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We have all heard someone say in the workplace, “it is not my problem” or “that is not my job.”  They may have been referring to a coworker not following rules, someone doing a task wrong, or a hazard left by someone in the work area. Regardless of what the circumstances are, all of these scenarios affect everyone in the company.

Why it is Your Problem

No matter what the basic issue is, someone does not follow safety rules or a hazard created by a coworker; it will affect you if an incident occurs. The ripple effect from an injury usually most greatly affects the individual’s family. However, it also will affect all of the workers in that workplace, the job site, and the company as a whole. This idea can sound extreme, but we will look at the construction industry for an example.

Injury Rates Affect All

Injury rates affect both how much a company has to pay for insurance as well as a company’s ability to bid work. Many larger companies will not allow a contractor to bid any work for them after they exceed a certain injury rate. If a bidding contractor has a higher-than-average injury rate, or even just not a best-in-class rate, then they may not be allowed to bid the work at all. This practice occurs due to general contractors wanting to limit their own liability when completing a project.

If the company is not able to bid on new work or even lose existing jobs due to incidents and injuries, then it will affect you or your coworkers. More immediate effects of an injury include loss of hours or job shutdown. After an injury occurs, even minor ones, many companies will stop work to complete an investigation. If the injury or incident is more serious, then there can be a few days where work is stopped to complete a thorough investigation.

Summary

We took a selfish approach to why it is your problem when there is an unsafe condition, or someone is working unsafely. You should want a safe workplace outside of your own good and interests for all involved. However, remembering that it does truly affect you and the company as a whole when something is not right will encourage you to own whatever the hazard is and see it through so that it gets corrected. Keep this thought in your mind as you go to work today and share it with your coworkers.

There is so much noise and distraction in the world around us. Whether it is at home or at work, we have so much on our minds as well as things going on around us that we can miss a lot of important details. It is critical to slow down and be able to observe the environment around you while are at work to be able to perform tasks safely.

Being Observant

How many times have you tripped over something you did not see or turn around and get startled because someone was in your area that you were not aware of? It happens to many of us often. Depending on what is preoccupying our mind, our emotions, the distractions around us, the noise levels in our area, etc., will determine how much of our ability to be observant is affected. The less able we are to be observant, the higher our chances are of being injured on the job by an unrecognized hazard.

How to Improve on Being Observant at Work

• Eliminate distractions from your work area. Whether it is someone talking to you or excessive noise, try to get rid of anything distracting you from your work. Also, consider good housekeeping practices as a tool to eliminate unnecessary distractions in your work areas.
• Take the time before starting a task to stop and look around your work area. Really focus on the different tools or equipment in that area. Are there hazards you are missing? Do you have everything you need?
• While completing a work task, monitor your thoughts. Is your mind truly on the task? For example, think of a time when you were driving and can barely remember the trip. How observant do you think you were while operating your vehicle?

Quick Exercise

Get out a regular number two pencil and look at it. If there is not a pencil around, look at another basic object, such as a cup. Begin to name off observations you have about the pencil or object. If you cannot think of more than ten characteristics of the pencil or object, you can improve on being observant. Sure it is a simple exercise, but it provides insight into how many small details we are truly glancing over as we go throughout our day.

Some hints for exercise: Color of pencil, color of tip, is the tip sharp or dull, length, lettering, color of lettering, eraser, eraser size, marks on it, weight, is it straight or bent, does it roll evenly on a table, etc.

1. Get a grip. To have adequate snow traction, a tire requires at least 6/32-inch-deep tread, according to The Tire Rack. (New passenger-car tires usually have 10/32-inch of tread.) Ultrahigh performance “summer” tires have little or no grip in snow. Even “all-season” tires don’t necessarily have great snow traction: Some do; some don’t. If you live where the roads are regularly covered with snow, use snow tires (sometimes called “winter tires” by tire makers). They have a “snowflake on the mountain” symbol on the sidewall, meaning they meet a tire-industry standard for snow traction.

