With the frequency of news stories highlighting workplace violence, it’s easy to imagine the worst case scenarios like shootings, hostage situations, and more. Unfortunately, while drastic, these instances are not unheard of and can happen anywhere and at any time.

In this article, we’ll discuss the state of workplace violence in the United States, the potentially devastating effects on your business, how you can mitigate the risk factors, and how to protect your business if the worst should happen.

Workplace violence statistics

There’s been a sad history of workplace violence in this country. Consider the following startling statistics:

• Two million people become victims of workplace violence every year.
• One out of seven people doesn’t feel safe in the workplace.
• 30 percent of employees are unaware of their company’s safety plan.
• 30,000 women report workplace sexual assaults annually.

Workplace shootings or other fatal attacks are the most drastic examples of workplace violence. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), however, “Workplace violence is any act or threat of physical violence, harassment, intimidation, or other threatening disruptive behavior that occurs at the work site.”

All such incidents can have a destructive impact on the lives of your employees and on the success of your business.

The impact of workplace violence on business

The biggest problem with workplace violence is the toll it takes on people’s physical and mental wellbeing. We know your employees’ safety and happiness is always your top priority, so let’s take a look at the impact that workplace violence can have on your business.

Monetary costs

Violence in the workplace is expensive in terms of medical costs, lawsuits, and lost productivity. The amount of money U.S. businesses lose every year due to workplace violence totals $130 billion.

Employee morale

Any type of violence, bullying, or assault – be it verbal or physical – is damaging to employees’ spirits. Feeling insecure or unsafe at work can be demoralizing. After all, you have to work nearly every day, so any negative feelings you encounter while working will have a cumulative effect.

Turnover

Morale and turnover go hand in hand. Our knee-jerk response when we feel we’re in danger is “fight or flight.” Therefore, if your employees feel like they’re not safe (mentally, emotionally, or physically) in their own work environment, they may choose the “flight” option. They’ll leave you to work for a business where they feel more confident.

Productivity

People work best when their minds are clear of distractions. Violence, or even the threat or fear of violence, is counterproductive to efficiency. When you must shut down production to deal with the many issues surrounding violence of any kind, you lose that output as well.

Workplace violence risk factors

Research suggests that the following factors contribute to a worker’s risk for workplace assault:

• Public contact
• Exchange of money
• Delivery of passengers, goods, or services
• Having a mobile workplace (taxi, food truck, etc.)
• Working with unstable or volatile persons
• Working alone or in small numbers
• Working late-night or early-morning hours
• Working in high crime areas
• Working with valuable property or possessions
• Working in community-based settings

This list should give you a good idea about your own company’s risk level, but understand these factors are not exhaustive. If none apply to you, it doesn’t mean you run no risk of workplace violence cropping up in one form or another. Put measures in place to protect your people and your business regardless of your operational sector.

How to protect your employees from workplace violence

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Protecting your assets, human and otherwise, is usually a matter of taking measures in two different categories.

Environmental

Here, we’re talking about actual security measures. Some businesses can’t operate behind locked doors, but some can. Assaults often come from outside the organization. Find ways to make it difficult for outsiders to physically get in without being vetted.

Security cameras, security guards, adequate lighting, and physical barriers such as partitions may be good options for you. Start thinking about the designs you can incorporate in your work environment that will mitigate risk.

Administrative and behavioral

While it’s important to have and communicate a zero-tolerance violence policy, a line or two in your company handbook won’t cut it. Staffing plans and work practices need to be in place to show your employees that their safety is important to you.

You want to deter opportunists from choosing your location to strike. Think along the lines of money drop-off and pick-up systems, staffing numbers (don’t have people working in remote locations alone), and strict policies and procedures for assessing and reporting threats.

Security cameras, security guards, adequate lighting, and physical barriers such as partitions may be good options for you. Start thinking about the designs you can incorporate in your work environment that will mitigate risk.

If the worst happens

Despite your best efforts, violence could still occur in your workplace. In this case, you need to tend to the people who may have been harmed first.

Nobody can predict if or when an assault will occur or the damage it may cause. For this reason, it’s important to insure your business against this eventuality with a robust insurance policy.

Workplace violence insurance is an important supplemental policy because traditional property and casualty insurance generally doesn’t cover acts of violence. A comprehensive policy will cover injuries, lawsuits, and property restoration. It should protect all employees, regardless of whether they were onsite when the incident occurred, as long as they were working at the time. You can tailor your coverage terms to meet your company’s needs, budget, and risk factors.

Are you protecting your business with insurance?

It’s impossible to mitigate every risk but implementing safety measures will help reduce the chance of workplace violence. If one of your employees gets injured on the job, workers’ compensation insurance may cover their medical costs and provide benefits until they can return to work.

Thanks for reading! Please note that this content is intended for educational purposes only. As best practices change regularly, you should refer to your trusted advisor for specific counsel. If you’re a small business owner, learn more about workplace safety or check your workers’ comp rate in 3 minutes.

The post Workplace safety: workplace violence appeared first on Pie Insurance.

When it comes to your employees, you are responsible for providing them with a safe work environment. While many small business owners think about workplace safety from the standpoint of harassment and violence, there are other types of injuries that are just as common.

