Ensuring safety at workplace
Saturday, 1 May 2010
Mohammad Shahidul Islam
Safety at workplace deals with the welfare of people in employment. It also concerns with the welfare of the family members and dependents of the working employees.
People spend a major part of the day at their workplace. It is at work that they exercise their talents and use their expertise for the benefit of their organisations. It is at their workplace that they devote their time and effort for the welfare of their company. They need to be motivated by providing them with a positive atmosphere and most importantly, they need to feel safe and secure. In Bangladesh, generally health and safety at office has never been considered important.
It should not be forgotten that office safety is very essential in today's world. It is very important to be aware of safety rules and regulations for smooth functioning of office.
The best course of action is to plan ahead about how to meet the workplace emergencies. There is no alternative of making a list of all these emergencies. Based on list, we have to make another list of things we need to have at workplace to ensure the safety of employees. And then we need to install these things.
It also makes sense to look at the local regulations concerning office safety. These may not be comprehensive, but may provide you with enough guidelines to work on.
Other than that, here are a few safety measures for the office or for the workplace:
Keep your working area neat and clean. One cannot emphasize on this enough. Piles of papers and stacks of files combined with tangled wires are a disaster waiting to happen, on several fronts. A clean workspace will also enable you to identify a problem and tackle it faster and more
effectively.
Ensure that all your doors and windows have security locks. Install security cameras at doors and exits. This will help you record the images of thieves and such and help the police nab the culprit.
Install fire alarms. Practice fire drills with your employees. During the practice sessions, ensure that all the employees follow the rules. Mark the exits with noticeable signs so that employees know where to go in case such an emergency. Never lock these exits, but be sure to install security cameras on these doors. Also, it might be sensible to install fireproof furniture.
Ensure that all the workstations, machines etc are installed properly. While installing such electric equipment and appliances, ensure that the wiring and switchboards are earthed properly so as to prevent electric shocks.
And most of all, insurance is essential.
With these safety measures for the workplace we can be sure to avoid most common accidents and emergencies of electric short circuit and fire.
Why is it important to establish safety at workplace? There are many reasons. Beside being penalised for absence of safety at workplace an organisation has to incur costs of employee compensation, medical treatment and social security payments. Secondly, they lose their goodwill. Also, it is a moral responsibility of an employer to ensure the safety of his/her employees. When an organisation utilises human beings as an important resource, it is the organisation's duty to look after their safety.
What are the factors that need to be considered for safety at office? One of the most important factors to be considered while ensuring healthy atmosphere at workplace is the need for safety. It is essential for the employing organization to distinguish between a hazard and a risk. A hazard is something that can prove to be harmful if it is not controlled, while a risk refers to the probability of the occurrence of a certain outcome and is often expressed in numerical form.
After the potential risks and hazards are identified, it is important for the employing organisation to evaluate the risks and ascertain the required safety measures.
When evaluating risks, the employing companies need to take into account all the different workplace hazards. Employees may suffer injuries while handling equipment. Harmful chemicals, radiation, pollutants and biological agents like the harmful bacteria and viruses pose a threat to the life of the employees. Certain water or air pressure conditions and artificially maintained temperature conditions as well as noise from machines can cause damage to the health of the employees. It is very important for the employing organisations to consider these hazards while planning for safety measures.
It is important for the employing organisations to devise practically feasible safety measures and ensure their strict implementation. The government should enact proper laws regarding safety at workplace.
The writer is a hospitality education and training consultant. He can be reached at Email: mmssiicc@aol.co.uk
Safety at workplace deals with the welfare of people in employment. It also concerns with the welfare of the family members and dependents of the working employees.
People spend a major part of the day at their workplace. It is at work that they exercise their talents and use their expertise for the benefit of their organisations. It is at their workplace that they devote their time and effort for the welfare of their company. They need to be motivated by providing them with a positive atmosphere and most importantly, they need to feel safe and secure. In Bangladesh, generally health and safety at office has never been considered important.
It should not be forgotten that office safety is very essential in today's world. It is very important to be aware of safety rules and regulations for smooth functioning of office.
The best course of action is to plan ahead about how to meet the workplace emergencies. There is no alternative of making a list of all these emergencies. Based on list, we have to make another list of things we need to have at workplace to ensure the safety of employees. And then we need to install these things.
It also makes sense to look at the local regulations concerning office safety. These may not be comprehensive, but may provide you with enough guidelines to work on.
Other than that, here are a few safety measures for the office or for the workplace:
Keep your working area neat and clean. One cannot emphasize on this enough. Piles of papers and stacks of files combined with tangled wires are a disaster waiting to happen, on several fronts. A clean workspace will also enable you to identify a problem and tackle it faster and more
effectively.
Ensure that all your doors and windows have security locks. Install security cameras at doors and exits. This will help you record the images of thieves and such and help the police nab the culprit.
Install fire alarms. Practice fire drills with your employees. During the practice sessions, ensure that all the employees follow the rules. Mark the exits with noticeable signs so that employees know where to go in case such an emergency. Never lock these exits, but be sure to install security cameras on these doors. Also, it might be sensible to install fireproof furniture.
Ensure that all the workstations, machines etc are installed properly. While installing such electric equipment and appliances, ensure that the wiring and switchboards are earthed properly so as to prevent electric shocks.
And most of all, insurance is essential.
With these safety measures for the workplace we can be sure to avoid most common accidents and emergencies of electric short circuit and fire.
Why is it important to establish safety at workplace? There are many reasons. Beside being penalised for absence of safety at workplace an organisation has to incur costs of employee compensation, medical treatment and social security payments. Secondly, they lose their goodwill. Also, it is a moral responsibility of an employer to ensure the safety of his/her employees. When an organisation utilises human beings as an important resource, it is the organisation's duty to look after their safety.
What are the factors that need to be considered for safety at office? One of the most important factors to be considered while ensuring healthy atmosphere at workplace is the need for safety. It is essential for the employing organization to distinguish between a hazard and a risk. A hazard is something that can prove to be harmful if it is not controlled, while a risk refers to the probability of the occurrence of a certain outcome and is often expressed in numerical form.
After the potential risks and hazards are identified, it is important for the employing organisation to evaluate the risks and ascertain the required safety measures.
When evaluating risks, the employing companies need to take into account all the different workplace hazards. Employees may suffer injuries while handling equipment. Harmful chemicals, radiation, pollutants and biological agents like the harmful bacteria and viruses pose a threat to the life of the employees. Certain water or air pressure conditions and artificially maintained temperature conditions as well as noise from machines can cause damage to the health of the employees. It is very important for the employing organisations to consider these hazards while planning for safety measures.
It is important for the employing organisations to devise practically feasible safety measures and ensure their strict implementation. The government should enact proper laws regarding safety at workplace.
The writer is a hospitality education and training consultant. He can be reached at Email: mmssiicc@aol.co.uk