Your safety committee can be a powerful tool for injury prevention.

A group of dedicated employees from throughout your company focused on making your workplace safer can make a real difference.

Whether you have a safety committee already or are thinking of starting one, you can use these best practices and activity ideas as a guide.

How an empowered safety committee prevents injuries

For one SFM policyholder, a proactive safety committee member helped prevent what could have been a serious injury.

This committee had created safety check­lists in partnership with workers in different areas of the business. They walked through the checklists before each committee meeting.

On one walk-through, a safety committee member discovered a frayed cord on a welder. The employee immediately reported the defect and had the machine taken offline until it could be fixed. He didn’t wait until the meeting to report the issue, since a frayed cord could cause electrocution. The committee member was proactive and empowered to address safety concerns on the spot.

Safety committees are most effective when they can identify issues and have the power and resources to solve them. When a safety committee is working as it should, employees and managers work together to address safety concerns before they cause injuries.

Benefits of a safety committee

You may be required by state law to have a safety committee, but even if you’re not, it’s worth considering.

In Minnesota and Iowa, companies with more than 25 employees are required to have a safety committee that meets regu­larly. Some companies with fewer than 25 employees may also need a committee, depending on their safety record and industry. States under federal OSHA do not have a safety committee requirement. (If you’re not sure whether you need a safety committee, check with your regional OSHA office.)

Even if you’re not required to have a safety committee, it can help you:

• Give employees an avenue to bring up safety concerns
• Identify and correct hazards before they cause an injury
• Involve management and employees in making safety part of your company culture
• Educate employees about risks
• Boost morale when employees feel heard and see their concerns addressed
• Reduce the risk of OSHA citations or other state penalties

And of course, if the committee’s work can prevent even one worker injury, it’s time well spent.

Nine safety committee best practices

Even if your state doesn’t require it, having a committee with the goal of preventing injuries and accidents is worth the time and resources. To make your team the most effective it can be, follow these best practices:

1. Define the role and responsibilities of your committee

Develop a written mission statement. Clearly define the duties and responsibilities of the members. Identify and prioritize goals, and establish action plans to achieve each goal.

2. Conduct regularly scheduled meetings

Use the time to discuss accident prevention methods, safety promotion, hazards noted on inspections and other pertinent topics. Review incidents that resulted in injury as well as the “near misses” that didn’t.

3. Review accident investigation forms

Digging deep into the circumstances of accidents will help you prevent them in the future. SFM offers a downloadable accident analysis form . Have all of the supervisors use the same form to make it easier for the safety committee to review them.

4. Look for claim trends

Analyze patterns in your workers’ compensation claims. Consider three data points to start: body part, cause of injury and result of injury. Look for patterns by comparing with other data, like occupation and business location.

If you start by using a report of claim activity from your workers’ compensation insurer, you might want to consider expanding and tailoring your report to include internal information, such as department, shift and supervisor — whatever you think might help narrow the hunt on when, where and why certain injuries occur.

5. Conduct inspections

It’s worthwhile to develop a safety review and inspection process – like the walk-through checklist in the example above – to identify operational hazards and observe employee work methods. Periodic inspections allow you to gauge the effectiveness of your efforts.

During a safety review you should look for: workplace environmental hazards, workstation set-up, work activity, modified work tasks and employees’ awareness of conditions.

6. Eliminate hazards. Correct employees’ unsafe behaviors.

To be effective, your inspections need follow-through. Unsafe conditions must be eliminated. Unsafe behaviors need to be corrected. Document your inspections, including appropriate follow-up procedures. Determine whether past recommendations have been addressed and implemented.

7. Promote safety

Keeping safety in front of the employees will remind them of the importance and will increase their awareness of hazards. Several types of safety promotions can work in any type of organization. See below for a list of fun safety activities your committee can organize.

8. Take action

Following up and taking action are key. If someone is injured or nearly injured, take corrective action to prevent similar accidents from occurring again. Follow up to ensure these corrections are made quickly. This might require increased safety training, additional equipment or safer work methods.

