Get Your Team on Board with Safety, Save on Workers Comp

We all know that the best workers compensation claim is the claim that never happened. We have written various articles on what management can do to prevent claims, including creating and/or improving a safety program.  This top down approach is effective and leads to the prevention of accidents.  What the top down approach often misses is the importance of having the supervisors actively involved in the safety program.  The importance of safety training for the field supervisors or the floor supervisors cannot be overstated.

 

 

The safety responsibilities of the lower level management ( the supervisors ) need to be incorporated into the job descriptions just as much as production goals, financial goals or other performance measurements.  The safety objectives that should be a part of the job description of every supervisor are  (WCxKit)

 

 

 

 

The supervisor’s performance review should include how well they met the safety goals.  Management should avoid the temptation to measure safety solely by the number of injury claims reported.  The completion of regular safety inspections, the timeliness of repair orders, the compliance with OSHA and other regulations, the safety training provided to the employees and the recommendations on how to improve safety should be given equal weight with the number of injury claims reported.  By placing the emphasis on the prevention of injuries as opposed to the number of injuries, you reduce the temptation of the supervisor to underreport the minor injuries that occur.

 

 

An importance safety function of the supervisor is to create a detailed accident report after each injury. A review of the quality of the accident investigations completed by the supervisor should be a part of the each performance review. The supervisor’s manager should check each accident report to determine if the injured employee and the co-workers/witnesses were properly interviewed.  The object/ machinery/ equipment involved in the injury should be a part of the accident investigation with a determination if the accident was the employee’s fault or caused by a defect in the object/equipment/ machinery being used.  A recommendation by the supervisor on how to prevent a similar accident from occurring in the future should be a part of the report.

 

 

Safety reporting is more than completing OSHA forms.  It should entail a review of injury accidents by categories determined by management.  Sample categories could include employee error, equipment/machinery malfunction and unforeseen.  The purpose should be to identify areas where further safety improvements can be made.

 

 

The review of the safety work orders for repairs or improvements should also be included in the supervisor’s performance review. The supervisor’s manager should verify the supervisor is identifying and seeking to correct legitimate safety hazards. The accuracy and the effectiveness of the safety work orders will impact the overall outcome of the safety program. (WCxKit)

 

 

By integrating safety into the job performance of the supervisors, the compliance level with all safety requirements will improve and the number of workers compensation claims will be reduced.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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