Education

Noise Levels: Pick Six

Hearing damage, and the symptoms can take time to develop. You are likely to be exposed to different types and levels of noise during you work day.

Noise Levels: Pick SixVicky Pickford2018-12-11T00:00:00+00:00

Picture This: Hazards of Working Alone

There are several unsafe conditions in this image that could be harmful to any worker, but especially for a lone worker. Use the Picture This to spark discussion about the hazards of working alone and the precautions and procedures your organization has in place to protect lone workers.

Picture This: Hazards of Working AloneVicky Pickford2018-11-30T00:00:00+00:00

Injury and Illness Prevention Plan Self-Assessment

An Injury and Illness Prevention Program can help you save lives, save money, and comply with regulations.

Injury and Illness Prevention Plan Self-AssessmentVicky Pickford2018-11-30T00:00:00+00:00

Don’t Tempt Fate by Working Solo

The freedom of working alone sounds like a dream job for many, but the downside is there’s nobody around to help you if something goes wrong. Social workers, home care nurses, custodians, security guards and late-night convenience store clerks all face hazards from working solo. People might not be able to hear your calls for help and come to your rescue when you work alone.

Don’t Tempt Fate by Working SoloVicky Pickford2018-11-30T00:00:00+00:00

Safety Video Loop – Q1

This video is the perfect way to introduce new employees to general occupational hazards to which they may be exposed and to re-train experienced workers. Program includes basic safety rules, electrical hazards, powered equipment and machinery, back injury prevention, fire protection and more.

Safety Video Loop – Q1Vicky Pickford2018-11-13T00:00:00+00:00

Focus On: Program Evaluation and Improvement – Leading and Lagging Indicators

You should be evaluating your safety program on a regular basis - at least annually – to determine what is working and what’s not and whether the program is on track to meet its goals. Tracking and analyzing leading and lagging indicators are one effective way to monitor the performance and progress of your safety program.

Focus On: Program Evaluation and Improvement – Leading and Lagging IndicatorsVicky Pickford2018-11-09T00:00:00+00:00

Article: Four Types of Meeting Participants

It can be tricky dealing with the various personality types, levels of experience, and differing backgrounds of meeting participants. You can’t always predict what their reaction will be, and you may not have advance knowledge of who will be in attendance, but you can still prepare. One way is by understanding the four general types of meeting participants you’re likely to encounter and how best to interact with them. You may also encounter entire groups that have these characteristics – the response is the same.

Article: Four Types of Meeting ParticipantsVicky Pickford2018-11-06T00:00:00+00:00

Article: A Better Way to Onboard

In a 2013 webinar former, OSHA administrator David Michaels said, “We have known for decades that new workers, when they first start at a new job, are at greatly increased risk of injury – and we know why: New workers are often not adequately trained in the potential hazards at the new jobsite and the measures they can take to protect themselves.” And yet, according to the Toronto-based Institute for Work & Health, only 1 out of 5 new workers receives safety training.

Article: A Better Way to OnboardVicky Pickford2018-11-04T00:00:00+00:00

Put a Safe Foot Forward

Slips, trips and falls are among the leading causes of workplace injuries. They occur when housekeeping procedures aren’t followed and enforced, when you rush or fail to pay attention to what you’re doing and where you’re walking, when you don’t wear the right kind of footwear, and when stairways, parking lots, and other walking and working surfaces aren’t well-maintained.

Put a Safe Foot ForwardVicky Pickford2018-11-01T00:00:00+00:00

Workplan: Manual Materials Handling

Lifting, pushing, pulling and carrying heavy objects remains a fundamental job task in just about all industries and work settings. Performing these tasks – typically referred to as “manual materials handling” – puts workers at risk of musculoskeletal disorders (aka, “MSDs”), or serious and painful injuries to the back, limbs, joints and muscles. This Workplan outlines four steps you can implement over a 30-day period to prevent MSDs along with the insurance, citations, productivity, and other liabilities that can result.

Workplan: Manual Materials HandlingVicky Pickford2018-11-01T00:00:00+00:00

Picture This: Lift with…Care?

Manually moving materials is one of the quickest and the most prevalent way to injure your back. Back injuries are painful for the worker and costly for the employer. To reduce back injuries at work, it is important to find and avoid risk factors that increase the chance of injury.

Picture This: Lift with…Care?Vicky Pickford2018-10-31T00:00:00+00:00

Picture This: Racking and Stacking

Warehouse racks and material stacks are nothing to take lightly. A damaged rack can lead to hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost and damaged inventory. Then there are the injuries and fatalities caused if the racks and materials fall. Your co-workers, delivery drivers, and even customers can be injured and killed if a rack or material falls.

