How to keep employees safe in the workplace

As a manager or business owner, one of your primary concerns is ensuring that your workplace is safe for both your employees and your customers and you will probably know that in the UK the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) requires employers to provide a safe and healthy work environment for their employees.

Unfortunately, accidents can happen anywhere and at any time. That's why it's important to have a comprehensive health and safety plan in place to minimize the risk of injury or illness in the workplace.

In this guide we will detail the key elements of how to put into place a health and safety plan that will aid you in creating a safer working culture within your organisation.

Introduction

Workplace injury statistics in the UK are alarming, with an estimated 1.2 million people suffering from a work-related illness each year and over 120,000 people suffering a workplace injury. The most common types of injuries include slips, trips and falls, contact with objects or equipment, and exposure to harmful substances.

Many workplace injuries are preventable if employers take the necessary precautions to protect their employees. Safety measures can include implementing safe work practices, providing adequate training, and ensuring that employees are properly equipped to do their jobs safely.

Employers should also have a plan in place for dealing with workplace accidents and injuries. This should include first aid provisions, emergency procedures, and contact information for local medical services.

It is important for employers to keep track of workplace injury statistics so that they can identify any patterns and take corrective action where necessary. By taking steps to ensure a safe and healthy workplace, employers can help reduce the risk of injury and illness for their employees.

There are many ways to build a culture of safety in the workplace and in this post we will explore some of the key things you can do to create a safe and healthy workplace for your employees and visitors:

Preparation

You must display the official Health and Safety poster

If you are a UK business and employ you must display the official Health and Safety Poster. This is law under the Health and Safety Information for Employee Regulations 1989 which is enforced by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).

The HSE states that:

"If you employ anyone, you must display the health and safety law poster, or provide each worker with a copy of the approved leaflet or equivalent pocket card. You must display the poster where your workers can easily read it"

"The poster outlines British health and safety laws and includes a straightforward list that tells workers what they and their employers need to do. You can also add details of any employee safety representatives or health and safety contacts if you wish to do so"

"The poster was updated in 2009 and all employers must display this new version, or provide each worker with a copy of the equivalent leaflet or pocket card"

Tip - You can buy this poster directly and download free copies of the pocket card directly from the HSE website here

Establish a health and safety policy

The first step in creating a safe and healthy workplace is to establish a health and safety policy. This policy should outline the general principles of health and safety in your workplace, as well as the specific measures you will take to protect your employees and visitors. It's important to make sure that everyone who works in or visits your workplace is familiar with this policy.

An easy way to do this is by ensuring all employees are given a copy of the health and safety policy and sign to confirm their acceptance of what you have outlined. Existing employees can be issued with this new document and it can be made part of your onboarding process for any future new starters.

By doing this you will not only help to ensure the start of a comprehensive audit trail, but also form the foundation of building a culture of safety in your workplace.

A health and safety policy template can help you to ensure that your workplace is safe. The following is a basic overview that you can use as a starting point:

Section 1 - Introduction

This section should outline the general principles of health and safety in your workplace, as well as the specific measures you will take to protect your employees and visitors.

Section 2 - Safe Work Practices

This section should outline the safe work practices that you expect your employees to follow. This should include things like wearing the appropriate safety gear, using caution when working with hazardous materials, and following safety procedures when using machinery.

Section 3 - First Aid Provision

This section should outline the first aid provisions that are available in your workplace in the event of an accident or injury. This should include contact information for local medical services and details on how to access first aid supplies.

Section 4 - Emergency Procedures

This section should outline the emergency procedures that are in place in your workplace in the event of an accident or injury. This should include contact information for local emergency services and details on how to evacuate the premises.

Section 5 - Training and Education

This section should outline the training and education that is available to your employees in order to help them stay safe at work. This should include things like safety training for working with hazardous materials, CPR and first aid training, and forklift operator training.

Risk Assessments

Once you have a health and safety policy in place, the next step is to carry out a risk assessment. This will help you identify any potential hazards in your workplace and put measures in place to mitigate the risks.

Identify potential risks with risk assessments

There are a number of different ways to carry out a risk assessment and you can access some free templates in our article How to carry out a risk assessment. Risk assessments should include:

• an audit of your workplace

• identification of hazards

• corrective actions to mitigate any risks

Risk assessments can also be carried out for each job role to identify more specific risk associated with each role. For example a warehouse worker role may have added risk due to manual handling of large boxes or a production worker may have added risk due to machinery being used.

• a risk assessment for each job role

• identification of hazards

• corrective actions to mitigate any risks

Risk assessments should be treated as formal documents and as such kept on file for future reference and auditing purposes so that you can show an evidential trail of your pro-active commitment to health and safety in the workplace.

