Why invest in workplace safety? (Part 2) | Modern Safety

Why invest in workplace safety? Last week, we gave a few good reasons ? the top one being that occupational injuries and illnesses cost the U.S. economy about $250 in one year. Today, in part two of a short series, we?re going to start smaller. We?re going to talk about a single dollar and what it can do for you, and share a number of other reasons why neglecting safety can cost you more than putting safety first.?

Every $1 you invest in injury prevention can return $2. That?s a pretty compelling argument for keeping people safe while maintaining a profitable business. Where does it come from? Well, we found it in an OSHA-referenced survey of Chief Financial Officers. This survey also reveals that over 40% of Chief Financial Officers cited improved productivity as the top benefit of an effective workplace safety program.

Other top benefit of workplace safety included:

- Reduced costs (28.3%)
- Employee retention (7.1%)
- Employee morale (5.8%)

And the number one preferred safety interventions were rated as followed:

- Provide better training (26.6%)
- Better equipment and workspace (7.4%)
- More safety management (6.9%)
- Safer environment (6.4%)
- Enforcement of policies and procedures (6.4%)

In addition to the social costs, workplace injuries and illnesses indeed have a major impact on an employer?s bottom line. It has been estimated that employers pay almost $1 billion per week for direct workers? compensation costs alone.

The following numbers help illustrate why investing in workplace safety and health can improve the financial performance of your organization:

- In 2007, the costs of injuries were approximately $192 billion and the costs of illnesses were approximately $58 billion.
- The most disabling workplace injuries and illnesses amounted to more than $50 billion in direct U.S. workers? compensation costs in 2009.
- Companies that did not adequately manage workplace safety and health performed worse financially than those who did from November 2004 to October 2007.
- Injuries and illnesses increase workers? compensation and retraining costs, absenteeism, and faulty product. They also decrease productivity, morale, and profits. Businesses operate more efficiently when they implement effective health and safety management systems.

If you?re looking for more information about the benefits of investing in workplace safety, you can find some helpful resources from the OSHA and HSO websites. They provide background on the workplace injuries and illnesses costs and how employers can estimate them. Also, check out the Small Business Safety Calculator to better understand the costs associated with an injury in a manufacturing workplace.

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Tags: HSO, Inspection Software, OSHA, workplace safety

Source: http://blog.fieldid.com/2012/08/why-invest-in-workplace-safety-part-2/

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