For instance, according to the National Safety Council, overexertion injuries are the second leading nonfatal injury or illness event that forces employees to miss work. It also accounts for almost 22% of all injuries reported in the workplace.

With overexertion injuries so prevalent, how do you protect your employees?

Even though it’s impossible to prevent every injury, there are some steps you can take to make your work environment safer.

Let’s look at some of these preventative strategies and dive deeper into overexertion injuries in the workplace.

What is an overexertion injury?

Overexertion injuries include any injury that happens due to performing a task beyond one’s physical limitations. When people think about these injuries, they often associate them with more physically demanding workplaces like construction sites and health care facilities. However, an overexertion injury can occur in any type of work environment.

What is the most common cause of overexertion injuries?

Since overexertion injuries often result from performing a task above an employee’s physical activity, the most common causes often involve physical activity. For example, one of the leading causes of an overexertion injury is lifting a heavy object.

Regardless of whether the object is a piece of machinery or a box in the office, it’s fairly easy to pull a muscle or damage a part of the body without the proper equipment and technique.

Here are a few other common causes of an overexertion injury:

• Bending, stooping, or crawling for an extended period
• Working in extreme conditions
• Repetitive tasks that require workers to work without breaks
• Pushing and pulling heavy objects

How can safe lifting help prevent overexertion injuries?

Improper lifting is often one of the reasons why overexertion injuries can happen when picking up any item, regardless of weight. Training staff on the proper way to lift an object automatically decreases the risk of one of these injuries occurring. However, other factors can lead to overexertion injuries.

For instance, employees must understand when they need to ask for help when moving a heavy object. Making sure that they have assistance from either a co-worker or a lifting device can help cut down on the number of injuries.

4 tips to lower the odds of an overexertion injury from happening

Overexertion injuries are one of the most preventable injuries in the workplace. With a few tactics and tips, you can easily cut down the number of instances in your company. Let’s look at a few of these simple strategies.

Hold regular training sessions on proper lifting techniques

It’s common for workers to not give it much thought when lifting a light object. However, even small items moved without the proper technique can result in an injury such as a strained or pulled muscle. One way to combat these injuries is to hold regular training sessions that focus on the proper way to move and lift objects.

Throughout these training sessions, it’s essential to discuss proper lifting techniques and provide workers with resources for when an item is too heavy to move alone.

Improve current processes to eliminate unnecessary tasks

Another common cause of overexertion injuries is repetitive motions and tasks. By looking at your current processes, there could be an opportunity to streamline specific functions to reduce the stress an employee is under. For instance, workers in a manufacturing environment might benefit from having their tools positioned higher.

Purchase lifting and moving equipment for your staff

Depending on your industry, purchasing equipment to help with the lifting and moving of objects can help cut down the risk of injuries for employees. Equipment can also help eliminate repetitive motions and tasks that lead to long-term injuries.

Invest in ergonomics for your office employees

Even though most office employees won’t be required to lift objects as part of their daily jobs, they’re still capable of sustaining overexertion injuries. For example, sitting at a desk for seven to eight hours each day can lead to back injuries. One way to cut down on these injuries is to invest in ergonomic workstations that promote good posture.

Can workers’ comp protect workers if an overexertion injury occurs?

If one of your workers sustains an overexertion injury, then your workers’ compensation insurance policy should cover the treatment and medical costs associated with the incident. The only instances where it might not cover the expenses are if the injury occurred due to employee negligence or the use of drugs and alcohol.

Thanks for reading! Please note that this content is intended for educational purposes only. As best practices change regularly, you should refer to your trusted advisor for specific counsel. If you’re a small business owner, learn more about workplace safety or check your workers’ comp rate in 3 minutes.

The post Workplace safety: overexertion appeared first on Pie Insurance.

Trucking is vital to the U.S. and world economies, but it can also be a dangerous venture for drivers. We’re covering some of the common safety issues trucking businesses and employees face as well as safety measures to implement.

Trucking makes the world go round

Trucking, along with the transportation industry as a whole, is a vital part of the U.S. economy. With a workforce estimated at nearly eight million people, including truck drivers and non-driving trucking employees, this industry contributes almost nine percent to the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP).

The essential nature of trucking and transportation can’t be overstated. The world as we know it would come to a grinding halt in a matter of days if every truck in America were to stop running. With this much at stake, minimizing risk and increasing safety within the industry is a large priority for everyone involved.

Trucking is a dangerous job

The trucking industry combines a large number of people with a large volume of work and heavy machinery, so it’s no wonder safety is a major concern. Trucking is known to be one of the most dangerous jobs, as outlined in the 2016 Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Trucking came in at number seven for the most dangerous jobs with 24.7 deaths per 100,000 workers reported.

On top of deaths, there are non-fatal injuries that occur at rates between 233 per 10,000 and 262.1 per 10,000 according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Given the inherently risky nature of both short-haul and long-haul trucking, safety should be on the minds of everyone who touches the transportation industry.

