10 Things To Do To Create a Safer Environment In Your Construction Business

At Acuity, we care about the contracting industry. We believe you are the foundation of the communities where you live and work. You build our homes and workplaces. We feel safe and secure because of you, but we also know there are risks related to this industry. We are here to help control your risks and keep you and your employees safe and healthy. 

Here are 10 actions to help improve your safety and mitigate accidents on the job.

1. Lead by example. Wear PPE, follow safety rules, and make safety a part of every meeting.
2. Conduct daily job safety and hazard analysis. Keep your workers informed about what is happening each day on the job, what hazards they will face, and what tools, material, and equipment they will need (including PPE).
3. Provide training. In addition to toolbox talks, provide longer, more in-depth training regularly. Don’t rely solely on others for training.
4. Conduct audits and inspections. Walk the job to identify safety issues. It’s an OSHA requirement to conduct frequent and regular inspections of job sites. Also be sure to inspect all equipment prior to use.
5. Investigate all incidents. That includes employee injuries, property damage, and near-misses. Determine what happened to prevent recurrence. If you don’t figure out why something happened, it will likely happen again.
6. Involve your workers. Safety is not something you can do by yourself—it takes everyone on the job. Have your workers conduct inspections, lead toolbox talks, and share incidents. Be sure to listen if they bring up hazards.
7. Have an emergency plan. Despite our best efforts, incidents happen. An emergency can be very confusing and stressful. An emergency plan will help you respond correctly. It will also help make sure you have important items like first-aid kits and important phone numbers available when you need them.
8. Focus your efforts. OSHA's Construction Focus Four Hazards—the four leading causes of fatalities in the industry—are falls, caught-in or -between (think excavations), struck-by, and electrocution.
9. Communicate. Talk to your employees and keep them informed (including injured employees unless they’ve gotten an attorney). If you have an injury or other claim, talk to the claim adjuster—don’t just report it and forget about it. Talk to your medical providers and talk to your insurance company’s safety representatives. 
10. Remember, actions speak louder than words. If you say safety is a priority but cancel a safety meeting to meet a deadline or look the other way when someone does something unsafe, your workers will know where safety truly lies.