, and efforts by employers to reduce workplace injury, it’s simply not enough. More strategies must be employed to significantly reduce the high rate of injury at work. At MD Now, many people visit us as a result of workplace accidents. Fortunately, some forward-thinking companies have discovered better ways to prevent work-related injuries. Since MD Now is the largest work-related injury medical provider in Florida with over 60 locations, we have extensive experience working with people that have experienced workplace accidents. We have repeatedly proven our ability to treat victims of work-related injuries and rehabilitate them back to full health and back to full-time work much faster. We are proud to offer a range of corporate healthcare programs, medical physicals, drug screening, medical testing, and more to help victims of work-related injuries. But since prevention is always better than treatment, we’ve featured these effective strategies below to help enlighten employers and keep employees safe.
Last year, workers’ compensation claims were filed by an average of 1.5 of every 100 employees on the job. Luckily, some safety-minded employers have been able to decrease their work accident rate by incorporating effective safety strategies and policies.
One company that’s seen a huge reduction in accidents is Waiward Steel in Edmonton, Canada. The company has been able to reduce their work-related injuries by a whopping 800%. Along with saving employees from the pain and problems of workplace accidents, the company’s efforts have enabled them to save more than 4.6 million hours in lost time on the job resulting from injury at work. Surprisingly, they achieved a safer workplace without the addition of more safety training.
Instead of focusing on training, they concentrated on competence by adopting a competency management system that determines how well each employee knows how to do their job. This allowed the company to know which employees needed further training and to provide the assistance they needed to perform their job safely. By shifting their focus to competency, the company helped many of its employees avoid work-related injuries and increase their productivity, while decreasing the firm’s overall costs.
While embracing a competency approach sounds like a simple way to reduce workplace injury, it’s actually difficult because it requires time and resources. Ensuring that employees are able to do their jobs safely demands a company-wide commitment. While safety certificates and training credentials are the most efficient techniques to determine employee ability, they’re not effective enough. The only way to make sure that employees are safe is by knowing how well they understand how to do every part of their job.
The truth is that most employees require a lot more than basic orientation to be properly trained. Not measuring each employee’s job skills has resulted in far too many accidents and fatalities.
Hopefully, more employers will start to use competency-based safety training to save themselves and their employees from suffering the painful and costly consequences of work-related injuries.