The many moving pieces of a job site require proactive safety professionals to be prepared to often anticipate problems before they occur. While complying with modern-day safety standards is a critical first step, the most successful safety experts go above and beyond basic requirements to develop a skill set that can be applied throughout their career. In a growing field loaded with career opportunities, the safety professionals of tomorrow will be able to tailor safety protocols to a specific team and job site, ensuring both the health of workers and sustained productivity. Consider these proactive workplace safety tips that can help keep you ahead of the competition.
Why workplace safety is in-demand:
A safety professional’s number one mission is—obviously enough—the continued safety and health of workers, along with anyone else who might encounter a worksite. An injury can negatively affect the entire site and crew, leading to both devastating direct and indirect costs (e.g. worker’s compensation, medical bills, etc.). While the health of your crew remains paramount, the bottom-line impact of injuries is one of the key reasons why safety professionals are so critical to any operation, and why the field continues to be so essential.
Companies need to manage public relations and reputation:
Now more than ever, companies can’t afford a public relations mishap that can have a lasting negative impact on the business. Not only can a preventable injury diminish the company’s public image but it can also have a ripple effect through the workforce. That is why experts insist on having well-established safety protocols and communication channels before any such injury might occur, and the need to have safety professionals in place to set up the infrastructure. With companies in many different industries eager to ward off public relations nightmares that could also have an adverse effect on the workforce, the role of the workplace safety professional is more critical than ever.
A generation of workplace safety professionals is hitting retirement:
Although safety protocols obviously didn’t begin when OSHA was launched in 1970, it did ultimately create a new wave of safety professionals to help modernize work environments across the country. In the decades since, tremendous progress has been made in workplace safety, but many of the pioneers are either approaching retirement or already have. This has opened the door to a new generation of tech-savvy safety pros who can continue to elevate safety standards, protect modern-day workforces, and ensure that companies can head off PR disasters before they even develop.
Strong growth in workplace safety is expected through at least 2026:
Due to a variety of factors, the United States Department of Labor is expecting about an eight percent annual growth in the field of workplace safety for years to come. This makes the field a very reliable and promising career path that is on par with many of the top industries in the U.S., with the Labor Department pointing out that professionals will be needed both for existing regulations and for all new regulations that will be implemented in the coming years. Though projections are not yet available beyond 2026, all indications are that this growth rate beyond this window will be at least maintained, if not increased, depending on a variety of factors (e.g. regulations, tech developments, etc.).
Other factors that ensure the role of workplace safety professionals:
The value that safety professionals bring to the table is multifaceted, although some factors are more obvious than others. Following a workplace safety mishap, managers will have to spend administrative time figuring out how to remold the crew and get the project back on schedule. Replacing an experienced worker with someone less familiar with a specific task often creates a time-consuming learning curve and a productivity drop. Additionally, if a manager has to shift around other parts of the crew, the entire operation could be quickly impacted to the downside.
Following an accident, it may be necessary to fully investigate what happened and to implement new corrective changes, which will both have a time cost for the crew. Instead of waiting until after an injury or accident occurs, a proactive safety pro will anticipate any corrections that need to happen beforehand, saving both direct and indirect costs while promoting a safer work environment. Ultimately, identifying problems and taking simple steps like preemptively adding fall protection devices and safety gates in the right spot can be a tremendous boost for the safety and productivity of the entire crew.
4 Ways to Keep Your Workplace Safety Skills Sharp
Although an accident can seem unlucky at first glance, that’s rarely actually the case—especially when it comes to fall protocol. How does a safety pro get ahead of any problematic situations that could harm employees and the operation as a whole?
1) Organize and disseminate safety protocol:
It’s hard to overestimate the value of proper organization when it comes to safety, as this is a critical component of constructing a safe and healthy work environment. Putting together a protocol that puts worker health and safety first is crucially important, but it’s also critical to issue protocols in a simple and straight-forward language that everyone will understand. By stressing the importance of workplace safety, preventative techniques, and explaining what to do in case there is an accident, a safety pro can promote a workplace culture that limits risks and improves responses after an incident. Such a proactive approach will also help a crew get back on track if anything does go wrong.
2) Know your employees:
Taking the time to know your employees is one of the most proactive steps you can take to improve the safety of the entire workforce. When it comes to fall prevention, for example, it’s important to know if an employee has previously worked on a site where there is an inherent fall risk. Is an employee comfortable with his or her role? Does an employee understand the safety protocol and the associated risks of a particular job? A worker who is uncomfortable in a role or unclear about safety protocol is a recipe for disaster on a worksite, though that shouldn’t be a problem for an attentive overseer. Spending a few minutes getting to know workers on a personal level can be an enormous boost in evaluating a worker’s suitability for a task, often allowing a safety professional to identify problems before they occur.
3) Understand your environment and safety options:
Even similar work sites have their differences, which is why it’s important to evaluate each specific site with a fresh set of eyes and ears. This will help you identify situations in which you might need to replace equipment, such as safety gates or fall protection devices. It’s also vital to stay up-to-date on the latest tools, trends, and fall safety equipment, which will not only improve the safety of your team but will demonstrate your commitment to staying at the cutting edge of your field.
4) Stay on top of record keeping:
Record keeping on a busy site can be a hassle, but it has also never been easier thanks to a constantly improving series of managerial apps. With a phone or tablet, safety professionals can easily document just about any piece of data they might need to keep track of, including when equipment and fall protection devices were inspected, changes in work conditions, and much more. While regularly inspecting critical equipment like safety gates or other fall protection devices is a fundamental part of the job, being able to organize the data and easily access it in the future is nearly as important.
The future of safety professionals:
While a safety professional who adheres to OSHA rules and regulations is doing the entry-level part of the job, those willing to take other proactive steps and develop lifelong workplace safety skills will separate themselves from their peers. Having the right fall protection devices and other safety equipment in place is certainly a must, but the top safety pros will be very well organized, understand the skills and experience of employees, and be ready to change safety protocols to fit the crew and environment.
Considering OSHA estimates that U.S. employers spend about $1 billion every week just on the direct costs of workplace injuries, the importance of a great safety professional is now well-established. As leading manufacturers push forward with better safety equipment and new technologies develop for easy record-keeping, safety experts have many helpful tools at their fingertips. With a little foresight and a willingness to continually improve one’s skill set, a savvy safety professional is in a position to cement his or her status as an irreplaceable part of any business.
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