Trucking safety depends on everyone across the supply chain

It’s easy to think that truck drivers are primarily responsible for safety in trucking. The truck driver is the iconic face of the industry and the one we all see on the roads on a daily basis. In reality, safety in the transportation industry requires the attention and cooperation of every worker involved in all parts of the process. From dispatchers and mechanics to those who load and unload cargo, each employee needs to ensure their own safety as well as the safety of others.

Safety in the transportation industry starts when cargo is loaded into trucks for shipment. Knowing the correct way to load for both short and long-haul transport is crucial for trucking safety.

One fault in loading can prove to be a dangerous mistake for drivers on the road. It isn’t unusual for packages to shift in trucks during transportation if contents aren’t carefully secured. These shifts put unnecessary strain on trucks. If a truckload of goods is improperly loaded, the imbalance can lead to serious accidents when trucks overturn, jackknife, or experience “trailer swing”. These issues present even greater threats to truck drivers and the general public if the cargo includes hazardous materials. By ensuring proper cargo loading, the trucking employees who are responsible for these jobs can reduce many trucking safety risks.

Injuries and medical conditions in trucking employees

On top of moving vehicular accidents, truckers experience higher rates of occupational injuries and medical issues associated with sedentary jobs. While some conditions are correlated with long hours behind the wheel and repetitive motions often required of truckers, many accidents and injuries can also be tied to a disregard for safety protocols. Whatever the cause, medical and safety issues affecting truckers also impact the public they share the roads with, which makes them a public health issue along with an occupational hazard.

Common trucking injuries

According to OSHA’s information on the trucking industry, strains and sprains make up 50 percent of truck drivers’ injuries. Other common injuries include bruises, fractures, cuts and lacerations, soreness and pain, and other traumatic injuries. Truckers may also experience issues like chronic exhaustion related to long hours in the driver’s seat, and pain and stiffness from sitting in the same position and being jarred by their vehicle. Repetitive motion injuries are also common for truckers who have to climb in and out of their cabs and hook/unhook chains and hoses.

Common trucking medical conditions

In addition to workplace-related injuries, truck drivers have significantly higher instances of chronic medical conditions like diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity, and others influenced by long hours, a stressful environment, and lack of physical activity.

Each of these conditions presents safety concerns on several levels:

• Drivers with unregulated blood pressure or blood sugar can cause accidents due to medical emergencies, like a heart attack or stroke
• Drivers in poor health will cost transportation companies more in health care
• Unhealthy truck drivers may have to end their careers early, further exacerbating the trucking industry’s driver shortage

For these reasons and more, it’s vital for trucking companies to focus on the health and safety of their employees and encourage staff to do the same. Not least of all, transportation companies can reduce their workers’ comp insurance premiums by focusing on worker health and safety

Trucking safety concerns from lax safety protocols

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) researched known safety concerns in the trucking industry and found that most incidents went hand-in-hand with rushing to finish the job and disregarding basic safety protocols. Some of the most alarming safety-related findings include:

• Seventy-three percent of truck drivers reported feeling their deadlines were too tight and unrealistic, encouraging them to drive recklessly or sacrifice sleep and other aspects of their health to meet deadlines
• Seatbelt use is not universal among truck drivers. Fourteen percent of drivers claim to sometimes, or never, use their seatbelt
• Twenty-four percent of truck drivers drive in bad weather and while significantly tired
• Around one-third of drivers have at least one crash in their trucking career, with more than that stating they received inadequate training for their job as drivers

These statistics are alarming, and shine a light on how important it is for trucking and transportation companies to maintain strict health and safety protocols for all employees.

Improving safety in the trucking industry

Many of the safety issues facing the trucking industry can be traced back to the intense pressure to deliver goods on time. Unrealistic deadlines hurt everyone from the truck drivers to other drivers on the road with them. It also hurts the bottom line of trucking companies that have to pay out more in workers’ compensation insurance premiums.

Trucking companies can increase workplace safety within the transportation industry by adopting better practices, such as:

• Standardizing training for truck drivers and dock workers to ensure everyone is aware of weight limits and the right way to load a truck with cargo
• Creating realistic delivery schedules that allow drivers time for sufficient rest, meals, and exercise
• Promoting defensive driving techniques among drivers to help avoid accidents on the road
• Focusing on preventive maintenance and frequent vehicle inspections to reduce the likelihood of mechanical failure
• Training drivers to focus on the road without distractions
• Providing solutions to support truck drivers in case of bad traffic and hazardous weather
• Incentivizing drivers to practice safe driving and better health habits

Truck drivers and other transportation and logistics workers are essential to getting products around the U.S. and around the world. Good business and good safety practices shouldn’t be in competition with one another. By emphasizing safety, and better care of drivers, trucking companies can reduce costs, especially costs related to occupational injuries and workers’ comp insurance premiums.

Thanks for reading! Please note that this content is intended for educational purposes only. As best practices change regularly, you should refer to your trusted advisor for specific counsel. If you’re a small business owner, learn more about workplace safety or check your workers’ comp rate in 3 minutes.

The post Workplace safety: trucking appeared first on Pie Insurance.

Unless they work remotely, most employees have to commute to and from work every day. While there is an inherent risk of driving a car to and from the office, driving as a function of a job comes with risks of its own.

