Recent estimates place the business costs associated with occupational injuries at close to $170 billion annually.* No contractor wants to see employees injured on a work site. Addressing safety and health issues in the workplace can save contractors money and add value to their businesses through:
o Lower workers’ compensation insurance costs
o Reduced medical expenditures
o Fewer quality issues on projects
o Increased productivity
o Improved morale
o Better labor relations
o Reduced turnover
Many contractors are taking the initiative and conducting their own safety inspections at every work site where they are active, as well as at the storage, maintenance, and office facilities they operate. By being proactive, contractors are also sending a clear message that employee safety is a priority.
If you are interested in instituting a formalized safety program in your company, OSHA has checklists that can help. Here are some key areas that may deserve your attention.
Receiving, Shipping, and Storage
Examine equipment, layout, heights, floor loads, material handling and storage methods, and training for material handling equipment, such as loaders
and forklifts.
Hand and Power Tools
Review inspection, storage, and repair of all power tools. Educate employees on the proper grounding, use, and handling of all tools used in your projects.
Electric Power
Review and formalize policies on working with, in, or near electric lines. Project managers and supervisors should use only certified electricians to set up switches, breakers, fuses, switch boxes, junctions, circuits, and extensions on your work sites.
Chemicals
Any chemicals used on work sites should be handled, transported, and stored according to state and federal requirements. Employees working with these chemicals should be trained, closely supervised, and provided with protective clothing.
Personnel
Provide employees with appropriate training in identifying hazards and in checking machines before use. Training should also be provided on the safest methods for cleaning, oiling, and adjusting machinery.
Maintenance
Provide regular and preventive maintenance on all equipment used at different work sites and record all work performed on the machinery.
Building and Grounds Conditions
Examine all floors, walls, ceilings, exits, stairs, walkways, ramps, platforms, and aisles to ensure that they do not present any safety hazards.
Safety Equipment
You should be aware that, by law, contractors are required to provide certain types of protective clothing and equipment to employees. According to the
federal government, personal protective equipment (PPE) in this category includes the following:
o Nonprescription eye protection
o Prescription eyewear inserts/lenses for full-face respirators
o Goggles
o Face shields
o Laser safety goggles
o Hard hats
o Hearing protection
o Respiratory protection
o Fall protection
o Ladder safety device belts
o Reflective work vests
o Rubber insulating gloves
o Non-specialty gloves — payment is required if they are PPE, such as for protection from dermatitis or severe cuts and abrasions. Payment is not required if they are for keeping clean or for cold weather protection.
“By being proactive, contractors are also sending a clear message that employee safety is a priority.”
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