Why Your Business Needs to Carry Out a Health Risk Assessment
Occupational health and safety regulations are set in place to protect the wellbeing of employees and customers too. An occupational risk assessment is an examination of the potential risks that are in the workplace. The assessment is used to determine if you have sufficient precautionary measures in place and whether or not your staff members are at excessive risk or not while carrying out their daily tasks and obligations.
The advantages of a good occupational health and safety strategy for your business can be tremendous. First and foremost, you will not suffer downtime or reduced productivity, employees will feel cared for and become more productive as a result, and you will avoid potential litigation. If your employees do fall ill or become injured, you can act quickly and ensure that they are provided with treatment promptly. Taking care of the best interests of your employees is important if you want your business to grow and expand at a steady pace in your industry.
The Legalities
As an employer, you have a legal obligation to ensure that regular and ongoing health risk assessments are carried out over the years. If hazards exist in the workplace, it does not mean that you have to close your doors for business. It simply means that you have to create a plan that mitigates the risk. This can involve educating employees on the risks and ensuring that you have various hazard prevention methods in place.
For instance, if your employees are at risk of chemical exposure, you can place warning signage at all the relevant areas, as well as provide the workforce with protective overalls and accessories to prevent illness or injury in the event of accidental exposure. Much the same, if heavy machinery has to be used in the work place to lift and move stock items, you must ensure that you train your employees on how to safely make use of equipment. You can also provide training on best-practice in the workplace to ensure that staff members think about the process of moving potentially heavy loads when others are in the area. Strategic planning is important to safety.
What Health Risk Assessments Involve
A professional health risk assessment needs to be thorough. What is involved will depend on the industry that your business operates in and the type of work environment that you have. Some popular focus areas and risk assessment services include:
- Air quality
- Noise pollution
- Dust
- Asbestos exposure
- Ventilation
- Thermal stress
- Lighting
- Water sampling
- Chemical exposure
- Vibration
It is best to chat with a professional occupational health and safety officer to learn more about the areas which need to be assessed within your business. At IOH Solutions, we have a team of professionals available to assist you with a thorough health risk assessment. Our main objective is to ensure that your business is always safe, healthy, and on the right side of labour law at all times. If you would like to chat with a professional about your situation and the types of assessments that we offer, simply get in touch with us. You can give us a call or send us an email for more information and advice today.