Even though professionals such as truck drivers, bus drivers, and transportation workers often face the highest risk of being involved in a motor vehicle accident, the truth is that everyone who drives for work has an increased chance of experiencing a crash.

Driving is often a big part of the day for millions of workers across the country, which is one of the reasons why motor vehicle accidents have become the first and second leading cause of death in every major industry group, according to the CDC.

As an employer, you can’t prevent accidents, but you can do things as an organization to help reduce the chances of a crash occurring.

Three ways to reduce the chances of a motor vehicle accident

While it’s impossible to stop accidents from happening altogether, there are things that you can do as a business owner to reduce the chances of a motor vehicle crash happening. For example:

• Create a culture that encourages employees to practice workplace safety and safe driving
• Implement a safe driving program
• Ensure all routine and preventative maintenance is up to date on company vehicles

Create a culture that encourages employees to engage in safe driving

Employees expect certain things from their employer—a safe work environment being one of them. Often employers only consider keeping their office environment safe and not the environment outside of the office. However, the truth is that employers play a significant role in keeping workers safe while driving during working hours.

One way to lower the risk of your staff having an accident is to establish a workplace culture that focuses on safety inside and outside of the office.

Providing workshops or training that focuses on safe driving tips and the dangers of driving can be a great place to start. These sessions can include topics like:

• The importance of wearing a seat belt
• The dangers of distracted driving
• What to do if you’re falling asleep behind the wheel
• Safe driving tips to practice while driving

Some of these items might seem like minor issues, but they can significantly impact whether or not an accident occurs.

Implement a safe driving program

Another excellent way for employers to cut down on work-related crashes is to implement a safe driving program. Often these programs have several parts but ultimately have the same end goal—to encourage safe driving when traveling for work.

As the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health lays out in their safe driving worksheet, there are four critical components to a successful motor vehicle safety program. These pieces include:

• Gaining the support and commitment of company leaders
• Establishing policies to help promote road safety
• Utilize driving selection, training, and evaluation to maximize road safety
• Create a schedule to keep up on vehicle maintenance

Employers who want to increase the effectiveness of their safe driving program can also mandate that transportation employees take a defensive driving course. These classes will help educate staff on managing their vehicle and minimize the risk of a motor vehicle accident.

Perform routine maintenance and repairs on company vehicles

One of the easiest ways to cut down on motor vehicle crashes is to ensure all vehicles are in excellent working condition. Keeping up to date on routine maintenance tasks such as oil changes, tire rotations, and replacing brakes can help keep a vehicle running smoothly.

Employers should also consider the vehicles they purchase for team members to use. Choosing cars with high safety ratings that include advanced safety features like rear-facing cameras, adaptive cruise control, and lane departure warning systems will also decrease the likelihood of an accident.

Preparing for an accident with workers’ compensation insurance

No matter how many safe driving seminars you put on or how often you inspect vehicles, accidents are going to happen. When an accident does occur, you want to make sure that your employee and your company are financially covered.

In addition to commercial auto insurance, you should have a workers’ compensation policy in place. With this coverage, if an accident were to occur that resulted in an injury to your employee during their normal course of work, then their medical expenses and disability benefits could all be covered.

Having the proper insurance, along with a safe driving strategy will help keep your team safe when behind the wheel.

Thanks for reading! Please note that this content is intended for educational purposes only. As best practices change regularly, you should refer to your trusted advisor for specific counsel. If you’re a small business owner, learn more about workplace safety or check your workers’ comp rate in 3 minutes.

The post Workplace safety: motor vehicle accidents appeared first on Pie Insurance.

As a small business owner of a retail store, you’re responsible for many items such as ordering products, customer service, and business operations. However, one of your most significant responsibilities is to create a safe work environment for your employees.

The CDC currently lists the retail industry as having the highest risk for workplace violence. With employees spending most of their day handling money and working with customers, it’s easy to see how retail employees are at a higher risk.

Along with workplace violence, retail workers face hazards that can lead to injuries and accidents throughout their day. One way to lower the risks of injuries, accidents, and violence is to establish a culture that focuses on workplace safety.

Providing your team with proper training, installing security systems, and keeping them covered with essential insurance coverage like workers’ compensation can go a long way in keeping your retail employees safe.

Most common workplace injuries for retail workers

Even though retail environments aren’t inherently as dangerous as construction or health care workplaces, retail employees still face a wide range of hazards throughout the workday. For example, a retail employee continuously moves products, putting themselves at risk of suffering a muscular injury.

Along with lifting injuries, several other injuries could affect a business’ retail staff. Some of these injuries include:

• Muscular injuries and sprains
• Injuries from falls, trips, and slips
• Injuries from customer violence
• Injuries from falling objects

Muscle injuries and sprains

Of the injuries on the list, muscular injuries and sprains occur most often. With the constant need to move products, set up displays, and work in the backroom, team members are at high risk of pulling a muscle.

It’s also crucial that employees have additional help when moving heavy objects. One of the leading causes of lifting-related injuries is lifting above capacity. Encouraging workers to ask others for assistance or using moving-aids is a great way to prevent these injuries from occurring.

Of the injuries on the list, muscular injuries and sprains occur most often. With the constant need to move products, set up displays, and work in the backroom, team members are at high risk of pulling a muscle.

