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How to Prevent Work Injuries With 15 OSHA Approved Safety Tips

3 min read

What happens when you reduce work injuries? You protect your employees and your bottom line.

Some companies put “days without injury” signs in break rooms. Others offer safety bonuses and incentives.

Why? It costs less to prevent workplace injuries than to pay for them after they happen.

If you want to reduce accidents, take a close look at the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) website.

Next, review these 15 safety tips straight from OSHA's workplace guidelines.

Avoid Overexertion

Lifting, working in extreme temperatures, and constant repetitive motion can lead to injuries and medical leave. Overexertion causes the most disabling injuries in the workplace, costing businesses more than $13 billion in direct expenses.

Prevent overexertion injuries by making sure employees:

1. Have the proper tools and personal protective equipment to do their jobs without extra strain.
2. Take breaks to stretch if they work in awkward positions or with repetitive motions.
3. Rest and hydrate if they work in excessive heat.

Get a Grip on Slips, Trips, and Falls

Over 18% of disabling work injuries come from slips, trips, and falls that lead to sprains, broken bones, back injuries, and death in some cases.

Prevent injuries caused by slips, trips, and falls by:

1. Assessing the building's flooring types and doing what's necessary to make them less of a fall risk.
2. Keeping all workspaces and walkways clean, dry, and free from obstructions.
3. Requiring employees to wear appropriate footwear with enough traction.
4. Providing adequate lighting in all workspaces.
5. Ensuring all stairs with four or more risers have railings.
6. Using best practices to ensure safety for employees working with ladders or from higher elevations.

Help Employees Breathe Easy

Smoke, fog, dust, fumes, and gases can cause diseases such as cancer. That’s why OSHA mandates the use of respirators in workplaces that expose employees to polluted air.

Respirators don’t always prevent illnesses, though, so businesses should follow the OSHA respiratory protection guidelines.

Beef up your respiratory protection by:

1. Providing employees with proper protective equipment such as respirators.
2. Requiring medical evaluations for any employee required to use a respirator.
3. Using only respirators certified by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).
4. Performing regular maintenance to ensure all protective equipment is in proper working order.

Prioritize Safety Training

Don’t cut corners with your safety training. If you're breaking OSHA safety regulations, and they catch you, you could pay penalties from $5,000 to $70,000 per violation.

Ignoring OSHA regulations also leads to a greater risk for accidents, lost production time, and higher insurance premiums.

Prevent costly OSHA fines by:

1. Reaching out to OSHA's specialists to ensure your business meets safety compliance.
2. Getting involved in OSHA's workplace audit and making necessary changes to improve safety.

Our Loss Control Program guides you through the process of reducing accidents at your business. On top of that, our Loss Control team offers advice on OSHA compliance.

When you work to prevent accidents, you protect your people and your bottom line. Contact Mayfield Insurance to get started with our Loss Control Program.