2. Make sure you can see. Replace windshield wiper blades. Clean the inside of your windows thoroughly. Apply water-shedding material (such as Rain-X) to the outside of all windows, including the mirrors. Make sure your windshield washer system works and is full of an anti-icing fluid. Drain older fluid by running the washers until new fluid appears: Switching fluid colors makes this easy.

3. Run the air conditioner. To remove condensation and frost from the interior of windows, engage your air-conditioner and select the fresh air option: It’s fine to set the temperature on “hot.” Many cars automatically do this when you choose the defrost setting.

4. Check your lights. Use your headlights so that others will see you and, we hope, not pull out in front of you. Make sure your headlights and taillights are clear of snow. If you have an older car with sand-pitted headlights, get a new set of lenses. To prevent future pitting, cover the new lens with a clear tape like that used to protect the leading edge of helicopter rotor blades and racecar wings. It’s available from auto-racing supply sites.

5. Give yourself a brake. Learn how to get maximum efficiency from your brakes before an emergency. It’s easy to properly use antilock brakes: Stomp, stay and steer. Stomp on the pedal as if you were trying to snap it off. Stay hard on the pedal. Steer around the obstacle. (A warning: A little bit of steering goes a very long way in an emergency. See Tip 8.) If you drive on icy roads or roads that are covered with snow, modify your ABS technique: After you “Stomp” and the ABS begins cycling — you will feel pulses in the pedal or hear the system working — ease up slightly on the pedal until the pulsing happens only once a second.

For  vehicles without ABS, you’ll have to rely on the old-fashioned system: You. For non-ABS on a mixed-surface road, push the brake pedal hard until the wheels stop rolling, then immediately release the brake enough to allow the wheels to begin turning again. Repeat this sequence rapidly. This is not the same as “pumping the brake.” Your goal is to have the tires producing maximum grip regardless of whether the surface is snow, ice or damp pavement.

6. Watch carefully for “black ice.” If the road looks slick, it probably is. This is especially true with one of winter’s worst hazards: “black ice.” Also called “glare ice,” this is nearly transparent ice that often looks like a harmless puddle or is overlooked entirely. Test the traction with a smooth brake application or slight turn of the wheel.

7. Remember the tough spots. Race drivers must memorize the nuances of every track, so they can alter their path for changing track conditions. You must remember where icy roads tend to occur. Bridges and intersections are common places. Also: wherever water runs across the road. I know people who lost control on ice caused by homeowners draining above-ground pools and by an automatic lawn sprinkler that sprayed water onto a street in freezing temperatures.

8. Too much steering is bad. If a slick section in a turn causes your front tires to lose grip, the common — but incorrect — reaction is to continue turning the steering wheel. That’s like writing checks on an overdrawn account: It won’t improve the situation and may make things worse. If the icy conditions end and the front tires regain grip, your car will dart whichever way the wheels are pointed. That may be into oncoming traffic or a telephone pole. Something very similar happens if you steer too much while braking with ABS. Sadly, there are situations where nothing will prevent a crash, but turning the steering too much never helps.

9. Avoid rear-tire slides. First, choose a car with electronic stability control. Fortunately, ESC will be mandatory on all 2012 models. Next, make sure your rear tires have at least as much tread as your front tires. Finally, if you buy winter tires, get four.

10. Technology offers no miracles. All-wheel drive and electronic stability control can get you into trouble by offering a false sense of security. AWD can only help a vehicle accelerate or keep moving: It can’t help you go around a snow-covered turn, much less stop at an icy intersection. ESC can prevent a spinout, but it can’t clear ice from the roads or give your tires more traction. Don’t let these lull you into overestimating the available traction.

Regardless of your driving skill or vehicle preparation, there are some winter conditions that can’t be conquered. But these tips may help prevent snowy and icy roads from ruining your day.

https://safetytoolboxtopics.com/Seasonal/10-winter-driving-tips.html

We use our hands for virtually every task we do at work, and because of this fact, they are commonly injured on the job. Keeping our hands and fingers out of harm’s way at work is critical. A serious injury to an individual’s hands or fingers results in a huge negative impact on their ability to work and overall quality of life. While safety gloves are the most common form of personal protective equipment (PPE) found in the workplace, hand injuries are still the second leading type of injury on the job.