It’s also crucial that employees have additional help when moving heavy objects. One of the leading causes of lifting-related injuries is lifting above capacity. Encouraging workers to ask others for assistance or using moving-aids is a great way to prevent these injuries from occurring.

Injuries from falls, trips, and slips

Anyone who has worked in a retail environment understands how fast-paced it can be. Constantly attending to customers, fixing displays, restocking products, and organizing the stockroom is a lot to manage and often means moving quickly throughout the store, which can lead to falls, trips, and slips.

Often the number one cause of falls, trips, and slips has to do with the product being left in aisleways or clogging up the stockroom. Spills are also another major cause of slips and pose a hazard to everyone in the store, not just employees.

Injuries from customer violence

It’s something every retail business owner hopes never happens but unfortunately does—customer violence. With team members working closely with the public, altercations occur more frequently than most people realize, and verbal abuse is common. Thankfully, extreme violence isn’t as frequent; however, it still happens.

To help prevent customer violence from occurring and decrease the risk of extreme violence, OHS recommends retail workers take the following precautions:

The post Workplace safety: retail appeared first on Pie Insurance.

If the past two years have proven anything, it’s that we can’t predict what is going to happen next. As we move forward into the third year of the COVID-19 pandemic, business owners need to watch for growing business trends in several places.

Not only should they be surveying new technology and business tools, but they should also be taking a look at workplace safety trends.

During the early stages of the pandemic, a large portion of workplace safety was focused on prevention and keeping staff safe. Now trends are shifting to how companies operate in a world with COVID-19.

As you’ll see in the top seven safety trends of 2022, employees are relying on their employers to keep them safe from COVID-19 and offer support for mental health, work-life balance, and burnout.

1. Employee mental health

Over the past decade, employers have started to take a holistic approach to how they can keep their team members healthy. Instead of just focusing on maintaining a worker’s physical health, many companies are also looking at ways to keep their staff mentally healthy.

One of the most significant factors affecting mental health is stress in the workplace. Even though a multitude of things causes stress, most people admit to feeling stress from their work environment.

In fact, according to Columbia Southern University, there are generally five leading causes of employee stress and burnout. These stressors include:

• Lack of clarity in current role
• Unreasonable deadlines
• Unequal treatment amongst coworkers
• Lack of support and communication from the management team
• Project and deliverable overload

Many companies have made one of their goals for 2022 to address these five areas and find ways to alleviate some of their team’s stress.

2. Workplace safety while working remotely

Most employees don’t associate workplace accidents with working remotely. After all, we spend a large portion of our time at our homes when we are not working, so why would we need to worry when we are on the clock?

The truth is that there are still risks associated with working remotely. For example, remote workers have just as much risk, if not more, when it comes to musculoskeletal injuries and eyestrain. The increase in these two areas has to do with the fact that remote workers don’t leave their desks as much as they would in the office.

Companies are addressing safety concerns with remote workers by offering a remote workplace safety checklist. These valuable tools give workers tips on ergonomics, preventing trips and falls, and self-identifying stress and burnout.

3. Team dynamic during a pandemic

The way teams interact with each other may be one of the biggest things to change since the pandemic. Before COVID-19 happened, it was common to have every team member cram into a conference room for a weekly huddle. However, this practice has quickly changed and was replaced with virtual meetings.

Many companies have come to realize that team members can be just as productive in virtual meetings as they could in meetings in the office. Some organizations have even seen an increase in creativity and idea generation thanks to these new styles of meetings.

However, some drawbacks come with holding meetings online. For instance, meetings are easier to schedule, and as a result, there are higher levels of meeting fatigue. Workers are also reporting slightly increased levels of burnout by the end of the week.

To help address some of these issues, business owners and leadership teams have started implementing procedures that limit the number of meetings each week and encourage employees to use tools such as Slack and email for quick communication.

4. Introducing smart PPE into the workplace

By now, most of us have worn some type of PPE or personal protective equipment in the workplace. Whether they were N95 masks or some other kind of face coverings, they were necessary to ensure workplace safety during the early stages of the pandemic.

Most companies have created different protocols around whether or not employees must wear a mask at the workplace or while meeting with clients. For professionals who must wear masks at all times, such as healthcare workers, engineers, and construction teams, many organizations are moving to smart PPE in 2022.

These improved masks offer better protection for the employee while also providing essential data such as:

• Heart rate
• Blood pressure
• Blood oxygen levels
• Vital signs

Some of the newer designs even have the capability to monitor how alert a worker is and if they are feeling fatigued.

Managers are starting to use the data gathered from these smart masks to help keep their teams safe. For instance, department leads might notice that workers are getting fatigued and at risk for injury eight hours into their 12-hour shift. By implementing a break at this point, workers have a chance to rest and lower the risk of workplace injuries occurring.

5. Utilizing apps to report and track workplace accidents

An important trend in the manufacturing and construction industries, in particular, is the use of apps to help with reporting and tracking workplace accidents or near-miss accidents.

Within the last five years, organizations have been looking for a solution that will help decrease the amount of time it takes to file an accident report. Since the traditional process is manual and time-consuming, an app can help streamline the process and encourage employees to report accidents.