9. Recommend safety training

The purpose of training is to influence employees’ behaviors. Safety orientation should be provided to all workers, especially new employees. It ensures that they are familiar with the hazards of the workplace and know how to complete their job duties safely.

It’s a good idea to provide training regularly for workers of all experience levels and to have a training calendar to support those efforts.

Safety committee responsibilities

Once your safety committee is established, you’ll want to define its scope and responsibilities.

It’s important for all safety committees to define a purpose beyond just complying with OSHA requirements. Identifying objectives gives the group a sense of purpose and provides a roadmap for accomplishing something significant.

To get committee members to engage, start by creating a roles and responsibility sheet. Let committee members choose which tasks they want to take on and write them down. This could include items like planning a safety talk or taking meeting notes.

You may decide to make your committee responsible for some or all of the following:

• Reviewing your safety policies and practices
• Doing regular safety walk-throughs of your facility and noting any concerns
• Encouraging employees to report safety hazards to your group
• Looking at past incidents and “near misses” for patterns and areas to focus on
• Looking ahead to potential issues that could happen in the near-term

The committee provides a venue for front-line employees and managers to work together. It engages people at all levels of the organization and helps to build a cul­ture of safety.

Fun safety committee activity ideas

Are you looking for ideas to inspire your employees or to re-invigorate your safety committee?

Successful safety committees stay interesting, fresh and visible. They get outside of their comfort zones and get creative.

Popular activities that work for almost any type of business include safety contests, posters, special safety/health events, guest speakers and training programs, employee suggestion programs and safety recognition awards.

Get the committee out of the conference room and out into your facility with these ideas for hands-on activities:

1. Schedule a series of Supervisor Initiated Trainings (SITs) on relevant topics
2. Record a video about a safety issue
3. Hang up safety posters from SFM around the facility
4. Create an award for employees who are “caught” practicing safety
5. Bring in an ergonomics specialist to evaluate workstation set-up
6. If your organization holds a benefits fair, have a booth for your safety committee
7. Involve committee members in choos­ing personal protective equipment
8. Hold committee meetings outside during nice weather, or take a field trip for a team-building event

Other ideas include:

• Write safety tips for your company newsletter or intranet
• Create a schedule of supervisor-presented toolbox talks that include opportunities for feedback from employees (such as SFM’s Supervisor Initiated Trainings (SITs) series).
• Facilitate a find it/fix it incentive program to encourage employees to report safety hazards and see that they are corrected.
• Plan an informational campaign — with email messages, posters, maybe even a contest — around a key safety topic like winter slips and falls.
• Create a display and promotional board about a safety topic, such as using traction footwear to prevent slips and falls.
• Implement a “virtual safety store” (a page on your intranet with links to recommended vendors) where employees can learn about recommended home safety products such as carbon monoxide detectors and fire extinguishers.
• Issue awards or plaques to recognize employees who point out safety hazards, for example, a plaque on a machine that states, “This machine made safer by Sarah Smith.”
• Have fun at meetings by incorporating quizzes, team-building exercises, compelling videos, etc.
• Encourage safety committee members to bring a guest to each meeting, who can be an employee at any level of the company. This helps increase safety awareness and sustainability of the committee.

When your safety committee is engaged and empowered, it can serve as a vital piece of your loss prevention program. With enthusiastic members and creative activities, the committee can spread a culture of safety to every employee.

Additional resources on safety committees:

• Safety Committee Success Guide
• Safety Committee Template Packet (Word document)
• Safety committees 5-Minute Solution
• Safety committees CompTalk

This is not intended to serve as legal advice for individual fact-specific legal cases or as a legal basis for your employment practices.

Are you ready for winter?

Even if you’d rather not think about winter just yet, now is really the perfect time to figure out how you’ll mitigate the safety risks that come along with snowy and icy weather.

Winter slips and falls are one of the most common causes of workplace injuries. They can happen at any workplace, to any employee, and they can lead to serious injuries — concussions, broken bones, herniated discs and more avoidable injuries.