Picture This: Racking and StackingVicky Pickford2018-10-31T00:00:00+00:00

Shape Up For Safety

Did you know your mental, physical, and emotional fitness is part of a safe work environment? If you are fit and healthy, you are likely to have more energy and stamina.

Shape Up For SafetyVicky Pickford2018-10-30T00:00:00+00:00

Near Misses – What’s the Big Deal?

Near misses make up more than half of the incidents that occur in workplaces. A near miss is an unplanned event that did not result in injury, illness, or damage but had the potential to do so. A near miss needs attention, as they are a warning that conditions are right for a possible accident.

Near Misses – What’s the Big Deal?Vicky Pickford2018-10-26T00:00:00+00:00

Look Up for Overhead Dangers

Some of the worst hazards in any work area are the ones you don’t see - because they’re above you. What’s at stake is your life, and there are two basic ways you could lose it: electrocution or falling objects.

Look Up for Overhead DangersVicky Pickford2018-10-25T00:00:00+00:00

The Basics of Electricity

Electricity is the movement of electrons between atoms. In their normal state, electrons in a conductor such as copper, freely and randomly move from atom to atom.

The Basics of ElectricityVicky Pickford2018-10-25T00:00:00+00:00

Emergency Action Plan Checklist

Most workplaces are required to establish and implement an Emergency Action Plan. Use this Checklist to determine if your EAP includes all required elements – or to help create a new EAP.

Emergency Action Plan ChecklistVicky Pickford2018-10-23T00:00:00+00:00

Workplan: Emergency Planning and Response

Fire, natural disaster, and other emergencies can strike your workplace without warning at any time. While you can’t predict them, you can prepare for them and preparedness save lives, prevent injuries and limits property damage. If that’s not motivation enough, being prepared for workplace emergencies may save your business thousands and even hundreds of thousands in safety fines avoided.

Workplan: Emergency Planning and ResponseVicky Pickford2023-11-30T22:09:18+00:00

Tool: Questionnaire – How Prepared Are You for an Emergency?

Knowing what to do in an emergency (fire, chemical spill, natural disaster, etc.) helps evacuation move quickly and safely, allows for the quick contact of emergency services, prevent further destruction, and save lives. Use this Questionnaire to quiz workers on how they would respond in an emergency. Their answers and feedback will help you identify holes in your emergency planning programs and your training. You can edit it to fit the specific needs of your organization.

Tool: Questionnaire – How Prepared Are You for an Emergency?Vicky Pickford2018-10-23T00:00:00+00:00

Imperial Chicken Plant Fire

Imagine being at work when suddenly the lights go out and someone starts yelling, “There’s a fire! We need to get out of here! This place is on fire!” Imagine fumbling your way in the dark and the smoke to an exit…only to find it was locked…from the outside. This is exactly what happened to Lilly Davis and 80 other workers on September 3, 1991 at the Imperial Foods chicken processing plant.

Imperial Chicken Plant FireVicky Pickford2018-10-21T00:00:00+00:00

Know Your Enemies: Workplace Hazard

If you and your friends were facing a dangerous, deceptive enemy, you'd want to find out all you could about the enemy and share any information you come up with. The fact is you do have such a treacherous enemy—the workplace hazard. And this enemy threatens you and your co-workers daily.

Know Your Enemies: Workplace HazardVicky Pickford2018-10-20T00:00:00+00:00

Fatigue at Work Can Kill You

You’re an accident waiting to happen if you are not alert at work. This applies to most high-risk jobs, trucking and transport jobs, repetitive jobs, such as sorting logs in a lumber mill, and a host of other jobs – regardless of the inherent risk level.

Fatigue at Work Can Kill YouVicky Pickford2018-10-19T00:00:00+00:00

Distractions Derail Safety

The ever-increasing use of smartphones finds most of with our heads down staring into the glow of text messages, games, tweets, twitters, selfies and more. One of the downsides to this obsession is that people mistakenly think they can perform their jobs safely while they use these devices.

Distractions Derail SafetyVicky Pickford2018-10-18T00:00:00+00:00

Industrial Ergonomics Hazards Assessment Checklist

Adapt and use this Hazards Assessment to determine areas of potential and existing ergonomic and materials handling concerns.

Industrial Ergonomics Hazards Assessment ChecklistVicky Pickford2018-10-17T00:00:00+00:00

Ergonomic Injury Record Review

To root out ergonomic injuries you must be proactive. The first step is to do a record review and create a “snapshot” of worker injuries, so you can analyze causes and identify trends. Here’s a form you can adapt and use at your workplace to perform an effective records review.

Ergonomic Injury Record ReviewVicky Pickford2018-10-16T00:00:00+00:00