Employers typically expend a lot of effort putting policies and procedures in place to prevent workplace injuries and comply with OSHA rules, but they may have become so focused on these programs that safety's big picture is no longer in view.

There are about six times as many days lost from work due to off-the-job injuries than on-the-job injuries and only 4% of fatal accidents occur on the job.

But while the number of workplace accidents and vehicular deaths continue to decline due to safety campaigns and initiatives, accidental deaths in the home or in public places are on the rise.

Employers must deal with the same disruptions to production and work schedules whether injuries occur at work or away from work. So why not pay attention to the 96% of injuries or deaths that occur outside the workplace? Consider the financial consequences when a valued employee is in the hospital for three days, three weeks or three months because he or she didn't buckle up and was seriously injured in a car accident.

The enormous cost to the employer can no longer be ignored. It is reflected in work days lost as well as higher health insurance costs.

What to do?

A Few Suggestions:  

• Walk the talk: Rank around-the-clock employee safety among your company's top values. Senior executives and managers must demonstrate safety, both on and off the job, voicing their experiences and ideas to staff on a routine basis.
   
• Make it official: Create a policy stating that your company values the health and well-being of employees on a 24/7 basis. Post the policy in public work areas, such as the employee break room.
   
• Solicit feedback: Working in a silo may create employee resistance or result in a mismatch between the employer's goal and employee needs. Invite employee suggestions as to how to educate the workforce about safety tips and practices. Develop a focus group or committee or simply place a suggestion box in common work areas.
   
• Focus on safety awareness training. It can point employees in the right direction, encouraging them to think about what would happen to their families if they were injured on or off the job. This training can change employee attitudes from feeling "I follow safety rules because I have to" to "I follow safety rules because I want to."
   
• Reward or recognize employees who complete an online course or attend a workshop. Throw a pizza party during lunch or after work, asking them to share their ideas or new safety practices they now observe or have introduced to family members.
   
• Expand this effort to the community. Share your company's good actions and safety ideas with other local organizations. Position your business as a good corporate citizen that cares about the welfare of the people in its community.

Mike Taubitz is a former Global Health and Safety Director for General Motors. He may be contacted at mtaubitz@fdrsafety.com or 1-888-755-8010.

Please be sure to find us at our booth at the National Safety Council Congress and Expo being held Oct. 31-Nov. 2 in Philadelphia.

Last year, more than 12,000 safety, health and environmental professionals attended the Congress and Expo, evidence of the importance that companies are placing on building and sustaining a culture that includes safety.

Find us at Booth 1462, where we will be holding a drawing for an IPod Touch.

Sometimes tried and true approaches become, well, tired.

Managers and employees may understand the importance of safety in the abstract, but are hard to hold accountable for what actually happens.

Do you want to better integrate safety with the way your business is run and make your safety program sustainable?

FDRsafety can help with proven, cost-effective methods. We start by bringing world-class safety experts to your site to conduct an organizational assessment. We help company leaders identify systemic issues and develop a custom approach to the organization's challenges:

1. We come onsite for 3-4 days, reviewing processes, procedures and data, and interviewing key personnel.    
2. We analyze the information and develop options to deal with the problems. We can handle not only traditional safety issues of compliance, auditing, staffing and risk reduction, but can also link safety to operational needs and off-the-job safety. We help senior leadership set policy and drive accountability using proven, cost-effective methods. We can also link daily efforts to long-term initiatives such as lean, "green," sustainability and corporate social responsibility.   
3. We then prepare a report for leadership's review and consideration of next steps.   

Call FDRsafety Senior Advisor Mike Taubitz today at 1-888-755-8010 for more information or email us at info@fdrsafety.com. Mike is former Global Director of Health and Safety for General Motors and a recognized expert on the relationship between sustainability and safety.

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