Every year, we see employers suffer due to employee injuries caused by winter slips and falls. The impact can include:

• Lost productivity
• Costs to injured workers and their families
• Replacement employee costs
• Overtime for existing employees
• Increased workers’ compensation costs
• Facility damages from conditions caused by varying temperature fluctuations

That doesn’t even include the negative impact on injured employees’ lives.

“To avoid these costs, we recommend employers do everything they can to eliminate hazards and generate winter safety awareness among employees,” said Steve Sandilla, SFM senior vice president, strategic business operations. “Getting a jumpstart before the snow flies and providing simple reminders to employees can make a big difference.”

The cold facts

Nationwide, there were 20,000+ workplace injuries due to falls from ice, sleet and snow that resulted in a day or more away from work in 2017, and 28% of those resulted in more than a month off work, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The average number of days to recover from these types of injuries varied in the Midwest.

According to OSHA, slips and falls contribute to 20% of all workplace injuries, costing companies billions in insurance claims, lost hours in liability lawsuits, and 15% of all accidental deaths (second only to motor vehicle accidents).

Moreover, the CDC indicated that the medical costs for winter slips and falls topped out at $50 billion, and more than 800,000 have been hospitalized due to slip and fall injuries (mainly hip and head injuries).

Bureau of Labor Statistics data also show that thousands more winter slip-and-fall-related injuries were minor and did not result in lost work time.

SFM estimates the average winter slip-and-fall lost-time claim costs range from $50,000 to $55,000. The costs — direct and indirect — mount quickly and can’t be ignored.

It pays to start early

The good news is that slip-and-fall injuries don’t have to “just happen.” You as an employer can do a lot to prevent these injuries at your workplace, and autumn is a great time to start preparing your workplace and your employees for the winter season.

Prepare your workplace

Follow these steps to prepare for winter weather both inside and outside:

• Discuss expectations with your maintenance staff or snow removal vendor.
  Make it clear you expect snow and ice accumulation to be removed quickly and salt or other surface treatments applied to melt icy spots. Discuss which entrances should be cleared first, how often snow removal should occur, and who is responsible for what. Ensure snow is piled in a low area of the lot to prevent hazards from melting and refreeze. Develop an accountability plan with the vendor to deal with staffing problems and poor workmanship. Request that your vendor supply you with a copy of the checklist given to staff which outlines the most important aspects of the services provided.
• Spot check for hazards.
  Identify potholes and cracks that may cause issues in inclement weather. Arrange for repairs before it snows. Check that drain pipes, grate covers and catch basins are not clogged with debris. Once the snow comes, ice dams can form, causing water from melting snow and ice to back up onto sidewalks and refreeze. Make sure lighting systems covering parking lots and sidewalks are checked regularly to verify they are working properly. Poor lighting makes it more difficult for employees to see patches of snow and ice. Check entrance steps and handrails for damage. Employees need a sturdy handrail to grip when conditions are slick. Eliminate unauthorized walkways using hazard tape or barriers to keep people from taking shortcuts across unshoveled areas.
• Use previous injury records to set your priorities.
  Review the previous year’s reports to determine where there has been a history of slip-and-fall incidents. Find solutions to eliminate those problem areas.
• Make plans to prevent indoor slips.
  When snow is tracked indoors, interior walking surfaces in entrances, reception areas, hallways, and stairwells can be dangerous. To keep employees safe, use a floor fan to help keep walkways dry. Strategically place “wet floor” signs to slow people down as they enter the building. Use beveled floor mats to catch excess water. Keep extra mats on hand in case they become saturated with water and need to be changed.
• Clean up spills or puddles immediately.
  Create a procedure for taking the appropriate action when someone causes or comes across a spill.

