When you run a
construction company, this inevitably means that there are a greater number of
risks to the safety of your workers than in many other industries. Therefore,
it is highly important that you treat this issue with the high level of
seriousness that it deserves. Getting the safety culture right can prove to be
a difficult balancing act, but it is one that is worth taking due care and
attention over. So, here are a few top tips for improving the safety culture at
your business.
Ensure
it is Treated as a Priority
First and foremost,
you need to ensure that the issue of safety is one that is treated as a
priority rather than one that is overlooked. This means spending due care and
attention drafting your safety policy, as well as ensuring that each and every
site is set up in the correct manner. Not only this, but all of your staff
members need to be pulling together as one to ensure that they look after one
another and follow the guidelines that have been put in place.
Invest
in the Proper Equipment
You cannot expect
to have a safe workplace without the proper equipment. This extends from
everything from the tools to the scaffolding. It makes sense that you only buy
from reputable suppliers such as Oxford
Safety. Of course, the
way that everything is set up and operated will also make a big difference, so
ensure that all instruction manuals and operating procedures are followed to
the letter. Take your equipment in for servicing as and when required.
Make
Training a Continuous Exercise
Rather than having
training as a one-off event that only takes place when staff members first walk
through the door, it should instead be a continuous exercise that takes place
throughout the year. There is always going to be new thinking done on this
subject, as well as different ways of protecting the health and wellbeing of
your staff members. If training is ongoing, this makes a big difference in ensuring that it is always
at the forefront of the minds of your workers.
Get
Your Workers Directly Involved
While you can craft
a health and safety policy using all the
theories you like, your workers are the ones that are actually out on the front
line. As such, they are in a much stronger position to be able to identify all
of the individual strengths and weaknesses of your policy. It is a great idea
to ensure that all workers are directly involved in the creation of your
policy. This way, it becomes like a living organism that everyone nurtures
rather than something that is simply dictated and expected to be followed.
If you do not
create a proper health and safety policy in your construction business, this
can easily lead to potentially disastrous results. Bearing this in mind, it is
highly important that you create the right type of culture.