The purpose of National Safety Month is to spread safety awareness to help prevent workplace injuries and fatalities. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 4,764 fatalities and 2.7 million work-related injuries occurred in 2020 alone. These findings emphasize how vital it is to promote workplace safety. During National Safety Month, a different safety topic will be highlighted each week of June. Here’s an outline of those topics.
Week 1: Musculoskeletal Disorders
Musculoskeletal disorders are the leading cause of injury in the workplace. Sprains and strains can affect employees’ quality of life and cost employers millions each year in workers’ compensation claims and lost productivity. As such, it is important to try to prevent these injuries from occurring through the implementation of employee safety training and administrative controls.
Week 2: Workplace Impairment
Workplace impairment can be caused by a number of factors. In addition to substance abuse, employee fatigue and stress are also key contributors to workplace impairment. To help minimize impairment concerns, it may be valuable to provide employees with information and resources on dealing with mental distress.
Week 3: Injury Prevention
Injury prevention should be a frequent topic of conversation among all employers. Yet, safety hazards and related injury risks differ between industries and operations. That’s why it’s crucial to identify specific workplace hazards and conduct risk assessments to help determine proper injury prevention methods.
Week 4: Slips, Trips, and Falls
Slips, trips and falls are prevalent injuries across industry lines. What’s worse, falls can sometimes be fatal. In fact, falls are actually the second-leading cause of unintentional, injury-related deaths. With this in mind, it’s critical to identify and mitigate any workplace risks that could cause slips, trips and falls.
Contact us for additional workplace safety resources.
Source: National Safety Council and Zywave