Winter safety tips to give employees

Your employees play a key role in preventing slips and falls by being aware of their surroundings and making good decisions. Get your employees ready for the change in weather conditions by reminding them:

• Focus on your footing. Watch where you walk. Concentrate on getting from point A to point B safely.
• Walk like a penguin. Use short, slow steps.
• Don’t use your cell phone while walking from the parking lot or on stairs.
• Use handrails on stairways and don’t rush.
• Be aware of changes in walking surfaces. Many falls are caused when people don’t realize they’re leaving non-slippery surfaces for slippery ones.
• Free up your hands. Use a carrying case with a shoulder strap for laptops and files.
• Wear appropriate footwear — no high heels or smooth-soled shoes.
• Step down and not out when getting out of a vehicle. Swing both legs out. Place both feet on the ground and use hands for support.
• Step down off curbs, not out. Landing on your heel first instead of flat footed can cause a fall.
• Use authorized paths. If it’s not clear of snow, don’t use it. No shortcuts.
• Report unsafe conditions to a supervisor or maintenance person.

Depending on your business, you may also consider implementing a traction footwear policy that requires employees who work outside in the elements to wear traction footwear to keep them safe. A number of SFM policyholders have implemented mandatory footwear programs for employees who work outdoors and have seen significant reductions in incidents as a result.

Use SFM’s winter slip-and-fall prevention tools

SFM provides many resources to keep your employees aware of winter slip-and-fall risks throughout the season, including posters, handouts, safety talk outlines and videos.

“It’s important to keep reminding employees of the risks of winter slips and falls, and how to avoid them, throughout the season,” said Loss Prevention Technical Leader Lee Wendel. “We’ve tried to make that easy for employers by offering a variety of different resources.”

There is great truth to the adage, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” With a little prevention, costly injuries that greatly affect both employers and employees can be easily avoided!

You can find links to these resources and more information to help you have a slip-free winter on SFM’s winter slips and falls page.

This is not intended to serve as legal advice for individual fact-specific legal cases or as a legal basis for your employment practices.

Dozens of workers die each year, and thousands more become sick while working in extreme heat or humidity, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration .

If your employees must work in hot environments, it’s important to know the risks and symptoms of heat-related illnesses, and how you can prevent them. Many factors have an impact on workplace risk for heat stress, ranging from the environment to physical condition of the employees. Workers at highest risk tend to be those who are over 65 years old, are overweight, have heart disease, have high blood pressure or take medications that may be affected by extreme heat.

Environmental factors

Environmental factors to consider in evaluating employees’ risk of working in hot conditions include:

• Temperature, clothing and exertion requirements.
• Humidity – high humidity impacts the effectiveness of perspiration.
• Wind – it can assist the body in cooling, but in high temperatures with high humidity it may actually increase heating of the body.

Know the types of heat stress

There are a number of different types of heat-related illnesses, which range in severity. They include:

• Heat cramps
  Painful muscle spasms most likely in the arms, legs and abdominal area. Heat cramps are caused by sweating during strenuous activity and failing to replace the fluids and salt lost from sweating.
• Heat exhaustion
  Symptoms include profuse sweating, headaches, extreme weakness or fatigue, dizziness, fast pulse, rapid breathing and nausea or vomiting.
• Heat or sun stroke
  Symptoms include a very high body temperature (104 degrees F or higher); mental confusion, delirium or hallucinations; rapid breathing and pulse; hot, dry, red or mottled skin; convulsions; and loss of consciousness. Seek medical help immediately and keep the person cool with fans, ice and water until help arrives.

Prevent heat-related illness among your employees

OSHA recommends that employers with workers exposed to high temperatures:

• Monitor conditions regularly and follow consistent work practices.
• Train your employees about signs and symptoms of heat exhaustion, as well as the importance of hydration – See our 5-Minute Solution on heat stress which is also available in Spanish.
• Provide breaks as needed by the conditions.
• Consider completing outdoor tasks either early in the morning or in the evening whenever possible.

Educate employees on how to prevent heat-related illness

Employees have a role to play in protecting themselves from heat-related illness. Educate your employees on prevention by telling them to:

• Adjust themselves to the heat through short exposure periods followed by longer exposure until their body is acclimated to the heat. It may take 14 days or longer.
• Drink lots of liquid to replenish the fluid that their body is losing through sweating. Drink water to stay hydrated (about 1 cup every 15 minutes), and electrolyte drinks (sports drinks) to replace salt. A 3:1 ratio of sports drinks to water is commonly recommended. Don’t wait to drink until you’re thirsty, and avoid alcohol and caffeinated beverages.
• Do not ignore possible symptoms of heat stress. If their muscles cramp or if they feel very hot, dizzy or nauseous, then they should stop, hydrate, rest and cool off in the shade or air-conditioned area.
• Wear light-colored and loose-fitting clothes. Cotton breathes better than synthetic fabrics.
• Schedule work activities during the coolest parts of the day.
• Take the time to rest and cool down before they feel symptoms of heat stress.
• Report symptoms of heat-related illness in themselves or coworkers to their supervisor immediately.

