New Year’s Safety Resolutions for 2017

The perfect time to make New Year's safety resolutions about your workplace safety goals in 2017 is today! The New Year represents a time to start fresh and make a commitment towards continuous improvement. It's also a time the organization needs to re-evaluate business practices and create new goals, including safety. As we quickly approach and enter 2017, use the following New Year's safety resolutions ideas to bolster workplace safety goals 2017.

When setting goals be sure they are “SMART” goals, Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Timebound. Hold yourself and others accountable, goals should be important and help achieve excellence which includes protecting people from injury and illness. When you and your team achieve safety goals celebrate those milestones and continue to raise the bar.

Most importantly when setting your goals focus on the leading indicators, those goals you can control and help set the right behaviors and everyone in the organization should have safety goals!

Resolve - Never Dismiss Near Misses

Near miss incidents are indications that the conditions in the workplace or environment were unsafe. Just because you dodged the bullet doesn't mean you should continue as you were. In actuality, it means the exact opposite.

It's vital to explain what near misses are and stress the importance of reporting them to the workforce. It's just as important - if not more than - to report near miss incidents. Near misses are simply accidents waiting to happen.

The next window of opportunity may not result in a near miss - it may be a serious accident, injury, or even fatality. The best way to morph near misses into new safety practices is to implement a near miss safety program.

Resolve: Make Training Fun and Memorable

Every safety professional will assert that having a solid safety training regimen is vital to safety in the workplace. However, not all training sessions are created equally! Instead of simply delivering a training session for the purpose of delivering it, the material should be created and disseminated in a manner that will stick.

A few ways to increase the stickiness of the content is to include humor, self-disclosure and storytelling. At the same time, you can offer the training across a variety of different mediums, such as laptops, mobile phones, tablets, and more. While the traditional in-class training is undoubtedly the most effective, reinforcement training sessions can be delivered on-the-go through e-learning sessions.

Resolve: Increase Frequency of Communication

One of the essential components of any safety program is robust communication. In the upcoming year, pay special attention to front-line workers and how they communicate and interact with one another. If one worker sees another person ignoring a safety procedure, it's important for the observer to speak to the violator as well as the on-site safety manager.

The goal is to implement a culture where those "on the ground" will feel comfortable when voicing concerns. In the event of a life-threatening accident or near miss, the responsible party should notify management. Afterwards, management should decide how to inform all front-line supervisors and workers of the incident and how it should be handled if it occurs again.

Resolve: Motivate the Workforce

Undoubtedly, one the top causes of accidents is workplace complacency. In high-risk industrial areas, such as gas, oil, steel, heavy metal, and construction, management must make sure the workforce doesn't become complacent. Make a strong resolve to create a safer workplace and reduce complacency in the workplace by:

Resolve: Encourage Workers to Create New Year's Safety Resolutions

Improving the safety in the workplace shouldn't only be tasked to management. In contrast, safety is everyone's responsibility, including the workers. As a result, it's a great idea to get everyone involved with making New Year's safety resolutions. Encourage workers to make and write down individual New Year's safety resolutions, such as:

Make Suggestions

Simply put, the workers are on the front line and are most involved. One great New Year's safety resolution is for workers to make a commitment to speak up. If they see something that is unsafe and needs improvement, it's quickly report those conditions to management. Management can bolster this process through the use of risk assessment checklists.

Wear Personal Protective Equipment

Personal protective equipment is a key facet of workplace safety. As a result, this equipment will sustain a lot of wear and tear. Workers should actively inspect PPE to determine how it's holding up. They should also question:

Take Initiative

If a worker wants to improve safety, their individual research can be the difference. Encourage workers to research best practices, tips, and safety hazards associated with your industry. The key is to get them involved because the more they know, the safer everyone will be.

Engage in Safety Training

Safety training is where employees will get the key building blocks toward constructing a safer work environment. Each worker should make a strong commitment to get the most out of every safety training.

Resolve: Invest in Safety by Contact Premier Safety Partners

Safety is the investment that keeps giving. According to a study conducted by OSHA, a good health and safety program can save anywhere from $4 to $6 for every $1 invested. An effective safety culture can minimize accidents and time lost because of injuries. At the same time, a culture of safety can bolster morale and productivity.

Make 2017 the year your organization invests in safety! Contact Premier Safety Partners today for a free safety consultation.