February 2013

When an emergency (anything from an explosion to workplace violence) strikes your business, taking the wrong action can result in confusion, damage, injury — or even death. That’s why it’s vital to have a comprehensive plan for dealing with different types of mishaps.

For example, in the event of a tornado, you’d want to have your workers sheltered in a safe place inside your facility. On the other hand, in a fire, you want them to be able to flee the building quickly and safely. The type of building might be a factor in your decision. Most modern factories and office buildings have steel frames, which means they might be more sound structurally than small business premises. However, a major earthquake or explosion will affect nearly every type of structure; some buildings will collapse, while others will be left with weakened roofs, walls, or floors.

Consider both emergency situations that would require evacuation and those that would indicate the need to stay put, and plan accordingly. For example, what would happen if a part of your facility caught fire? Suppose there were severe flooding in your immediate area? How would you respond to a chemical spill? What would you do if an ex-employee with a gun was threatening your workers?

Certain natural disasters, such as windstorms or large-scale chemical or biological releases outside your facility call for “sheltering-in-place” (selecting an interior room or rooms, normally with no or few windows, and taking refuge there). In many cases, local authorities will issue advice to shelter-in-place via TV or radio. Designate a safe haven, or havens, inside your building for employees until the danger has passed. Hold shelter-in-place drills, as well as evacuation drills.

If any employees need to stay behind in an emergency so that they can shut down certain equipment or perform other duties, your action plan should set out detailed procedures for them. Make sure that these workers are able to recognize when to abandon the operation or task and evacuate before their exit path is blocked.

To learn more about designing and implementing an emergency action plan for your business, please feel free to get in touch with us at any time. We’re here to help you protect your business from risk.

Probably less than you think.

There are a variety of ways to reduce the risk of repetitive stress injuries among employees who sit behind desktop computer terminals. However, the proliferation of laptops, tablets, and smartphones in the workplace has created a need for ergonomic guidelines specific to these devices.

Laptops. Workers who set up their laptops on desks should apply the ergonomics guidelines for conventional desktop terminals. Those who use laptops away from their desks should sit in a chair that allows for an upright or slightly reclined posture, center the device in front of themselves, and keep their arms and elbows relaxed and close to the body, with elbows bent at a 90o angle.

Tablets. Overuse of tablets (and notebooks) is so widespread that this condition has acquired its own name, “iPad shoulder,” after the ubiquitous Apple® version. To deal with this problem, workers should: 1) use cases that keep the device propped on a table at about a 60o- 70o angle to prevent neck strain; and 2) set a font size large enough for them to read material with their back and neck in a straight vertical line.

Smartphones. Smartphone users are spending less time talking on their device and more time using it as a visual interface. “The posture we assume while texting and e-mailing from mobile devices — using our thumbs to type, crunched over a tiny keyboard — is unnatural and presents problems when we do it constantly without giving our body enough breaks,” says Kermit Davis, professor of environmental health at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. Davis recommends that smartphone users:

• Draft shorter messages.
• Use word recognition tools to reduce keystrokes.
• Keep the wrist relatively straight.
• Keep moving and change posture every few minutes (the same principle applies to using desktop computers, laptops and tablets.)

Our risk management professionals would be happy to work with you in developing ergonomic guidelines for employees who use their mobile electronic devices for work-related purposes. Just give us a call.

Employees who don’t learn the safe way to work are accidents waiting to happen — and that means that workplace safety training should play an integral role in your company’s risk management program.

Repetition is essential to this process. Make sure that your trainers repeat essential work safety concepts, information, and terms several times. Look at it this way: At any moment during a training session, some trainees probably aren’t going to be paying full attention — and if they don’t hear something, they’re not going to do it when they get back on the job. What’s more, many people might need to hear, see, or experience things at least twice before they understand.

Repetition is also important when it comes to practical applications of safety information. Employees need the opportunity to practice what they’ve learned until it’s locked into their heads and their performance is flawless. So when a safety procedure involves a practical act, be sure that the trainers give a demonstration, repeat it a few times until everybody catches on, and provide feedback while trainees practice.

You’ll also need repetition to make sure that workers don’t forget what they’re supposed to have learned. Training industry leader Bob Pike says that people can remember 90% of what they’ve learned one hour after training, 50% after a day, 25% after two days, and only 10% 30 days later. According to Pike, full retention of subject matter requires no fewer than six repetitions! That means plenty of follow-up and refresher training — especially for more complex material. Other experts recommend spacing safety reinforcement training so that employees can practice new procedures and skills or use new information on the job supported by coaching before they go back to the classroom for review and additional training.