You or your supervisors can use SFM’s 5-minute solutions training talk on heat stress as a guide to talk with employees.

Use heat safety app to identify dangerous conditions

OSHA and the National Institute for Safety and Health have created a free heat safety mobile app to make employers and workers aware of whether the heat index in their area creates a risk for heat-related illness.

The app also provides recommendations for preventing heat stress based on the risk level.

Learn more about preventing heat-related illness among employees

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration offer a number of resources that can help you protect your employees from heat stress, including:

• OSHA’s Occupational heat exposure page
• CDC’s Heat and outdoor workers page
• CDC’s Heat-related illness page
• CDC’s Tips for preventing heat-related illness page
• National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health booklet, Occupational Exposure to Heat and Hot Environments

Maintaining neutral posture can go a long way in preventing injuries before they happen at work. Over the past couple of years many employees have shifted in how and where they work. Some are working more from home. Some are returning to a workplace after a long hiatus. Whether your employees are adapting to new workplace arrangements or haven’t seen much change at all, it’s a good time for a refresher on how to set up workstations ergonomically to prevent pain and strain.

How to maintain a neutral posture while sitting at work

No matter whether you’re working from a standing or seated position, the goal is to achieve a neutral body position.

Follow these six ergonomic tips for maintaining proper posture:

• Keep your feet resting comfortably on the floor or on a footrest.
• Your thighs should be fully supported by the chair seat, with your hips at a 90 to 110 degree angle.
• The backrest of your chair should support the natural curve of the back.
• Your upper arms should be resting comfortably at your side, with elbows at a 90 to 100 degree angle.
• Your head should be centered over your neck and shoulders.
• Don’t lean forward in your chair to avoid putting strain on the neck and back.

How to maintain a neutral posture while standing

Increasing numbers of desk workers are turning to sit-stand workstations, or standing desks.

Follow these seven tips to maintain an ergonomic posture while working at a standing desk:

• Feet should be resting comfortably on an even surface.
• Wear shoes with insoles.
• Stand on an anti-fatigue mat with beveled edges that sits flat on the floor.
• Keep your knees unlocked.
• Your upper arms should rest comfortably at your side, with elbows at a 90-100 degree angle.
• Wrists should be held straight, not pressing into the edge of a counter or table.
• Your head should be centered over your neck and shoulders.

Add movement: The 20-8-2 rule

Even after your workstation setup is optimized for your comfort, you shouldn’t sit there all day. If your job is predominantly sedentary, try to build in at least two hours of movement throughout the day.

The 20-8-2 rule offers a quick rule of thumb to remind you to change positions and get up and move. This “ideal work pattern” was pioneered by Dr. Alan Hedge, a professor of ergonomics at Cornell University.

For every half-hour of work:

• Sit for 20
• Stand for 8
• Stretch or move for 2

The frequency of position changes may be more important than the length of the break. Changing positions often will help you maintain focus and energy throughout your workday.

Workplace ergonomics tools that can help

There are a number of products available that you can purchase to help you and your employees work with a neutral posture. Many are inexpensive.

