Safety among your employees must always be your topmost priority as an employer. This is especially important for warehouse workers; given how dangerous the environment can be at warehouses.
With all the large equipment and boxes in sight, workers are more susceptible to danger than in other jobs. As their manager or business owner, you cannot risk their safety just to irresponsibly chase after the success of your company.
9 Warehouse Safety Tips
No matter what the circumstance may be, the safety of your workers must always be a number 1 priority. Here are 10 tips that you can use to ensure their safety:
- Proper Ventilation
Having a large space with open windows can allow proper air circulation and ventilate the area to avoid suffocating the employees. This can also fumigate the atmosphere from possible toxins floating around the warehouse.
By ensuring proper ventilation for your employees, you are guaranteeing a safe and more comforting workspace to function in. For production workspaces, you can help improve indoor air by purchasing oil mist collectors from Ontario.
- Conduct Fire Drills
Safety drills are important for 2 reasons; firstly, so that employees can be educated regarding their emergency plan. This can provide them with the necessary information beforehand, such as possible fire exits and how to act if an emergency does occur.
And secondly, this can allow the managers to test their smoke alarms and evacuation plans if they are, in fact, effective and safe to use. For example, while conducting a fire drill, you are testing out one of your alarms, only to find out that it is no longer working efficiently.
This allows you to recheck all of your equipment and replace them with a more useful one that your employees can readily use when an emergency arrives.
- Inspect Equipment Regularly
Similar to the advice mentioned above, as an employer, you must inspect all of your equipment if they are still functioning properly. By conducting an inspection, you become more cognizant of the current issues that some of your machines might have.
This gives you the perfect time to have them fixed or replaced before it could lead to a fatal accident.
- Teach your Workers Proper Communication
Communication in every work environment has always been the catalyst in connecting people into working more passionately. Teamwork starts with communication, and everything else grows from there.
This can also be applied when workers are actively operating in their factories. There will most likely be plenty of forklifts and vehicles moving around but simply calling their attention in the middle of the road could lessen the chances of worksite accidents.
- Wear PPE
You might be wondering what PPE means. Well, PPE or Personal Protective Equipment is a protocol, which most employers establish to look out for their employees.
When you are in a busy workspace, such as a warehouse, you will notice plenty of large boxes, long shelves, and different types of materials used by employees. To avoid the risk of potentially injuring your head and other body parts, don’t forget to wear protective gear along with the appropriate attire.
- Utilize Signage
Another tip for avoiding danger in the workplace is by labelling places that might be hazardous for passersby or even workers. Signage can inform the person if this part of the warehouse might not be safe to enter or prohibit them from using cigarettes and other flammable products near combustible chemicals.
- Hold Safety Training Courses
Although fire drills are indeed important for workers to learn from, encouraging them to join in training courses can also be greatly beneficial for them.
This way, you can allow an experienced professional to lecture them on everything they need to know about safety hazards, emergencies, and even first aid tips.
You can seek safety consultants from Oshawa or by asking other employers for their recommendations.
- Use Machinery for Heavy-Lift Items
Carrying heavy objects from one place to another is not a healthy lifestyle to live in, especially if employees do this regularly. Be sure to purchase the right type of machinery and vehicles that they can use, such as forklifts and lift trucks.
Do not forget to add more safety tools or equipment to your machines and vehicles, like counterbalance lift truck rear guards from Toronto. You might be surprised at how many products are available online that can help improve safety in the workplace.
- Keep Your Environment Clean
The last and final piece of advice that employers should do is by maintaining a neat and orderly workspace. All you have to do is encourage your workers to keep the warehouse methodically organized; from the shelving systems to the type of material in their respective trash. You should perform regular check-ups to subtly watch over your employees.
As their employer, watching after your workers is an absolute must. Treat them as if they were your own family. Never abuse your authority as their boss to mistreat and neglect them, especially in times when they would need you the most.
Keep in mind that workplace accidents will take a huge bite from the company’s budget due to compensations. So, aside from protecting the lives of your workers, you are also protecting your company from liabilities when imposing safety measures.
