The Importance of Safety in the Workplace

Even though workplace safety is a crucial area for concern for many organizations, there are still those that do not give it the importance it deserves. Here are some of the top reasons why it is important to maintain safety standards in the workplace.

 

Reduction in Costs

When a person is injured in the workplace, it costs the company a lot of money – in loss of working hours and productivity, higher insurance premiums, increased workers’ compensation premiums, and even litigation.

When a worker sustains an injury, operations have to be stopped to deal with that injury, and that stoppage in work can cost an organization a lot of money. Added to that, insurance companies will charge you higher premiums because of an organization’s poor track record in employee workplace safety. The same thing will happen to workers’ compensation premiums.

The worst thing is lawsuits from personal injury lawyers. Employees or their families can hire a personal injury lawyer to sue the company for being responsible for causing harm to their loved one. Lawsuits are not just expensive, but also costly in terms of damage to a company’s reputation.

By ensuring that the workplace meets or exceeds safety standards, a company can save a lot of money.

 

Worker Loyalty

When a company makes an effort to ensure that its employees are safe from injury when they come to work, loyalty is fostered among them. Loyal employees are willing to work harder, take fewer days off, and attrition among them goes down.

When a company shows that it cares about its employees and involves them in the safety decision-making process, workers respond positively. What this does is make the company healthier in every way. And a healthy company brings in a lot more profits.

 

Better Quality Products

It has been shown repeatedly companies that have strong safety protocols produce better quality goods than their competitors. The reason for this is simple. When safety procedures are followed, the workplace becomes free of debris and creates a more positive work-focused environment.

This leads to greater efficiency and quality of work among the company’s employees. What this results in is better quality products, which leads to higher customer satisfaction, and that, in turn, leads to higher sales and more growth for the company. It’s a win-win situation.

 

Better Company Image

A company’s image can make or break it. How people perceive a company can increase or decrease its value in the market. So, if an organization is known to have poor safety standards, its market value will be negatively affected.

A company that has a high safety standard, on the other hand, will have a higher market value and will also be viewed positively by the community in which it operates.

 

Social Responsibility

When a company hires a person to work for it, it impacts not just that worker, but his/her family as well. And when this person is incapacitated or killed at the workplace, it can cause a lot of trauma for his or her family too.

Not only is there the financial setback of losing precious income, but also the time and effort family members have to put in to help their loved one along the road to recovery.

A company has the responsibility of ensuring that every person who works for them is able to return safely to their loved ones at the end of the day. And that is one of the most important reasons why workplace safety is so important.

A company cannot operate in isolation; it needs workers to grow. So, it is their responsibility to ensure that it takes care of its workers.