Construction
is the industry with the most injuries and fatalities in the United States. To
make the industry safer and cut the number of employee injuries and fatalities,
the federal government, state governments and even local government passed laws
mandating safety committees, their make-up, and even meeting content.
Nevertheless, there are many reasons why construction companies should embrace
safety committees.
How Safety
Committees Benefit Construction Companies
Talk to a
safety professional and you soon realize that the most effective committees are
committees that involve members from every level of the company or a company
facility or job site.
When
company executives and laborers and everyone between them participate, safety
committees help prevent unsafe work practices and environments. Committees also
cut employee exposure work-related injuries and illnesses. These accomplishments
spur other employees to get involved in the company’s workplace injury and
illness programs.
An active
safety committee shows employees that the company care about employee health
and safety; itself a motivator that improves productivity.
Another bottom
line enhancer is that a strong safety record cuts workman’s compensation claims
and in turn, reduces workman’s comp premiums.
When safety
records are impressive, construction job sites are safer and accidents to
visitors and passersby go down. In turn, premiums for commercial general
contractor policies may plateau or even go down.
Moreover, a
safe workplace record impresses project owners and makes a construction company
a more attractive candidate for selection.
Measuring
Safety Committee Value
Many
companies mistakenly undervalue the value of environmental health and safety
programs (EHS). Companies usually do not measure EHS correctly if at all. But,
by using standard tools in the toolbox of business managers and in a way that
executives understand company financial statements. Results of EHS can
integrate and display as part of the overall EHS business strategy. Some
popular tools used by EHS professionals to measure the return on investment
(ROI) of EHS include:
- Six Sigma
- EMS/ISO
1400
- Baldwin Measurement
OSHA offers
a tool called Safety
Pays that helps figure out the ROI for a company’s safety program.
No matter
what tool a company uses, construction companies that are committed to safety
almost always sees a higher ROI for its efforts when compared to companies for
which the safety committee is simply a means for compliance.