A workplace health and safety program can only be effective if goals, standards, and procedures are clearly communicated to all members of an organization. Ongoing awareness regarding your health and safety program requires ongoing communication. Furthermore, that communication has to go both ways; from management to employees and vice versa. Use these steps to encourage communication and facilitate a safer, healthier workplace.
Hold a program awareness training
In step 1 of developing your workplace health and safety program, you identified goals and set procedures. Hold a program awareness meeting to train both workers and management on the program and each of their individual roles in making the program successful.
Regularly communicate hazards
Making your workers aware of potential health/safety hazards is not a one-time exercise. Make this a regular conversation, especially if your organization is working at a new site. You should always communicate the following:
- Hazards that may be present
- Detailed procedures for avoiding or controlling exposure to hazards
- How to report work-related illness or injury
Encourage worker participation
Your workers should not only be involved with maintaining your health and safety program, but also developing it. Your workers can oftentimes identify potential hazards that you were unaware of. It’s important to encourage feedback and make your workers feel comfortable coming to management with concerns. Give workers a set procedure for reporting potential hazards. Assign certain employees with individual roles that assist in developing/maintaining your program.
When it comes to health and safety, awareness is key for both workers and management. With these three steps, you can create a work environment that fuels open communication and awareness regarding the workplace health and safety program.
United Alliance Services offers online and on-site safety training as well as other workplace health/safety-related services. Learn more here: Safety Training
Read the previous Steps:
Step 1: Developing an Effective Health and Safety Program: Step 1: Leadership