Light Industrial Safety Tips

Posted on 01/19 by Erin Helms

According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), most workplace injuries occur in the manufacturing industry. Light industrial workers work in hazardous environments, and injuries can be costly to your organization. These light industrial safety tips keep your workers safe and your business running efficiently.

Create a Safety Culture

It is essential to create a culture of safety within your business. Reward early reporting. Engage your workforce in safety procedures and build an organization that puts safety first instead of penalizing alert workers for speaking out.

Safety Checklist

Safety checklists help identify potential safety hazards. Try to review workspaces by asking questions. What machinery are you exposing workers to, and when was the machinery last inspected? Do you have safety hazards in a particular area? How can these hazards be minimized or removed? Is your team using the proper personal protective equipment? These are basic yet vital safety questions.

Safety Gear

Whether respirators or hard hats, ensure your team uses proper safety gear. Regularly check all personal safety gear to determine if it is broken or not functioning appropriately.

Preventive Maintenance

A regular preventative maintenance schedule for your equipment is crucial for keeping light industrial workers safe. A significant cause of workplace injury is the misuse of tools and machinery. Lessen your risk by routinely checking these tools, and instruct your team to do the same.

Communicate Safety

It would help if you frequently communicated about safety with your employees. When workers do the same job day in and day out, they might become complacent with safety procedures. Communicate safety with your workforce frequently about the importance of safety to keep safety issues in mind. Doing this will help your light industrial teams be more aware of risks and how to avoid them.

Frequent Breaks

Although frequent break-taking sounds counterintuitive to productivity, it is when employees are tired that most accidents occur—schedule regular breaks to keep your team alert and help them with fatigue resulting from repetitive motion injuries.

Clean Workspaces

Organize and clean all workspaces to help minimize clutter and keep employees safe. Ensure all employees leave their shift with their area looking better than the day before. You might consider setting up a rewards program to support employees' cleaning efforts.

Prevent Trips and Falls

Try to prevent trips and falls which are a leading cause of workplace injuries. Keep aisles clear. Use drips and guards to prevent oil slicks or wet spots.

Proper Lifting

Instruct all employees to lift correctly. Good posture can help to reduce strain on the joints and muscles. Encourage your employees to seek assistance when lifting heavy objects. Train employees to maintain a wide stance when lifting from the knees while avoiding using their backs.

Strive to Improve Safety

Make safety an active part of your goal-setting process. Safety is everyone’s responsibility, so try to work with your teams to keep this fresh in their minds. Let LaborMAX help you with all of your staffing needs.

Tagged: #LightIndustrialSafetyTips #SafetyFirst #WarehouseSafety