In hiring craftsmen, we know that safety is always at the top of your mind. Sometimes it’s just the most basic habits that you can instill into your staff that can make the biggest impact on keeping them safe. Here are the best ways for you to make a big impact to protect your staff on the job:
Walk through the site in advance.
It’s sounds obvious, but not everyone does it. Arrange for someone to walk through the site to scout it out and make sure it’s a safe location before sending out your craftsmen. Use a drone, if necessary, for any areas that are particularly questionable. Identify all the possible places that are risky, and make sure to communicate to your team what areas they should avoid or adjust.
Train for safety longer.
According to the US Bureau of Labor, when you give more than 200 minutes of new hire safety orientation, in compared to 30 minutes, you’ll reduce incident rates by 94%! It’s important to give safety training to all hired staff, whether they’re permanent or temporary subcontractors.
Review on site.
A recent report from the Associated Builders and Contractors found that companies that hold safety orientations that are site-specific will reduce their incidence rate by 45 percent. And if you hold short training meetings daily on the job, the incidence rate is cut by 64 percent! It’s clear that continued review of the policies will keep your safety standards top of mind.
Mix it up.
It can become monotonous for a craftsman to keep doing the same thing on the same wall all day long. When an craftsman is bored, they might get in a zone where they’re not paying close attention, and that can become a safety hazard. When possible, give them a few different tasks throughout the day, or at least make sure they are taking breaks to freshen their mind and body.
Create a clear chain of command.
Make sure everyone knows who’s in charge of what. When that is clearly communicated, they’ll be no question on who should make a call in a time of crisis. This also helps ensure that everyone in the team takes responsibility – both for their own actions, as well as whoever is on their team.
Nobody wants an unfortunate incident or fatality on the job. Make safety a priority, no matter how big or small the projects might be, in order to protect your people and your business.