Hand Injury Statistics
(source: www.bls.gov)

• There are 110,000 lost time cases due to hand injuries annually.
• 1 million workers are treated in an ER for hand injuries annually.
• 70% of workers who experienced a hand injury were not wearing gloves.
• Another 30% of victims had gloves on, but they were damaged or inadequate for the work task.

Three Common Types of Hand Injuries

1. Lacerations are the most common type of hand injury. Lacerations are due to sharp objects or tools. Often, inadequate gloves are used during an activity that involves a sharp tool. A glove with Kevlar is effective in protecting the hand against a cutting or slicing motion. A straight stab motion can still easily penetrate these gloves. Caution needs to be used when using sharp objects and any tools that can easily penetrate the skin.
2. Crush injuries are usually due to employees placing their hands in the line of fire between two objects or on a rotating piece of equipment. Pinch points on equipment or tools also commonly lead to crush injuries.
3. Fractures occur when there is a sudden blow to the bones in the fingers or hands. Motor vehicle accidents often cause fractures to the hands. Another common cause of fractures is an individual extending out their hands to catch themselves from a fall.

Hand Safety Work Practices and Safety Procedures

• Use tools to remove your hands from the line of fire when doing a work task that could result in injury to your hands or fingers. Using tools such as push sticks when using a table saw is an example that removes your hands from the line of fire.
• Avoid using fixed open-blade knives. There are safety knives that limit the length of the blade exposed. They also have a safety feature that retracts the blade when pressure is let off the handle or switch that controls the blade.
• Never put your hand in an area where you cannot see it.
• Wear gloves and hand protection. But not just any gloves. Always wear the appropriate work gloves for whatever task you are doing. Understand the limitations of your gloves and what work tasks they are appropriate for.
• Never work on an energized piece of equipment. Lock and tag out the equipment to ensure there will not be an unintentional start-up while you are working on it.

Discussion points:

• What are some of the biggest hazards to our hands onsite?
• Next time you are doing a simple task at home, such as setting the table for dinner, getting ready in the morning, or cleaning, try doing the task with one or two less fingers. It sounds like silly exercise, but this can help put into perspective how hard it would be to complete tasks without some of our fingers. It is easy to take for granted our health and abilities when we have had them for so long.

Every day before our work begins, we should go through some type of process to evaluate the work for the day as well as the associated hazards. This process can include a self-check as well as a work area inspection and inspection of tools or equipment. During this process, a main objective should be identifying hazards so that you can take steps to eliminate or mitigate the hazards found. One useful question to ask yourself before a work task begins is: “What can hurt me?”.

Asking this Question as a Tool

Sure, it may seem very dark and negative to ask yourself this right as your workday is starting or when starting a new work task, but it can be the difference in recognizing the hazard that could injure you or someone else that day. Asking this question should trigger you to stop and really look around your work area and consider what dangers you are dealing with. Identifying uncontrolled hazards should be a top priority before starting any work task. Taking ownership of these hazards and seeing them through to get corrected is necessary for a safe workplace.

Taking Ownership of Mitigating Hazards

Identifying hazards is not worth much if you do not see it through that they are properly addressed. Even if you spot something and make a mental note to avoid that hazard, it could seriously injure someone else in the area. Take the time and energy to properly mitigate the hazard so not only will you not be affected by it, but also your coworkers will not be either.

Summary

While a positive mindset and attitude are important for success in the workplace, asking yourself critical questions such as “what can hurt me today?” can trigger you to take the extra time to really evaluate a work task. Take ownership of hazards in your work area and see them through so that they get fixed. After all, you never know what safeguard or action may make the difference in preventing an injury.

Discussion point:

-What other questions are helpful to ask yourself before a work task begins?