At BPUB, Safety is Part of Our Core Values
Safety is one of the most important values among all BPUB employees. The fact is that many BPUB employees deal with dangerous situations and materials. Consequences of not having a workplace safety culture can include severe injury, lawsuit or worse. With that in mind, BPUB is devoted to promoting a culture of safety across all departments and all employees.
Within the Communications & Administrative Services Division is BPUB’s Health & Safety Department. These staff members are dedicated to ensuring that the culture of safety is upheld and respected.
Training
Training is an important component of this. Much training is done to educate workers on possible hazards and how to handle them. Our employees must be equipped with the proper knowledge in order to safely do their jobs. That also includes updated trainings should there be new safety standards or new equipment. We don’t want our employees trying to figure out how to use something while on the job. That’s not safe for the employee or our customers.
Monitoring
Close monitoring is also done among departments and work sites. Inspections, especially ones conducted by people trained in work safety standards, can identify hazards that many might not have recognized. This vigilance keeps people on their toes and at the ready, and most important, it keeps people thinking about safety in the workplace.
Looking for Hazards
But how can you create a culture of safety within your business or home? Whether you work in an office setting or out in the great outdoors, there are safety hazards to be found. This could be from the shredder you use to dispose of paper, that box perched precariously above your desk or the way you lift a heavy package. The trick is that you need to get all employees to start thinking a step ahead and with the worst case scenario in mind.
Let’s look at the shredder that was mentioned. Many offices keep the shredder turned on at all times, just waiting for someone to come by and feed paper into it. But what would happen if someone was walking and fell toward that shredder? Clothing could quickly get caught; the employee might put his or her hand down in the wrong place. Suddenly, a simple piece of office equipment has become a severe hazard.
Informing of Hazards
If you think this might sound a little paranoid, you’re right. You need to be a little bit afraid of what could happen so that you can take steps to prevent it. Simply making people aware of that worst case scenario, even if it might seem obvious to you, helps increase awareness and decreases the likelihood of an accident.
Establishing Safety Policies
Another step that a business can take to cultivate a culture of safety is to set policies on safety. One thing that can be done along these lines is to appoint a safety committee. BPUB has representatives from various departments that help disseminate safety information and ensure that areas are in compliance with established safety measures. Your safety committee can get on a schedule of checking fire extinguishers, ensuring the first aid kit is stocked, putting fresh batteries in the smoke detector and more. It really depends on the hazards that your business might face.
Senior management should also get involved in establishing these policies. It sets an example for other employees and shows that safety is of the upmost importance to management.
“The safety and welfare of not only our employees but our customers as well is always on our minds. We want to make sure that our employees go home safe and sound to their homes after the workday and that our customers can safely enjoy the services that BPUB provides,” says BPUB General Manager & CEO John S. Bruciak.
Resources
If you have any questions about workplace safety, you should consult the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to find ways to safeguard your own business.