Precast Inc. - September/October 2008 - (Page 28) healthy manner. It also directly affects an employer’s cost for health insurance benefits. A world-class company recognizes the benefit to taking care of its employees for the long-term. So now the focus is shifting to home safety. The annual costs of home injuries are staggering, as discussed earlier, and the pain and lifestyle changes that affect an injured employee and family members can be more than they can bear. The Home Safety Council’s study found unintentional home injuries cause nearly 20,000 deaths and 21 million medical visits each year. A home injury resulting in a hospital stay costs an employer nearly $20,000 in addition to the stress and changes on the employee and family experiencing such an injury. More information on the Council is available at www.homesafetycouncil.org. Take action So what can a company do to help increase home safety with its employees? Start with having employees take current work safety practices home with them. Bring the subject up in safety meetings or crew meetings. When training an employee on a task, remind the employee that what he is learning at work also applies to tasks at home. Employers need to reinforce to employees that the rules are not simply for “obeying because OSHA says so” but because it makes good sense to not deliberately become exposed to known and existing hazards. Developing good work practices, whether at work or at home, are still good work practices. Check out these facts and insights concerning home safety: • According to the National Safety Council, more than 6,000 people die in the United States from falls in and around the home every year. Many more suffer disabling injuries. In Canada, falls 28 SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2008 | PRECAST INC. are the leading cause of injury and rank 6th in fatal injuries to the senior population. This translates into one out of three seniors falling every year with 85 percent of those falls resulting in hospitalization or long-term care. The No. 1 cause of these falls – 130,000 each year – involves falling from “ladders.” This includes real ladders as well as makeshift ladders. If an employee knows the hazards involved with ladders at work, those same hazards exist at home. • When using the wrong tool for a job or using the right tool the wrong way (screwdrivers make great chisels, but they aren’t chisels), a person sets up events that can alter the quality of life. So knowing how to perform tasks properly, regardless of the location, benefits everyone in getting the job done and living to see another job. • Provide a home safety section in the company newsletter. The information gets into the homes and can be reviewed by other family members, too. A resource available through Brickhouse of New York Inc. (www.safeathomeonline.com) of Westfield, N.Y., is a subscription to “Safe At Home” articles ready for placing in newsletters or to use as paycheck stuffers. Each article is only one page in length and addresses common and hidden hazards within and around the home with preventive tips to keep employees and their families safe. Written by an experienced safety professional who also has more than 25 years in emergency medical services, these articles are timely, relevant and to the point. • Another opportunity for employers to have employees “take the message home” is to provide certain types of personal protective equipment for employees to take and use at home. Allowing employees to take disposable ear plugs for use with lawn mowers, trimmers, chain saws or hobbyrelated equipment communicates to that employee that the employer cares about off-site safety as well as on-site safety. The PPE that is available for employees to remove from the site requires a clearly communicated message or policy Dreamstime Dreamstime http://www.safeathomeonline.com http://www.homesafetycouncil.org
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