These include:

• Headsets
  Cradling a phone between your shoulder and neck can cause strain. If you need your hands free while using the phone, try using a headset instead.
• Mouse bridges / keyboard cushions
  Keyboards should be set flat, and your wrists should be raised and level, resting on a cushion. Avoid placing your wrists on the edge of the table or desk. This also applies when using a mouse. Your keyboard and your mouse should both be in easy reach.
• Adjustable monitor stands
  Use adjustable monitor stands to keep the screen of your monitor at eye level, or slightly below eye level for those who use bifocals. They are usually inexpensive and easy to use. Center the monitor in front of your keyboard.
• Document holders
  Instead of looking at a piece of paper lying flat on the table, use a document holder to keep the page in line with your computer, keeping everything at eye level. This will prevent excessively bending your neck, and it’s easier to read.
• Risers
  A riser is a wedge-shaped product that can be placed on the floor under the desk. If the height adjustment on your chair leaves your feet unable to touch the ground, use a riser to give yourself a footrest. They are adjustable and inexpensive, and they take the weight off your upper thighs and reduce pressure from the chair edge.
• Adjustable chairs
  Making sure your chair is the right size is one of the easiest ways to improve comfort. Make sure the height, seat, arms and recline are all adjustable. If the table or counter you work at isn’t adjustable, be sure to set the height of your chair so that your arms rest comfortably at your sides and don’t press into the edge of the table or counter. Adjust your chair so that you maintain neutral positions.
• Sit-stand workstations
  Sit-stand workstations can help keep you from sitting all day long, but it’s important to shift between sitting and standing. Switching to standing all day won’t prevent strains and pains — it just moves them to different areas. Going back and forth between the two throughout the day is the best way to utilize sit-stand workstations. When choosing a sit-stand workstation, ensure the desk goes low enough to reach your ideal height when seated, which is the measurement from your elbows to the floor when sitting with feet flat to the floor and shoulders relaxed.

Alternative workstations and laptop ergonomics

Using a laptop or mobile device can make it harder to achieve a neutral posture, so here are some additional tips for laptop and tablet ergonomics. If you’re have a treadmill desk or standing desk, consider the risks and benefits of alternative workstations.

Download and print a PDF of these workplace ergonomics tips and keep them handy so you remember how to maintain a neutral posture and keep active at work.

As a workers’ compensation insurer serving 250 school districts, we’ve learned a lot about school employee injuries and how to prevent them.

Common injuries among school employees

According to SFM claim data, here are a few school employee injury statistics:

• 40% of workers’ compensation claims among school employees involve students
• The most common student-related injuries are due to students acting out (64% of injuries related to student interaction)
• The most common causes of injuries to school employees are due to being struck (34%), slips/trips/falls (27%) or strains (23%)
• The most common injuries to school employees are fractures/contusions (59%), sprains/strains (23%), and punctures/lacerations (11%)

For more statistics, see our fact sheet on occupational injuries in schools.

Ways to avoid work injuries among school employees

There are a number of things school districts can do to prevent common employee injuries including:

• Encourage staff to “Facilitate, don’t participate“
  Participating in physical activities puts teachers, paraprofessionals and coaches at risk for serious injuries. Instruct staff to focus on demonstrating and teaching skills versus actively participating in play. Remind them that they are responsible for their own safety. Download our Facilitate, don’t participate 3-Minute Solution for more details. 
• Promote a hands-off approach to dealing with students who are acting out
  For more details, download our de-escalation team training talks for schools and alternative intervention and de-escalation tactics training talk.
• Prevent winter slips and falls
  Snow- and ice-related slips and falls are a leading cause of school employee injuries. Remind your employees about the increased risk of slips and falls in winter, and how to prevent them with an educational campaign throughout the season. SFM offers a number of free winter slip-and-fall prevention resources.
• Provide supervisor initiated training
  SFM offers free downloadable safety training talks for schools, broken down by job category (such as buildings and grounds, food service, etc.). These talks are simple and quick to present, and help keep the staff focused on safety.
• Tell staff to get up and move
  Employees who stay in a static position all day long put themselves at greater risk for strain and sprain injuries. Encourage them to take short breaks throughout the day to move around. They can use this warm up and stretching poster for ideas of movements that will help them avoid strains.
• Get fit and exercise
  Employees who work with their arms in front of them all day, such as food service workers, are at risk for shoulder injuries. SFM developed a program called Get Fit and Exercise, which focuses on shoulder strengthening to prevent injuries. Anyone can benefit from the program, but it’s especially good for building and grounds crews and food service staff.