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It is an unfortunate truth that every year people are injured and even killed at work. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were 2.8 million recorded injuries and illnesses and 5,486 fatalities in 2022. Countless working days are lost annually through work-related accidents and illnesses, as well as practically unquantifiable losses in terms of trust, productivity, and internal and external company resources. What follows is a guide to help organizations of any size and of any sector carry out effective and efficient health and safety investigations, identifying what went wrong and proactively creating measures to discover and mitigate existing risks.
We recommend that management teams take steps immediately on their own, and should they want to optimize their operational health and safety, contact specialists offering safety consultant services such as the SP Group to help formulate the best plans and procedures.
Workplace incidents refer to any undeliberate or unplanned event that causes harm or potential harm. Many people use the term incident and accident interchangeably, but according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, an “accident” implies that an event is random and not able to be prevented. Since nearly all worksite fatalities, injuries, and illnesses are preventable, OSHA has suggested using the term "incident" instead.
Workplace incidents can occur in any sector, from construction and manufacturing to hospitality and agriculture. Some industries may be at a higher risk of workplace incidents, such as those involving extensive physical labor and the use of heavy machinery, but it is certainly not limited to those.
Categorizing the different types of incidents that can happen within your specific organization will help to effectively create means and modes of dealing with risks.
The 10 most common types of workplace incidents are:
Investigation of workplace incidents is an essential part of managing health and safety. Simply put, a workplace accident investigation is a procedure undertaken by an organization to gather information, analyze collected information, identify risk control strategies, and create an action plan for dealing with current and future incidents.
Conducting investigations into workplace incidents is critical for a variety of reasons, but the primary ones are documentation and future prevention.
By carrying out workplace investigations, each incident can be properly documented for legal and operational history. Organizations need to have a record of what, when, where, and how an incident occurred for their records in order to manage internal and external relations, such as cooperating with government oversight agencies or providing evidence to a lawsuit.
Furthermore, incident investigations can bolster efforts to prevent future incidents from occurring. Trend analysis of and accurate information about previous incidents and near misses helps in the development of improvement objectives to reduce the risk that they will reoccur. It is vital that an organization can document and prove they’ve taken reasonable steps to prevent future accidents from occurring - failing to do so could lead to legal liability.
In summary, there are a number of advantages to carrying out an accident investigation:
Incident investigations can be complex and should involve several different individuals including management, specially trained investigators, and legal personnel.
The process for conducting investigations can be broken down into five general steps, however, each organization may require specifically curated investigation procedures.
Securing the scene of the incident includes providing immediate first aid and medical assistance to any individuals involved, as well as preserving all evidence. The use of cones, barriers, and supervision is likely to be necessary. Non-physical incidents should include securing and protecting that individual from further damage, as well as securing the source of said damage.
Every incident varies in its proportion and severity. Oftentimes, a specialized team will need to consult on how best to carry out an investigation to ensure that it is both comprehensive and thorough enough.
The next part of the investigation involves the gathering of information and evidence. This could include securing pictures, videos, CCTV footage, interviews of affected and non-affected workers, inspections, maintenance logs, and training histories.
Along with this evidence, it is helpful to gather a description of the events, details of damaged individuals and property, and even casual, seemingly unrelated factors surrounding the incident. The goal is to gather as much information as possible.
After all information and evidence have been collected, specialized teams must analyze the data to determine the root cause of the accident. Sometimes the cause is obvious, such as a loose wire that caused someone to trip, but more often than not, the incident is usually caused by a complex chain of events. All data must be analyzed with an unbiased perspective by individuals with no stake in the outcome.
The conclusion of the investigation involves documenting and sharing the results in a report. But, quite importantly, the closing of the investigation should also include implementation of corrective and preventive action - this too should be documented.
Beyond conducting thorough and effective investigations, there are several other steps you can take to minimize the number and severity of future workplace incidents. We recommend carrying out regular risk assessments, providing safety and wellness training to all employees on a regular basis, hiring qualified personnel (including a physical assessment for roles that are demanding), and keeping your workplace clean and obstruction-free.
OSHA has several laws and regulations that organizations must follow in order to maximize the wellness of their employees. They also have a plethora of resources for organizations and their management to get ideas about ways to optimize their company’s policies.
A health and safety consultant offers professional advice and guidance to organizations, employers, and employees. In the modern workplace, many thriving companies utilize a third-party in order to ensure the utmost safety and protection of their stakeholders.
The benefits of hiring safety consultant services include:
Regardless of the size, industry, or experience of your organization, you can rely on The SP Group to be your trusted partner for occupational health and safety services. From providing support for compliance with OSHA, as well as local building, fire, and mechanical codes, we are leaders in safety consultation, servicing companies all across the United States. If your company needs the help of an expert safety consultant, or if you simply have more questions, contact the team at SP Group today!
According to The International Ergonomics Association, ergonomics is “the scientific discipline concerned with the understanding of interactions among humans and other elements of a system, and the profession that applies theory, principles, data, and methods to design in order to optimize human well-being and overall system performance.”
Simply put, ergonomics is a science, discipline, profession, and solution for the single purpose of improving the ‘fit’ between people and their work. Ergonomics, and ergonomic consultants more specifically, aim to make sure that tasks, equipment, information, and the environment suit each worker.
Ergonomics is an incredibly important addition to workplace health. Applying ergonomics:
Ergonomics can reduce the potential for health issues developed at work, such as aches and pains in the wrists, shoulders, and back. For many people, the workplace is where they spend the majority of time throughout the week which means it should be suited to their body’s needs to prevent the development of issues over prolonged periods of time.