Assess the risks

Once you have your health and safety policy in place, it's important to assess the risks associated with your workplace. This includes identifying any potential hazards, such as slips, trips and falls, chemical exposure, noise exposure and more. Once you know what the risks are you can remove the risk in full whenever possible or put measures in place to protect your employees from them if the risk cannot be removed.

There are a number of ways to remove risk from the workplace.which explore later in this article but some simple examples for now may be:

• following safety procedures when using machinery

• installing safety barriers around dangerous areas

• providing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) such as goggles and gloves.

Equipment and signage

There are a number of basic pieces of health and safety equipment that every business should have in order to protect their employees. This includes things like first aid kits, fire extinguishers, and signage indicating the location of the emergency exits.

First Aid Kits

Every workplace should have a first aid kit on hand in case of an accident or injury. First aid kits should be well stocked and include supplies like bandages, gauze, and adhesive tape.

Fire Extinguishers

Every workplace should also have fire extinguishers on hand in case of a fire. Fire extinguishers come in a variety of different types, so it's important to choose the right ones for your workplace. There are also online fire safety training courses available to teach employees how to use fire extinguishers safely.

Signage

Signage is an important part of health and safety in the workplace. It helps to guide employees to the emergency exits, identify hazardous areas, and provide instructions for how to respond to various emergencies.

Fire exit signs

Fire exit signs are signs that indicate the location of the nearest fire exit. They are an important part of health and safety in the workplace as they help employees to find their way to the emergency exits quickly and easily in case of a fire.

Fire action notice signs

A fire action notice sign is a sign that provides instructions for what to do in the event of a fire. This may include things like how to evacuate the premises and where to meet once outside. It's important to ensure that all employees are familiar with these instructions and know what to do in the event of a fire.

Hazard signs

Hazard signs are signs that identify potential hazards in the workplace. They help employees to be aware of any dangers that may be present and take the appropriate precautions. It's important to familiarise employees with all of the hazards present in the workplace and ensure that they know how to respond to them if they occur. Hazard signs can play an important role in achieving this.

Accident reporting book

A business should always have an accident reporting book on hand to record any accidents or injuries that occur in the workplace. This will help the business to track any patterns in accidents and identify any potential hazards. It will also help to provide evidence in the event of a legal case

Training & Procedures

Now that you have identified and mitigated as many risks as possible you can focus on employee training. Health and safety training should be a mix of in-house training for role specific tasks alongside general health and safety training that all employees should be provided with by law.

Employees should be given adequate training on how to safely perform their duties. This includes both new and existing employees, as well as anyone who is taking on a new role or responsibility. Training should be provided on an ongoing basis so that employees are always up-to-date on the latest health and safety information.

Create a health and safety training matrix

By creating a health and safety training matrix you can identify the training required for each role or department to ensure that the correct training is being provided. This includes training on how to identify and avoid potential hazards and how to correctly carry out any processes as well as how to respond in an emergency situation should it arise.

Role specific training should include things such as:

• The risks associated with the job.

• How to safely perform the tasks required.

• How to identify potential hazards.

• What to do in an emergency situation.

• The company's health and safety policies and procedures.

For general employee health and safety training the following should be provided:

Fire Safety Training

One of the most important aspects of health and safety in the workplace is fire safety. Employees should be properly trained on how to respond to a fire emergency. This training should include how to use a fire extinguisher, how to evacuate the premises, and how to contact emergency services. Employees should also be familiar with the building's evacuation plan. By using an accredited fire safety training course you can also ensure with confidence that your legislative requirements are met.

DSE Training

DSE stands for Display Screen Equipment. It's a term used to describe the use of computer screens, laptops, and other digital devices in the workplace. DSE training is designed to help employees protect their health and safety when working with these devices. It covers a variety of topics, including how to adjust your workstation to reduce the risk of injury, how to take breaks from the screen, and how to manage stress.

Manual handling training

Manual handling training is a type of safety training that teaches employees how to safely lift and move objects. It covers a variety of topics, including how to adjust your workstation to reduce the risk of injury, how to take breaks from the task, and how to manage stress.

Slips trips and falls training

Slips trips and falls training is a type of safety training that covers how to prevent these accidents from happening in the workplace. It covers a variety of topics, including how to identify potential trip hazards, how to correct them, and how to avoid them in future.

Implement adequate safety measures and procedures

Once you've identified the risks and put measures in place to mitigate them, it's important to ensure that these measures are actually implemented properly. These procedures should be designed to protect employees from potential hazards, and they should be updated regularly to reflect any changes in the law or industry standards.