6. Incorporating wearable devices that allow workers to perform their job safely

Safety equipment and devices have improved to the point that new technology is helping workers perform their job and preventing workplace injuries from happening.

For instance, construction teams are now investing in hardhats with built-in proximity sensors, smart protection, and location tracking that allow team members to move about job sites safely.

Another important wearable device, seen more often in manufacturing plants, is wristwatches that can detect pressure and vibrations. This information will alert workers when pressure increases or vibrations move into dangerous levels.

7. Improving workplace safety with redundancy and resiliency

In the past, companies hired the minimum staff needed to run daily operations. However, 2022 is looking like the year of staffing redundancy and resiliency.

Organizations are now seeing value in having multiple employees who can step in and cover a project if a worker is out sick or has an emergency.

Having redundancy and resiliency in teams is another way employers address the workload that each employee has to complete. By having team members who can perform different jobs, there is more flexibility in providing support to staff members who feel overworked.

Protecting your business with workers’ comp insurance

Employers can’t prevent every accident, even with a higher focus on employees’ mental and physical health. If your organization experiences a workplace injury, it’s important that you have the proper insurance to protect your employees and your company. Often a standard workers’ compensation insurance policy will work perfectly in these situations.

Thanks for reading! Please note that this content is intended for educational purposes only. As best practices change regularly, you should refer to your trusted advisor for specific counsel. If you’re a small business owner, learn more about workplace safety or check your workers’ comp rate in 3 minutes.

The post Top 7 workplace safety trends for 2022 appeared first on Pie Insurance.

You may think that it won’t happen to your company, but research shows work-related motor vehicle accidents can—and do—happen. Here’s how to reduce your risk.

Defining the scope of the problem

Work-related accidents include:

• Single- or multiple-vehicle crashes on or off public roadways while on the job
• Pedestrian workers struck by motor vehicles on or off a public roadway

Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of work-related deaths in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In fact, between 2003 and 2018, more than 29,000 employees in the U.S. died in work-related motor vehicle crashes.

Looking at 2019 specifically, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS):

• 1,270 U.S. workers driving or riding in motor vehicles on public roads died in work-related crashes (24 percent of all work-related deaths). An additional 577 deaths that year (11 percent of all work-related deaths) involved workers driving or riding in motor vehicles off public roads or pedestrians struck by motor vehicles.
• Of these deaths, the transportation and warehousing industry saw the highest percentage (41 percent), followed by construction (12 percent), wholesale and retail trade (nine percent), and administrative and support and waste management and remediation services (seven percent).
• It’s important to note that more than half of workers (56 percent) who died due to work-related motor vehicle accidents in 2019 were not employed in motor vehicle operator jobs.

The high cost of casualties

In 2019, work-related accidents cost employers $39 billion, according to the BLS:

• Each non-fatal injury costs employers $75,000 on average
• Each employee death costs employers $751,000 on average

These costs don’t take into account the psychological effects of accidents on employees, coworkers, families, and employers.

Safe driving saves lives

You probably don’t need the Occupational Health and Safety Administration to tell you that as a small business owner, it’s important to implement a driver safety program. But in case you do, a driver safety program can save lives, reduce the risk of serious injuries on the job, and protect your company’s financial assets. By training employees on basic safe driving practices and rewarding safety-first behavior, you can help change driver attitudes and reinforce a culture of safety on the job.

The CDC and National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health fact sheet, Preventing work-related motor vehicle crashes, recommends ways to keep workers safe while driving or riding in a motor vehicle. It outlines the elements of a successful motor vehicle safety program, including a checklist to help you implement the recommendations.

In addition, the Network of Employers for Traffic Safety has developed the free resource, Comprehensive Guide to Road Safety. The manual, which is available in 21 languages, helps employers develop, enhance, or audit their motor vehicle safety programs. It includes information regarding:

• Policies
• Training programs
• High-risk driver identification and intervention
• The collision review process
• The use of in-vehicle monitoring systems and safety technology supplied by the original equipment manufacturer
• Authorized driver process
• Metrics to track, including collisions/injuries per million miles, percentage of the fleet in a collision, most common collision types, scorecard by vehicle type
• Use of mobile phones and other electronic devices
• Engaging senior management
• Administrative controls to consider, such as limiting the number of hours driven per day or per week, or instituting mandatory rest breaks

At the bare minimum, experts say small business owners should take steps to ensure that all employed drivers of commercial and non-commercial vehicles leased or owned by the company adhere to local, regional, state, and national regulations, traffic laws, and regulatory requirements.

Thanks for reading! Please note that this content is intended for educational purposes only. As best practices change regularly, you should refer to your trusted advisor for specific counsel. If you’re a small business owner, learn more about workplace safety or check your workers’ comp rate in 3 minutes.

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Injuries and illnesses happen in every workplace regardless of industry. However, employees who work in health care facilities such as hospitals, nursing homes, testing labs, dental offices, and clinics are at an even higher risk. According to OSHA, “more workers are injured in the health care industry sector than any other.”