Some examples of ergonomics include:
Most people think of ergonomics as the way in which their physical body can best be accommodated and supported, but it actually extends into social, organizational, and psychological aspects of the individual and the workplace as well. For example, the amount of work that needs to be done (too much or too little), inadequate social support, deadlines, lack of access to the natural environment, poor air quality, and decreased aesthetic visual quality, can all have negative effects on the worker and how well they are able to complete their work safely and effectively.
Companies and organizations often seek the advice of an ergonomics consultant to improve the important aspects of their respective workplace or office.
Whether you choose to rely on the help of an ergonomics consultant or an in-house specialist, the first step is to develop a thorough and actionable plan to holistically improve a company’s workplace. A common ergonomics program will include the following steps of development:
By gathering information on the workspace, environment, common tasks, and most-used equipment, a company can better understand the needs of individual employees and how best to improve ergonomics.
Only after analyzing the work environments of each employee role can the company begin to identify the role-specific risks that are faced by a given worker. This includes recognizing what the biggest and most frequent risks are, whether physical, social, or psychological, and then mitigating, eliminating, or addressing those risks with actionable solutions. There are two ways to identify these risks: externally through an ergonomics consultant who can observe a worker carrying out their tasks through an experienced lens, and internally through interviews of the employees themselves so they can share their thoughts on aspects that may not be apparent or easily observable.
By identifying all ergonomic risks, control measures can be implemented. Again, this is usually done both externally and internally. Ergonomic experts have experience developing solutions to common workplace risks and can help innovate new ways of addressing industry, company, or even location-specific problems that employees may face. Similarly, incorporating ideas and suggestions of employees is often fruitful in identifying solutions that only someone running into the problem themselves could recognize.
Implementing an ergonomics program is usually not as simple as adjusting desk height or encouraging short rest breaks. Usually, as solutions are integrated into the workplace, there will be a degree of training required to get employees up to speed with new changes and the resources that are available to them. For example, informing employees of social and emotional welfare programs, how they work, and how to get involved with them will be a critical first step. A demonstration of new ergonomic work equipment (such as adjustable height desks and chairs) will also be important for implementation.
A successful ergonomics program is not complete on day one of its implementation. It’s also necessary to monitor and measure its effectiveness. Your safety specialist or ergonomic consultant will pay close attention to the results of the implemented program and the measured benefits. Having discussions with employees regarding how they feel about the new ergonomics program will also be key in understanding its real-world effect.
There are three main types of ergonomic solutions: physical, cognitive, and organizational.
Physical ergonomics are the most common and well-known form of ergonomics. It mainly deals with how the human body performs activities associated with work and the potential for physical injuries while maximizing on-site safety.
If physical ergonomics is not a priority for a company, there is a risk for workers to develop musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs). OSHA highlights that MSDs “affect the muscles, nerves, blood vessels, ligaments, and tendons… which can increase a worker’s risk of injury.”
Examples of physical risks include poor body positioning, prolonged body positioning, repetitive physical tasks, lifting heavy objects, and reaching overhead.
An example of a physical ergonomic solution is an adjustable height workstation. Depending on the type of labor involved, a workstation that is able to adjust the height of its surface eases unnecessary body pressure. Precision work can benefit from a raised surface height so a worker is not constantly bending over, while heavy-lift work benefits from a lower surface height so there is less lifting required and more space for the worker to leverage downward pressure.
Similarly, an adjustable height desk allows a worker who would otherwise be sitting in their desk chair throughout the entirety of their shift to be able to work from a standing position. By having the option to stretch their legs and work from a different body position, there is a decreased risk of MSDs from developing.
An adjustable height desk is one of many different ergonomic solutions that could be implemented into a workplace environment, and would likely be just one aspect of a detailed plan developed by an ergonomics consultant.
Cognitive ergonomics considers the limitations and work risks associated with mental processes like memory, perception, attention, motor response, and reasoning. Cognitive ergonomics solutions create methods of designing and arranging information and workflow to create a “light cognitive load’.
For example, an overload of critical steps to perform a job correctly that requires consistent memorization, reading, and re-reading by employees can create a heavy cognitive load. Also, if a work environment has low access to outdoor, recreational, or break space can lead to emotional difficulty.
Cognitive ergonomics solutions address these problems at the source. Creating simplified instructions, improving the flow of information sharing, and providing access to quiet spaces in the workspace can benefit an employee’s cognitive ability and load. Newer innovations, such as augmented reality devices, have been implemented into cognitive ergonomics solutions as well.
Organizational ergonomics deals holistically with the information learned about physical and cognitive ergonomic risks and applies solutions across the entire organization.
By optimizing communication, encouraging company-wide safety, and implementing easily accessible resources, a company can improve ergonomics in a scalable way.
This is one of the biggest benefits of hiring the help of an ergonomics consultant. It’s not just about the specific solutions that will make every employee’s job safer and more enjoyable, it’s about the ability to implement an ergonomics strategy in an efficient and effective manner that reaches all across an organization, enduring year after year.
An effective ergonomics program is critical for enhancing employee health, morale, and overall performance. At the SP Group, we understand that all organizations are different and the demands on their employees are equally diverse. If you’re looking for an experienced ergonomics consultant who can provide valuable guidance in creating a healthy and productive work environment, we invite you to give us a call. Contact the SP Group today for a free consultation.