Company owners and HR professionals in Pennsylvania and the rest of the nation have a duty to ensure workplace safety. To prevent work injuries from occurring, there are five issues that should be addressed.
Identifying the physical risks that are present in the workplace can help prevent liability claims and safeguard the well-being of employees. This can be as simple as having a meeting during which the HR personnel suggest ways to avoid physical risks at the worksite or while traveling for work.
Cultural risks that exist in the workplace environment should also be identified. These types of risks can cause conflict among employees and with people outside of the business.
Determining whether the growth of the business is forcing employees to handle responsibilities that are outside of their job descriptions is another aspect of workplace safety that should be addressed. Workers who are not adequately trained or do not have the proper amount of time to complete certain tasks may make errors. A HR professional should conduct observations or interviews to gauge how the employees’ workflow has changed. HR professionals should also question why, how and where safety rules are being ignored by employees.
Finding ways to integrate safety into the work culture is another task that should be handled by HR personnel. This will involve getting employees involved in the decision-making process.
Workplace injuries can be a result of lax company safety policies. Employees who sustain injuries on the job may want to contact a workers’ compensation attorney.
