Over the years, Health and Safety has grown considerably with benefits such as an increase in safety awareness amongst employers and employees, improved safety culture, enhanced workplace safety, etc.
With all these strides, some ill acts do creep in here and there; this is what we refer to as mistakes, in this case, Safety Mistakes. In this article, well will be looking at “Most Common Workplace Safety Mistakes” and How to Avoid Them.
What are Safety Mistakes
Safety mistakes could be said to be an act or judgment that is misguided or wrong, which could result in an accident, injury, or death.
There are several safety mistakes, but within the scope of this article, we will be considering eleven (11) safety mistakes.
- Not Investigating Near Miss
- Not investing in health and safety
- Inadequate labelling of hazardous materials and waste
- Inappropriate Use of Ladders
- Sending out Complicated Safety Instructions
- Not Using Proper Personal Protective Equipment
- Using the Wrong Tool for the Job
- Playing Down on Equipment Inspections and Maintenance
- Improper Handling of Hazardous Materials
- Lack of Effective Training
- Not recognizing competence
Most Common Workplace Safety Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
1. Not Investigating Near Miss
A near miss is an incident that results in no injury, no damage to property/equipment/machinery, and no environmental effect, but has the potential for all those. It is mostly overlooked on-site because it presents no negative impact. Though it poses no immediate negative impact, it can present us with a trend of events that may result in serious damage and losses if properly investigated.
Unfortunately, most times near misses are not investigated; this is a very costly mistake. Since it can be used to identify trends of events that may result in damage and injury, all near misses must be reported and investigated.
2. Not Investing in Health and Safety
There are lots of organizations where the management feels that Health and Safety is just a waste of time, and the little they do is just to fulfil all righteousness.
However, I am stating categorically that this is a very big mistake. There is a popular safety slogan that says, “If you feel safety is expensive, try an accident“.
Though Health and Safety is not producing money for you, it can help you save money. So do not find yourself in this category, always ensure you invest in health and Safety in terms of training, procurement of personal protective equipment, investing in emergency preparedness planning, etc.
3. Inadequate labelling of hazardous materials and waste
Another very common Health and Safety mistake is failure to label hazardous materials and waste.
The hazard label is the main communication tool for the classification of hazardous substances and mixtures. Together with the safety data sheet, the hazard label should be consistent in communicating any hazard information for a given substance or mixture to the user. This enables the user to best protect themselves during use.
So not labelling these hazardous materials appropriately can expose employees and other people working around where the hazardous material is stored to risk.
4. Inappropriate use of Ladders
Ladders are used to work at elevated positions. It can ease the work and can also create danger if used incorrectly.
Inappropriate use of ladders can lead to organ damage, spine/neck injuries resulting from falls. Falling objects can also result in serious head injuries, which could cause brain damage. It can also result in bone fractures, which can be multiple, and cause ligament/tendon damage.
So, do not make this mistake of inappropriate use of a ladder. Always make sure you choose the right type of ladder for jobs that require a ladder, and also make sure the ladder is certified safe by a competent person for you and is placed on stable ground.
Generally, you should follow the ladder safety guide anytime you want to use of ladder.
5. Sending Out Complicated Safety Instructions
Safety instructions are to serve as a guide to achieving a particular purpose, but when the instruction is passed in a way that is difficult to understand, they will not serve the purpose it was intended.
Never make the mistake of passing a complicated safety instruction; always make sure you use simple terms to define what you want to say, always ask for feedback to ascertain understanding, and if it’s a written instruction, make sure it is clear and understandable.
6. Not Using Proper Personal Protective Equipment
Personal protective equipment is said to be the last line of defense when every other control fails, but when not used properly, it will not deliver on the purpose it was used for.
So never make the mistake of using personal protective equipment (PPE) inappropriately.
NOTE: Using PPE inappropriately is equivalent to not using it at all.
7. Using the Wrong Tools for the Job
Choosing the Right Tool for the Job is something that should always be ringing in your ears. Tools were made to make our job easier, faster, and boost productivity, but tools can also be dangerous and deadly when misused. So its like a two (2) edged sword; use it well and get the required benefits, but misuse it and watch it punish you.
For example, a hammer cannot do a job a drill is supposed to do, the same way a drill cannot do the job of a hammer, but most time we try to force these tools to work outside their scope.
Never make this mistake; choose the right tool for the job always.
8. Playing Down on Equipment Inspection and Maintenance
Maintenance inspection is the process of evaluating the condition of equipment or machines. The purpose of a maintenance inspection is to determine what tools, materials, and labor are needed to keep them in good working condition.
Maintenance inspections can identify minor issues before they turn into costly repairs. Inspections ensure machines are working correctly and help prevent equipment downtime.
If you make the mistake of playing down on equipment inspection and maintenance, you will be shooting yourself in the leg.
9. Improper Handling of Hazardous Chemicals
Hazards with improper Chemical Handling and Storage are one of the biggest concerns for the employees’ safety at workplaces. Everything around us, including our bodies, is entirely made up of various chemicals. All the chemicals have ingrained hazardous properties of toxicity or explosion.
Improper handling of hazardous chemicals could result in explosion, flammability, corrosion, leakage, spillage, intoxication, etc.
In your workplace, always ensure proper handling of hazardous chemicals.
10. Lack of Effective Training
The consequences of a lack of training include high employee turnover, compliance issues, safety risks, and increased business costs. You can address a lack of workplace training by making training more engaging, accessible, and impactful.
By training, you are empowering your manpower to work more safely, thereby reducing the potential of causing accidents at work.
Do not make the mistake of thinking training is not necessary; it will save you a lot of stress.
11. Not recognizing competence
Nobody can do any job; don’t make this mistake of believing otherwise. There is a place of competence in job delivery, and this can be achieved through training and experience.
You need to train and retrain your employees to achieve competence.
From another angle, employ a competent applicant for a role. They may make high wage demands, but most time in the long run it is worth it.
Conclusion
The Most Common Workplace Safety Mistakes, as pictured in this article, are salient things you should always look out for in the workplace. Some people say you cannot completely eradicate mistakes, but with a good level of awareness and understanding, they can be reduced to the barest minimum.
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