The main reason that health care workers experience such a high level of workplace injuries and illnesses is due to the number of hazards they face daily. For instance, the following are just a few of the safety and health hazards medical employees face daily:

• Exposure to bloodborne pathogens, chemicals, and drugs
• Exposure to respiratory diseases
• Ergonomic hazards from moving patients, medical equipment, and beds
• Exposure to workplace violence from patients
• Exposure to radioactive material and treatments

As a business owner of a health care facility, it’s crucial that you have the appropriate safety measures and protection plans in place for your staff. In addition to creating a safe environment for the health care team, you should also have a workers’ compensation insurance plan available to any injured workers.

Most common workplace injuries for health care workers

Even though health care employees face a wide range of hazards in the workplace, several injuries occur most often. For example, Unitek College lists the following five injuries as the most common for nurses and other health care workers:

• Overexertion injuries
• Injuries from falls, slips, or tripping
• Injuries from patient violence
• Contact injuries from medical equipment and objects
• Injuries resulting from exposure to harmful substances

Overexertion injuries

Out of all the injuries a health care worker might receive, overexertion injuries are often the most common. A report conducted by BLS found that nearly half of all the injuries reported by nurses involved overexertion. As a result of overexertion, employees often find themselves at risk of suffering muscle, nerve, and joint disorders.

Medical jobs are often very labor-intensive and require team members to move patients, medical equipment and lift heavier objects throughout their shift. As a result, injuries such as wrist and ankle sprains, muscle strains, and back injuries are common.

Injuries from falls, slips, or tripping

After overexertion, injuries from falls, slips, and trips are the second largest cause of injuries in health care facilities. As medical staff move throughout a patient’s room, it can be quite easy to accidentally trip over a cord leading to a monitor or slip on a slick substance.

Injuries from patient violence

When people think about health care worker injuries, patient violence often isn’t the first thing that comes to mind. However, the truth is that nurses typically face more workplace violence than any other career—even more so than police officers and corrections officers.

In fact, according to the NIOSH, out of every 100 healthcare workers, almost 40 percent will experience either a physical assault or a non-violent event such as threats, sexual harassment, or verbal abuse.

What’s even worse is that most of the violent incidents in health care companies go unreported.

Contact injuries from medical equipment and objects

One hazard for health care workers that often goes overlooked is contact injuries. With multiple patients to care for, nurses and aids have to work quickly when giving care. This fast-paced environment can pose hazards such as coming into contact with medical equipment and sharp objects.

Of all the potential contact injuries, accidental needlesticks can pose the most significant risk. If health care workers accidentally stick themselves with a used needle, they have a chance of contracting infections and bloodborne illnesses.

Injuries resulting from exposure to harmful substances

Health care workers come into contact with harmful substances ranging from chemicals and medications to organic compounds and sterilants. Regardless of which substance it is, each can be dangerous for team members, especially if inhaled or it comes into contact with the skin.

Improving safety in your health care company

As the owner of a health care facility, it’s crucial that you focus on your staff as much as you do your patients. Some hospitals and care facilities often only worry about patient happiness and, as a result, unintentionally create an unsafe environment for their employees.

Here are 10 safety tips that will help create a safe working environment and cut down on workplace injuries in your health care facility.

1. Encourage employees to report any form of workplace violence, even if it isn’t physical
2. Offer additional training and guidance on the proper way to move patients and medical equipment
3. Instill a culture that encourages employees to ask for help regardless of whether it is moving a patient, handling a violent situation, or asking questions about procedures
4. Provide hands-free alternatives to reduce the need to use sharp objects like needles
5. Supply your team with the appropriate protective equipment to cut down on their risk of coming in contact with a bloodborne pathogen
6. Make assistive devices like slings, digital hoists, and sliding sheets available to staff to cut down on exertion injuries when moving a patient
7. Encourage advanced training and licenses when it comes to administering or handling chemical substances
8. Reduce the risk of accidental needlesticks by disposing of used syringes immediately, discouraging the recapping of needles, and utilizing blunt suture needles
9. Create a program focused on continued safety training for all employees
10. Establish a zero-tolerance culture for any violence or harassment against health workers

Preparing for a health care workplace injury with workers’ comp insurance

Implementing some or all of the above safety tips into your organization is a great first step to protecting your employees. However, no matter how much you try to prevent incidents from occurring, odds are a workplace accident will happen at your health care facility. When it does, having workers’ comp insurance can help cover your employee’s medical costs and lost wages.

Thanks for reading! Please note that this content is intended for educational purposes only. As best practices change regularly, you should refer to your trusted advisor for specific counsel. If you’re a small business owner, learn more about workplace safety or check your workers’ comp rate in 3 minutes.

The post Workplace safety: health care facilities appeared first on Pie Insurance.

As the pandemic and recent weather events have shown us, disaster can strike at any time. While you can’t prepare for every scenario (who could’ve predicted a pandemic!), planning how you and your company would respond to common disasters is the best way to reduce your financial risk should one occur.

How to create a disaster preparedness plan

According to FEMA, about 25 percent of businesses don’t reopen after a disaster. Because disasters can take many forms—and the cost of bouncing back can be significant—developing an emergency preparedness plan is one of the most important steps you can take as a small business owner. Here are some tips.

