Bringing Some Health Into Your Safety Part 2 of 2

Bringing Some Health Into Your Safety Part 2 of 2

That being said, it doesn’t mean we should give up ways to improve the health of your workers. Now, let’s take a look at a few things that could be done to improve items within our “health” definition, but without overreaching with workers though most of them fall under the realm of simply educating and training.

Take for instance training:  While employers can’t control decisions at home, they can help to suggest healthy habits that will help workers be in better health for their work. Posters that instruct workers to make sure they’re well-rested before coming in to operate machinery is one good example. Again, employer might keep information on healthy eating in the break room, coffee shop or other areas so that workers can peruse at their time.

Extra-Curricular Activities:  Employers can make the conscious decision to take some work time out each week to do some of the healthy activities which employees might do on their own to keep them in good health. Weekly sports and extended lunch break to go play some games readily come to mind. Getting tax exempt subsidies for renting sports facilities for employee outings might also improve workplace morale and keep health of employees top.

Lunch time buffet:  Employers with favorable profit margin could bring in a healthy lunch for employees once or twice per month. This will not only be a health-conscious eating option, but it may expose workers to new types of food that they may end up seeking out later though they wouldn’t have on their own. This could also generate some goodwill with employees who always like to be treated like kings by their employers.

The Recruitment Process:  While there are strict laws about employment, there are ways to limit our risk from the beginning, for example some employers simply do not hire smokers, as they are more likely to have health complications. Though it is dubious, the same could apply to not hiring obese people, who are not a protected class. However things like gender, sexual orientation – in some states, disability, etc., are protected.

Of course, just the notion of “don’t hire someone because of their weight” might give you a knot in your stomach, and there’s no telling which way future legislation will take us, so it may be best to not focus on the hiring processes.

In any case, these are a few things you can delve into to help shift from focusing exclusively on “safety” to putting some weight behind “health”. In the end, however, try to be able to recognize the things you can’t change or have no control over and avoid putting too much effort into them. Enjoy the successes as they come, no matter which side of the health/safety coin they fall on.

Finally, the health and safety of an establishment is as important as the environment within which the business exist and the employers and employees reside, do your best to be fair on all three sides – Health, Safety, Environment. Thank you