A significant portion of facilities management and general management focuses on safety. If your organization has a lot of exterior rooftop activity—either as a construction team or for general business operations of maintenance and repairs—strengthening your rooftop safety protocols should be a priority. For many organizations, OSHA regulations and CCOHS standards become important tools for drafting policies, making purchase and training decisions, and evaluating current safety programs. For many areas of safety, they work as sufficient guideposts for safety. But even at their best, rooftop fall safety regulations outline bare minimum safety standards and may not fully address the safety needs of your unique facility.
Going beyond the minimum regulatory requirements offers industrial organizations several benefits, ranging from greater protections against lawsuits and penalties to developing stronger, more productive workflows. But how exactly can you create a culture of safety that goes beyond standard regulatory compliance for rooftop safety? Use this guide to examine the risks of maintaining the bare minimum and to take your first steps in establishing more robust internal initiatives.
As you establish buy-in from other stakeholders so you can expand your safety program, start with a thorough risk assessment. The hazards of not reaching minimum OSHA safety standards are clear, even if they're only measured in terms of potential OSHA fines of up to $16,550 per serious and other-than-serious violations or up to $165,514 for willful and repeated violations.
However, there are far more risks at hand due to the lack of sufficient rooftop safety processes. Exterior fall hazards can cause:
Penalties from local industrial and safety regulatory bodies that may hold higher or additional standards
Severe injuries among workers that need to go up on your rooftops
Lost productivity and focus as workers have to prioritize manual and individual safety concerns instead of their work tasks
Workers compensation claims and potential lawsuits
Direct and indirect costs from developing a reputation as an unsafe employer and industrial vendor
You can have processes in place for meeting minimum OSHA standards and still encounter these and other harms. But by going beyond safety protocols established by just regulations, you can better protect your organization.
The best approach to moving beyond tacit regulatory compliance is to create a well-rounded culture of safety. Take these initial steps to start building more safety programs and demonstrating to your stakeholders that safety is a priority.
OSHA standards already require some training and education. For example, there are signage requirements that your facility will need to meet by posting information in the breakroom or around particularly hazardous areas. During OSHA inspections, your staff may also need to demonstrate that they can properly put on fall protection harnesses. But frequent training offers better results.
Implement training for new hires and frequent reminder and update sessions for the entire team. This keeps the information top of mind and guarantees that new information will circulate into training materials. Some areas of training that everyone should receive regular updates on include:
Any changes in rooftop fall safety regulations and how they will impact work
How to safely use and navigate rooftop railings, loading dock railings, and safety gates
How to read any signage or warnings around OSHA-compliant guardrails and machine guarding solutions
How to properly wear and secure fall protection harnesses
While you may already conduct internal audits in preparation for OSHA inspections, your safety employees won't see everything. Workers who go up on the roof and frequently interact with rooftop hazards are in a much better position to understand what safety changes offer the greatest positive impact.
So develop a feedback program that incentivizes workers to give honest feedback (positive and negative) and suggestions for future improvements. If you can develop a program that substantially addresses worker concerns without any risk of retaliation, hollow promises, or negative pushback, your workers can give you the insights you need to develop a stellar safety reputation. They're also more likely to engage in day-to-day safety habits that will make all the difference in injury reduction.
This element is a big sticking point for organizations, especially industrial companies seeing economic upheaval and a continued push for lean, streamlined operations. But you can't implement sound safety protocols without a dedicated budget. Companies that want to develop a culture of safety and invest in OSHA-compliant guardrail installations, loading dock railings, and machine guarding solutions will need a defined budget for making facility improvements.
Your team can demonstrate the value of these investments to executives by conducting internal audits and demonstrating where compliance gaps can result in significant fees, penalties, and work slowdowns. Over time, as you implement more installations that meet and exceed rooftop fall safety regulations, you can document the substantive improvements and risk reductions that justify the spending.
Just as there are several hazards your organization can encounter if you don't push beyond regulatory compliance, there are several company-wide benefits you can grow by prioritizing rooftop safety. These benefits include:
Greater employee confidence: Employees can focus on their work and be more productive without having to second-guess safety.
Access to clients with higher reputational and safety requirements: Many companies require that the vendors they contract with have certifications and safety standards beyond bare industrial minimums. Increasing your safety practices can make you newly eligible for more profitable contracts.
Better brand reputation: Better safety protocols can increase your general brand reputation (and protect you from a negative reputation).
Lower insurance premiums: Fewer safety incidents and workers' compensation payouts can hold your insurance premiums steady or reduce them over time.
A built-in margin when efforts fall short: Even with the most robust safety programs, people can make mistakes. But by going the extra mile, you ensure mistakes steer clear of non-compliance and severe dangers.
Bluewater's OSHA-compliant guardrails and safety products come from our own commitment to going above and beyond minimum safety requirements. We offer comprehensive roof protection guardrails, including folding rails and guard rails built for parapets. Reach out today to learn more about our selection of rooftop safety installations from one of our fall protections experts.