1. Assess your risk. Despite our care and best intentions, every business has its weaknesses. Conduct an assessment to determine your risks for common hazards like wildfires, power outages, hurricanes, flooding, and cyber attacks. Check out the Ready Rating service from the American Red Cross to help assess your business’ risk.
2. Get your staff involved. Craft and execute your company’s disaster plan with your staff’s input and assistance. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation recommends:

• Organizing a team to develop your plan
• Gathering the critical documents and information necessary to make decisions
• Determining and prioritizing your company’s most important processes and operations
• Identifying the hazards and potential disruptions that may impact your operations
• Developing a communications plan to disseminate information after a disaster, including current emergency contact lists for employees, vendors, suppliers, and other key stakeholders.
• Creating a plan that is easy to understand and execute (more on that below)

3. Create a plan. Your emergency preparedness plan is your guide to getting back to business as usual. As such, it should reflect the unique needs and operating procedures of your business. Take that list of risks you made in step one and brainstorm ways to insulate your business from those risks. Near a river that often overflows its banks? Consider storing all-important paperwork on a higher floor or at another location. Potentially in the path of destruction from wildfires? Make sure your building has appropriate firewalls and extinguishing systems.

A checklist is an easy way to create a plan that’s simple to follow. Here are a few samples to consider:

• IRS Guide for Preparing for Disaster
• Ready.gov Business Preparedness Toolkits (specific kits for types of disasters)
• Small Business Administration (SBA) Emergency Preparedness Guides

4. Operationalize your plan. A plan is just paper (or pixels on a screen) if your staff isn’t clear on how to implement it. Here’s how:

• Recruit and train employee volunteers who can effectively manage your company’s disaster response efforts.
• Back up and store important records and data, such as policy details, at an off-site location. Your IT partner can help you accomplish this.
• Take proactive steps now to mitigate the impact of a future disaster on equipment, buildings, facilities, inventory, and storage.
• Review your insurance policy and options to make sure you’re adequately covered.
• Run disaster drills and update your plan as needed, usually annually.

What to do if your business is affected by a disaster

In the event of a disaster, run through each step of your emergency plan. If company assets were damaged or destroyed in a declared disaster, you might be eligible for a low-interest disaster recovery loan through the SBA. This money can be used to repair and replace real estate, personal property, machinery, equipment, inventory, and other business assets. For financial losses, an SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EDIL) may help. There is no cost to apply to either program, and you are under no obligation to accept a loan if approved.

Thanks for reading! Please note that this content is intended for educational purposes only. As laws change regularly, you should refer to your state legislation and/or an advisor for specific legal counsel. If you’re a small business owner, learn more about workers’ compensation insurance or check your current rate in 3 minutes.

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Search on the internet for slip and fall injuries at work and you’ll probably find that the first few results are for lawyers. The truth is, slip and fall injuries are common—and they can cost you.

In 2019, there were 244,000 nonfatal workplace slip and fall cases that resulted in days away from work. Sadly, 880 workers died in falls, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. While construction workers are most at risk for fatal slips, trips, and falls, they can happen to anyone, even desk workers.

Defining each injury

Here’s how the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) defines each type of injury:

• Slips are a loss of balance caused by too little friction between your feet and the surface on which you walk or work. Loss of traction is the leading cause of workplace slips. They can be caused by wet surfaces, spills, or weather hazards like ice or snow.

• Trips happen when your foot hits an object and you are moving with enough momentum to be thrown off balance. They are more likely to happen when you are in a hurry and don’t pay attention to where you’re going.

• Falls occur when you move too far off your center of balance. Falls account for more workplace fatalities than any other injury. In fact, falls are the leading cause of death in the construction industry.

14 steps to prevent slips, trips, and falls

OSHA publishes general regulations on preventing hazards that can cause slips and falls, such as clutter, obstructing objects, and wet conditions. To prevent slips in your workplace, OSHA recommends that employers—and workers:

• Clean up or report spills immediately
• Don’t let grease accumulate on floors
• Use caution on newly waxed floors and loose carpeting
• Take short steps on slippery surfaces to keep the center of balance under you and point your feet slightly outward (penguin walk)

To prevent trips:

• Store materials and supplies in the appropriate storage areas to keep the workplace tidy
• Make sure you can see where you’re walking. That means not carrying loads that you can’t see over
• Keep furniture and office equipment out of walkways
• Properly maintain walkways and encourage employees to report hazards
• Keep electrical and phone cords out of high-traffic areas
• Keep work areas and walkways well lit, especially at night

To prevent falls:

• Encourage workers to use the stairs instead of jumping off landings or loading docks
• Repair or replace stairs or handrails that are loose or broken
• Require employees to wear shoes with appropriate non-slip soles
• Remind employees to use a ladder instead of standing on chairs, tables, or any equipment with wheels

The best way to reduce slips, trips, and falls in your workplace is to assess the environment, note the hazards workers may face, and develop a safety plan to address those hazards.

Thanks for reading! Please note that this content is intended for educational purposes only. As laws change regularly, you should refer to your state legislation and/or an advisor for specific legal counsel. If you’re a small business owner, learn more about workers’ compensation insurance or check your current rate in 3 minutes.

The post Workplace safety: slips, trips, and falls appeared first on Pie Insurance.