This includes making sure that all of your employees are aware of the safety measures in place and that they are complying with any new procedures you have created to safely perform their duties. These procedures should be designed to protect employees from potential hazards, and they should be updated regularly to reflect any changes in the law or industry standards.

Emergency Procedures

Every workplace should have emergency procedures in place in case of fire, flood, evacuation, or other unforeseen circumstances. These procedures should be well-documented and communicated to all employees so that everyone knows what to do in an emergency situation.

Emergency procedures should cover a variety of topics, including:

• Evacuation routes and assembly points

• How to report an emergency.

• Who to contact in an emergency.

• What to do if you can't evacuate.

• First aid procedures.

Reviews

It's important to review your safety measures on a regular basis to make sure that they are still effective. This is especially important if you have made any changes to your workplace or introduced new equipment or chemicals. You should also review your safety measures if there have been any accidents or near-miss.

Review and update your safety measures regularly

One way to do this is to carry out regular review audits of your workplace to make sure that the safety measures are being followed. You should also provide employees with feedback on their compliance with the safety measures and encourage them to report any unsafe conditions or practices.

By encouraging a safe working culture this may also help identify any new potential hazards which can be addressed quickly before they cause any harm.

Regularly review and update your health and safety policy

Your health and safety policy should be reviewed regularly and updated as necessary to reflect any changes in your workplace or new health and safety regulations.

Enforcement and reporting

It's not enough to simply have health and safety policies in place; you also need to enforce them. This means having disciplinary measures in place for employees who violate these policies and processes in place to make reporting straightforward.

Enforcing Health and Safety Policies

Enforcing health and safety policies shows employees that you're serious about keeping them safe, which can incentivize them to follow these policies more closely. There are a number of ways you can enforce health and safety policies, including:

• Conducting spot-checks to make sure employees are complying with the policies.

• Providing employees with feedback on their compliance with the policies.

• Encouraging employees to report any unsafe conditions or practices.

• Investigating any accidents or near-misses.

• Having disciplinary measures in place for employees who violate health and safety policies.

Reporting Health and Safety Concerns

Employees should feel confident that they can report any health and safety concerns without fear of reprisal. This includes concerns about potential hazards, unsafe work practices, or anything else that could endanger themselves or their coworkers.

There are a number of ways you can encourage employees to report health and safety concerns, including:

• Creating an anonymous reporting system, such as a hotline or online form.

• Encouraging employees to speak up if they see something unsafe.

• Making it clear that there will not be retaliation for reporting health and safety concerns.

• Investigating fully all reports of health and safety concerns.

• Making sure employees are aware of the reporting procedures.

Encouraging a culture of safety in the workplace.

By encouraging employees to report health and safety concerns, you can quickly address any potential hazards before they cause any harm. This also helps to create a culture of safety in your workplace, which can prevent accidents and injuries from happening in the first place.

Reporting accidents and incidents o the HSE

In the UK you are required by law under RIDDOR to report certain accidents and incidents to the HSE. RIDDOR stands for the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations.

You can learn more about the types of accidents and incidents that are classed by the HSE as reportable here. Accidents must be reported within 10 days of them happening. You can report an accident by completing a HSE Online Report form.

The HSE will investigate all reported accidents and take appropriate action. This can include issuing safety notices, requiring improvement notices, or prosecuting employers who violate health and safety regulations.

For accidents

An accident is classed as reportable to the HSE when it results in an injury that requires medical attention. This includes injuries that require hospitalization, time off work, or treatment by a doctor or nurse. You must also report any accidents that result in the death of a worker, even if it does not require medical attention.

For Incidents

An incident is classed as reportable to the HSE when it results in an injury that does not require medical attention. This includes injuries that do not require hospitalization, time off work, or treatment by a doctor or nurse. You must also report any incidents that result in the death of a worker, even if it does not require medical attention.

Maintaining a Safe Workplace

Keeping your workplace safe is an ongoing process that requires regular maintenance and upkeep. This includes things like inspecting equipment and machinery, conducting risk assessments, and keeping up with health and safety regulations. By regularly maintaining a safe workplace, you can help prevent accidents and injuries from happening.

There are a number of ways you can maintain a safe workplace, including:

• Inspecting equipment and machinery on a regular basis.

• Conducting risk assessments on a regular basis.

• Updating health and safety policies as needed.

• Making sure employees are trained on how to use equipment and machinery safely.

• Keeping up with health and safety regulations.

By regularly maintaining a safe workplace, you can help prevent accidents and injuries from happening.

Conclusion

Having created a culture of safety in your workplace and showing its essential for preventing accidents and injuries from happening, safety should become front-of-mind and a priority for everyone in the organization, from management to front-line workers. By taking these steps, you can help create a workplace that is safer for everyone involved.

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